I think the overlapping joint with teak was done for cosmetic, not structural reasons (per Jerry's "History of the M-17 on the MSOG.org site) ... It was only an improvement insofar as anyone might prefer damage-prone teak to a perforated aluminum rail, and their fiberglass deck exposed to the dock (with the overlap), rather than having a built-in rubrail ... That said, I'm not trying to start an argument, just saying the aluminum-toe-rail boats are fine, extremely structural sound, models ... Mine was built when both the aluminum and teak were options, and, as much as I have a "classic boat aesthetic" and love lots of wood and bronze, I'm glad my boat's original owner chose aluminum. The perforations, the bullet-proof strength (stand on it while walking forward, don't worry about cosmetically marring it), the low maintenance and built-in rubrail are great features ...
----- Original Message ----- From: Rachel To: For and about Montgomery Sailboats Sent: Saturday, August 13, 2005 1:11 PM Subject: Re: M_Boats: Hull-deck joint Before I bought my M-17, I looked at one that had problems very similar to what you're describing. At least I think so, as I take your description: it had numerous scallop-shaped cracks on the outside of the hull, just below (some of) the bolts of the hull-deck joint. At first I thought it might just be cosmetic cracks in the gelcoat but then inside I could see evidence of persistent leakage running down the inside of the hull from the hull-deck joint area. I decided to keep shopping and although I never saw another with that much of a problem, I did see numerous boats of the older hull-deck design (pre-1981) that had sealants/caulks around the hull-deck joint, so I suppose the leaking was not a totally isolated problem. Note that in 1981 the hull-deck joint was changed/improved to one with overlapping flanges. At the same time there were a number of other changes/improvements - they cast new molds for the boat then, so it was a good opportunity. Just goes to show that there's always room for improvement, even in a great boat design like the Montgomery :-) That being said, I do like the aluminum toe-rails of the older designs - they're so handy and functional. I do believe that a few of the newer boats were made with them; perhaps it was an option on the earlier new-design boats. I think it was actually an expensive and labor-intensive toe-rail -- but I have a feeling the wooden rail was more popular with boat-buyers for cosmetic reasons. In the end it just so happened that I bought 1981 M-17 hull #334, which was the first of the new-toerail-design boats. Fatty Knees 7' #302 Former owner, M-17 #334 Former owner, M-15 #517 On Aug 13, 2005, at 11:45 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > The more I think about it, it seems pretty serious to me. Since the > cracking is below the bolts, it would seem to indicate major > structural weakness in the hull, just below the joint. Odd in a > well-built boat. How could this happen? > _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats
