Sounds like a good buy on the Montgomery. You're certainly welcome to stay
on the list. In the Potter Yachters (the northern California Potter club),
we've always had a few Montgomery owners as well as Sirens and other
"microcruisers," and I've always admired the Montgomerys. They are salty
looking and probably better built boats than the Potters, and each boat has
advantages and disadvantages.
>This is the first I've heard of the P-15's being unstable if you go up on
>the bow (actually the original note was sent last week sometime). Can they
>really be destabilized and even tip over by going up on the foredeck and
>getting "goofy"? What about with the P19's? I've been all over the
>topsides on my M-15 and there's no way I can do anything to tip it by just
>putting my body in the wrong spot. Of course, it's a combination stub
>keel/centerboard design (with 275# ballast in the keel) that draws 15" with
>the board up. Maybe this is just a trade off for a boat with beachable
>draft.
Although the designer, Stanley Smith, does not recommend "tramping about
the foredeck" of a light 14 ft centerboard boat like the Potter, I've never
been aware of any problem and have been on the bow of my Potter 14 many
times in the 27 years I've owned her with no indication of stability.
Except for the recent incident you mention, I don't remember any other
reports of this "problem" either. I would be sure the centerboard is down
though when going forward, and I haven't been on the bow in rough
conditions.
>
>Answers? Thoughts?
>
>Regards,
>Eric
>Indiana
If you are anywhere around Muncie, you should look up my friend, Tom
Grimes. He has a gunter-rigged Potter and a Rob Roy.
Harry Gordon
P14 #234
Mountain View, CA