We own a montego 25. It was neglected so we got it for $1000. It had good
sails, a non running but not frozen
yanmar, and a supposedly clean bottom. Here's what I can tell you:
1. The prev owner and an old
survey said it was shoal
draft, 3.5 ft. It had a 4.5 ft
draft.
2. The bottom was only cleaned down 12" from the
water line. The sail drive had never been cleaned. It still sailed great on a dirty bottom. The boat points up very well. It heals slowly and smoothly. If you're pushing it, it will heal over spill the
wind and slow down. Take a less agressive sheeting on the
genoa and she'll take off. The sail plan is very well balanced. The
rudder is VERY responsive even though it looks undersized compared to others. I love the way this little boat
sails. The mainsheet traveler is perfectly placed in front of companion way.
3. The
fiberglass gelcoat on the topside is poor. I've seen older boats that did a much better job. We found horizontal cracks in the middle of the keel on haulout. Rainwater in the
bilge had seeped down into the ballast over the years. The iron oxide expanded causing the stress cracks. The boat was not leaking. Upon repair we discovered the
fiberglass was very thick, 3x thicker than our vintage fiberglass man was expecting.
4. The space in the
cabin is huge for a 25 footer.
Engine access is not horrible. You climb in from a
cockpit locker.
Headroom is average, around six ft.
Electrical system is a joke.
In summary, you get what you pay for but sometimes it sails a lot better than you expected.
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