Cooler for MONTAUK 17 that can Satisfy Nine Criteria Simultaneously

[davidj12866]

[Moderator's note: the initial form of this article revived a topic asking what cooler size would fit a MONTAUK 17 that had been dormant for over two years, then imposed nine criteria that a cooler would need to satisfy; the initial form of the post mentioned the multiple criteria in different sections of the original post. I have revised the post to ask its question with the required criteria listed in the order of my estimation of what is most easily satisfied first to the what is most difficult to satisfy last.]

Q1: For use on a 1981 MONTAUK 17, what cooler satisfies all of the following requirements:

1. may be of any brand;
2. may be of any color;
3. must create a forward seat;
4. may be of any stated internal capacity, but must permit [an unspecified number of] personal floatation devices in jacket form to be stowed inside;
5. must fit [as best as possible among all other available coolers] into the exiting deck chocks that were placed for the OEM cooler forward of the center console;
6. must have a top that fits [as best as possible among all other available coolers] to the dimension of a "standard" cooler cushion being sold by Specialty Marine;
7. must have an overall height with the cushion in place that allows the cooler top to open;
8. must have a sufficiently low height when the cooler top with cushion in place is closed that there will be no interference in fitting below the rod holders mounted on the forward face of the center console; and
9. must be currently available on the retail market [this was inferred and not explicitly stated].

ASIDE WITH SOME OBSERVATIONS [Moderator's note: these observations were also spread throughout the initial post.]

This topic is akin to beating a dead horse, yet this topic is simultaneously evolving.

Over the years the design of coolers [has been changed and then the changed design has been abandoned].

The design of IGLOO coolers has [changed].

I have [arbitrarily imposed on myself that there is will be] only one chance to correctly replace the existing cooler.

The requirements are [partially a] spatial problem.

[Moderator's note: the initial post sought to learn the number of people who possessed the answer to Q1; instead of conducting surveys of what knowledge is possessed by which readers, the question has been re-written to just simple seek an answer that satisfies the many criteria demanded.]

[jimh]

Right up to requirement number-9, I had the perfect cooler in mind--an original IGLOO 86-quart cooler.

Because you do not really need the cooler to be anything more than a seat and a locker, you should find an older IGLOO 86-quart cooler. Even if the cooler has some damage, you could easily repair it. IGLOO sells the hinges and the latch, and most other parts. You could make repairs and not worry if they color matched, because you could repaint the cooler.

You don't mention if you already have an old OEM IGLOO 86-quart cooler. If you do, you could just repair it and use it.

Also, those wood chocks on the deck are not immovable objects. If you found a cooler that satisfied all the other criteria, you could always move the chocks a bit to accommodate a slightly different bottom shape.