I suppose I could see going either way. On the one hand it is very easy to overload these boats aft. Maybe it’s worth keeping in there in case you want to, for example, mount solar panels on a rigid bimini, or keep an outboard motor on the aft rails. I do not have the lead ingots in mine and it is often a struggle to stay level with our cove stripe. Having extra people in the cockpit raises the bow a few inches and boat speed begins to struggle a bit. When I have others aboard, I stuff my tool bags and anything else heavy in the v-berth while under sail to counteract the effect.Thanks everyone for your answers. Would you say it's worth removing? I fear damaging the hull as stated by Terry.
Terry,Altho I may be wrong, I do not believe the hull halves were glassed on the outside, at least everywhere, which would have been gelcoated in the molds. When I did a bottom barrier coat job, we removed all the gelcoat and found a groove between the two hull parts from the waterline all the way down to the top of the fin. It had been filled with so me sort of putty. The yard put a few layers of glass over it.