Cheap hatch liner

OK let me say right off I did not come up with this idea but loved it so much I put it in my Outback. I don't like the price of the hatch liners for the Hobies and when I saw someone do this I had to do it. This is a flexible but sturdy bucket that can be found in the Wally world garden center. Just cut it to fit and slide it in. It fits like a charm and is made of a good thick flexible rubber. Here's what it looks like when I slip it in.

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Perception Caster and Proud owner of a 2012 Hobie Outback

Thank you!!

Wow - what a great fit! Looks like it should do the trick.

Might try this for my Oasis

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2011 Oasis - stock

I will definately be giving this a try for a cheap fix to things sliding around in the front hatch!

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Hobie Revo 13

Do you have a picture or a link of what it looked like originally before you cut it?

It is a round tub with two handles before you cut it. It fits like it was made for it, and it won't fall into the boat as long as you don't cut it too short. I made one with a lip but it's totally unnecessary and having no lip is the way to go.

It's outright theft in how much Hobie charges for theirs. Plastic is dirt cheap, and i'm surprised at some of the prices in the new accessories catalog.

I don't have anything against making a profit but some of the stuff i see them charging is beyond outrageous, i have to say i lost a bit of respect for them due to this very issue.

Profit is profit theft is theft. They take care of you but then turn around and stab you in the back it seems. $59.99 for a hatch liner, C,mon should be around $19.99, maybe $24.99 at the most. Material for it is pennies.

You don't fully understand the cost of doing business. We are not Walmart buying it all at VERY high volumes from China and selling at minimal margins to keep other small family owned businesses out of an area. Liners are US made. These are short run items... not garbage cans that every home needs. We have design and tooling costs as well. If we blow molded these by the 10's of thousands... the cost could be lower. We can't. We are a US company with a US labor team. We have a distribution and dealer network which requires a level of pricing between manufacturing and retail.

FYI... there was no price increase in this catalog.

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Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

I agree with Hobie. They simply don't sell at high volume. So custom parts for specific kayak designs are subject to short manufacturing runs, which eats into costs. Yet, even with that reality — when I thumb through their catalogue, I am quite pleased with the pricing of many of their offerings.

Given the above, sometimes a neat little work-a-round, like this bucket idea, trumps Hobie. And that's why I participate in these forums — to discover useful practical work-a-rounds by Hobie users.

I have paddled a Hobie product for 6 years now. I am amazed with the effort Hobie takes to redesign their wares. They didn't have to sink development money to take V1 drives to V2. They could have stayed with the old round screw knob drive attachment system over the "clip-ins", they could have kept the old pivot rudder system over the stow-and-go. But they take the effort to improve them. Go on. Compare a six-year old Outback to the latest model. Just about everything (even the below water-line hull shape) has changed, and ALL for a better user experience.

Plus their warrentee service can't be beat. I rate them right up there with Apple as one of the finer companies to deal with. And I have had TWO free replacement hulls to prove it.

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Absolute kayaking corrupts absolutely.

I rate them above Apple, like Matt said...made in the USA. Don't need electricity or constant software updates either

That said I doubt I'll ever own a hatch liner, I'll bite on a boat for $1800 but not a $60 bucket.

It was a one time expense - I bought Hobie's liner. I expect it to last longer than I do.

I can, however, appreciate the cleverness of the original poster's idea.

Alright you guys convinced me i was wrong and i apologize. I can admit when i'm wrong.

It wasn't the original posters idea, i believe he said.

Well, after all the great things I said, and meant, about Hobie ...you're right about their hatch liner. $59.99???

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Absolute kayaking corrupts absolutely.

I still love Hobie and their products and have never been happier with another kayak like my Outback. I understand the cost of doing business. I have just run into a point in my life due to a cancer diagnosis that I have to save ever penny I can at this point and when I saw how cheap the guy who first did this made it I had to jump on it. I had also heard of a few people having problems with the bottoms cracking or breaking if things were dropped in a little hard. To me the cost savings was to great to pass up with the bills I'm no paying for Chemo therapy and Radiation treatments. Don't get me wrong I still buy most stuff when I can from Hobie for it just to have the proper fit and function. But I had to show this because it was such a simple idea that worked so well.

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Perception Caster and Proud owner of a 2012 Hobie Outback