Longfellow had a recent post over on the AI Forum about a potential problem from the Hobie wheel frame slipping sideways in the scupper holes and punching a hole through the hull, thereby flooding the interior of his AI.
http://www.hobiecat.com/community/viewtopic.php?t=7110
Although I have not had anything even remotely as serious as this problem, I have had a problem with the wheels getting stuck slightly, or occasionally dropping out of the scuppers when lifting the yak and wheels over an obstacle on the beach. No big ting, but there turned out to be a very simple solution, as Brad of Sunjammers has pointed out.
Over the past couple of years, I have been using a set of Starbrite 5/16x16 inch bungees with stainless steel hooks from Boat USA. I attach one end to the crossbar on the wheels and crimp it shut with a pair of heavy duty pliers.
The other end of the bungee is left stock and hooked over an eyepad from West Marine that I added to the hull. There is a stock eyepad inside the gunwale tray that will also work, but it requires a more extreme angle for the hook attachment and I thought it might stress the plastic eyepads or the eyepad screws more than necessary. It was also more difficult to attach and release the hook than what I show here.
Another feature of the above, is if you get a newer Hobie cart such as the Trax, it is a simple matter to transfer the bungees to the new cart and yer good to go. The frame dimensions are identical, although the wheel attachment setups are slightly different.
I had tried other bungees, but they were either too stretchy or not stretchy enough, or the hooks were not rustproof, or they were those large plastic jobs that would not insert thru the average eyepad. These Starbrite bungees turned out to be the right length and stiffness, and having SS fittings made them perfect for saltwater use. Just my $.02.
Dick
