Looking to buy my first hobie, would appreciate some advice

I am looking to purchase a used hobie as I used to race single hulls and always enjoyed multihulls more. I now have the opportunity to get back I to sailing so i have been scouring the classifieds looking for a deal here in Orlando.

I did come across one setup that looks in promising shape and would appreciate some advice. Here are some details.

- Hobie 16 from 1986
- still owned by the original owner who kept it in a warehouse for many years but is now under a tarp out back
- included aluminum trailer w/ new tires, wiring, and lights and a spare
- 2 sets of sails. One original and one brand new
- 2 masts, one is a little bent and the other is true
- newish harken blocks for main sail and jib.
- new rigging and main line
- rudders and tramp are original. Tramp and left rudder are in good working order and condition. Right rudder won't catch properly.
- hull looks in good condition. No significant discoloring, scrapes, etc. There are no stress marks or soft spots as far as I could tell. I did see some repairs on both hulls towards the front. When asked i was told there was a small crap in the gelcoat that was properly sanded down to fiberglass and repaired. The end result looks even and good for all that's worth.
- the boom looks well used but as mentioned the blocks are newish and the lined are brand new.

The boat has been sailed predominately in the Atlantic and gulf coasts of central Florida since 1987 but the owner is unable to sail it anymore. .

So. He wants $1800 for the whole deal with the originals sails and $2800 with he brand new sails. I don't know much beyond the basics so any help or advice would be appreciated.

Hi Reefing,

Sounds like a pretty good deal, if youre just starting out, maybe skip the new sails to keep the cost down. I sailed with my 20 year old sails for 2-3 years and only got some new ones when I started racing. As long as the old sails dont have major wear issues, fraying, bad repairs etc, the will serve you well till you get the hang of it. $1000 for a new main and jib is a pretty good deal, I think Hobie wants 1100 for a main and 600 for a jib, plus battens so they arent cheap. My first boat was an 88 that wasent in great shape line-wise, and rigging too now that i think of it. I ended up upgrading almost everything as I went along, for reliability and safetys sake first, and performance second ( thats what I told my wife anyway!) Its a great boat, youre going to have tons of fun!

Good Luck!

_________________
Blair T

I love these calm moments before the storm, it reminds me of Beethoven...


'02 Hobie Tiger USA 1152

Aluminum trailer sounds nice! If you decide not to use the new sails let me know, I might pick them up and it might work out a little cheaper for both of us. My hobie I pieced together from a 1979 which had great sails( original) but soft hulls and a 1989 with solid hulls but bad sails. I have about $900 invested and I have spares of almost everything. End result (still a work in progress):

Thanks for the replies guys. I think I'm making my purchase this Saturday and hopefully will be out sailing by Sunday. Thanks for the advice and I look forward to joining the h16 club.

I'm sure I'll have a ton of questions in the next few weeks. Ive already ordered some replacements parts online and will spend most of Saturday making her ship shape and checker her over. I cant wait!

Mine is an '85 that I bought 13 years ago when I was 14. I sailed it a handful of times (shallow and tight location made it uncomfortable to sail) and stopped sailing it altogether 10 years ago. I left it in a garage at my grandmas house but after she passed it got moved outside next to the seawall, sails and all. In the elements for nearly ten years, the other day (bit of a real estate battle meant I couldn't even go on the property) I pulled it from 6 feet of grass and weeds and towed it home to Jacksonville, FL. It was a wreck...dark green/black color and the tramp was jet black in many places. Sails were green on the white parts and all the rigging needs to be replaced. A little bit of elbow grease yesterday and she almost shines like new! Even the sails turned out well and will certainly get me through the summer.

Moral of the story is...

Don't judge the boat by it's cover. As long as everything is sturdy then she's worth your time.

On that note...
Keven, any chance you wanna sell me the running and standing rigging from your parts boat...if it's in ok shape and you still have it all?

Chad

CS, I would go ahead and replace yours with new stuff. The running rigging (i am assuming you mean side stays and forestay) that came with the second boat looked to be in excellent condition and not that old. I used it for its maiden voyage in 8 knot winds. Everything was going great until :




I actually just replaced the side stays which were $36 a piece locally.

Haha, honestly, no comment necessary...I'll buy new!

How about the main blocks? Still got them? Somebody swiped mine.

Btw, sorry for hijacking the thread. Keven you can send me a direct reply if necessary.

Chad

PS. Correct me if i'm wrong but...
Running rigging = lines and such
Standing rigging = shrouds, forestay, backstay, etc.

I guess all this does actually pertain to the topic as the new Hobie owner may want to take some of the advice Keven stated as well.

Ahh yes, sorry about that you are correct. I am new to this so I get things confused pretty easily!