problems with mast float tearing off mast?

So against my better judgement i went out and bought a mast float for my hobie 16, it was securely riveted to the top of the mast..or os i thought, i did rivet it and followed the instructions and it stayed in place for about 6 months.. then i was out a couple days ago in winds that were projected to be between 8-12 knots and about 5-6 foot waves. needless to say we pitchpoled hard and it snapped the mast float right off the mast, thankfully the mast itself sustained no damage.

so my question is.... is this something out of the ordinary? did the rivets fail. i lost the entire float as the water temp was about 6 degrees C and by the time we got the boat righted the float was gone... any ideas or insights of what went wrong...or are they not designed to get tortured like that?

If you were able to right the boat, don't worry about it. You obviously don't need the float !!!

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Happy Sailing,

David

Riveted on? Which model float did you install? The Baby bob is the best for the 16 and does not use rivets.

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