Need help purchasing my first Hobie 16

Good afternoon,

This is my first time buying a sailboat, and was hoping I could get some feedback from all of you (who are all much more experienced than me) regarding the current boat I am looking at. I was looking at the boat today and I noticed some things that would need to be repaired. I wanted to get some feedback to see if any of these issues are cause to walk away from the boat. I also took pictures, however I am unable to attach them to this post, so I will have to do my best to describe the problems I noticed.

First - I noticed that there is a dent in the mast. My guess is that someone dropped it while unloading the mast from the trailer. The dent has almost the same texture as the tiller, and while it is not a big dent I do not want the mast to fold in half under power because this is causing a weak spot.

Second - I noticed three issues with the hulls. First is on the starboard stern corner where a dime sized chip is missing. I am able to see the fiberglass is still intact, and I believe this could be repaired quite easily, however I did want to mention it. Second hull issue was on the port inside top edge. This was the most troublesome thing I noticed on the boat. I found that the "lip" of the top hull section had split right in the middle for about three inches. To be clear - the top and sides of the hull are completely solid. This issue is just on the edge of the fiberglass and does not seem to be structural. (Again, I wish I could get the photo on here...) Third hull issue was on the bottom of both hulls where the hulls make contact when beaching. Gel coat is definitely gone, and you can see definite wear, however I am not sure what is considered "Excessive". Other than these three issues on the hulls (and the expected cosmetic gel coat scratches) The hulls were solid. I could not find a soft spot anywhere.

There were other things I was hoping I could change like having a jib rig that I could adjust on the fly instead of having to lift a pin and adjust, as well as adding a trapeze set. However these things will have to wait until I even know if this boat is worth the cost. As I am sure some will ask, I am in my 30's, 6' 160lbs and plan on sailing exclusively in Michigan. The serial number is CCMQ6644M82H -A1-. The owner is asking $1200.

If anyone would like to see the pictures I took, please contact me and I can work on sending them your way. Also, if anyone is in the Traverse City Michigan area, and wants to take a look, that would be great!

Thanks for all the help!

It's really hard to tell without photos. I'm no expert in buying/selling boats, but the way you describe the hulls at least makes the condition sound average to slightly on the poor side, but again, without pictures and seeing the rest of the boat, it's really hard to tell. Does it have anything new? Trailer included? To me $1200 seems a bit steep for an '82 (if I'm reading those numbers correctly) in average condition. Last year around August when I was looking around there were lots of them listed for $600-800 in average condition, even quite a few up near Traverse city. Most of them were willing to go down on the price as well. I paid $400 for my '84 redline. The only problem it had was faded gelcoat. Are you also located near Traverse City?

To get your photos on here, upload them to your google drive account (if you have one).
Right click on your uploaded photo, and select "get shareable link"
You will be provided with a shareable link, but copy all of the text AFTER "id="
There is a button up above "Img", click that, and it will insert the bbcode brackets to insert an image
Now use the below example and plug in your copied text after "id=", and make sure to place all of the text between the two img brackets.

https://drive.google.com/uc?export=view&id=

Sorry in advance, I'm terrible at explaining things.

Thanks SlowSL,

I have attempted to get 5 images of the boat on this post. You should be able to clearly see what I was trying to describe on my first post. The trailer is included, however I am sure it will need some work. I do live in Traverse City, and would be willing to drive a bit if I could find a good boat in better shape. Ideally I would get a boat that is not as old, however I also need to keep cost in mind.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cCgh515azijwIZMwxYM3IuVkBmPgIOwp/view
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aG1Oj65IGETrP7eep6StAKP1nfl4Keiw/view
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xCLxxTMLS0jzmDf4U611yjek63N88KND/view
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1O4OC-mV6ZxCzUmA4mOq1dzvjZNhzjPKm/view
https://drive.google.com/file/d/15Y1bLbaX_Q3ujXNvFHKu6k0yAWqxoYpr/view

Thanks

I think that all that boat needs is a good cleaning and some wind.

The mast dent doesn't appear to be that bad and may be able to be repaired, it doesnt look like a crease or anything major that would cause it to fold up under stress, others may weigh in here, I am by far no expert on the structural integrity of a dented aluminum mast. The chip at the stern is nothing to worry about and appears to be cosmetic. The split under the lip can also be filled in with some epoxy and doesnt look like it is a huge problem either. The bottom being worn down is very common. I would say as long as the fiberglass is still smooth and intact, sail it a season or two being careful to not drag it across the ground too much and then get a bottom job done. All in all, it looks like a decent boat to me, what do the sails look like condition wise, what is the condition of the trampoline, trailer, rigging, lines, oh and what's up with that mast cradle? If all checks out well, I say do it. Offer the seller a grand and go from there. Happy sailing.

_________________
Marty
1984 H16 Yellow Nationals Redline, "Yellow Fever"
Lake Martin, 'Bama.

Mast dent: No worries. The most highly stressed region is between the mast midpoint and the tang. Your dent is not in this region and it isn't big.
Gelcoat Chip: No worries.
Lip/flange damage: Huh, wonder what hit the boat on the inside? Flip the hull over and pour resin in, clamp, wipe up excess. Consider flipping the hull back upright before the resin cures to ensure any drips don't end up on your pretty hulls.
Hull Wear: No worries. This amount of wear is very minimal. The gelcoat is easily removed by the beach, but the glass is a lot harder to wear through. Sail it hard, drag it across beaches for another couple of years and then think about fixing it. My metric for boats that are beached often is to repair the bottom when you wear down to the heavier weight glass, or if the glass starts to look thin. I probably put off bottom jobs longer than most, but I also beach my 16 harder than most.
Jib controls: These are good controls. Better options exist. You do have to scurry to adjust the sail for upwind/downwind, but fine trimming can still be done on the fly.
Sail Condition: This determine the boat value, as much as the boat itself.

Hobie 16 asking prices are all over the place. Is this boat worth $1200, probably not, but it may be worth $800-1000 in the spring or $500-900 in the fall.

Thank you for the responses. I know I need to replace the sheets and halyard. The trampoline is original, as are the sails I believe. I looked over the sails and could not find any holes, rips, tears or patches. They are faded, however they don't seem to be in bad shape. All the battens are solidly in place. Trailer is good enough to get me to my house and to the lake, but I will not be taking it on long drives anytime soon.

I think this could be a good first boat. I will need to clean it up well and replace some items, but hopefully I can make it a great learning experience.

Thanks!

I think that is a great first boat. Clean it up, replace the things that need to be replaced and sail the crap out of it. Happy sailing!!!

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

_________________
Marty
1984 H16 Yellow Nationals Redline, "Yellow Fever"
Lake Martin, 'Bama.

Oftentimes the devil's in the details. I highly recommend that you get some knowledgeable help to inspect the boat before buying. Get ahold of your nearest Hobie Fleet contact(s): http://hcana.hobieclass.com/hobie-fleets/
Chances are they know some folks in your area that would be glad to help you find a good boat (and many other things to help you get a good start). Can't tell you the number of people I've known who had bad experiences getting started (some were game enders) when willing help was readily available. Help will flatten the learning curve so you sail safer, faster, funner!

While there's no way to properly evaluate a boat from pictures, I generally agree with the replies above. Mask the area around that deck lip repair to minimize your clean up effort.

_________________
Jerome Vaughan
Hobie 16

There are not any active northern Michigan hobie fleets. Look instead to CRAM. They are quite active across the state and very knowledgeable. You may struggle to get an in person inspection during COVID restrictions, but once the danger has subsided you should be able to find help.

That’s how I bought my 16. I posted on the forum that I was thinking about buying one and someone on the forum that lived near me invited me over to check out his boat to see what I was getting in to. Then he offered to go with me to look at a boat when I found one. It was very valuable having him with me because he knew a lot about the different years of the boats. The first one we looked at, he checked it over real good and said it was a solid boat. It’s an ‘83 and it has been a great boat with very few problems so far.

Thank you for all the replies, and the emails that I have received. Sorry I did not respond sooner. My wife and I just got back from the hospital with our second daughter!

I do agree that most of the issues I noted could be fixed. The one thing I can't comfortably evaluate are the sails. I know I will already be spending a couple hundred on new rigging and trap wires, which I could handle, and am already calculating in the price. I don't want to have a $1500+ surprise on new sails because I did not know what I should look for.

I might try and hold off buying this cat until I can meet up with someone local that can either look with me, or show me what to look for. Plus, I also have my hands full with a three day old!

I am always open for advice, and will welcome anyone's experience buying their first cat. (Good or bad!) Maybe the boat i am looking at will still be around for a little bit...

Thanks!