Pylons - hollow or capped?

My winter project is to refinish my hulls in my garage. I plan to drop the hulls off the frame, and "mount" them upside down on frames with caster wheels (much like the lower portion of most office chairs). Problem is, the pylons are airfoil shaped which doesn't adapt well to pipe shapes. Are the pylons hollow where I can insert a pipe inside to support the hull(s)? Or are they capped requiring some sort of "adapter"? Anyone know?

Any help is appreciated,
Eric

Pylons are basically hollow extrusion, but they have foam plugs inside that might not fare well after inserting something for storage. Maybe work out a way to use the bolt holes?

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

If you use a pipe with a large enough inner diamerter you can insert the pylons into the pipe and secure using the bolt holes. If you can't find bolts long enough, use threaded rod.

_________________
Nick

Current Boat
In the market
Previous boats owned
'74 Pearson 30
'84 H16
'82 H18 Magnum
St. Louis, MO

Eric,

Last winter/spring I completed the job you are about to undertake - on a 1977 H16 boat and trailer. I too initially had concerns about manipulating/supporting the hulls in my garage. However, what I found is that the H16 hulls sit quite nicely upside down on saw-horses. I completed the hull bottoms first in this position. Later, I turned the hulls onto their sides (while still on the saw-horses) to do the tops. It worked out very well like this.

With the exception of the initial washing, scrubbing and contaminants removal from all the surfaces, I treated the hulls like two separate projects - hull bottoms first and hull tops second. Since I went with a two-tone colour scheme, this worked out particularily well...and necessary. But, I would do it exactly the same way again - even with a single colour scheme. It was convenient and it was seldom necessary to move the hulls as a result. Aside from the convenience, not having to move the hulls is important if you are using time-sensitive resins, and even more so if you decide to paint and desire a great finish coat.

If you are interested, I have included two links/posts I made on another web forum. The threads are long with lots of good info. There are many photos. There is also step by step information you may find of value.

Although I am new to the Hobie scene, I am not new to boat restorations and working with composites.

Hope it helps you out,

Dave

http://www.catsailor.com/forums/showfla ... t=all&vc=1

http://www.catsailor.com/forums/showfla ... t=all&vc=1

Thank you all for your response(s) and information. Most helpful! Special thanks to Capt. Dave, (I'll be following your sequence).

Fair winds and calm seas,
Eric

Eric,

You are welcome. When you get into the project, you may run into some troubles/questions. My email address is included in my profile, so feel free to drop me a note. I personally love the restoration thing and I am glad to help.

Dave