Cat/Tiger Trax wheel replacement?

I have a set of Tiger Trax with a broken wheel. I see how the wheel gets freed from its place on the axle, but as far as I can tell it can't slide off the end without cutting off the heavy rubber hose that the hulls sit on. And that is a mighty nice piece of hose; if I had to cut it off I don't know what I would replace it with.

Am I missing something here? I pulled the cotter pin and can slide the wheel off the bearing parts, but the steel washer and the side bearing retainer definitely won't go over the hose.

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'00 H16 #104691
'78 H16 #32692 ex-rental [gone]
Old Holsclaw trailer
My Hobie 16 pages

I expect the hose does have to come off, that will be a bear even if it isn't glued, and it's likely to get destroyed in the process. While I can't offer much help in that respect (other than sympathy), here's something to consider...ditch the hose and mount some cradles on there. It is so much easier to move the boat around (especially in soft sand and/or uneven terrain) when it isn't sliding/rolling back and forth on that axle. For a low-resistence tansport, you don't even have to tie the trax to the shrouds. Center the cradles about a foot/foot and a half behind the shrouds...the boat will be perfectly balanced (and stay there!). It's so easy you can move the boat with one hand and drink beer with the other! (Well, maybe not that easy, but....)

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Jerome Vaughan
Hobie 16