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| Warped AI hull on delivery http://www.hobie.com/au/en/forums/viewtopic.php?f=75&t=52305 |
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| Author: | siravingmon [ Sat Jul 26, 2014 10:55 am ] |
| Post subject: | Warped AI hull on delivery |
My AI arrived at my house yesterday. As soon as I unwrapped it I noticed something odd about the hull shape: there's a long dent in the underside of the hull in the area around the trolley tubes, both in the central part of the hull and the side sections. The maximum depth of the dent is 3mm. The black "straight edge" is the top half of the AI mast   I'm more than a bit disappointed. Is this normal, or should I be talking to my dealer? |
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| Author: | bicx [ Sat Jul 26, 2014 12:53 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
I would call the dealer immediately and seek a replacement. It's a pain, but you don't want an AI with compromised hull integrity. Plus, you paid a lot of money for something, and it shouldn't be damaged! That's really a shame. I would be very sad. Edit: I mistook your scupper holes for tears in the hull. My mistake. As KayakingBob said, it may not be too bad. |
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| Author: | KayakingBob [ Sat Jul 26, 2014 12:57 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
It may not be as bad as it seems. Most of my hulls look similar to that. |
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| Author: | Chekika [ Sat Jul 26, 2014 2:59 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
I'm 2000 miles from my AIs, but I think KB is correct. Your 3 mm deformation of the hull seems pretty minor for a rotomolded plastic hull. It may be normal. Keith |
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| Author: | tonystott [ Sat Jul 26, 2014 6:39 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
There is every chance that when your weight is onboard on the water, the hull will distort enough to straighten that out. (I am not suggesting that the concave area is a designed-in feature! LOL) |
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| Author: | siravingmon [ Sun Jul 27, 2014 12:10 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
Thanks for your comments guys. I think that unless Hobie decide to replace my hull I'm probably stuck with this, as the deformation looks like it's locked in place (and perhaps caused by?) the scupper tube inserts. Looking forward to hearing Matt's view when he's back in the office. |
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| Author: | siravingmon [ Mon Jul 28, 2014 5:34 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
Just spoke to my dealer. He says they all have little deformations that go away in the heat of the sun and with the pressure of the water. I hope he's right (my kayaking feiends who've bought Prijon and P&H rotomolded PE kayaks haven't had similar problems). Personally, as I mentioned above, I can't understand how ithe dent could just go away - it seems to me that as the dent is in the area of the scupper tubes, then the scupper inserts are locking the dent in place. Here's another shot from a different angle: 
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| Author: | Vabeach2 [ Mon Jul 28, 2014 6:18 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
My 2013 hull looks very similar you to yours. I came to the same conclusion that it may have to do with the scupper tube length... Never bothered me enough to bring it back as I realize that no two hulls are identical. Mine doesn't seem affect performance from what I can tell. Sounds to me like your dealer gave you the generic response as I am with you- this will not "pop" out in the sun. I would be curious to hear from some of our engineers if there may be any affect on primary or secondary rocking/turning/etc. Again, same issue on my 2013 and no noticeable performance concerns. |
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| Author: | Lumos [ Mon Jul 28, 2014 9:17 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
I have a new TI and the bottom of my hull has similar attributes. I'm actually rather disappointed by the lack of structure on the bottom of the hull. It's relatively flimsy, easy to scratch, and non-uniform. I expect that this is normal, however, and will live with it. I do really like the TI overall though. |
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| Author: | John_h [ Mon Jul 28, 2014 2:28 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
My AI looks similar will no impact on using it, so I think the best course of action is to get it in the water and start enjoying it. |
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| Author: | siravingmon [ Mon Jul 28, 2014 11:43 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
Thanks guys, I hear you: warped new hull normal, nothing to worry about |
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| Author: | mmiller [ Tue Jul 29, 2014 11:45 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
Correct... very common in rotomolded product. Especially when so many features interact. The hull surface may shrink more and go concave between stiff structures like Scupper posts. Also... noting the packing material in the photos, if shipped to you by the dealer via LTL truck carrier, the damage at the aft may be freight damage... other dents can be caused by compression by other freight or handling. |
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| Author: | siravingmon [ Tue Jul 29, 2014 12:13 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
Thanks Matt, So if the damage may have been caused by (truck) shipping, is there anything I can do to fix it, in your opinion, given that the damage is in the area of the scupper tube inserts, which look like they limit any further changes to the hull shape? |
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| Author: | fusioneng [ Tue Jul 29, 2014 4:55 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
Simon: The hulls on these boats are pretty pliable, but also very durable, we have ran ours down rapids and bounced off rocks (we use the Helen Keller navigation method (lol)). With the hulls being fairly soft, they also get scratched up pretty quickly. We don't worry about the scratches and scuffs, we just use the heck out of the boat. About once a year I flip the boat over and clean the bottom up. If you scrape a vertical single edge razed blade back and forth over over the blemish it removes the surface material very quickly (comes off like snow). Any deep blemishes or cuts I fill with the Hobie welder before finishing with the razor blade. It takes an hour or two to completely re-finish the hull like new again. The hull is up to 3/8" thick in some areas so you can probably re-scrape that hull 500 times before starting to worry (that 200 yrs lol). I often get unusual dents and warpage from my car racks, what I do is just lay the hull in the sun on the driveway for an afternoon and everything settle back straight again. Hope this helps Bob |
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| Author: | mmiller [ Wed Jul 30, 2014 9:17 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Warped AI hull on delivery |
The hot water fix should work if it is a compression issue. http://www.hobiecat.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=35313 You could goop the inside of the tube exit point. That would strengthen and leak proof the area. |
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