pintles

i run a sailing club in sihanoukville cambodia and have 2 getaways and 3 waves.i am constantly having a problem with pintles breaking(every month)as well as the cost of replacing them,it is a huge safety issue as the rudders are then out of action.i know other people have had this problem.ANY SUGGESTIONS?

Are your customers/club members operating the rudder system properly - locking the rudders down all the way? The biggest problem that beginners make is not locking the rudders down all the way and thus sailing with the rudders partially kicked up. This not only makes the boat much harder to steer, but it also places much higher loads on the rudder system, including the pintles/gudgeons.

I would first make sure the rudder system is functioning properly and that the sailors understand how it works.

sm

thanks for the reply.i make a point of letting every customer know to lock the rudders down,even walking the cat out far enough to lock them down most of the time.i have personally had the pintles break out at sea.i know the pintles breaking is not unique to me as i know other hobie owners this has happened to..again this is a HUGE safety issue...micky

The first time I sailed a cat (Getaway) off the beach in Florida, I made the mistake of trying to launch the boat the same way we did when I sailed on a lake.

Bad move.

At the shoreline, with the Getaway in the water, the action of the waves 'dropped' the boat on the rudders, and the pintle broke.

The 'right' way to launch is to have the nose of the bow in the water, the stern on the beach, step onto the boat, sheet in and GO! Steve, is that how your gang does it?

Are the sailors leaving the beach/returning to the beach with rudders down?

_________________
2015 H16, with spin,
SOLD 1989 Hobie SX18 Sail # 1947 "In Theory..."
'Only two things are infinite, the universe, and human stupidity. But I'm not sure about the former.'

the pintles break when out at sea and are checked every time they come back and before they go out to see if there are any hairline cracks.should i be re-imboursed by hobie for the at least 14 pintles broke in the last 14 months?

if the Hobie is bobbing in the surf near the shore, the vertical force when the bottom of the rudder strikes a rock (or the sand under the water) is what is causing the pintles to break. The actual fracture could occur later, however it is the initial impact that causes the damage.

Your clients should leave the beach with rudders 1/2 way down until they are deep enough to lock them down.

_________________
2015 H16, with spin,
SOLD 1989 Hobie SX18 Sail # 1947 "In Theory..."
'Only two things are infinite, the universe, and human stupidity. But I'm not sure about the former.'

the clients do leave the beach with rudders half way down-i am there to make sure they do

i think a pintle breaking every month is too much.would hobie re-imbourse me?

You would have to contact your regional supplier. Our facility in Australia would handle any warranty issues.

It is not common to fail pintles. We have boats in charter / club / rental service all over the world without a significant issue. So... some questions:

How old are the boats?
What style of rudder? It it the EZ LOC?
Is it screws or the actual pintle that fails?
What are the water and wind conditions?
Shallow reefs?
Large seas?
Surf?

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

i do not believe other people have had pintles break.i know of 2 other people here in cambodia who have had pintles break.anyone else out there had the same problem?

sorry,i meant that i do not believe other people have NOT had pintles break.anyone else had this problem

Can you answer the questions?



It is not a common problem. The product has been in service since the early 90's, so not new or un-tested.

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

hi.the rudders are ez loc.sometimes shallow surf,sometimes big waves.there is no damage to the transom(or marks)so the rudders have not been turned excessively.it is the pintles not the screws that are breaking.

the boats are 15 months old,,wind conditions up to 16 knots. no shallow reefs,but i tell clients not to lock rudders down until 100 metres out to make sure they dont contact the sand when locked.thanks

Can you provide photos of the type of failure you are seeing?

Lower or upper?

You use the clip on the upper to hold the rudder on to the pintles right? If the top come up too high, it would come off the upper pintle and lever the lower one.

Sailors should not sheet the sails in much if sailing with the rudders just partially down. That causes extreme loading of the helm / rudders.

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