Thank You!...ALL

Well I'm new here and I would like to thank everyone here, past and present for all your help with setting up my new(to me) Hobie 16.

I picked it up about three weeks ago for $800 some what complete with a trailer and have spent all my free time and money reading this forum and tuning up this cat. I've so far skimmed through and read what I think applies to my needs of the first 40 pages of this forum(and still reading), and I am so stoked to be able to have access to such a wealth of information from such an open and sharing group!(isn't the information age wonderful!)

So My cat is a '81 orange(rock solid hulls), with '77 white knight sails, everything I'm pretty sure is original.
With your help I've...

-replaced all the standing rigging, and sheeting
- replaced main halyard original did not have the stopper slug to lock into the hook on the top of the mast
-raked the mast back
-new jib blocks(didn't have any to start)
- scored a 6:1 harken off ebay(not low pro but for $75 who cares!)
- scrubbed the mold and algae of the sails, new rivets in some batten pockets, and made new tell tails(but haven't put them on yet)
-made a water bag(works great) for solo righting and set up my own Hawaiian style as well
-Covered the rails in surf board deck mat, then damaged it with the trap shock cord, so I've run them through some SS rings attached to the main shrouds to stop the damage.
-Made new dog bones(my friends kiteboard harness hooks would not fit in old ones)
-re foiled, drilled, and raked forward the rudders
-re sealed the drain plugs and two of the pylons
-made my own beach dolly(works like a charm)
-Stitched up a 6" tare in the tramp near the port jib traveler with 20lb fishing line and some kite bladder tape( holding so far...knock on wood)
- Oh speaking of wood this cat also came with a wooden boom!!! yes some one made a wood boom and caved out and shaped and goose neck out of SS as well, I'm torn between replacing the boom with a new aluminum one I picked up(missing goose neck) because it as a bit of character and I've had alot of comments and complements about it(good conversation piece)

I do plan on replacing the tramp as soon as I can sell this trailer(how much should I sell for? no sail box, not galvanized)

I also would like to make a new set of rudders(lighter and stiffer) and match the foil of these EPO's I here every body praising. Does any body have spec's for me? dimensions, foil templates, anything? I'm thinking of a carbon fiber core(have lots of scraps) with a cedar or mahogany body what do you guy's think?

Anyways If your still with me What else should I do to tweak or tune the cat up some more?

Thanks again one and all for all your help! This cat is a blast I've never had so much fun on the water in under 20kts!(haven't had it out in more yet, not enough experience... so far)

Cheers!
Jason.

Very impressive!

Would love to see a photo, can't picture a wood boom. How did you go about making the righting bag?

I agree with Fever, get out there and do some sailin' and try to get some pictures! Happy and safe sailin' to ya!

Making rudders is no small undertaking, and to get performance equivalent to EPOs will a require significant investment in time and a very skilled hand.

EPOs are built with foam cores and carbon fiber skins. If I were building rudders, I'd start with a CNC milled core and lay on two plies of 6 oz. CF with vinylester resin. That would at least put you in the ballpark. The reason I'd use vinylester is so I could leave the rudders clear coated. (What's the point of using CF if you're not going to show it off?). Epoxy yellows badly when exposed to UV, so you'd need to put an opaque finish on it.

Rudder outline templates are available from the IHCA ([email protected]) and I think he has the EPO foil offset table, too.

Well I'll see what I can do about getting some pictures posted for you guys, it's the least I can do in return for the info.

As to the righting bag I took and old shark sail bag and restitched the opening with a 3/8" inch rope(kind of like the the luff on the main sail) then coated the inside with contact cement a couple of times to seal it so the water doesn't seep through the fabric, the bag is about 36"long buy about 18" diameter.

Mbounds, thank you for that email address, should I write him asking for the templates or is there a website I can just download them from?

As to the skill involved in building the rudders I'm more than confident that I capable of doing so as I have been building surfboards, windsurfers, and kiteboards for the last 10 years and have been fortunate enough to apprentice under Lee Brittian, of Rogue Wave boards for 5 years.

As to material selection I have an assortment of different high density foams, divicell, corecell, in multiple thicknesses and densities up to 6 lbs.

I'll never use vinylester resin again(EVER!) but I do have west sysetem, proset, Research resin, and MAS to choose from, with the later having great clear and uv properties with no yellowing.

Speaking of UV carbon fiber breaks down in sunlight and I've never had fun dealing with clear finishes on them as if you ever sand through the glass to the carbon your screwed. I also dislike the way they heat up in the sun and love the look, and feel of wood. I just figured I'd use up some of the carbon scraps(hate wasting material) left over from the outlines of the surfboards(to small and curved pieces), to stiffen the rudder in it's core without having to deal with finishing Carbon fiber. At $50 a yard I'm not keen on spending that kind of money on the rudders(at least until I know I've got the shape down).

When I decide to start this project I'll start a new thread to show my progress.

Thanks again for the info and advise, is there anything else I can do to tune up this cat?

Cheers!
Jason.