Keep, Sell, or Part-out a H17 Sport

I'm a Hobie 16 guy, but I recently acquired a 1993 Hobie 17 and am deciding what to do with it now. In the tiny bit of research I've done in the past few days, this is or was converted to the "sport" model (it was rigged with the furling jib, but also came with the standard rigging). I'm posting here to gauge the community interest in these boats and/or need for parts.

Besides keeping and sailing it, I've considered restoring it and selling whole, or parting it out. Either way, I'm going to sell the "sport" parts: jib sail, bow spreader, furler, and jib haulyard/forestay. I've already sold the low profile jib blocks. The hulls seem mostly sound, althought I'm not certain the typical pain points on a H17. I'm pretty dubious of the wing holes... when I was cleaning the boat, they filled with water and drained empty in a matter of minutes-to-hours (maybe that's normal but I doubt it). There appears to have been some repairs done to the transom and the drain holes have been relocated with the larger H14/16 style plugs. One of the center boards was stuck down due to a broken line, so I removed it and noticed it had a repair at the hinge "notch". The other centerboard seemed ok albeit with some minor dings. Otherwise the hulls/frame feel "loose"... when I lift one bow, it takes 6-12" before the other lifts. The bottoms seem ok with some evidence of wear and possible a previous added layer of paint/gel to restore wear.

All these things lead me to think this boat has lived a rough life... so I'm not sure if it would be wise to restore it and sell whole or just part it out and let it live on through others' boats.

Here are some pics of the boat

Before cleanup:


After spray wash:


Mainsail is mold stained and delaminated:


Jib looks ok:

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Bradley M. Davis - Hobie High Life YouTube Videos
2012 H16 (with 2018 Cayman Main) #115139

Wing sockets are a common leak point and draining in a matter of minutes means you definitely have leaks. The repair is a PITA, but manageable for a DIY’er with basic epoxy/fiberglass skills. Looks like you already have access ports installed for the fronts.

The damaged centerboard hook is also fairly common and there are articles/threads in repairing. Again, pretty feasible with basic skills.

Not sure what you mean about the drain plug. The 17 uses the same plug/housing as the 14/16/18, it is just cocked off to the side in order to clear the rudder casting.

Common areas to check. The outboard corner castings have a tendency to loosen up (they are screwed into the fiberglass hump at the outer edge of the hull. Disassemble the crossbars and check the castings. This will help tighten up the boat. Also the crossbars have a tendency to crack and corrode (another good reason to disassemble the boat). Check the openings where the dolphin striker passes through and the very ends of the crossbars where the profile transitions to the tramp track. Also check the center of the forward crossbar where the dolphin striker post passes through.

Since you have access ports, check inside the hull where the centerboard spring presses against the hull. This area can crack and leak.

Check the wings themselves for signs of corrosion. These have a tendency to corrode from the inside out. They will start to develop small holes around the area where the wing tube bends from vertical to horizontal.

I would also recommend putting your boat on cradles or double rollers. The single trailer roller can crack the hull. Look for a horizontal crack on the inboard side of the hull starting under the forward crossbar going fore/aft.

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C'mon, Brad. Fix 'er up and come play with us. Your height and weight are perfect for the 17.

Bauldry and I can help you with the repairs - we've both done them over the years. On my new boat, I pre-emptively installed the carbon reinforcing rods into the centerboard hook area so they'd never have a chance to break. 13 years and not even a crack. There are ways to fix the tube leaks from the inside of the tubes if the cracks aren't too bad.

I’ll add to MBounds encouragement—I’ve had a 17 and now a 16 and the 17 (non-sport) is awesome single-hander and can kinda-sorta take two people out for pleasure. This one needs work in the usual areas but if she’s solid, it would be worth it.

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H16 2002 "Islands" Sail No. 107432

Thanks for the tips and encouragement guys! I think I'll get her up and running (in the non-sport configuration) and see how she sails. I don't expect this to be a serious racing rig, but I will take the time to do it as well as I can.

Two more questions:
1) What do people use to keep water out of the wing sockets in the winter? Maybe a foam plug? Or do you just keep the wings in?
2) The mainsail is a mess... any low budget fixes for the sail delamination? I'm assuming it will still sail, just less than optimal performance? The idea of sewing large dacron "patches" also occurred to me.

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Bradley M. Davis - Hobie High Life YouTube Videos
2012 H16 (with 2018 Cayman Main) #115139

Don't leave the wings in. Hobie makes vinyl plugs for the wing tubes, but never trust any plug to keep all the water out. Put a dollop of antifreeze into each tube to prevent freezing. You could even use some duct tape to cover the holes for a couple of months with no problems.


There's no cure for the delamination "rash." The sail gets a lot of its strength from the Mylar; the Dacron side just holds everything together. Sure, you can sail it, just be ready for a catastrophic failure.

For the wing sockets, I have in the past placed a small towel in the tube to any absorb small leaks so water doesn’t just collect in the bottom of the tube. Then placed the Hobie wing tube cover into the tube (they are not perfectly water tight). The for the aft sockets, I took a trash bag and slipped it over the entire stern up to the rear crossbar. For the fronts, I just placed the trash bag over the deck and taped it in place with Tyvex tape. This always seemed to work.

Recently I have been disassembling the boat and flipping the hulls upside down, so water collecting isn’t an issue.

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Option 1: fill the holes with antifreeze and use racket balls that will push down into the hole.

Option 2: Cut PVC pipe and sand down to fit into the holes. Get the PVC Caps to put on the tops. Fill the PVC tube with something that will not absorb water and seal top an bottom with silicone to ensure that no water gets into the tube. Note: You will have to do a lot of sanding on the PVC tubes to get them to fit inside the holes, but they will fit nice and tight, works great to keep out road grime and dirt.

I use Option 2 and made my front ones taller so that my wings can rest against it for travel. I built a PVC Tube system that allows my wings to travel over the deck of the boat on ea. side for traveling. Low profile and low drag on the road. Been using for 2 years and works well.

Join the Hobie Cat 17 Facebook Group.

Still have the sport parts for sale?

I'm interested in lower bridles, furler, jib halyard, upper and lower forrestay, with wire block, if they are ok.

Did you sell the jib? I'm interested if it's available.

I'm interested in jib if still available