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PostPosted: Tue Sep 06, 2005 8:59 am 
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Matt,

Any word yet on when the "correct size" traveler bearings will be available? I was able to sand the ball down, but the slug has been much more difficult.

Collin

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 Post subject: Correct bearing size
PostPosted: Tue Sep 06, 2005 3:54 pm 
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Location: Loveland, CO
I also recieved a set of "oversized travler bearings" I discovered that the bearings do fit in the grove and slide great with very little play. What you need to do to get them to fit is take a small amount of material off the top of the slot where they insert. I used a dremel tool and it took about 5 min. The problem seems to be they actually have made the bearings the correct size for the traveler, even though they are slightly larger than the old ones, the problem is the entry is not large enough to allow the plug in. Try this if you dont believe me on removing material. Take the ball (oversized, and not smoothed down) and insert it sidways into the slot flat sides pointed up and down. Then spin the bering in the slot and it will slide just fine.

Good luck


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 Post subject: H18 Traveller Bearings
PostPosted: Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:33 pm 
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Location: Nepean S.C. Ottawa, Canada
This last weekend, we replaced ball & slug on a Club 1982 H18, with some difficulty. We ended up unbolting the rear starboard cross-bar, so as to give us enough 'squeeze' room so we could feed the new bearings into the slot. Worked fine in the end though.

Good winds

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SOLD 1989 Hobie SX18 Sail # 1947 "In Theory..."
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 Post subject: Bearing set
PostPosted: Wed Sep 07, 2005 1:57 pm 
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I have a set on my desk. I have been waiting for our purchasing guy to find out what is up. Time to bug him again!

They are injected molded parts. Hard to believe that they are not the correct size! Perhaps the original material shrank after molding? Maybe the vendor rebuilt the dies?

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 Post subject: Travler Slugs
PostPosted: Thu Sep 08, 2005 4:26 pm 
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Location: West MI
To rebuild the die {mold} to reduce the size of the part you would have to add material to the mold. Perhaps someone polished the mold (removing mold material) making the slug larger. Most likely the vendor used a different plastic material with a different shrinkage factor.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2005 6:00 am 
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If you make a new die (mold) it will be made close to the low end of the tolerance on the finished part so the tool will have a longer life. As it is used the die will produce larger parts over time until it produces parts that are oversized and the tool can no longer be used. It may be worth checking the tolerance of the bearings to make sure the injection molder didn't take this practice too far. If the parts are within tolerance then it might be worthwhiel to reevaluate the tolerance of the bearings.

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'74 Pearson 30
'84 H16
'82 H18 Magnum
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 Post subject: Parts
PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2005 8:27 am 
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Turns out this inventory has been here for a number of years. We have 600 is of each part left now. The part I had, as a sample, was within tollerence of the original drawings, so we are going to go through the inventory and see if we have some good parts. Likely there were multiple cavities in the mold, so some may be good.

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Hobie Cat USA
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 Post subject: Oversize traveler parts
PostPosted: Mon Sep 12, 2005 6:30 pm 
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Is there any chance on purchasing a few of the oversize traveler parts as a trial. Im sure that the tolerance stack up between the extruded aluminum and traveler balls/slugs is larger than most would realize. They may work on some boats.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Mon Sep 12, 2005 7:46 pm 
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Location: Clinton Lake Lawrence, KS
the tolerance stack up between the extruded aluminum and traveler balls/slugs is larger than most would realize.

DVL I would agree. Back in the day when I had fun at work, I've designed injection molded plastic as well as extuded aluminum pieces and both inherently need a reasonable range of tolerance. My rear crossbar is an '82 and it has a major amount of "slop". I don't think the slug and ball could have worn that much, even in twenty three years. I had planned on replacing mine but was reluctant to do so until this issue was resolved.

Matt, maybe you could give us the slug and ball diameter and those of us with calipers can do some field measuring to determine what will work for us older boat owners.

You know, albiet a remote one, there is a chance the aluminum track could, over time, stretch/open under upward pressure, making the ends of the track (which see little to no use or potential stretching) seemingly small by comparison and also difficult for new components to "start" in to.

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 Post subject: Opening up track
PostPosted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 5:41 am 
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I don't have a problem making the track opening larger for the better fitting slugs. I would rather have the tighter fitting slugs. My only concern now that I have brought this to Matts attention is modifying the rear crossbar to except these slugs and that not be able to get the larger slugs in the future.

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 6:50 am 
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Quote:
My only concern now that I have brought this to Matts attention is modifying the rear crossbar to except these slugs and that not be able to get the larger slugs in the future.


In the slim chance my theory is correct, which I can't prove or disprove at this point as our boat is an hour from the house, and the track has enlarged over time, and we (older or well used 18ers) who would want these "larger" slugs, are going to somehow insert them in the track. Whether this is using a dremil tool, removing the crossbar, heating it (I dont believe I said that) to get them in or pounding them in with a dowel, we will live with the fact our boats are old. There has always been the possibility of the car flying out the end of track, if you forget. So what have we lost or gained in comparison to the "right" sized components? In my opinion we have lost nothing, by a slight enlarging of the entry, and gained a tighter fit in the "usable" or most used part of the track.

And here's another point, how do we know this wasn't originally designed to be an interference fit, at the entry, in an attempt to keep the slug and ball in the track? In other words, designed to keep them captive after being initially "driven" in to the track.

Sell us the slugs...sell us the slugs...sell us the slugs

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 Post subject: H18 Traveller Bearings
PostPosted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 7:08 am 
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Location: Nepean S.C. Ottawa, Canada
While there is always the 'possibility that the traveler car can fly off the end of the track' I suggest it is unlikely if the cat is properly set up. In 1992, I had the disgraceful honour of exploding a H16 traveller during an emergency gybe in strong winds. One of those adventures we'd rather not talk about. Lucky the Club patrol boat (power) was nearby to rescue us.

Then we all learnt - measure carefully, and tie a figure 8 knot in the mainsheet (between the mainsheet blocks and the traveler car sheaves) such that the traveler does not quite reach the end of the track, both for port and starboard side. Check and test it. We've never had traveler problems since then.

I am positive we are not original, and that most of the Hobie Forum sailors do the same, not so?

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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.'


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 12:21 pm 
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This is very interesting to me as I have notice my '81 H18's ball and slug are very worn. I guess that's what 25 years of New England weather will do to a few plastic parts.

I recently was teaching my fiancee to sail and she tried a gybe and it turned out very ungraceful. She was able to get the travel to pull halfway out of the track and jam on the extrusion. After using a medium sized persuasion device I snapped them back into teh track. When I took a closer look at them I noticed the slug was very worn.

Matt, I would be glad to try out a few different samples of the slugs, measure them, and report back what range of sizes work. If you can get about 5 people willing to do this you would get a better idea of what will work for the older H18's.

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Nick

Current Boat
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Previous boats owned
'74 Pearson 30
'84 H16
'82 H18 Magnum
St. Louis, MO


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 Post subject: What Matt said
PostPosted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 1:41 pm 
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When I originally discovered my new ball and slug would not fit I called Murrays where I got them from. They didn't know what to tell me so they gave me Matt's phone number. I spoke to Matt, and he said they are using a different supplier. He also confirmed that the current ball and slug that they have are not the original design dimensions. He told me that he would send me the correct size slugs once they were available. If these slugs that they have now will in fact fit the traveler extrusion and be a tighter fit than original I am all for it. My only concern is if I open the entry slot to fit them in, and next time I replace them they are small as the originally equiped slugs were the likley hood the will come out is greater. I do like the idea of the knot in the main sheet though, thats a good idea for a lot of reasons. Matt, if misquoted you on something, my apologies, it was several weeks ago and many margaritas since we talked.

Collin

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Tue Nov 01, 2005 5:05 pm 
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Location: Clinton Lake Lawrence, KS
Removing, cleaning and packing 18 stuff for the winter.

I have measured the plastic ball and slug on our traveller car.

They are both 1/2" diameter.

Is this OK, should they be replaced?

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