Mast leak ?

Im sure there is a post about this but have to admit I am not very good at searching so I will ask. I put mast from H 18 with comptip in water and have a leak were the comptip and aluminum meet, its right down in the sail track. is the comp tip one solid pice so water can not get into it? if so that would meen the water is in the aluminum part of mast right? I know I need to seal it up and will do so very soon.

thanks
Jay

The comptip is hollow, but it has foam plugs at each end. There should also be a foam plug in the aluminum section of mast a few inches below the comptip. The luff track on the comptip is a separate piece that snaps onto the main body. I’m wondering if what you were seeing was air escaping from the gap between the luff track and the main comptip.

If you truly do have a leak in the mast, you would probably need to entirely remove the comptip from the mast and re-bed it in epoxy. That would be a fairly involved project and you risk damaging the comptip in the process. Maybe remove the luff track and re-dunk the mast to be sure. Even doing that has some risks though because removing the luff track can also cause damage.

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" maybe its the gap between the luff track and the main comptip," thats a good idea, had not thought of that. If it is and I keep mast under water for a bit I guess the bubbles would stop. also if they dont maybe I would then hear water in mast, right now I could not feel or hear any but might not be a lot in there, boats only been capsized a few times in the 10 years I have owned it. a leak on the small inland lake I sail on would be a minor problem but I do take it out on Lake Mi where it could be life threatning so want to make sure.
thanks
jay

Hey Jay

Come out and sail with us next year.

https://cramsailing.com
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cramsailing/

We've got 5 or 6 guys with H18s in the great lakes area that we've been trying to gel into a small fleet. We had 3 boats show up at Sanilac a couple weeks ago.

We can help you get things sorted and gives you a chance to sail on the open water with support. Who knows - you might enjoy a bit of racing too.

Jeff

PS - I keep my H18 up at Clear Lake - not too far from you.

_________________
Jeff R
'88 H18 Jolly Mon
'10 F18 Closely Called
cramsailing.com

Hi Jeff
I have seen some of the Cram events listed and thought of going to one. I have sailed Hobies for a long time but never raced. I do have a set of SX wings on my boat which I belive are not alowed to be used in races. I would love to sail on the big lakes with support , have done it a few times over at Weco beach and up at Wilderness Satate park .

I am close to you as I keep my H18 on lake James, just sailed today sep 13 with my 5year old Grand daughter, she loves it. hope to get out another time or two before I put boat away for the winter.

And when I take the mast down I will try to figure out if I have a leak or not
Jay

As one of CRAM's occasional Hobie 18 sailors, I can tell you that we don't much care if you've got wings or not, we're just happy to have another boat to race against!

The wings are more of a hinderance than a help in racing anyways, though I believe the SCHRS system CRAM uses is able to handicap for it in some way. As someone who just started racing 3 years ago or so, I can tell you it's an absolute blast! It's amazing when you get alongside a similar/identical boat, and just can't seem to keep up with them... It definitely allows you to gauge how well you can truly sail the boat, and gives you the motivation and the means to improve your skills, far beyond what you can do alone. You just get to a point where you can't improve further without another boat to compare against.

I think racing SOUNDS more intimidating than it is. As long as you take the time to understand the courses (there are boom/mast stickers that help), basic right of way, and the start sequence (another mast sticker), it's all pretty straightforward. Your first few races, you can just give the other boats a little room until you get the hang of things. But having sailed my boat for 7 years and raced for 3, I can easily say that I've never had more fun with it on the water than when racing other boats!

If you're even a little interested, you should at least join CRAM's facebook group & group chats. James Derck, their main "marketing" guru, does a pretty good job of letting everyone know when there are a couple of Hobie 18's interested in an event and drumming up a few more attendees! It also wouldn't be a bad idea to throw your name in the ring for crew or committee boat... it's a great way to get more acquainted with racing if you're still not sure about trying it yourself.

_________________
Mike

'79 H18 standard 'Rocketman II' sail #14921 RIP
'78 H18 (unnamed) sail #14921
'08 H16 sail #114312
'97 H21SC sail #238

That does sound like a good Idea , would be fun to crew and probably a good way to see what the racing is like. To be honest I read a lot of the post and see the few modifications people do to be more competative in the races and for right now dont feel like spending the money. Also my boat has old sails, jib is really shot so would be even slower but who knows maybe Ill get a new one some day. Thanks for all the encoragement. I might just give it a try... Jay