what to look for in used hobie16

I am looking to buy a used to sailboat (preferably a hobie16) but I'm a little skeptical of people's posts. I have experience sailing hobies but I've never owned one before so I'm not sure what to look for in used boats. Are there any common problems that might be too expensive or difficult to fix? Are there certain warning signs for major issues to come? I don't want to buy a boat and then have to drop tons of money repairing it before it's sea-worthy. I'm not afraid to do some minor repair work but I can't afford to replace any major parts, etc. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

There is a lot of useful info on this forum (and others). Search around and you'll probably find more information than you ever dreamed you could need. The most important thing to look out for, especially in older boats, is what are known as "soft spots." These are localized areas of delamination in the hulls. They are basically an indicator that the hull has reached the end of its useful life. Small areas can be repaired by injecting epoxy, but it's kind of a blind process with no real definite time span for how long the repair will last. Larger areas more or less can not be repaired (or at least are not worth the time and expense of attempting to repair). To identify soft spots, press firmly on the surface of the hull. There should be little to no noticeable deflection. If you feel significant movement or hear crunching, the hulls are delaminated. The most important place to check on a H16 is right in front of the front pylons.

Otherwise, you really just want to give a close inspection to the big ticket items (mast, boom, sails, hulls, crossbars, rudders, trampoline & trailer). Look for damage such as dents, corrosion, tears, cracks, etc. Expect to replace wear items like lines, halyards, and standing rigging. The nice thing about Hobies is that for the most part, a visual inspection will tell you just about everything you need to know about the boat.

There have also been a lot of upgrades to the design of the H16 over the years, so the newer the boat you can buy, the more user friendly and better performing it will be. The construction quality has also improved over the years. So if you can find a boat from the 1990's or newer, you should be pretty well off. The boats from the '70s and '80s are really starting to get up there in age and are a lot more likely to have "issues."

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Definitely steer clear of a boat with soft spots unless you're looking for a project. Personally, I'd be a little leery of a repaired one, too as it is hard to assess the quality and longevity of the repairs! Newer boats are definitely better! There are good, older boats out there, though. Both of mine are over 30 years old, and while not as pretty as they once were, still quite seaworthy! Over the years, they've been upgraded with newer hardware, tramps, etc. You have good reason to be skeptical of people's posts! Many who are selling know little about the boats and thus tend to minimize issues and overstate the condition of the boat. Also, if you have a means to move it (or a trailer handy), boats without trailers seem to command a way lower price!

Good luck
Dave

Thanks to both of you!

You can ussually spot a repaired one pretty easily by the small holes drilled in the front deck where they injected the penetrating epoxy.

I have a very old boat that was well cared for, and it's fine. I don't sail in too bad of conditions or out on the ocean, either, just fresh water, which is much more forgiving on all of the hardware and rigging. You can usually find the major parts pretty cheaply, because people are always parting out boats. Get in close to a group of local owners and everyone has been saving parts that they may give up cheaply to get another boat on the water. It's all the little hardware that gets expensive fast.

I got my boat cheap ($800), but then got a trailer ($350), and about $500 worth of small parts, tramp, lines, etc over a period of a couple of years and I still have a wish list of about $800. That said, I could still be sailing without replacing any of it, and still would have enjoyed it. But, you see something that could be better and you start upgrading. I am apparently hard to shop for, and the Hobie is such an easy thing to make a list of items for, so it's about all I get for Christmas and birthdays.

The support you get here, the catalog of available parts, etc make even an old boat still fun and easy to get parts for.

ENJOY!!

_________________
Steve
1979 Hobie 16 "Orange Crusher"
2017 Hobie 16 "Cayman" sails 114795

My advice. Don't buy a painted boat. nuf said.