Shroud thickness

Hi,

I just bought a new set of rigging for my 20 years old H16. I have noticed the new wires are 3mm thick and the old ones are 4mm. The old wires are also very stiff. The new rigging is soft and easily to bent. Bottom line is that the old rigging looks and feels much more solid. Any idea why the change in design? Perhaps the material of the new wires is stronger? Or they just want to make it cheaper so they downgraded the quality?

Did you buy wires from a Hobie dealer, or aftermarket?

Standard standing rigging on a Hobie 16 is 1/8” diameter (3mm).

Some aftermarket suppliers, like Murrays, offer oversized wires, 5/32” diameter (4mm).

I prefer to use the larger diameter wires because they are about 50% stronger than the standard size, so it is cheap insurance.

Standard shrouds and bridle wires from Hobie are 1x19 strand, which is quite stiff. The forestay should be 7x19 strand, which is more flexible. The 1x19 wire is stronger than the 7x19.

sm

Hi,

Thanks for the answer.

As i thought.. so it seems that i have downgraded? There was a little rust on the old ones and this is why i changed. Should i install back the old ones? Bought the new wires from west coast sailing. Didnt buy a forestay as my old one seems very shiny. Perhaps it is already new.

It the new rigging is 1/8” diameter, 1x19 strand, then it is correct. If it is 7x19 strand, then it is incorrect, you’ll need to look closely at the wires to determine the strand configuration.

Your previous 5/32” diameter wires would have been an upgrade. My personal preference is to upsize the rigging, but technically, the 1/8” diameter is within spec. The 1/8” diameter will naturally be a little more flexible than 5/32” diameter.

If you prefer the larger wires, then maybe you can return or exchange the wires you already bought. The larger wires will be a little more costly.

sm