New sailor - lots of questions

Hi, I am new to this and love my Wave so far. Bought my Hobie used. A few times out on small and middle size lake proved I know very little about everything. I scanned through some topics here but didn't find some answers. So here I go (sorry for not using right terms - it is better to go sailing than study all this vocabulary):
1. When I attach my must to the ball and lock it with the pin, it still gets out of place easy when must is horizontal. Is this normal? What is the point to have a pin? If it is worn out that much, what needs to be replaced "male" or "female" part.
2. How tight should be shrouds (cables holding the mast if I got this right). On some courses and in short waves (with lots of crazy motor boats around) my boat is all rocking back and forth, side to side and mast going from leaning on one side to the other many times creating so much stress on every single part of the boat and my nerves. I feel like I want to have it as tight as possible. Please don't say it should be somewhat tight. Please provide some measurable recommendation, say, bob on top of my mast should have a play of 1 foot or 1 inch.
3. With all the shrouds having holes for tension adjustments I can lean my mast relatively forward or backward. What is the difference?
4. Standing on the front of the boat, while it's on my trailer, holding and keeping the mast up right with my shoulder and two hands high in the air and far out trying to put a stupid pin through 3 holes at the same time trying to keep it tight. Am I doing something wrong or this supposed to be part of the fun?
5. I am thinking about making a toy box out of something cheap like a plumbing pipe or something. No way I will pay $500 for that. Besides I want to keep my two part mast disassembled inside that box/boxes for neat clean look. Anyone have done it?
Top part of my mast has some water inside it, I can here it but it doesn't come out. How? What are other ways besides leaving it in the sun hoping that water will evaporate.
6. Not sure if it is just here in Georgia, weather doesn't treat me with winds above 6 m/h too often and it is changing direction all the time and it just goes to no wind at times. Is jib or spinnaker will make those slow trips more fun?
7. On my android phone I have accuweather app that I have to push buttons for a while to find out wind strength and direction. Any one uses something that shows forecast for sailors?


Last time I went out with two kids, I decided to move that pin a couple of holes down to tight it a bit more (on the water with waves). I thought I am doing smart thing - I put it face to the wind and un-cleated (hopefully right word) the sail. Dropped the pin, dropped spare pin, secured it with shoe laces (that worked for 5 min to get to the beach). Lesson learned - no repair, adjustment or fixing on the move.

Given the number of questions you may want a source something like this http://www.onlinemarinestore.com/store/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=10016&idcategory=178

_________________
2001 H18 w/SX wings & spinnaker #16740 (purchased new)
1989 H18 w/SX wings #14565 (purchased new, sold 2000)
Would buy another if Hobie would build it.

From your Hobie Dealer

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

1. mast will still rotate even horizontal with pin in place. It should not come out of the base though.
2.Wave likes loose rigging. I sail tight enough to hold everything together. If it's too tight the mast won't rotate fully. BAD!
3.It's called "Rake". Move forward for light air and get the mast as far back as the rigging and adjusters will allow for heavy air. Anything over 15.
4. Before stepping the mast, take your main halyard hook and attach it to the bridle. Step the mast and while leaning into it, pull the tag of the main halyard so it goes tight pulling the mast forward and tie it off on the cleat on the mast. Then you can get down and put the pin in. Then release the halyard. Don't let go of it!
5. Got nothin'!
6.Rake forward as much as possible in light winds. Get yourself a jib or hooter. Jib is easy for a beginner. Hooter take some experience. The wave is a big wind cat. 10-15's with a jib is a blast. 15-25 is a grin from ear to ear. Pig below 10.
7.I use this religiously: http://www.intellicast.com/National/Wind/WINDcast.aspx?region=atl Also, the lake I sail at often has a weather station on it fed to WU. This is the link:
http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=Castleton%2C+VT
It gives rapid fire updates every couple of seconds so I know what's going on before I even head out the door. Put the location in for where you sail and see what comes up.

Lastly, leave adjusting the rigging while out sailing to the racers on the real cats. That's just nuts what you did. Sounds like something I would try.
Sail it like you stole it and have fun!

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"Liquid Plumber's Edition Wave" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z78PozP9dc0

A lot of people have used plumbing pipe for a sail box.
I built one from plywood for my first boat trailer. I had a hinged hatch at both ends, and emptied the box out and left the hatches open when launching and recovering, otherwise the box would make my trailer float.

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Yet another Bob!
"Firefly" - 2012 Hobie Getaway with wings and spinnaker
"Sparky" - 1978 Sunfish (OK, it's not a Hobie, but it's a fun little craft)
Too many canoes and kayaks

Here's the app I use for sailing:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... d.sailflow

It shows current wind plus forecasts.

How do you know when your shrouds are tight enough?

Congrats on the Wave. I too sail in Georgia on a little lake called Lake Acworth in Acworth, GA. Great little lake and only electric motors allowed. Lots of SUPs and Kayaks and a few day sailors and with the limitation to electric motors, its the perfect lake. You will see us out on the lake whenever the weather allows. We were out throughout the winter, bundled up, but what a blast. My beautiful wife has turned into quite the sailor learning on this lake and with the winds swirling, you learn quick. Everyone has their own preference for weather apps and you have a few good ones already provided. I love an app called WindFinder for the IPhone. This forum is unbelievable to learn and just to follow everyone's advice and adventures. Matt is fantastic in providing information from Hobie.

Basically if you can just barely get the pin in the forestay when stepping the mast, just go with it. I have a traveler so I take the hook from the main halyard(cleated off at the base of the mast) once the mast is stepped and connect it to the main sheet blocks. I move the traveler all the way out to one side, pull it snug which will tension the rigging to one side. Then I pull the pin on the shroud that is slack and set the rigging (doing this for each side) moving the pin down. I don't over tighten. You can do this without a traveler by taking a length of rope with a loop in one end. Put the loop on the halyard hook and take the end of the rope and wrap it around the back corner of the boat or the trailer while pulling it up tight and tie it off. This will pull the rigging up tight to one side causing that shroud to go slack. Using this method you can pin the shrouds all the way up in the adjusters before stepping the mast to give you plenty of room to insert the pin in the forestay. Then employ this method to tension the rigging. Makes it easy.

* To make connecting the pin in the forestay easier, I use a large carabiner on one shroud extending the length providing plenty of slack(mast will go farther forward). The other shroud I just pin as usual. This intentionally puts a lot of slack in the rigging making inserting the pin a breeze. I then tension the rigging as described above. Once you do it a couple of times it becomes very easy and you'll know which holes to pin to achieve the rake you want for conditions.

*Don't let people talk to you while doing this at first. Focus on what you're doing as a falling mast can really hurt someone in a busy parking lot. Double check your circlips before releasing the halyard. Don't worry. The mast won't fall when you pull the pin on the slack shroud with the halyard connected to the rear corner of the boat. It becomes a back stay so to speak but remember to only pull the pin to set it on the same side you have the halyard applying tension. Slack side. You'll have to move the halyard to the other side for the other shroud.

Only remove the SLACK side shroud pin! If you tension the rigging and you're on the last shroud to adjust, you may find to get fully tight that you will have to insert the pin in lets say hole 3 from the bottom of the adjuster and the other side is at hole 4 from the bottom. No sweat, put it in hole 4. Better a little loose than to tight!

I check the tension by rotating the mast by hand at the mast base. If it's too tight I won't be able to fully rotate it with my hand.

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"Liquid Plumber's Edition Wave" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z78PozP9dc0

Thank you all for your answers. I went on Lake Lanier this Saturday and had so much fun. Choosing right ramp closer to wide open water instead of somewhere in deep inlet makes huge difference!
Also I looked at my ... ball and it is in shape of an egg - worn out so bad, a bit more and the threaded pin will show.
I ordered one on Amazon for $ 27. Peice item. Are there any gaskets there on wave? What caused it to wear so fast? My wave is 5 y.o. and priveous owner kept it on his lift, not sailing at all.

Probably just from it sitting there while rigged. Unless the mast is secured so it can't move it will wear the ball over time just sitting there. mast would work back and forth ever so slightly over 5 years that's a lot of grinding away on that ball. Just a guess. No gasket. Just a ball and socket. Glad you had a great time. I was rigged and on the way up the road on Sat' and big storms were coming in. I would have only had about 20 min' to sail before getting struck by lightning. Turned around and came home. Sucked 'cause it was perfect wind. 14-18 nice and sustained. Sweet! Maybe next time!

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"Liquid Plumber's Edition Wave" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z78PozP9dc0