Mirage Drive Sailing Lock

A little gadget some of the guys might find helpful:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxcEYubD6Bk

Great idea...I am going to make up one or two for my TI. Total cost can't be more than $1 each. So simple that I think that anything 'more elegant' will certainly cost more and be more difficult to make or use.

You may be right. I've been knocking around in the shop all morning trying to come up with something simpler and smoother. But can't really justify it.

There isn't much force pushing the pedals apart so the PVC T-fitting, even drilled the way it is, isn't likely to fail. Even then, a piece of the same in schedule 80 would take care of that.

Make your openings just a hair oversize so the lock more easily slides over the small bungee on the back of the drive arm cap.

Good idea Tom !

I find that as sailing speed increases, the fins tend to move to the vertical by themselves

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Tony Stott
2012 Tandem Island "SIC EM" with Hobie spinnaker and Hangkai outboard
only cool people follow the (non-magnetic) titanium weight-loss program! lol.)

Mine move the opposite way as the speed increases - they move towards the hull or the horizontal. See the video about 5 seconds in.

Very effective.

It's also painfully easy to insert a 5/16-3/8' eyebolt (or hinge pin) through adjustment hole 1 of the drive. And easy to store.



(You can actually use a Hobie rudder pin or pencil if you're worried about grounding or hitting stuff while sailing).

Those of us who hike out on the Hakas may prefer to just use the big adjustable bungie (next to your center hatch) to hold the fins tight against the hull, as hobie intended. This offers better speed, and gives peace of mind around reefs.

I agree and actually thought about that. However, you have to move out of your seat further and there is some wear generated by thrusting a bolt into and out of those holes each time, not to mention that it takes a little more effort and/or dexterity to get a bolt or rod into those small holes.

Not a knock on doing that, but I wanted something that didn't require me to move up out of the seat nor create any wear on my Mirage Drive, plus be very quick and easy to do.

I don't know about others, but I feel my boat sails better with the fins down, at least on a closer reach or close hauled.

Or take the drive right out and go faster.

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Right, but again, if you're relying on the fins to serve as a daggerboard, which you'd be doing in the Revo, Outback, PA, etc., then that isn't going to be the best thing to do.

Everyone has a little different conditions and sailing style.

Chris, I rarely take the drive out, unless I'm running really shallow or far offshore. Offshore, I'm probably trolling or downwind surfing, so speed is not an issue.

The rest of the time, the drives are far too handy, so I keep them raked back on the hull. Plus, they are very hard to reinsert while moving, or fighting a fish. It would be easier hiking from side to side if they were removed though.

For that reason, on the TI3, I always remove the front drive.

Tom, on your TI, what's your preference? Are you pulling the front drive and daggerboarding the rear?

Ditto here Nohuhu. When I'm on the hakas I use it but rarely from the cockpit. Probably because I also hardly ever take the drive out and find myself peddling out of habit rather than a necessity. When I lock the drive, my legs get bored. Nicely sculptured lock though Tom.

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Don't take life too seriously................it ain't permanent.

On the TI soloed, I sail from the rear. I leave the front drive out and keep the rear one in.

Not sure how much daggerboard effect the front drive could have since it's mostly covered by the centerboard there anyway. Maybe, maybe not. I know it's a lot easier to raise the centerboard from the rear seat than it is to take the front drive out. Got to go forward a bit to do either, but the former requires less than the latter. So I leave it out.

As I see it, if you're in the cockpit with the drive in, you might as well use it. If you're out of the cockpit, you can't use the drive, so you might as well pull it and lessen the drag. If you're sailing in a Revo, or a PA or whatever, you are pretty much confined to the cockpit.

As NOHUHU has pointed out previously, the boat can point highest when it is being pedalled, so why sit there with the drive in and the fins locked down, trying to point higher when you can simply pedal?

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With good wind and good speed, there isn't any reason for me to pedal, nor do I want to pedal when under sail at good speed. But I'm not going to pull the drive and I don't want to keep my feet on the pedals for long periods. Nor do I always sail close to the wind.

But that's just me and is the reason why I built the lock.

Obviously, if you keep your feet on the pedals, or pedal the entire time you're sailing, this device isn't for you. For those who don't, it's an idea to consider.