Mast Chip idea

I've successfully used golf whiffle balls cut in two as mast chips on my 14. When I tried it on my 16 though they didn't last more than a couple of sails till they were crushed and torn up. I have the 14 rig fairly loose and I can imagine the compression force/load? on the mast chip is quite low when compared to the 16 which I run with quite a tight rig after tensioning when I hoist the jib. So I got to thinking as the whiffle ball is the perfect fit for the mast step base surely a regular golf ball shell would work too. 5 minutes with a hacksaw and a flat bladed scewdriver and I had my two halves ready to go. We'll see how it works, I will be taking the mast down next week to shim the pylons so i'll try it out and report back. Wondering what kind of plastic they are and how they cope with the load. Google tells me "durable thermoplastic (ionomer resin) cover"...

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Hobie 14 1981 "Mellow Yellow" Retired to Hobie Heaven
Hobie 14 1991 "Free Soul" 40525
Hobie 16 1985 "Flying Scotsman" Nationals White Prism 91964

Try the cap off a Gatorade or poweraid bottle. The shape isn't too important as the mast will form it as needed. The material is important. Ideally you want teflon, but you can't easily find teflon. What you can find is HDPE. With more friction and less wear resistance you will eat up more chips with HDPE than teflon, however at .01$ per chip you will have maximized your stingyness.

Milk caps work OK, but they are usually made of PP. Milk containers are made of HDPE, but they are thinner than what you want. Hobie dealers sell specially made teflon mast chips, but these cost $4/chip.

The best mast chip ever was a 50 cent coin, especially the kind with a copper core. I don't remember when I saw the last one of them though. They would last many sails, and never get lost in trailering.