Category: Do-It-Yourself

A step-by-step illustrated guide
By Bill Mattson
First published in "On The Wire" Ezine.

If you own a Hobie Cat, you may have noticed that if you take on any water, it is virtually impossible to get it out, given the location of the drain plugs. You can raise the bows, but unless you point them straight to the sky, you are going to have some water left in the boat when you are done. Deck ports will accomodate a far more effective and convenient way to remove water.

This month, we install them in a couple of Hobie 16s. If you are even thinking about doing this, or wonder why anyone would, read on. We cover each step in detail, and give you a good idea of what to expect along the way. Let’s face it: If you are going to take a saw to your boat, you want as much information as you can get before you start cutting. This article provides fully illustrated step-by-step procedures to help you do the job right...

I recently purchased a small outboard motor for my Prindle 18 catamaran and had to figure out how to mount it on my boat. I wanted something that was easily removable and was lightweight...

By Kim Miller. Wagga Wagga, Australia.
(First published in "On The Wire, 1996)

A catamaran is a highly efficient way of transforming sail power into
boat speed. Most Hobie sailors are quite satisfied with the power available
from their normal rig in even moderate winds. In heavy winds many sailors
find that power quite difficult to keep under control. However, there are
always those times when we try to find a bit more power and a bit more
speed. If you sail in light winds, or if you just like the speed of a catamaran,
then you are probably looking for another place to crank on a bit more
power. Your sail trim is the most obvious place to look.

Upgrading trailer rollers from single to double.

After switching from a H-16 to a P-18, I thought that since the 18 seemed to have more weight on the front single roller of my trailer, a second roller should be added. I made up a simple bracket that can be bolted in place of the single roller. I purchased an additional roller (in my case, 9") for each side and picked up the necessary metal at a local weld shop...

Instructions for building a Plywood Catbox.



Note: If I can build this box, anyone can as I am a way better sailor than carpenter! This box needed to fit under a Prindle 18 on a trailer.



I started with two sheets of 1/2" 10' x 4' exterior grade plywood. I would have gotten 5/8" but it's not easy to find in 10' sheets as most of the yards sell 8' only. I had the yard cut one sheet down the middle to create two 10' x 24" halves. (so, the overall width of the box is 24")...