Hi guys... so is the mast bearing cup supposed to be greased or not? Thanks

No, but you need a plastic bearing of some sort.

Teflon is the standard:


There's also molded Delrin:


In a pinch, you can use a plastic bottle cap.

I've even used a quarter in an emergency. Not recommended for continuous use.

Not really. But you do want something in between the mast base and the mast cup. Hobie sells a teflon chip that comes in packs of three. If you don't have that, cut a disk from a milk jug or some other thick plastic. Or, if it is a last resort, stick a penny in there. You want to avoid having the aluminum mast base come in contact with the mast cup. If I remember correctly the aluminum on aluminum will more or less weld itself and break over and over during sailing. I suppose it doesn't hurt to spray a little lube in there, but you still want to have that buffer.

Matt, I should have known you would beat me to it. Great pics.

My teflon bearings have a tendency to squeeze out the top.As a result the base of my mast has grinded to a bit of a point.When I put the bearing's in now the pointy part of the mast base makes a whole in it.Any suggestion's?

Buy lots of bearings? With my 06' I'd go through one bearing every time I went out.

Hobie should update this to a ball. No real performance gain, but less of a hassle.

Use the molded delrin bearing.

It's probablly not so much the mast base that's a problem as it is the flat spot at the bottom of the cup caused by the end of the dolphin striker.

I find on mine that if I get the chip in square when I step the mast, it will last a long time. If it starts to creep out, then it wears through. It's a crapshoot on getting it in square, though.

I agree with what matt has said the molded delrin "cup" is the way to go. Every time i have used the teflon white "chip" it has squeezed out of the mast cup. So go with the delrin one. fairly inexpensive can get right from hobie. I havent lost one yet.

Since 2004, the new boats have had a "chip keeper" system in the mast step - a series of holes drilled around where the dolphin striker threads through the step. The Teflon chip squeezes into these holes and stays put - if you get it in correctly (centered).

The Delrin cup squeaks. Maddening on light air days.

Boy, ain't that the truth! I have about a 20% success rate at getting the white teflon chip square, but when it is, it will even stay in when trailering.

After a while I accumulate several squashed teflon chips that are too flattened to use. I stack 2 of these used chips to get another day of sailing out of them. Is this okay to do? I do not see any problems in doing this but I do see that when the chips are stacked, one of them gets off center.
Please let me know if I am doing anything bad to my boat in doing this.
Thanks!

Does one need to drill a small hole in the bottom of the mast step to accommodate the molded mast step bearing (Hobie part number 1130)? Looks like one would then be drilling into the top of the Dolphin Striker.

Alternatively, is there a trick to getting the teflon chip to stay in place, while raising the mast. I have the six small holes in my new mast step, if I can just get it initially seated correctly.

Thanks for your help.

Yes, I had to drill a small, shallow hole in my mast base to accomodate the delrin bearing, it did not seem to contact the dolphin striker post.

Seems that more than a few are having problems with plastic/teflon bearings- Has anyone just tried (marine) grease? I have and it can be kind of messy if too much is used but seems to work just fine. It can be easily wiped out after takedown and reapplied fresh so I doubt that attracting sand, etc. will be a big problem.

Is this some sort of hallowed tradition from the days of Hobie Alter or is there a definitive reason that it is not done?

I've never had a problem with the teflon bearing. I just bend it a little and make sure it is centered in the base. It stays centered. My big problem is forgetting to remove it after sailing. It usually stays put for the next trip though.