Trailer sail storage

Any idea what to use for that? Or should I assemble some sort of box/coffin my self I am talking about the big box which every hobie trailer has, where you can store all your sails, boom, rudders..

There are a lot of options. Make your own, look for a used one, buy a new aluminum one, use large diameter pipe, etc. I bought a used one from a local catamaran dealer for $100.

Unless it's going to be dry, I wouldn't store sails that way. Only for traveling I would suppose.

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JKK
83 yellow/ white decks Hobie 14 Corando turbo
82 yellow hulls Hobie 16 Cat Fever
84 yellow hulls hobie 16 Yellow Nationals
plus a few extras that I'm restoring

Yes, it will be only for travelling. I would then take the whole thing off and put it into my garage. The boat stays outside so I wouldn't want anything to get stolen from the box. Also there would be impossible to buy something like that here in Bulgaria. Did anyone made one like this yourself? What should I use, plastic or wood I dunno. The large diameter pipe sounds like a good idea.

I bought my boat new in 1985 and recently gave it to my daughter. All that time I never used a sail box. I tied the sail to the tramp for travel. When I had a van, I could put the sail in the vehicle. If you keep the sail in your garage, a sail box probably isn't needed. I would trailer up to 200 miles (about 340K) round trip in one day. I had no problem

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Howard

That sounds like a major hassle. I can't imagine bolting and un-bolting the storage box every time I wanted to go for a sail. I think I would just empty the box and put the gear in the garage or buy a good lock for the box.

I built a coffin style box about 10 years ago out of 2x2 lumber and 1/4" plywood for maybe $100. It looks pretty bad now, but still works OK. Fiberglass or aluminum boxes hold up the best, but they are pricy.

sm

I figured that it takes me around 1 hour to tie up all on the trailer (cat, boom, sails, rudders, paddles, mast, etc), one hour drive to the lake, one hour to assemble the whole cat, then drive back, etc. There is no time to sail! If i throw everything in the box and then simply unscrew 4 bolts and put it into the garage and it is all set for the next trip. Staying outside will damage the plywood very fast, especially in the winter. I will try to make my own coffin. It wont look pretty but I think this is the best way. Im just sick and tired of tying all this stuff on the boat every time. And i keep loosing stuff. Ones i had to go back half a km to find my puddle and I almost lost the rudder extension one other time.

I built a sail box for my Hobie 17. Used 2x2" framing and 1/2" plywood, with hinged doors, front and back. I had the front one angled at 45 degrees so the wind wouldn't take it off. I had padlocks on them, and could lock everything in the box. Kept it varnished with polyurethane and it looked great for years.

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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

Problem is, the boxes tend to be heavy and awkward and they're located under the boat and the bolts can be a PITA to line up and install. Not something I would want to deal with every time I wanted to go for a sail.

sm

I use an aluminum spiral pipe 14" round by 10" long under my 21SE. It has been there since '89 and has never leaked. One end cap is riveted in place and sealed. The other end has a removable end cap with tension locking hasps. It holds my main, two jib sails, one storm jib, my boom, two tillers, parts of a crane used to raise the mast, and my entire rudder system. The trailer also has two aluminum tool boxes full of life jackets and camping gear, a cooler rack for my 94 quart cooler, and a large plastic box full of firewood. The trailer is covered with 18' long by 4'wide of aluminum walk plate which all of this is mounted on.....it takes a V8 to move this beast.....oh, there is a bottle opener on the forward mast caddie......very important. This is the War Wagon...

On my 16 trailer, I built an aluminum tread plate sail box 10' long... "mail box" style. It is so strong, you can dance on it. One end is welded on and the other end again is like a mail box door. Inside there is a top self for two set of sails and below that is a redwood tray 10" long that holds my rudder assemble and tools. I built this in '85 and it looks maybe a year old...this was the war wagon before the 21...

Aluminum is great, needs no paint, will not rust, somewhat light and no maintenance. Before the winter set in, I offload everything and fill my garage.

Damon Linkous from thebeachcats.com is working on having galvinized coffins style sail boxes built from the company I retired from. Hopefully he will be able to sale these boxes to budget conscious trailer sailors on his website soon.

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Bill 404 21SE

Lol can I have a phote of all that?

If you're just storing sails, you can use a 10' piece of 12" PVC pipe and there won't be so much to build. Just cap one end off and cut a door (round) for the other end using particle board (wood or compressed wood) or something similar. Be sure to drill (or cut) holes in one (or both) of the ends (or bottom) for ventilation purposes.

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Happy Sailing,

David

OK so, a Bill404 War Wagon is one way to go. (I love it. My projects often grow wildly out of control too.) Or, if you'd like to go light and inexpensive... I have a 14" plastic corrugated pipe with sheet metal end caps that are held on with bungee cords though small side holes. To open; just pull outwards and lift up and over the pipe. The caps sit up there attached.

One cap was missing when I bought the boat/trailer combo and a local heating and plumbing shop just made one up to match, for $27 incl. tax. The pipe diameter is odd at 14" but I like it! The extra room makes it easy to get stuff (rolled sail, boom, etc...) in and out from either end. Pipe is best purchased from a pipe supply yard... ask for the odd lengths pile to sort through. Pipe comes standard in 20' lengths but at times it is ordered in a short section and they just cut it off. Takes a while to sell the short stuff so... discounted, you win. I would suggest that you can get enough of a bargain that you could even buy a coupling to join two very short sections and still be ahead.

I thought of making a plywood door at one end but the weight and, prospect of sand in hinges, etc... made me look to a fabricator.

You're killing your time, for sure. Getting a sail bag cut tons of time for me. I bought the Hobie one, but I don't recommend it for the H16; it's just too tight lengthwise. Make one from Sunbrella fabric, large enough (like 1' square in cross-section) that you can drop the sail right into it and then put the tiller crossbar, hiking stick and rudders on top. Zip it up and strap it to the tramp right where it is; all you need is an aft strap around the rear crossbar and a front strap down to the dolphin striker rod or (what I do) use the jib sheet. You need to develop the routine that works best for you, but if I need to I can rig or strike in under a half hour... usually well under. That is stopping the car to boat in the water or vice versa. There are a lot of small time-saving things you can do, such as what you do with the shrouds. I put them in the mast support and don't have to tie them down anywhere.

How to rig and de-rig quickly is another topic, but back to your question I definitely feel that the bag I use is faster than a box would be. I don't even have to disconnect the main sheet; it just goes right through the zipper opening and the boom and sail never leave the trampoline. Maybe things are different for me because I don't have to take anything apart when I get home... it's sitting there just as I pulled in a month or so ago.

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'00 H16 #104691
'78 H16 #32692 ex-rental [gone]
Old Holsclaw trailer
My Hobie 16 pages

Hi, guys,

Thank you all for the ideas. I have decided just to put a little effort and build a box. It is still not finished (needs painting) this why I did not post any pics yet, but since this topic is active I will now. The wheels on the photos are also another project that is going on, but not finished yet. I want everything to be stored in the box and carried to the trailer every time I sail. It will be stored in my garage in the mean time. The box will be attached to the trailer just with 4 screws. The box also has a small wheels (note the last photo) like on a suitcase and a handle on the other side which makes it easier to attach to the trailer. If you have any ideas what to add more, please share. The box took me 3 days to build, and around a day for the beach tracks.