Ahoy,
I made a deal on a 1986 Hobie 17 and discovered a crack on the bottom of the port hull at the forward pad when I was picking up the boat. The owner didn't know about the problem and let me out of the deal. I may still buy the boat, if the hull can be repaired. It was a very bad day for both of us.
The crack is about 6" long and about 2" up from the bottom on the inside of the hull. Both sides of the crack are slighty curved towards the center of the crack. I'm sure it would allow water to enter the hull. The bottom of the hulls have few scratches and there doesn't appear to be any other damage. In fact, the hulls look to be in very good condition and the boat has had very little use. The crack was only discovered when I got under the tramp to tie the boat to the trailer.
Is this a common problem for the H17 to have hull crack(s) at the pads, if sitting on the trailer for long periods of time?
Has anyone tried to repair a problem like this? I'm sure an access hatch would need to be cut in the top of the hull to make the repair. Any idea of the cost?
My guess would be that the cracked area would need to be cut away and a new section would need to be added.
Other option for the owner would be to just part out the boat, but he just wants to get rid of it. The boat doesn't have a main sail and is also missing some of the rigging. The trailer is in poor condition.
All comments would be helpful. My email adress is
[email protected], if anyone wants to email me directly.
Thanks,
Bob