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Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
http://www.hobie.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=69&t=26262		 Page 1 of 3
Author:  dmfick [ Fri Jun 11, 2010 8:50 am ]
Post subject:  Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
I just added Kayak Bob's spray skirts to our new TI and they are fantastic.

Prior to the installation I went by our local Hobie dealer (Backyard Boats in Annapolis/Eastport) and picked up 20 feet of the standard Hobie black bungee material. Then to West Marine for some hogrings and pliers, and bungee hooks. Lastly, Lowes for some small wire ties and larger wire ties with screw holes (both UV protected), and some 1/2" by 4" heat shrinkable rubber tubing.

The goal was to attach the spray skirts in a way that they (a) are tight as a drum, (b) look OEM, and (c), can be removed quickly without doing knots, so the amas can be folded quickly and the boat can be put on our jet ski lift with TI cradles, and (d) make no permanent alteration to the base boat. Mission accomplished - see pics below.

The trick is to make the perimeter bungees slightly shorter than the combined length of the skirt sides, and slip on a 4" heat shrink tubing section before attaching the ends together with hogrings. This sets up the right amount of tension to make everything tight.

I added a short (5") piece of bungee through the forward handle hook, and put nylon bungee hooks on both ends. Put the forward end of the bungee over the handle hook, the side bungee over the button on the aka elbow, and the rear over the button next to the forward seat side pocket. I adjusted the skirt to stretch it out fully, and put two small wire ties where each bungee exits the skirt, cinching down to retain the correct amount of bungee outside the skirt for hooking to the attachment points. I installed a small 2.5" bungee section using hogrings next to the forward hatch hold-downs. This is used to hold the skirt tight to the forward part of the boat. Lastly, I put wire ties with screw holes on the skirt just aft of the forward crossbar. I made a short bungee with end hooks to go across the boat to hold the rear skirt section tight to the boat sides - the hooks barely fit through the holes on the special purpose wire ties with screw holes. I route this bungee under the crossbar, and over the mast mount, to get it out of the way. All in all, a very clean installation and a much drier ride, especially with the Ti tramps installed as in the pictures.

Kayak Bob was great to deal with, took only two days for the skirts to make their way from Hawaii to Maryland, and he was very helpful throughout. Here is his website to order the skirts:
https://sites.google.com/site/kayakingb ... t-purchase

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Author:  KayakingBob [ Fri Jun 11, 2010 9:32 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Very nicely done!

I can't tell in the pic's if the forward sheetline is touching the side of the sprayskirt. If it is, watch for wear, or add a small piece of something, like a milk jug so it has a smooth surface to rub against where they contact.

Now I may need to update mine. :)

Well done!
Author:  Cowsgomoo [ Fri Jun 11, 2010 5:55 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Very nice, that l;ooks the goods. I'm thinking of using your idea for the connection to the main hatch. Just wondering if there's a chance of it pulling the hatch bungees off in string wind/waves?

And I have to ask, how do you get that thing back onto the dock at the end of the day? :)
Author:  KayakingBob [ Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:06 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Cowsgomoo wrote:
Just wondering if there's a chance of it pulling the hatch bungees off in string wind/waves?
There's not enough leverage to pull the bungees off, unless it hooked on something solid (the dock?) and if it did, only one side of the hatch bungees would come off. (I wire-tie to the bungees currently, and was concerned about it myself, initially)
Author:  chrisj [ Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:22 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Cowsgomoo wrote:
Just wondering if there's a chance of it pulling the hatch bungees off in string wind/waves?

I've been attaching them that way ever since I got my sprayskirts, with no problems.
Author:  Fly4v [ Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:35 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Dmfick great idea on how to install Bob's spray skirts.

Bob please incorporate Dmfick's ideas in your future productions, just because I am lawy.
Are you also using the grommet under the Aka pin?
Author:  KayakingBob [ Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:45 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Fly4v wrote:
Are you also using the grommet under the Aka pin?
What aka pins? :shock: These are TI's we be playing with! :)
Author:  Fly4v [ Sat Jun 12, 2010 12:32 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Ouch! :lol:
Remember I'm the slow kid playing with the plain Adventure about to join the AI club. It will be at least a year before I can join the TI Club.
So for your TI superiority 8) all I say is "Evasive to Starboard!".... wait no you can't.
Author:  dmfick [ Sat Jun 12, 2010 3:28 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Cowsgomoo wrote:
Very nice, that l;ooks the goods. I'm thinking of using your idea for the connection to the main hatch. Just wondering if there's a chance of it pulling the hatch bungees off in string wind/waves?

And I have to ask, how do you get that thing back onto the dock at the end of the day? :)


No problem with waves pulling them off so far - not enough leverage. Stays there nice and tight no matter what I throw at it.

The dock in the pictures is an 8'x16' floating pier that is only about 8" off the water (attached to the end of our fixed dock, rides up and down with the tides). So far we just tug it off and on the dock, but it was a lot easier with our standard AI. It is heavy, especially for my petite wife, so I am considering two options - we have two jet skis that split time between our place on the Magothy River and a farm on Nandua Creek (off Tangier Sound on the Chesapeake Bay). Right now when they are at the Magothy place, one ski sits on an electric side lift made for PWC's, and the other is on its own floating PWC holder, designed to drive on and slide off. You can see these PWC and storage devices in the pictures above if you look closely.

I am thinking about getting a second floating PWC holder, so we can use the existing electric PWC boatlift to store the TI. Would be a pretty sweet option, as I use the TI a LOT more than the other eight boats/skis - it would be great to walk down to the dock, sit in the boat on the lift, hit a remote control fob, and a minute later, be gently deposited into the water ready to take off. The other option is to slide it on and off the existing jet ski's floating holder - fits in there perfectly, although I have to remove the ski stop block so it can overhang the front and back (the float is 13' long and tilts the boat stern toward the water, so would need to overhang the forward end by at least 3')

Because we are in a weather refuge hole with steep banks on both sides of the creek, there is never any wave action at the dock, so I leave the boat rigged 24/7 during season, ready to sail. (we do throw the Mirage drives and seats into the boathouse under cover). This may wear out the sail faster due to UV expsoure, but the guys at Backyard Boats say it should last at least three seasons - it is worth it to me to spend $500 every few years to keep the boat in sail-ready condition all the time. I am toying with a way to make a sail cover that can be put on the standing mast, similar to the jib cover on our Hobie Getaway catamaran. The problem is lack of a halyard to hold it up like on the Getaway. Plus, it seems to me that the boat's lines will need replacing due to sun exposure and wear before the sail gives out.
Author:  KayakingBob [ Sat Jun 12, 2010 6:36 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
dmfick wrote:
This may wear out the sail faster due to UV expsoure, but the guys at Backyard Boats say it should last at least three seasons - it is worth it to me to spend $500 every few years to keep the boat in sail-ready condition all the time. I am toying with a way to make a sail cover that can be put on the standing mast, similar to the jib cover on our Hobie Getaway catamaran. The problem is lack of a halyard to hold it up like on the Getaway. Plus, it seems to me that the boat's lines will need replacing due to sun exposure and wear before the sail gives out.
Dave, try spraying the whole sail with 303. Suppose to make it last much longer especially the clear plastic part seems to that goes first. (I think Hobie's UV Protectant & Restorer #7006 is the same stuff) Sunblock for plastics, etc.

Nice setup!
Author:  dmfick [ Sun Jun 13, 2010 9:48 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
reconlon wrote:
Dave, try spraying the whole sail with 303. Suppose to make it last much longer especially the clear plastic part seems to that goes first. (I think Hobie's UV Protectant & Restorer #7006 is the same stuff) Sunblock for plastics, etc.


Thanks Bob, just ordered a couple bottles from Amazon - wonder if it would help protect the seats, tramps, and cubby webbing too (the AI seats had some fading after a couple years)?

You put lots of hours on these things in really bright sunlight out there in Hawaii - how are your boats holding up?
Author:  KayakingBob [ Sun Jun 13, 2010 10:11 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Yep, the seats seem to discolor changing either to a brown or a purple (?) I haven't tried 303 on the seats. It does make whatever you spray quite slippery. Good for the sail, not good for the sheetline. On the seat it could be interesting.

Dee (my wife) made me a cover for the TI out of the same shadecloth we make the sprayskirts out of. She added waterproof material where the mast cup and the two pole holders are to keep water out. My TI lives on one side of the double double Hobie Trailex trailer and so is in the sun all day. I will probably add a tarp above the whole trailer as secondary sun protection, but tarps only seem to last here about one year.

I'm thinking about trying a TI sprayskirt installed like you did, but using the light lines (50# working load) that I use for all of it, except for bungees to the aka/ama tophats (eyelet post). Also, I'm thinking of trying an 'S' hook for a quick connect to the bow padeye.

Good luck each day in choosing which toys oops, I meant water tools to use. :)

(Nice Setup!)
Author:  captain-max [ Tue Jul 27, 2010 4:58 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Bob, consider getting a proper canvas tarp to cover your TI. I had one custom made for a patio area, and it survived the Aussie sun and wind 24/7 for many years - more expensive initially, but economical over the longer term.

@dmfick, that's a very good-looking job you did. I've got a set of Bob's spray skirts for my new TI, so I'll be trying your fit-out. Thanks for posting!
Author:  georeubs [ Thu Dec 16, 2010 3:39 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
Dave,

Thank you for the GREAT ideas on ataching the spray skirts. I've had my skirts for a couple weeks now, and have been mulling over exactly how I'd go about attaching them given all the info on this forum. I'm going with your design. It's elegant and simple. Thanks again for sharing.
Author:  Paul67 [ Mon Dec 27, 2010 8:07 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Kayak Bob Spray Skirts on TI
dmfick,

I am a little simple; are you able to help?
I have just got Bobs skirts from Santa and I am wanting to put it together. are you able to show a pic of the bottom part of the skirts. I think I can work out the front (great pics).

If anyone else can assist I would be grateful.
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