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PostPosted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 11:47 am 
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Location: San Diego, CA
(The pictures are at Picasa, album name is Hobie21SC.)

Well, I finally changed the springs...

No, it was not easy because I did not want to have another hatch on the deck, and I hated every minute (and there were many minutes) of it.

So, when a week later the other set of springs failed (jamming the centerboard in the process) I wondered: "Do we need springs at all?"

When do we need the centerboards down AND springs at the same time? Beaching the boat while going to windward? Not a very likely scenario, and in any case one crewmember can hold one board down until it touches the sand.

So I got rid of the springs and drilled a hole through the deck, angled so that the line that replaces the springs goes through it to a clamcleat. It works really well, and replacing the line is easy.

The one thing that I would have done differently is place the clamcleat further back, so that the angle is better.

Another mod concerns the mast bob. One week after I put the mast up the bob, and the boat around it, was covered with seagull poop.

(OK, some of you, Forumites of excellent taste, may be thinking that anybody who has a bob painted like Shamu, San Diego's Killer Whale, deserves all the palmiped excrement he can get.

You are right, of course, but the fact is that I had no choice. When I took delivery of the boat my girlfriend went: "Oh, this is cute". Her girlfriend went: "It's aDOHrable!" And the girlfriend's kids screamed in unison: "Look, mommy! It's SHAMU!"

General Custer had more of a chance than I did. So, since I couldn't kill the whale, I had to save it.)

I drilled three little holes, screwed in self-tapping screws, and strung stainless steel wire from them to the tail. (Sort of like the antennas in old propeller airplanes.) I haven't had a problem since then.

Finally, I have seen what sunlight does to EPO rudders, and also Hobie recommends protecting the comptip. (How do you protect the comptip, short of dropping the mast after every sail and using a cover?)

So I sanded and painted the rudders and comptip. I used Rust-oleum Appliance Epoxy. It is very forgiving, very hard, and not too shiny.

The only problem with doing this is that once they are white and shiny, you see that the shape of the EPOs is not exactly... fair.

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PostPosted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 12:58 pm 
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Joined: Fri May 27, 2005 11:31 am
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Location: Grand Rapids, MI
I'm a bit confused.

Did you turn the mast bob into Shamu to stop the birds from defecating on your boat, or did they defecate on your boat because they hate Shamu?

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 2:35 am 
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Location: San Diego, CA
A quick update on protecting Comptips and EPO rudders. Over two years ago I sanded them and sprayed them with white Rust-Oleum Appliance Epoxy paint.

To my surprise, even the paint on the aluminum part of the Comptip track looks fine. (Aluminum is hard to paint, paint peels off easily.)

A quick and inexpensive solution to very expensive parts' maintenance.

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 6:03 am 
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Location: Columbus, Indiana
Two things,
Did Hobie make EPO rudders for the 21 or are they standard EPO rudder that fit any Hobie?
And ,please share some photos of your centerboard modification.This may help explain your setup.
Thanks,Bill 404 21SE

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 8:34 am 
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Location: San Diego, CA
Here they go:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jordiheguilor/H21Mods#

The standard black line raises the centerboard, the red line replaces the spring.

This worked fine until a friend beached the cat going 10 knots, destroying one centerboard in the process. So I'm going to use a shockcord, like somebody suggested.

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 8:35 am 
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Oh, and the rudders came with the boat, so I don't know to which model they belong.

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 1:10 pm 
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Location: Columbus, Indiana
I have seen a similar modified deck that enable the crew to raise the centerboards from behind that pocket it travels in,not from the forward side.I don't like standing up,facing aft while raising my boards.I would much rather see where I am heading at all times.I did build a mock up out of poplar wood shaped as a trapezoid with beveled sides(to defect water and toes.I installed an exit block dropping though this platform and a cammatic on a wedge to cleat off the centerboard line.It look fine to me and when I cut that platform out of UV resistant black plastic,I missed my cut and screwed up the material.

Another project that did not go as anticipated. :?

I am not too proud to have them milled by a pro in a machine shop.I want a stable base or platform that holds my cammatic and exit block in place and can handle the strong spring too.I would like more adjustment than a couple of knot in my center board line that control the depth.The current location of the hull fitting is not a good angle to lift that board from behind(only from the front).So I would need to cut a hole through my deck to achieve lifting those board up from behind.Center-line from it current location,not offset.
Could you explain how that red line lowers the boards?
Thanks Bill 404 21SE

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 4:31 pm 
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Hi Bill.

The red line attaches to the same place on the board as the spring. It pulls the board aft, like the spring.

The only problem is that there's no "give", so if you hit something hard, the board will break.

I'm considering a couple of alternatives, I will post pics when it's done.

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