Hobie Cat Forums

My brand new Getaway, after the first sail, revealed the sail luff tape cut on the left side for about one foot from the top, revealing the luff rope. This after just one hoisting! The sail and mast are getting replaced, and the dealer has said this is a known problem that has occurred before. While I found some roughness in the mast, it doesn't seem enough to cause this. I am very concerned that this doesn't happen again. Is there a chance the sail tape was not properly sewn at the top? Any idea what happened here? Anyone else had this problem?
What will ensure this doesn't happen again?

What I understand has happened is a chatter mark (caused during extruding), inside the aluminum extrusion luff track, has caused some tears in Getaway sails this summer. This is the first time in all my years doing parts and warranty at the factory of hearing about this one, so no... never happened before... not like this.

What is more common is a burr in the luff track opening where we machine the track open and perhaps leave a sharp edge the sail can catch on. That doesn't happen very often and can be caught by the delivering dealer. A touch of fine sand paper fixes it.

What happened this time is a line of burrs all along the inside of the track and unseen by the machinist building the mast. This seems to be limited to a short section of the extrusion run on Getaways. We have found a handful. Now that the factory is aware, there should be no further concern.

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Matt Miller
Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Hobie Cat USA

Thanks, Matt. That makes sense. BTW, it is really great that you/Hobie respond this well and quickly and straight-forwardly to customer inquiries, with a real and knowledgeable person - Thanks!