Hobie Cat Forums

so where can I get a set of wings for a normal H16?

here is one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHcXzyKKDbs&feature=player_detailpage

More practical -- sell your H16 and buy H17, H18, or Getaway with the wings.

Once you taste the wings, there is no going back.

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H17

Kinda scary looking. Lots of sharp corners and edges on that thing.

I definitely wouldn't want to sail hard with those on. If nothing else you could put carpet or neoprene or something all around the edges to make it safer. Then all you would end up with is a big bruise and not a huge trauma wound.

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-Zach
West Lafayette, IN (school)
Melbourne, FL (summer)

Unless there is some way of locking the wing/seat in place, I would not want to try and trapeze off it since it may fold back in on you.

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Tim
82' H16
Sail # 88863
Panama City Beach, FL

You guys are missing the point. Anyone who wants to put wings on a Hobie 16 has to be suicidal anyway.

sm

I had Sit 'N Sail wings on a 16 for four seasons and they worked very well. I needed them for my decrepit father-in-law so he could sail fast without having to sit in the uncomfortable position on the side rail and tramp. I sold the boat with the wings to an older gentlemen for the same reason my father-in-law wanted the wings.

I hardly noticed a sailing performance difference with the wings, except that they drag in the water when flying a hull high enough. Otherwise everyone who got on my boat enjoyed them.

SM, care to elaborate why you think they would have to be suicidal? the H16 at my club has some custom designed ones that work very well... I fail to see your point, please try and explain

16's are pretty weight sensitive & tippy boats (tippy fore/aft) to begin with. Plus they have an extreme tendency to want to pitchpole when pushed real hard.

If you just want to use the wings to sit on like picnic benches for cruising around in light wind, perhaps they would be OK (except for the added weight and drag from hitting waves). But if you're going to use them to carry more than two people on board or push the boat even harder by trapping off them, I suspect you better be prepared for some swimming, and that's a long way to fly when the bow takes a dive. That's what I was getting at.

sm

srm, pitchpoling wasn't my experience with the wings on my 16, and to the contrary, with more leverage on the windward stern the leeward bow was not as prone to pitchpoling.

Sailing the 16 hard compared to most other cats does take more skill and agility, but all things being equal I don't think adding wings makes the boat less safe.

Wings you can use on H16 safety

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H17

No I cannot, I am already a heavy guy at 260, I need to loose weight and those wings would just add to the problem....

I forgot to add that my weight is 220 lbs. and my FIL is 240 lbs. and the 16 with wings didn't pitchpole for us in 12-20 mph winds.

Hobie doesn't recommend wings since the boat wasn't designed for them.