Hobie Cat Forums

I am looking at buying a M20 for around 4700.00 that looks to be in great condition accpet for these two injuries.




Are these serious problmes I should be concerned about? Or are they OK? I am not racing yet. I just want something around 20 feet that is in my price range that is avail at the moment and this fits those criteria.

What kind of $ can I exspect to have these fixed?

-William

The one of the port hull looks more serious than the other one. I have no experience with this boat but if the damage isn't structural then it shouldn't be a problem and might not need to be fixed.

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Nacra 5.2 "Elsies"
Hobie 14T, "Blazin" I guess I am keeping her!

Neither is really significant. The cracks above the upper gudgeon are from the hull flexing here. If it really bothers you or it really moves, you can remove the screws and backing nuts, add a couple of layers of fiberglass on the inside of the hull, add an aluminum backing plate if you really want to beef it up, and then sand off the cracked gelcoat and reapply it. Reinstall the hardware and you are good to go. The chips on the top of the transom can be filled with the same gelcoat you use to fix the flex cracked gelcoat above the gudgeon. Use a tape dam and fill it up. File and sand to finish. The cost will vary on where you live and if there is a good glass shop near by. You can do this repair at home with a little research and experimentation. It should only take a day or two to complete.

If you're refering to the gelcoat chips, they're nothing.
The stress cracks in the gelcoat above the gugeon may be a slight cause for concern although our 20 from 1994 developed them and it was never a problem. I believe the earlier 20's may have had some issues there. If the flexing is excessive, it may be a good idea to beef up the area with some extra glass. Put the rudder on and push it all the way to the side to see how much it flexes- add more glass if necessary. Either way, I would not let it be a deciding factor in buying the boat if everything else is good.

sm

Ditto, our '93 has these cracks. An old timer told me the early models were prone to stress cracks just below the deck and I loved his suggestion for fixing. Stand the boat on end leaning it against the garage. Will keep the resin in the right location while hardening.

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hobiejohn at earthlink dot net
Fleet 297

Thats pretty fat money for a '93

yeah we paid 3500 for our 97, very good condition. see if you can get him down.

The boat is a 94. I thought it might be a bit high. The guy races so he has taken good care of it as far as keeping it up, washing it, sotrying covered. And the trailer is a heavy duty BOAT trailer not just a hobie trailer which might count for some fo the cost. But I think it still could be a bit cheaper.

What area did you get yours in? I am in Ohio and there are not many boats here.

I got mine in Michigan.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the serial number indicates that it's actually a 1993 for what it's worth.

sm

William,

Our '93 is from IN (many thanks to CW for finding!) paid in the 3's and came with almost new set of sails.

That serial number ends in "393". How could it be a '94?

Regardless, does it come with a newer/fresh main, 600 or higher sail number? New/er jib? Set of recreational sails? Newer tramp with the pocket on top, in lieu of hanging below? Beach Wheels? Is comp tip original? Cascading downhaul? Barberhauler original?

All this stuff adds up and racers will want it, but may not interest you. Ask him specifically what racing mod's he did to the boat. Again, if you're not planning on racing most will be of little benefit to you as the boat is already adorned as a racer from the factory.

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hobiejohn at earthlink dot net
Fleet 297

we had to drive about four hours down to southern MD to pick her up. there were a few things that needed immediate repair. for example, the tramp was wasted and needed to be replaced, and the foot grip on the hulls needed to be redone, but other than that the boat was in sound shape. our main was the original, and may only have one or two seasons left, but the jib was only a few years old. no spin or roller furler for the jib. all in all, i think we got a great deal.

if the guy raced it and he has a bunch of modifications, perhaps you can get the price down by having him remove some of these. otherwise see if he'll come down at all, and then just move on it. these are great boats. my brother and i are learning something new everytime we sail ours.

also, does anyone have any idea what those rope handles just foreward of the inspection ports are for? spinnaker blocks?

The loops of tubing attached to the deck in front of the portholes are there to act as foot straps and also a handle (since the 20 has no deck lip to grab).

From the pictures above, the boat also has rope handles attached to the rear cross bar bolts. That was a trick for boats that didn't come with the tubing handles. Loops of rope attached to the outboard rear crossbar bolt with a bungee to retract them when not in use (although the bungee must be shot on the boat above).

For whatever reason, this boat has both.

sm