| Vol 1 - Issue 4 | December 1996 |
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Sail Repair Tape | |
| West Marine Spinnaker Repair Tape is appropriate for most sails. Made of Ripstop Nylon, this adhesive backed tape can be used as is, or reinforced with stitching. Each roll is 2" x 15', so for small repairs it will last a while. We tested it to the extreme by patching some tears in jib batten pockets where batten hinges were hitting the boom. While the tape alone is sufficient for general repair, our application does not appear to be satisfactory without stitching. Available at West Marine. |
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Bill Mattson
Cheata Motor Mount The best addition to my Hobie-18 is the motor mount, a unit manufactured by Cheata and available from Hobie, Murrays, etc. Being in an area with a draw bridge which won't open unless under power, I had no alternative, but I can see where it could be great when at a tight boat ramp, etc. I also purchased a new 3.3 HP Mariner engine. The motor mount installs easily with 2 rivets and 2 thru bolts. The only problem with the motor mount is the deflection plate. In rough water, while under sail it creates a lot of spray which hits diretly on the front face of the engine, even when it is in the full up position. Regarding the motor, whether you buy a Nissan, Mercury, Mariner or Tohotsu, they are all the same, just the color and cover are different. The only options are HP, either 3.3 HP or 2.2 HP., short or long shaft or a forward/neutral gear shifter verses none at all. Definitely get the 3.3 HP with the gear shift. It is much safer especially when your knee deep in water atempting to start the motor. Also, it is always nice to have as much power as possible. The reason I chose the Mariner over the Nissan or Tohotsu is that the case on the Nissan is in 2 pieces (left & right) and requires removal of several screws to take it off, a real pain, and you WILL have to take it off. The Mariner has 2 clips and the whole top comes off, great to inspect the fuel level. (they all have integral tanks) There are really no negatives with the setup except that when it gets rough, a lot of water hits the front of the engine. Mine has quit on several ocassions. Most times I was lucky and it restarted immediately. Several times I had to replace the plug before it would start. (always cary a DRY spare or two) Since the air intake is directly behind the face plate of the engine, water (spray) gets sucked into the carb and over time deposits form on the plug. The more deposits the more susceptable the plug is to being fouled. You can readily hear this happening when under power and in a swell. The engine rpm drops quite noticably and takes several sections to recover. Usually it doesn't quit but if it will happen at any time, this is it. After a run in with the bridge (bridge 1, mitchel 0) I decided to modify the backside of the front plate of the engine to minimize water getting into the carb. This eliminated 98% of the problem. Basically I just moved the location of the fresh air intake towards the top of the engine. This was accomplished with an x-acto knife, a piece of thin aluminum sheetmetal the size of an index card (roof flashing), a strip of foam weatherstripping and some silicone. First I removed the faceplate from the engine, then cut the 2 horizontal plastic stiffners. Using an index card as a template, folded it into a "U" shape about 3 inches long. Trial fit it so it perfectly seals the area where the plate attaches to the carb. The length, or height of the tube, is determined by trial and error limited only by the brace for the pull starter. When your get a perfect fit, trace the dimensions onto the metal, fold it, then with silicone ADHESIVE, glue it in place. Next glue the weatherstripping so it just covers the vertical opening for the controls. Finally, drill a 1/8" weep hole right where the plastic attaches to the carb. This will allow any water which does get it to get out. Thats it. Good luck. Cheata can be contacted at cheataomb@aol.com. Mitchel Wolfe | |
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