I saw an ad on craigslist that said :free hobie 14 in bass lake" I got a little excited and wondered if it was still theresince the posting was about a month old. After reading the rest of the ad, the bottom said: if the ad is still here, then the boat is still available. I then went for a drive to the lake which isn't too far from my house. My wife and I drove all around where it was supposed to be, and we couldn't find it due to there being a lot of private property (lake houses). We decided that it would be a good idea to park and walk the shoreline since the water was very low, and maybe we could spot it that way. We ended up finding it... This is what we saw:




I thought, This poor boat is in sad shape, and it's owner has moved away. I decided to pick it up the next day. I feel like I rescued the thing. I would like to ID the boat because the past owner says its from the late 60s. There was no trailer so getting it home was a little interesting. The poor thing was full of water too. Once I emptied the pontoons, I was able to muscle it up on my pickup.


I took my rescued friend home and started looking it over, cleaning, and taking it apart for repairs. It didn't look as bad once it was cleaned up and off those weeds.





I took the boat apart and Inspected it. The hulls are surprisingly solid with only a small soft spot per pontoon. 3/4 pylons are cracked and I will need to do lots of repairs all over. Right now It sits in pieces on the side of my house.

I have been learning and practicing my fiberglass repair skills and I await making this thing seaworthy.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
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What you have rescued is a Hobie 14, a great little boat to start out on if you weigh under 170lbs. I too am self taught and started out with a Hobie 14 Turbo, has a jib sail up front which helped big time as I weigh in at 200 lbs. But if I were you, I would clean the little H14 up without spending too much time or money on it, sell it and look for something a little bigger so both you and the wife can sail together. My 1st suggestion would be a Prindle 16, has high volume hulls and will carry the both of you easily, 2nd would be the Hobie 16 as it is more available and also easy to repair, but do not rule out other cats that may be available in your area, just post what you find here and the advice from other members will flow freely, for example, the GCat is also a good cat but not so readily available, HTH. ......

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TurboHobo
H14T
H16
P18
G-Cat 5.0
P16
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skellington

I saw an ad on craigslist that said :free hobie 14 in bass lake" I got a little excited and wondered if it was still theresince the posting was about a month old. After reading the rest of the ad, the bottom said: if the ad is still here, then the boat is still available. I then went for a drive to the lake which isn't too far from my house. My wife and I drove all around where it was supposed to be, and we couldn't find it due to there being a lot of private property (lake houses). We decided that it would be a good idea to park and walk the shoreline since the water was very low, and maybe we could spot it that way. We ended up finding it... This is what we saw:

Great story! I love the pic of the boat in the back of the pickup, where there is a will there is a way!

Depending on you and your wife's total weight, turbo's suggestion to use the boat as a stepping stone is a good one.

If you update your signature with your name/boat/location you will get more input and responses. Congratulations on joining the beachcat community.

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Damon Linkous
1992 Hobie 18
Memphis, TN

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Thanks for the comments. This is going to be a stepping stone boat for me, but that doesn't mean I'm selling it when I get a bigger one. When I upgrade ill be getting a mono hull cruiser so having a pair of cats might be nice too. I weight 125lbs and I plan to single hand. I purchased another hobie 14 for nearly nothing (posts coming soon on that one) so my wife can do the same after practicing with me. Her weight is close to mine so we have options with these little boasts: double for heavy winds, and single for light. I look forward to making more progress with my cat's.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
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Dam Dam Dam.. Saw that Craigs posting for sooo long and tried to contact the poster.. No Luck.. Decided to pass on the the trip on the chance that it was still there.. Looks like a find.. a 14 is one size I dont have!! Good luck. Buzz if you ever in the northern part of the state. Try Woodward (Near Oakdale) when the Modesto group is there .. Good camping.. Great wind.. Lots of fun.. Folks show up on thr or Fri for fun sails..Cheers Hal

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

halliske

Dam Dam Dam.. Saw that Craigs posting for sooo long and tried to contact the poster.. No Luck.. Decided to pass on the the trip on the chance that it was still there.. Looks like a find.. a 14 is one size I dont have!! Good luck. Buzz if you ever in the northern part of the state. Try Woodward (Near Oakdale) when the Modesto group is there .. Good camping.. Great wind.. Lots of fun.. Folks show up on thr or Fri for fun sails..Cheers Hal

Getting the boat was a lot of work. It was a real PITA with all the private property and lack if communication with the previous owner.
Sailing with a club sounds like a lot of fun. I may have to try that some time.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
--

Boat #1 is in need of some replacement parts. I need 3/4 of the pylons. Luckily they dont cost that much, and are readily available on the net.

Has anyone seen a hobie with these markings? Green / clear hulls with white sails.


I would really like to ID this boat and have an estimate year to tell them when i get registration. Any help would be great.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
--

My 16s have the serial number on the back of the Starb. hull by the rudder.. The last 2 numbers ar the year.. H

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

P.S. I you need any parts that are the same as a 16, PM me. I have MANY boats to grab parts from. H

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

skellington

Has anyone seen a hobie with these markings? Green / clear hulls with white sails.

Is there a brown surfboard shaped design painted on the deck that is partly worn off? Looks like a custom paint job on a white boat to me judging by the pics alone.

skellington

I would really like to ID this boat and have an estimate year to tell them when i get registration. Any help would be great.

The earliest Hobie 14's and 16's had the serial number etched directly into the pylon metal. Of course you are missing most of the pylons.

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Damon Linkous
1992 Hobie 18
Memphis, TN

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Hey Mr Coarsegold!! Went to Morgan Hill today on the track of a 16 for $50.. Found a sad 14.. They did not want it around and I got it por nada.. Hulls are trashed.. Rudders good.. Some rigging.. Mast and Boom OK.. Sail is fine if you want the bottom 1/2.. Frame, travler, D.S. ok.. Let me know what ya need.. Cheers Hal.. (Bill. this one is going to be a real chalange for ya. Get your best guy on it please)

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

DamonLinkous

Is there a brown surfboard shaped design painted on the deck that is partly worn off? Looks like a custom paint job on a white boat to me judging by the pics alone.

The earliest Hobie 14's and 16's had the serial number etched directly into the pylon metal. Of course you are missing most of the pylons.

The brown looks as if it was just clear fiberglass resin. it looks original. Plus the green is a lime green when you get down to the base. I think it may be original as well. The white paint is a sad job of someone trying to cover the boat. I think they ran out of paint .

I still have the 3 pylons that I cut off, but I didn't see and markings on them. I am sure there are some on the back of the pontoons. I will check when i get to the stripping of these hulls. I think ill make a diagram of the green / clear hulls and maybe someone will recognize them.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
--

halliske

Hey Mr Coarsegold!! Went to Morgan Hill today on the track of a 16 for $50.. Found a sad 14.. They did not want it around and I got it por nada.. Hulls are trashed.. Rudders good.. Some rigging.. Mast and Boom OK.. Sail is fine if you want the bottom 1/2.. Frame, travler, D.S. ok.. Let me know what ya need.. Cheers Hal.. (Bill. this one is going to be a real chalange for ya. Get your best guy on it please)

What are you willing to part with? and for how much? I need to get a list of stuff if I want to get Boat #1 on the water. Boat #2 is my current project though... I'm slacking and need to get on it!

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
--

Leaving for Black Bute to sail with MHRA. More when I get back on monday he he he Hal

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

skellington, just a suggestion, but why not turn 1 or both of your H14's into H14 Turbo's by adding a jib up front, Hal has a dolphin stryker setup, all you would need is a H14T jib with furler and swivel and you accelerate to Warp Speed 2 instantly.....

Oh yeah, you would also need jib blocks, then there's the cable that runs between the chainplates to which the blocks are attached, a Turbo tramp with grommets for the jib blocks.........

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TurboHobo
H14T
H16
P18
G-Cat 5.0
P16
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halliske

Leaving for Black Bute to sail with MHRA. More when I get back on monday he he he Hal

Black Butte is an army corps lake. I work at Hensley. If you have the annual pass we should sail together when i get my boat going. Hope the sailing goes well.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
--

Hey.. I brought the boat home for you!! Knew you were in the jaws of rebuilding and thought it would help.. If you dont want some of it for spairs I could keep stuff here at Honest Hal,s Hot Hobies.. (sorry Bill... Think that name has more punch.. Going to loose the Zombie thing) The boat is sound enough to trailer.. Actually a smaller rental box trailer would do or.. you could burrow ( that's Borrow in the mid west speak where Bill, my business consultent is from) one from me and return it with a cheap 16 for me from the mountains at your convenience.. (See Bill.. Thats the close!!!) I am only out the gas and time for a trip to morgan hill and would gladly trade that for a botle or two from one of your local winerys... zin would be nice... (Thats the REAL CLOSE) Buzz or email if you like.. I am in the book as Howard.. In Livermore Cheers Hal

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

Not sure I want to do that drive again soon.. AND it was flat as a pancake. Really nice folks in that MHRA group. They do Regattas there and Egale Lake in Nv as well as S F Bay things.. I'd rather drive down there near you cuz my son is in Madera.. Perhaps Millerton or Hunnington.. BTY, the 14 I have is a Mainsail only boat. I do have a extra roller reefer from a 18. Give me a buzz about pickup.. Hal

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

Halliske, PM sent.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
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Hi Ryan.. I was there. She was rather toast but they were selling the property. Just as easy to bring it home.. Not sure I would trust the rigging. I am going to keep what is left of the sail and battons. There was some misc. hardware that will fit in my "in case I need it" tool box.. Besides, there are so few of us here in Calif. we
got to stick together.. If you are going near Fresno (clovis out east by the lake), there is a guy there who sold me a boat. He found a set of rudders after I left. Like to have them but not worth the trip just for them. Might be a nice trade for you to grab them for me.. Also. If you see any cheap 16 or larger there I would be interested in having you check it out for me.. Bring down the 14 and go home with a 16 or whatever. Buzz if you like.. Cheers Get a girl ready to dance soon.. A great regatta at Woodward Lake by Oakdale the second week in May. No boat.. Come and borrow one of mine. I hope to be there fri,sat,sun.. H Having a prob sending this as a PM. nine two 5 437 two zero 66

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Hal Liske
Livermore CA
H 16 (6+ 1.. Friends) H 3.2 N 5.2 (2) H 17 (2) H-18
Nacra 5.8 (son's) H 20 (Friends)
It's a Sickness

I Need a A Cat Please
--

Hal, you might want to talk to this guy.

http://fresno.craigslist.org/boa/2897534739.html

He has some nice H16s here in Madera. Hes a really nice guy. I have seen the boats that he has, and they are nice. I purchased my boat #2 from him. If you buy a boat down here, I'm sure we can help each other with transport.



Edited by skellington on Apr 26, 2012 - 08:41 PM.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
--

I did some work on Boat #1 since I am waiting for materials for the other. I sanded a bit of the white sides to see if it was originally another color. It is white until i get to what looks like a grey epoxy coat. the tops are that bright color green and after that it goes to the grey then fiberglass. I sanded the rear ends of the pontoons and there was no SN. It does have numbers on the aluminum posts that go to the pylons. This number is a 4 digit number 1686 (i think). It looks like its been stamped a few times so the lines + corrosion makes it hard to read. This boat is kind of a mystery to me. I would love to find out what year it is. I have also noticed that the pontoons from this old boat are a LOT stronger than my 76. they have 1 small DE-laminating spot on both pontoons. they are heavier than the 76's.

I cant wait to have a sail-able cat, but until then ill have fun working on these.

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Hobie cat 14 196?
Hobie cat 14 1976 Flamer
Coarsegold, CA
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