Hi, I'm Nicolás and I live in Argentina.
I have a Hobie 16 and I really want to kill a paint shop owner.
After explaining and showing him the photos of how to make these small holes and then fill them in, the following happened to me ... Instead of making small holes in the deck, he decided to make several holes in the sides of the hulls and loaded 11 lbs of epoxy resin. I attach an image.
My question is if this could affect the performance and balance of the boat due to the difference in weight.
Now that it is done I have to find the best solution.
Should I do the same to the other Hull?
I listen to advice. Thank you
Hello Nicolás, 11lbs! We don't see any pictures but I can imagine what you are describing.
Were the soft spots you were trying to fix on the deck or the sides of the hulls?
I've found that trying to get fiberglass work done by a "pro" that doesn't normally work on these lightweight foam core hulls doesn't work out too well.
Same, no pictures seen. But, not much you can do at this point. To answer your question about affecting performance; yes and no. For the "No" part: Not to down play your sailing/racing skill level, but if the boat is old enough (and needing) soft spots filled in the deck (we are assuming this is why you had epoxy injected in the deck), then the boat itself is not as competitive as a boat that is less than 5 years old. When a boat gets to a certain age, it gets soft and twists when you sail. You may not be able to see it and feel the boat is in great condition, but for someone who finishes within the top 10 at Worlds can notice a difference. That is where my "Yes" answer comes in. Some of the top racers will notice a difference, but for most of us, we won't. I have a modified Prindle 18-2 that weighs 421# compared to the "class weight" of 375#. My wooden Tornado is 11kg. above minimum weight and it stays pretty competitive. But, I think your question is more of the weight being one-sided. Any excess weight is "slow" on a catamaran. I don't think you'll notice a difference, except that the hull may be a bit stiffer now.
Something to keep in mind, when you stiffen part of an old boat, the loads transfer to new areas. I had added factory supplied sub-decks on my Prindle 19. The bows got a lot stiffer, but one hull ended up shearing in half at the cross beam.
Short story: I wouldn't worry about it.. just go sailing and enjoy the boat.
-- Scott
Prindle Fleet 2
TCDYC
Prindle 18-2 Mod "FrankenKitty"
Tornado Classic "Fast Furniture"
Prindle 19 "Mr. Wiggly"
Nacra 5.8 "De ja vu"
Nacra 5.0
Nacra 5.8
Tornadoes (Reg White) --
