growing up my dad had a hobie, now i wish to get back into sailing, i dont have much money, but were i live i do not need a boat permit (for a lake) and wish to acquire a hobbie, or a catamaran (prefer a hobie.
All advice is greatly appreciated.

Where are you?

For parts availability, technical support, advise, performance and bang for the buck it would be hard to beat a good used Hobie 16. We bought a 1981 H16 for $500 with trailer. Put about $500 or $600 additional into it and essentally have a new high performance fun machine! Note that the additional $500-$600 included some extra "goodies" not required but were just nice to get. With the thousands upon thousands of H16's that have been made from the 1970's until now (Thats going on 4 decades of building) there is a huge amount of knowledge, support and parts both factory and aftermarket for this great boat. After all this time it's still one of the most if not THE most ordered NEW catamarans. I don't mean to sound like a commercial but I had another type of cat before about 20 years ago and it was NO match for the fun and speed of our H16. Of course we didn't have the internet back then and I knew nothing of tuning and such, but still, my vote is a used H16. Research it though and gain knowlege on it, if you read enough you can be almost an expert on them in no time...They're that popular.
Note: Not all boats for sale have a "For Sale" sign on them, high grass around a trailer with flat tires is sometimes the "sign". I told this to my wife and SHE found our boat. The vibrant color and crispiness of the sails showed our 26 year old boat was used very little by the original owner.





edited by: nautical_howlin, Dec 29, 2007 - 07:20 PM

in response to the question of where i am i live in northern colorado (Timnath or Fort Collins). If i can find a boat and trailor for 500 i will buy it in a heart beat.

Also, if i cant find a descent price for a hobie i am going to make a boat (did it with a bike), and i was wonder if a tarp could be used as a make shift sail? (or any other suggestions for a cheap sail)

Well, you could sit on a log and hold up a piece of cardboard and "sail". That doesn't mean you'll be getting the most out of the experience. Again, just keep watch. Look at local classifieds (print as well as the net). Watch eBay, and most importantly look around while driving and TELL people to keep their eye's open for you! There were gobs of these things made! They ARE everywhere, YOU just have to find the right one. A home made boat IS possible, but buy the time you rig it and get all the details straight you will probably have spent way more than you would getting a used factory cat and actually have a boat that works!

Look for soft areas on the decks if you're looking at boats in the $500 range. I paid $600 for mine and have one small soft spot to repair.....

Looks like howlin got the best deal.