Aside

As an aside, I got a letter from TPWL and my application was approved!  It didn't even need to be bonded.  I sent off the check for $101 and will get the title and stickers in the mail.  That will make the boat a boat and not just parts.  :)

Update:  Got the stickers, still waiting for the title.

Update #2:  Got the title!!!

I did a bottom job on the hulls patching one gauge, and this weekend will be putting on the tramp.  I'll put 3M 4200 on the pylons and castings before tightening everything up and making sure that the hulls are trued up.  That should keep everything tight without having to fiberglass the castings to the pylons...  Then, it'll be a test sail!

Update #3:  Tightened the tramp.  A couple of tips:

1. True the boat so that the distance between the port tang and the starboard rudder pin is the same as the distance between the starboard tang and the port rudder pin.  This can be done by applying ratchet straps between the fore pontoon on one pontoon and the aft pontoon on the other (and vice versa) so that you can tighten and loosen the boat so that the pontoons are true.  Do this before tightening the tramp.
2. Apply lots of dish washing detergent inside the rails and on the edge of the tramp.  This allows the tramp to slide easier as it is being tightened, increasing the smoothness of the tramp.  I can never get the edges quite smooth, but this was the best so far! 
3. Apply 3M 5200 liberally to the pylons and the inside of the castings before you tighten the tramp.  With the tramp loose, it is easy to take the castings off of the pylons.  After truing the boat and tightening the tramp, the adhesive caulk will cure helping to freeze the frame in place.  You could do the same with epoxy resin that's been thickened with filler, you'd just have to watch for drips or perhaps tighten the tramp with the Hobie 16 upside down.
4. Pre-bend the side rails by applying a ratchet strap across the frame of the boat.  As you're tightening the tramp, keep tightening the ratchet strap.  Eventually you can release the ratchet strap when the tramp is tight enough to keep the side rails bowed in an inch or so on both sides.
5. Tighten the tramp lacing by hand initially, then switch to a water meter key (what you use to turn the main water line off and on in your yard.)  I use painters tape on the handles as well as the "U" at the bottom to protect the line from chafing.  You can really get the tramp tight using this tool with minimal effort and with minimal hand cramping!

Hobie 16 EPO Rudders Holes Filled In

I took the tape off today and that side looks great!

The other side isn't so smooth, I'll need to do some sanding.

You can see the bubbles at the top, we'll see how deep they go when we sand.

The sanding worked out most of the bubbles, they are all smoothed out.

I also put a dab on that one bad nick on the edge.

The next step is to fiberglass the rudders entirely.  Because I plan to do both rudders at the same time, and do 3 coats one right after the other on the same day, I need to find a day I can spend entirely on the rudders!

Hobie 16 EPO Rudders Hole Filling

I sanded the inside of all the holes and then cleaned everything with acetone.  Then, I covered one side with painters tape.

I then dabbed some West System fiberglass resin into the holes so that it pooled up just a little bit.

I put in just enough to pool at the bottom.

I let it sit until it got tacky and then filled in the holes with West System epoxy resin with some 404 filler.

You can see the bubbles rise to the top.  They dissipated over time.

I will let these set overnight and check them tomorrow.

Hobie 16 EPO Rudder Drilling Holes Placement

I printed out the template.  I had to do it a second time because the first time the print did a "fit" and shrunk the printout.  I had to measure the lines in the printout to double check the size.

Here's what it looks like on the one extra rudder with the good holes:

It is pretty close to the H16 holes.

Here's the template on the other spare rudder with the hole penciled in:

It looks like I need to move the hole just a bit off.

I also compared the new rudder with the template and the hole for the upper casting is way off:

I'm pretty sure now I will be filling in all the holes on the rudders I am restoring and re-drilling them all.


I have to sail my H16 with my new rigging and my restored rudders to see if everything works as it should (slight rudder helm, etc.)  If all works out, I'll just match up my old rudders with these new ones and drill the holes that way,  I'll compare the template with the restored rudders and post them next.

Three Asides

Aside #1:  I got the paperwork back from the Texas Parks and Wildlife.  I had to fill out a few more forms, two of them over again to get them right.  Hopefully this will do it!

Aside #2:  While digging through the garage I found two spare H16 rudders.  They were badly scratched and stained but after a 80 grit followed by a 120 grit sanding, they look pretty good!  You can see this fifth pair in the background of one of the pictures in the previous post.  One of the rudders needs to be re-drilled to match the other which matches the other three sets, I'll take another picture when I have the template printed out.

There were holes already filled in and re-drilled, and there was a second hole as well in one of the rudders.  I filled in the extra hole, and the one that didn't match the other rudder, and penciled in where the hole needs to be drilled in between the two to match the other rudder.

Once I re-drill, I'll make a new set of rudders for the Hobie I am rebuilding, and sell the spare rudders I was using as a backup separately.

I can't believe that with the H16 EPO rudders I'll be restoring, this extra pair I found in the garage and all the castings, etc. I will have five complete H16 rudder assemblies for two boats...  I think I have a sickness or a disease.

Aside #3:  The rudders I am restoring may be drilled to be raked forward.  I have to check the template once I print it out.

Hobie 16 EPO Rudder Comparison

I don't know why I took all my Hobie 16 rudders apart, I hate trying to line up all the spacers used for stiffening them up when putting them together!

As it turns out, all my rudders are drilled the same.  However, the set I'm refinishing are not drilled the same.

First, here's the set of EPO rudders I refinished last year.

When I did the final sanding, I went through the top coat to the second coat below.

The blotches are the second coat showing through.  The finish is completely smooth...

Here's the three sets all sitting on top of each other, they all line up pretty well.

Since these all line up, I will suppose that these are the holes I'll need on the set I am refinishing.

Putting the set I'm refinishing on my finished set, the holes are not drilled in the correct locations, you can see they are off.

That means that I will fill in the holes with fiberglass resin and filler before I re-drill the holes.  It came off a H16, but I'm thinking that it might have been drilled for another Hobie?

After all this work, I found this template:http://static.hobiecat.com/digital_assets/rudderdrill.pdf  I'll have to print out a copy and see what I have!

Hobie 16 EPO Rudders - Sanded Edges

I sanded the edges with 100 grit sandpaper with a soft block. They came out pretty good!

There are a few nicks here and there that will need to be filled in.  That one bottom edge smoothed out OK as well.

I'm still not sure how many coats of epoxy resin I will need, I think there will be more than 3.  Maybe I can get away with three and a half, with that half going towards the edges to fix them all up.  You don't want too thick a final size, as you will have issues with them fitting in the rudder casting.  (nope, never had that problem!  :)

On a side note, I just submitted all the paperwork to title the Hobie 16 hulls,  I had to end it off to Austin, as per the Texas Parks and Wildlife department.  If all goes well, it'll cost about $100 to get a Bonded Title in my name.  I don't know why I don't part these things out, maybe I have an inner drive to build up the local H16 fleet?  The hulls need a bottom job and a fix to one gouged area, but otherwise they are completely solid.  I'm almost considering swapping these hulls with mine!  Hopefully I will hear back on the title in about a month, maybe more because of Christmas.