|
The Hobie 18 is an excellant boat. It is very different from the 16. The
16 was set up to be a play boat with easy beach launching. The 18 was developed
as a racing boat. Note the diamond wires, loose footed main, daggerboards,
symicical hulls, mast rotator, high aspect ratio sails, and overlapping jib.
I believe the 18 was introduced at the NY boat show in 77 or 78. The
magnuim model was introduced several years later. Basically it is a set of
wings that attach to the cross bars with supports that attach to the outter
hull bolts. An 81 would have the older style magnum wings, they offer less
leverage and are only 8 feet long vs the new ones that are 11 feet long (allow
you to get waaaayyyyyyyyy back on a broad reach rocket ride). An 81 would
would have the older hulls which weigh 4-6 lbs more each because of a different
type of composite. The trick is does it have a comp tip mast retrofit, or does
it still have an all aluminum mast? If it is all Aluminum, the boat is actually
worth more! The reason is that many people are migrating to the 18SX, a mid life
kicker. With the older mast, they can hacksaw the top off, add a sx comptip,
sails and new wings, and you have a $8,000 sx cheap! I know a guy in Ct who
did this for half price including the boat and trailer (boat come with trashed
sails).
When looking at a Hobie 18, the things to check are:
1. the daggerboard trunks. If the boat whacks something in the water , or the
boards are not retracted before coming ashore, the trunks will crack along with
the daggerboards. Daggerboards are easy to repair, but trunks are difficult
since they are hard to get tools into. Check the insides via the porthole for
repair work, and also check the bottoms for excessive wear.
2. Check the bows. 18s are really soft in the hulls. It is because of the
design to have more positive floatation up from to prevent pitchpoling. If
a 16 goes head on with an 18, the 18 always loses. These can be fixed by
a pro, but you need to look closely at the gelcoat.
3. Check the mast for straightness. If the diamond wire are set incorrectly, or
some nitwit drops the mast hard, you can bend the mast. at $1300 stripped, they
are not cheap.
4. On a 81 check the trampolines for UV damage. Check around the grommets
to see if they are pulling through. There is not as much load as on a 16 since
the double bolts of the crossbars really stiffens the boats up.
5. Check the sails for wear, esspecially the jib since it is a roller jib
setup. many people keep them attached for ease of setup, but this is not
good for sail as it stretches them funny after a while.
As to sailing them, well it is a matter of taste. the 16 is a fun boat,
easy to set up, and pretty good all around. The 18 is a racing boat, takes
a lot longer to put together, but is much faster, and is much better in
heavier seas. We are seeing a big increase in 18s at the detriment of 16s in
New England lately. I think people are starting to understand how much better
the 18 is in North Atlantic seas. They can be a play boat, but most casual
users find them too much work for 3 hours on a Saturday afternoon.
The 18 is easier to fly a hull, but much much harder to control since the
symetical hulls do not stall like a 16 will. Add the Magimun wings and you
can't fly as hign since the wings start to dig into the water. But those wings
make you nice and dry when everyone else is getting hammered by the waves. A
lot more comfortable for long rides (ie 15-30 mile sails). Plus you have
portholes to store your gear. The 18 is about 70 lbs more than a 16. Add 20 lbs
for the wings. If you use a wire from the wings, you leverage your weight 1.5
times. with two people out there, you can hold your own to 25 knots. At that
speed (the 18 has a top end of 30 knts), you find yourself realll busy! ;>)
The 18 is a much better light air boat than a 16. Where you would bob, the 18
will start to move. With the daggerboards, NO MORE WEATHERHELM trying to
lenghten your arm.
If you do like wind, swap the jib cleat setup for a KISME unit. They cost
500 bucks, but the angle to uncleat the jib from the wing is wrong, and the
boat will flip under the power of the jib alone (unlike a 16). By the way,
to right the boat, you need to put more weight toward the back and pivot it
up. The wings slow down the righting, but only a bit. and with a roller jib,
you can furl the jib from underneath the boat (ie on it's side) to make it
that much easier.
The wing problems were due to the introduction of the new wing design (89).
They tried to use the Hobie 21 wing with the hobie 18 attachment points, and
the increased leverage was just too much. I just got the FCO done on mine
(insert ss tubes inside the al tubes, solid alm. brace aft, and ss mounts where
the wing pins attach to the cross bars). I never trust my old wings (broke 6 of
them), but this new setup is bullet proof. I did all last week on vacation
flying hulls in 25 knts while wing walking. They finally live up to the
toughness on the rest of the boat.
john
|
| The Hobie 18 is a fairly heavy boat for its size, and not very fast
considering its sail area. Other boats in that size range with speed
benefits far ahead of the Hobie 18 are the Prindle 18-2 designed for
crew weights ranging between 275 and 325# or the Prindle 19, designed
for crew weights in the 325 - 350# range. The Hobie 18, incidentally,
is designed for crew weights in the 285 - 310 range. As catamarans
are very weight sensitive, it is best to select one suited to the crew
weight. Other boats that are more race oriented include the Nacra
line. They, like the Hobie 18 Have daggerboards which are not very
forgiving in shallow water, however the Nacras have higher aspect
daggeerboards which are more efficient upwind. Prindles on the other
hand, use centerboards which are flush with the deck up or down and
easily kick up when you hit the beach -- versus severe hull damage if
you forget to pull up daggerboards.
|
| I agree with #.2 regarding Hobie 18s. Having owned two NACRAs I can
say that I absolutely loved the boat except for the rudder construction
and very very deep daggerboards. When a rent boats on vacations, I
always look for Prindles or the Hobie 17.
However, having said that, the best thing about owning a Hobie is
resell. If you're in New England, its no picnic selling a NACRA and, I
would assume, a Prindle. If you're in Florida or California, then this
is no issue. On the other hand, you can buy either of these boats for
a song --- if you can find them.
I've crewed on a Hobie 18 quite a few times. It's a really good design
but it is HEAVY. The weight matters if you (1) single hand sail in
moderate to heavy winds, (2) capsize, and (3) trailer and step the mast
by yourself. All of these things can be overcome with good tactics,
but the boat is still heavy. If you have the crew or want to do some
ocean sailing, the H-18 is great (not so for NACRAs).
BTW, some people think that buying a Hobie 18 or Prindle 18, etc. means
that they can take a whole bunch of people out for the day. This is
nonsense - the optimum number is still 2-3. You can take out more, but
it gets pretty confusing in heavy winds tacking.
Bob
|