More advice for first timer

[33frupus]

The previous owner had reversed the halyard from the normal position. So that the swage that normally locks the sail in is at the mast base. The halyard is fairly heavy duty but sail is only really held up by the cleat. Is this a common change  and is it safe? I looked at reversing it but cannot  see how to do it without removing the masttop. Help!!

[33frupus]

Ok fixed. Previous owner had converted to a rope halyard because when he fitted the mast float he bolted the top two holes thus preventing the swage from passing through the mast top.

i have managed to reverse the halyard back to original via the fix on another thread ( very clever idea)

so next question is four pop rivets enough for the float ? (Seems pretty solid) 

[darcy1945]

If you are under 80 kg, the weight of the float at the top of the mast will make the boat difficult to recover from capsize. 

Make sure the mast does not leak. throw it in the water, stand on it and check for bubbles, 1 litre of water at the mast head

again makes for difficult/impossible recovery.

[Matt15]

Good to hear you got the halyard swage in the correct place. Without it, correct down haul can't be applied. I'm not a fan of mast floats but understand if your new to sailing and wanting it for the added safety. They can work against you as Darcy mentioned when righting your H14 weight wise too but there are many methods to righting a H14 to explore.

Where are you located 33frupus?

[33frupus]

Boat will be based in Blairgowrie in the Mornington peninsula.

im a windsurfer and am looking for something to get me on the water for s bit of fun in the 15 knots and under days.

picked up some new parts from sl Hobie today, very helpful and everything in stock , not bad for a 30-40 year old boat to still have parts easily available

[Matt15]

There is a strong fleet of H14's that race down there so many well maintained H14's even older ones. Good to hear you found SL, they have everything you need to keep those hulls wet

[33frupus]

Should the Downhaul rope pass over the gooseneck and back down to the cleat or thru the eyelet in the sail ? Also do Hobie 14 s have boom vangs as mine has the fittings to mount one but no vang came with the boat? I have an old paper tiger one I can fit but is it needed.?

sorry if the questions are basic but everyone has to start somewhere.

[Matt15]

Most of the old H14's came with boom vangs but over time it was realised that you could control the mast rotation using your main sheet and traveler.

Another concept to consider re: mast rotation is that the older mast base and mast cup were designed for the mast to be rigged straight. Over time it became evident that raking the mast aft gave more power especially upwind. The downside to this is that the original mast base and mast cup won't work correctly so many people modded the mast base with a higher lip to stop the mast over rotating. Adding the age of these cats it becomes harder and harder to do so its often a good idea to mod yours (if not already done) or purchase a new mast base/cup from Hobie.