I hope someone can help me. I just bought a 1986 Hobie 17. I sailed for the first time over the weekend. The boat has a hard time tacking to the left. It tacks fine to the right but when I tack to the left it just about makes it and then swings back to the right. (The boat really has a tendency to go right) Ill try to explain my tacking step by step. I am close haled; the main sail is in tight I have plenty of speed. Just before I turn I sit on the rear windward corner tramp as close to the crossbar as I can, then I turn the rudders not to hard and not to light and I DONT jam it over. As Im turning into the wind I ease the main sheet out. The boat now tries to cross the wind and Im still sitting on the rear windward now leeward side of the boat. The forward hulls are off the water a little and the boat is now head to wind and it really slows down. Im still sitting on the leeward side to help the boat cross the wind. The boat now turns slowly back to the right the sail fills with wind and off I go to try again. Like I said I have no problem tacking to the right but the boat does not want to tack left. I don't know if Its the boat, or me maybe the rudders, I am totally lost. I would appreciate anyone's help----Thanks

Maybe the mast is not rotating properly?

I don't know, but don't give up! Sam, Caleb, Matt, Ted, Tad, any of you know what this might be?

I agree with Mary - sounds like the mast isn't rotating during the tack. This happens when you have a lot of downhaul on, or the mast is slightly bent.

Sounds like he's got the basics of roll-tacking the 17 down, just needs to add the shove to the boom to get the mast over quickly.

I'm guessing that you're footing off after completing the tack since you're able to go one direction but not the other.

Is it possible that the hulls have water in them?

You might also want to check the rotation arm mounting. I sailed my 17 for about 10 years before noting the rotation arm mounting was drilled off center by about 10 degrees. To check, center the mast, and make sure the rotation arm points straight aft. After correcting the problem, tacks and tuning improved.

Caleb

The boat likes to head one way rather than the other? Mast straight up? Rudder rake adjustments? One rudder not actually locking down? Centerboards both all the way down?

A few thoughts (other than hardware issues):

Conditions can look different from one tack to the next. You don't always get the same sea conditions and what appears to be close hauled on one tack may not look the same on the opposite tack (Angle to the waves etc).

Really be aware of the actual wind angles, use a bridle vane. Don't rely on the wave angles to determine your angle to the wind.

Different wave angles can stall the boat entering into tack. You may need more speed on that tack.

I would start the tack from further forward on the boat and get to the aft corner as the boat is closer to head-to-wind. If you start at the rear it may be stalling before you start the tack.

Be sure to crack the mainsheet as the boat gets head to wind. Otherwise it may loose momentum through the tack.

Matt's right about the bridle vane. They make a special one for Hobie 17s because it's a uni-rig. I would go that way first. By the way, the tacking thing is the reason the boat became less popular as a cruising boat on the beaches; when you added another person to go out for a ride, you really had to stay focused to not go into irons. In my opinion that boat is strictly a racing boat.

Wyatt

I agree with Matt to watch the sea state on either tack...perhaps you're getting the steeper side of the waves on one tack.

Other things to check:
Are your boards/rudders in good condition? Perhaps one side of a blade has a poor repair job and thus you're loosing lift (or just getting too much drag) on one tack versus the other. Have you trued your rudders?

If all else fails, what side of the equator are you sailing on? Could be Coreolis force!

You must let out a LOT of sheet when you go head to wind. When I learned this it solved a lot of myproblrm.

Doug
Hobie 17