Help a noob buy a boat

Thanks for reading this. I'm finally ready to buy a cat and think I found something in my price range. The boat I'm looking at can be seen here.
Hobie 16 for sale

I've done a fair bit of research and went to inspect the boat yesterday. I molested the hulls and found no soft-spots or gouges in the keel area. However I read I should wrestle with the tramp a little and see if they feel solid along with looking for damage near front pylons. Well everything felt really solid, no wiggle (I'm no strongman though). I did, however find some small cracks but have no reference point for how serious these are.

The front hull on right side had this crack located just ahead of the pylon.

Slightly different angle.


Please see business card for scale. This is the back side of the same pylon.




Finally check out the rear pylon also on the right side.



There were no visible signs of damage on the left hull which the owner admitted had been replaced only the way. While I realize that any crack may be a red flag, everything else seems solid and like I said, it's in my price range although I'm thinking of offering $900. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
--Brynn

I may be wrong, but those do not look like a problem, probably just in the gel coat.

There is at least one Hobie fleet in Tucson. You could probably have one of the members take a look at it for you. Google "Tucson Hobie fleet"

Sam

Sam,
Thanks for the input. I'm inclined to agree based on my research but I would hate to be wrong.

I found Hobie Fleet 514 which is Tucson. They do most of their sailing in Mexico so may be a few weeks before I get out with them.

Does $1000 sound like a fair price? That's what the owner wants and at this point I'm inclined to go for it. I wanted to post the same question over on the Hobie forums but you have to be "approved" first and it's been some time, I guess I don't know the secret handshake.

Unless someone thinks I'm crazy I plan on purchasing this boat in the next couple of days.

Double check your email for the approval message, maybe it is in the spam folder or something, Matt(the Hobie forum admin) is pretty good about approving new users. If the hulls are solid, the tramp is in good shape, the mast streight and the sails are in fair shape, rudders system, sheets and blocks are good, decent trailer $1000.00 sounds about right. If you are still concerned, buy me a plane ticket and I would be happy to check it out for you.

seriously, contact the fleet, somebody should be willing to check it out for you.

Sam

The vertical cracks right next to the pylon look harmless.

The cracks that are further away from the pylon next to the business card look suspect. The one crack looks wider than just a harmless hairline crack in the gel coat. It may be a stress crack that moves under stress. I would be sure to have an experienced eye to help you evaluate the boat.