I am about to purchase my first Hobie 14 and was wondering how easy, if at all possible, is it to make a regular Hobie 14 into a "turbo" (adding a jib). It is not set up with a jib currently and I want to know if it can be done easily.

I recently came into ownership of a classic 14 also and wondered about converting it. Granted I'm a newbie so the information below may not be 100% correct. Not sure about the level of effort, seemed about an average job, but the cost was pretty high. Brand new equipment from hobie would cost about $900-1000. Now, if you get used equipment, then that price drops dramatically, but I haven't seen a lot of 14 turbo equip for sale on ebay.

I'm working on converting my 14 piece by piece. The first is the dolphin striker kit (around $80 from Hobie) and trapeze wires ($40). The dolphin striker adds support so that you can hang out. Because the turbo 14 jib blocks are on the tramp vs the front crossbar (16 and above I believe), you have to get some grommets put in (local dealer should be able to help). Then there is the rolling furler, jib, and possibly new lines. I haven't really looked into that yet.

It is possible to do, but if you are looking for the extra jib for power, you might want to consider buying a 16 if you don't want to put in the extra time and money on the 14.

To anyone, if I mispoke about anything, please let me know, cause I'm also interrested in doing this.

Converting your boat to a turbo is a pretty big project, but it really makes a difference. Of course, if you can find a turbo, it would be cheaper to buy that than to convert your boat. I’d say you could get the whole boat for the cost of converting.

However, there are some short cuts. I’ll go into the regular conversion first, then the McGuyver version.

Stock version:
You absolutely, positively have to have a dolphin striker. The add-on one from Hobie or Murrays is about $80 and attaches with four rivets. I installed one last weekend in 15 minutes. If you don’t have one, you stand the chance of collapsing the front beam when you hike out—and you WILL hike out.

The jib blocks attach to a wire that runs under the trampoline and connects to the chain plate on the side bars where the shrouds attach. The Turbo chain plate is longer and wraps around (underneath) the side rail to stick out under the tramp about an inch. The jib block support wire attaches to them and is adjusted with a turn buckle. You need a HUGE grommet in the tramp (I think a #10) that is about a foot back from the front beam and a foot in from the chain plate. The jib block attaches to the jib block support wire through that grommet.

Adding the jib is actually the easy part. You need to get new bridles, a furler and an upper forestay with swivel. The jib stay acts as the forestay in the stock set-up. So, yes, you have to step the mast with the jib. The only thing remaining is installing a small cam cleat or jam cleat on the front beam to hold the furling line.

The cost-effective McGuyver way:
The $80 dolphin striker is by far the easiest striker, but you can make one for practically nothing provided you have the tools. I took a 16 dolphin striker/mast base and converted it. 16 frames are a dime a dozen and there are a ton of them out there. You will need to straighten the wire, chase it, cut it shorter and then bend it to fit in the 14 castings. You will need to drill two holes in the frame under the mast step base for the pole to stick through. Personally, I would spend the 80 bucks.

OK, I took my tramp to an awning/tent maker and had them install the grommets. That was $20 because I interrupted the guy’s lunch. Next, I installed 2 of the regular chain plates next to the standard ones under the side rails. I happened to have an extra set of 14 side rails to get the chain plates from, but you could really use just about any strip of stainless for the plate. I think boats newer than ’82 have the longer plates.

Next, I got a used set of Hobie 16 rigging. 16 rigging is also pretty cheap on eBay or any used cat site. I have swaging equipment at home, but if your local West Marine has a swaging station like my local West Marine, you are in good shape. I cut the forestay, jib halyard wire, side stays, bridles and trap wires down to fit the 14. The idea was to rig the boat like a 16 so you wouldn’t have to step the mast with the jib. I leave my boat on the beach, so I didn’t want to leave the sail out there. The only thing left was the jib support wire. I had some extra wire around, so I made it a two piece system. I attached one end of each piece to the chain plate and tied them together in the middle. I made sure there was a few inches of space between them so I could run a line through them and get it pretty tight.

For the 16 set-up, I also had to install a cleat on the side of the mast as well as a cheek block for the jib downhaul.

That’s it! All you would need then would be a sail and the blocks. Granted, the sail is the hard part to get used, but they show up every now-and-then. I think this conversion cost me $50 in hardware, but it did take me a while to fabricate everything. If any one wants the exact measurements, email me.

I am converting my 14 to a turbo and need to know how to rig the jib line to the jib blocks on the tramp.
Things to do: Still need the longer chain plates and to install the striker.

By the way, I spent 18 navy years in VAB / Norfolk, 2 in Maine, and am now "Back Home in Indiana" !

Virginia Beach is a pretty nice place to live and sail. We have a lot of places to keep boats on the beach, and (believe it or not) cat sailing is picking up!

On the jib blocks, you should have a pair of blocks with cams for the jib. They attach to the jib support wire under the tramp. You should also have 2 small blocks with a shackle that attach to the clew of the jib. To rig the jib system, You end up with one continuous line. You tie the line to the becket at the top of one jib block. Then, you run it through one of the jib clew blocks and back through the bottom of the jib block and out through the cam. You then run the line to the other jib block and run it through the cam backwards. Next, run the line to the other clew block and back to the becket at the top of the jib block. That's it--make sure you don't cross lines, and you are in business!