thanks pual she does look the buzz

The F18 is not going to be that fast with your weight nor can you sail them single handed as the sail plan just is not designed to be that way inclined.

The Hurricane 5.9 although a big lump is not much heavier than the F18, is 2 ft longer to take the additional weight and at your weight can be sailed solo without the jib. The big plus they are a lot of boat for your money, have a very strong class which is getting larger ( its very competitive and yet there isn't the usual arms race which the F18's have gotten into )due to the boat being relatively easy to sail with the new sailplan that is now available.

The other thing is that although you will likely pay a little more than your 2K budget, you won't have any trouble selling it nor will you loose money as they seem to be rising in price at the moment.

The other boat you may wish to consider and there are plenty about in the UK is the Prindle 19, bang for bucks they are mega cheap and yet a Hurricane 5.9 clone.

Hi wayne thank you for your advice will keep an eye of for any info on them and for sale and have a look at one
Thank you to all you guys for the advice i am get so much helpful info

HI everyone there are a few hobie 18 on the net at the moment with wings are these worth going to have a look at? with the weather here in the uk being poor i put my hunting on the back burner

I loved my TheMightyHobie18
it is very solid & robust cat (and heavy)
lots of spare parts (at least in the USA) and still very active fleets for racing or learning

I would take a look for sure

Back in 1996-98 I used to spend a lot of time laying over in Brighton, they had a bunch of Hobie Tigers on the beach right across the street from our hotel, the Metropole. Have you driven over there to see if any of the locals have some old Tigers for sale? There was a RYA club in Hove that I walked down to, rented a Laser Pico for some fun, they might know where you can find the cat racing guys around Brighton.

Oh how I miss the Firk and Forth, the Fiddler's Elbow, Browns, and many other great spots in The Lanes of Brighton! And the beach was nice too!

I didn't think much of it as a racing boat, the wings add weight and windage but as a day boat it was great. I enjoyed it, frequently sailing with a friend, his girl friend and her little one. She and the little one often took naps on the wings.

The wings also let me single hand more than I would have otherwise, in those days I could still trap off the wings which was a hoot.

I wouldn't want to try and right one single handed though.

mn3
I do like the robustness of the 18 and the room with the wings
much prefer sailing boat to fixing them!lol

hey timbo
Good thinking mate will do i am a couple of hours drive from brighton think i will do a trip to brighton and pevensey sailing clubs just to have a chat to some sailors i always think u can never get enough info about things b4 buying one

hello Pete
yes it will be mostly for blasting around the bay with two 120kg (252lbs) guys on it but the crew situation is a but questionable u know what its like bothers says i will crew but when time comes "Am busy this weekend"

That's exactly why I got an F16 instead of an F18; crew reliability issues.

I have got another lined up crew wise but not very experienced but does a lot of windsurfing so should not be to difficult to train up where as little bro like me has been messing about in boats for years but he now very under the thumb!

+1 on the TheMightyHobie18, for all the reasons mentioned above. Despite getting a fancy boat recently, my TheMightyHobie18 is still my first love.

Just remember that single-handed righting is simply not possible without an aid (e.g. another person, a water bag, a solo right, or the perfect combination of wind and waves).

Fixed it for you Timbo!

At 120 kg (and wings) you would be able to single hand a lot. But, righting is still a safety issue for one person alone and I'd pay serious attention BEFORE you have to do it. Another thing, a lot of the 18s I ran into here in the states had soft (delaminated) hulls. Imo, those are non-repairable and also a safety issue. Thirdly, the boat is heavy for one guy to move around on the beach and that is the primary reason I sold mine and bought a H17. All that aside it's a great boat!

I would not purchase a Hobie 18, most are older and going to take some TLC. Also very heavy and difficult to move on the beach. My F18 is much easier to deal with on the beach (and F18's are supposedly pigs by some standards).

If you're just blasting around and not trailering the Prindle 19 and maybe even an older Tornado are good boats. Don't know much about the Hurricane, not a U.S boat.

hi rehmbo we do normally have a rescue out but not always so i is a problem sometimes so maybe a hobie 18 is out there one at the club asked my dad tonight who knows the owner and he does not sail much due to hard work in righting it:)

maybe they are getting on now and the 3 i seen on the internet are all over a £1300 so maybe a few more quid on a hurricane 5.9 maybe well spent!!! god its so hard trying to get this right

hi sam very true have not see any prindles for sail here in the uk i have been told the 19 is perty much a copy of the hurricane 5.9 i did sail on once it was fun