Hi all,
my H16 mast is slightly bend. It is gradual starting may be 6 feet from bottom and making the top about 3 or 4 inches to starboard.
Only noticeable when looking very carefully but with undesirable effects when loading the downhaul.

Any experiences trying to straighten it back?

Dou you know how much weight can I apply? where? steady or a hard blow?.

Thanks in advance.

I've never had your problem, but I've thought about what I would do if I did. The aluminum is probably stretched on one side, and to re-align the mast would take very careful, controlled bending in the opposite direction. Look down along the mast from one end to see if there is one particular spot that has a pronounced bend - most likely there is. To ensure that the mast does not crimp, because you will have to overflex the mast, you may want to build some sort of cradle to hold the mast that applies pressure on the opposite side where the bend is, something that helps the mast hold its curved shape. Affix one end and attach maybe a come-along to the other end - applying force very slowly. Flex it a bit and then release tension and check if any corrections were made. Then re-apply the force, going slightly further. Keep repeating the process until you either straighten the mast, kink it, or lose nerve. Other than that, I understand some ppl have replaced the top portion of their masts with composite tips for safety's sake (non-conductive of electricity), and I don't know how long they are, but maybe it would take care of some if not all of your problem.

Basically you have to force the mast to yield in the opposite direction of the bend. Do not underestimate the force that will be required. It takes a lot to kink a H16 mast. You will get quite a bow in the opposite direction before the aluminum will yield.

You could try using a hydraulic jack. Support the mast at the ends of the bend. Jack at the middle of the bend. Spread the load by using a 2x4 between the jack and the mast. Give it a good bow then back it off and check your progress. Repeat as neccessary.

Also, if you post on the Open forum you may get better response. Bent masts are a generic problem.

This is temp solution, then again it may exasperate the prob.
You could cleat the Jib Halyard on the other side of the mast, without the
Austr. Jib halyard system to put more compression on the other side of the mast.

I know that it's low tech, but I have sailed my Hobie for years somewhere where I couldn't leave the mast stepped all the time. My mast is on and off all the time and so I notice bends more than if you left it stepped all season. The procedure that I used is quite simple. If you have two sawhorses and place them at the edges of the bend and the sit or stand on your mast in the spot in the middle, you can get rid of some pretty nasty bends. the process takes time and you may over bend, but I weigh 200lbs and I have stood on my mast and bounced before and not even come close to kinking or folding it. We don't really realise the amount of force wind and water put on our equipment so I am sure that there isn't much damage that you can do.
Ofcourse, I don't have a comp tip, but if I did, I think I might steer clear of it while I was doing this. Keep the sawhorses situated on metal!!!! Good Luck, like most things that we do ourselves, it's trial and error. Beener

I recently straightened my son's Hobie 14 mast after reading your post. I looked around my yard for a method of securring the end's of the mast. I found that I could place it on the ground, with one end at the base of a steel basketball post and the other end next to the foundation of my house. Both ends of the mast extended past those anchor points by aprox. 8". I built a small "U" shaped craddle out of a 2x6. The length of the craddle was aprox. 8" long. The purpose of the craddle was to disperse the pulling force so that I did not kink the mast. I attached a 1.5 ton "Come along" hoist to the hitch of my truck, using that as another anchor point. I placed a chain around the craddle, attached the hoist, and began to slowly ratchet the hoist so that I was pulling the mast in the opposite direction of the bend in the mast. I started out slowly, releasing the hoist and checking to see if the bend was out. After the 5th atempt and increasing force, I applied heat with a torch at both sides of the craddle. I did this while it was under tension. We allowed the mast to cool then released. It appears to have worked and I am very happy with the results. It was amazing how much I had to bend it to straighten it. I would caution anybody who tries this not to over pull and risk further damage to the mast or personal injury. Also our mast did not have a comp tip. You also need to make sure that the anchor points are secure and will not move. Attached is a photo of the craddle. I should have taken a photo while hooked-up to the mast.