Hobie Cat Pontoon Boat

[bgaup]

Picked up some 1980's? Hobie Cat hulls from my neighbor, and am thinking of using them to make a small pontoon boat. Any ideas on total weight I should be able to carry, and maximum horsepower?

 

[Bondo]

Re: Hobie Cat Pontoon Boat

I Don't Know,............<br /><br />But I bet it won't take much horsepower to really make it Scoot across the water......

 

[CalicoKid]

Re: Hobie Cat Pontoon Boat

I've been wondering about doing the same thing for a while now... How do you plan to set this up?

 

[bgaup]

Re: Hobie Cat Pontoon Boat

I'm thinking to first of all keep the trampoline set up and simply fabicrate a transom out of some thick aluminum plate I have. I have a good selection of different outboards I can try out to see how it sits in the water and how fast it goes. I already have a "real" 20ft pontoon boat that I'm fixing up, so when that project is finished I'll start on my Hobie pontoon.

 

[Captn Dave]

Re: Hobie Cat Pontoon Boat

What size Hobie? <br />I have a 16 and have sailed with 4 adults, but you have to be careful with trim. 3 adults sitting near the back on one side can submerged the aft section of the hull. <br />And I'd say max HP would be a factor of engine weight. I'd go no bigger than a 9.5 or maybe 15 max. <br />What you could do is find the weight of several different engine sizes, then get the equivilent in cement blocks or whatever, put them on the back of the trampoline, then put the hulls in water and put a couple of people on board and see how it floats.

 

[CalicoKid]

Re: Hobie Cat Pontoon Boat

Will you steer with the outboard or lock the motor straight ahead and stear with the Hobie's tiller/rudder?

 

[bgaup]

Re: Hobie Cat Pontoon Boat

The pontoons are 16's. I have a 7.5hp Honda that I'll be using for power. Not sure if I'll be using the ouboard or the rudders for steering. Thanks for the info.