# Mike’s Hobie Power Skiff rebuild



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

Woohoo. Just got a Hobie Power skiff. I’m going to completely redo her into a fishing machine.


----------



## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Great! I’ll be interested in seeing how it goes and what mods you make.


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

MAK said:


> Great! I’ll be interested in seeing how it goes and what mods you make.


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

I have her upside down on stands. Going to be stripping the paint first. Then the replacing the transom.


----------



## fjmaverick (Sep 18, 2015)

I miss my old one. Been on the lookout for another one.


----------



## Guest (Nov 1, 2018)

What materials are you plannin on using for the rebuild? Plannin on changing the layout any? Are you sticking with the 2cyl omc? I know, lots of questions...


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

Sold the Johnson and the trailer. Going with Coosa for the transom. Changing the console. Putting a 50 Yamaha on her. Looking for a trailer now. Going to do a lot of the same things that Cut Runner did to his.


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

Yessssssss!
Where are you located?
If your interested I'll pm you my phone number


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

I’m in Tampa. Please send me your number. Your why I got started on this project. I saw your Dreamboat video and had to have one.


----------



## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Mike H. said:


> I’m in Tampa. Please send me your number. Your why I got started on this project. I saw your Dreamboat video and had to have one.


So where can I find this video?


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)




----------



## Guest (Nov 1, 2018)

Cut Runner said:


>


Hey dude! I watched your video and wanted to give kudos! You made a great boat there and gave great advise! “Build what you want” couldn’t have said it better myself! In the end, it’s your money and time going i to it and only you know what you want out of it! Well said!


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

Thanks bud! You should see the boat I'm building now.. 
I need my head examined


----------



## Guest (Nov 1, 2018)

Cut Runner said:


> Thanks bud! You should see the boat I'm building now..
> I need my head examined


Well, a build thread in the bragging spot with lots of pics is in order!


----------



## fjmaverick (Sep 18, 2015)

I always wanted a below deck tank on mine. Do you ever miss the convenience of portable tanks? 

I had the wrap around console and 2 coolers in mine and still had plenty of room for 3 people.


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

Boat brains

Its 25 feet so It would have to go to the bottom at "the big boat bragging spot"


Fjmaverick

I dont miss portable tanks even a little bit, skiffs are small and real estate is paramount. Plus having the weight of fuel below deck helps keep the weight low and boat less tippy.


Mike, sorry dont mean to derail the build thread


----------



## Guest (Nov 1, 2018)

Cut Runner said:


> Boat brains
> 
> Its 25 feet so It would have to go to the bottom at "the big boat bragging spot"
> 
> ...


You post it, I’ll watch it lol!


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

Taking the paint off the bottom. Looks like 3 layers of bottom paint and some sloppy repairs to the bottom.


----------



## predacious (Sep 1, 2016)

just finished up my hobie power skiff...


----------



## Guest (Nov 2, 2018)

predacious said:


> just finished up my hobie power skiff...


Well, let’s see it! You know what they say, it didn’t happen without lots of pics!


----------



## predacious (Sep 1, 2016)

Boatbrains said:


> Well, let’s see it! You know what they say, it didn’t happen without lots of pics!


You asked for it ...


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

You know... if I could go back and change one thing on my boat...
I would probably glass a couple small lifting strakes to the bottom of the hull. 
I feel the boat would be faster , even with smaller (30-40hp) and more efficient.
As it is now, it isn't bad at all but it's hard to break the waters suction on the hull being it has no strakes and barely a defined hard chine until the last 4 feet of the hull.
Like I said, if it's something your into I would certainly do it but they run great otherwise


----------



## jonrconner (May 20, 2015)

Cut Runner said:


> You know... if I could go back and change one thing on my boat...
> I would probably glass a couple small lifting strakes to the bottom of the hull.
> I feel the boat would be faster , even with smaller (30-40hp) and more efficient.
> As it is now, it isn't bad at all but it's hard to break the waters suction on the hull being it has no strakes and barely a defined hard chine until the last 4 feet of the hull.
> Like I said, if it's something your into I would certainly do it but they run great otherwise


Looking at the bottom of that boat it’s my first impression that there are NO strakes or even changes of angle on the entire length! That it works is a remarkable testimony to its design. 
There are obviously ways to tweek this shape that would make it even better, I’d be interested to hear what Chris Morejohn would do do if he had this boat upside down in his shop.
JC


----------



## predacious (Sep 1, 2016)

Know what the best way to improve it is ??

Leave it alone 

It works well

Ever hear of - “ if it ain’t broke,don’t fix it” ??


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

From my understanding Hobie Alter shaped the hull out of a large solid block of foam , just like the surfboards he used to make...
Now, I know one thing..
The man was no slouch when it came to knowing how to make water flow nicely along a wetted surface!


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

predacious said:


> Know what the best way to improve it is ??
> 
> Leave it alone
> 
> ...


 No, I'm deaf to it


----------



## Guest (Nov 2, 2018)

predacious said:


> Know what the best way to improve it is ??
> 
> Leave it alone
> 
> ...


No no no, you got it all wrong!
The saying goes... if it ain’t broke- tweak it a little!
My motto is drive it like ya stole it and if it ain’t broke you ain’t runnin hard enough!


----------



## jonrconner (May 20, 2015)

Boatbrains said:


> No no no, you got it all wrong!
> The saying goes... if it ain’t broke- tweak it a little!
> My motto is drive it like ya stole it and if it ain’t broke you ain’t runnin hard enough!


Precisely, anything that’s basically good can be made better!
JC


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

Thanks Cut, I'm all in on the strakes. going to do some research and see what I find out.


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

Stripped the paint and found some previous repairs.Going to grind them out and redo next. It took 3 gallons of stripper and two days of scraping to get it to this point.


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

Hard work pays! But not equally!
Looks good


----------



## Mike C (Feb 27, 2017)

Boatbrains said:


> No no no, you got it all wrong!
> The saying goes... if it ain’t broke- tweak it a little!
> My motto is drive it like ya stole it and if it ain’t broke you ain’t runnin hard enough!


If it ain't broke, fix it til it is...


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)




----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

I took the transom out. Going to replace it with Coosa board. It took 2 days. I ended up using a pressure washer and a 0 degree tip to cut out the balsa around the edges. The foam is wet so its coming out.


----------



## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

I didn’t expect foam in the transom like that. Would have thought it would be all wood or balsa. 
Do you have plans to address the foam in the bottom?


----------



## fjmaverick (Sep 18, 2015)

3 drain plugs?


----------



## Boneheaded (Oct 4, 2017)

fjmaverick said:


> 3 drain plugs?


Mine has three as well. 
Once you get to running this boat it'll be worth all the sweat.


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)




----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

The foam is out. I used the pressure washer and a zero degree rotating tip and blasted it to dust and chunks.


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)




----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)




----------



## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Looking good!
Does the Hobie also have foam in the bottom of the boat? I thought I had read somewhere that it was sandwiched between the outside hull and floor...


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

I have the transom in. It’s not pretty but it’s solid and smooth. 
I used Coosa 26 and 4 layers of 1708 with epoxy. I bedded it with thickened epoxy faired it with micro balloons and epoxy. 
I drilled the scuppers out and used thickened epoxy to fair the holes.


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

It did have foam. It was wet so I took it out while the transom was open. Going to address that when I open the deck and install the fuel tank.


----------



## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Mike H. said:


> It did have foam. It was wet so I took it out while the transom was open. Going to address that when I open the deck and install the fuel tank.


Will be interested to see how that looks and goes for you. Have been thinking I might want to eventually rebuild one but wasn’t sure where that foam was or the best way to get to it.
I’ve heard some say that a lot of water comes in the rear scuppers and others who say they stay above the waterline unless overloaded. Suspect waterlogged foam plays a big role in that...


----------



## fjmaverick (Sep 18, 2015)

MAK said:


> Will be interested to see how that looks and goes for you. Have been thinking I might want to eventually rebuild one but wasn’t sure where that foam was or the best way to get to it.
> I’ve heard some say that a lot of water comes in the rear scuppers and others who say they stay above the waterline unless overloaded. Suspect waterlogged foam plays a big role in that...


Mine was always above the waterline unless you were in the back of the boat. I believe the boat I had sank briefly at one point its life also.


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2016)

I’m still debating putting strakes in her as Cut Runner digested. Just don’t know how to get started. I found this and am going to mock something up in the next few days. If anyone has any ideas please let me know


----------



## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Do you have access to a good table saw? Would be easy to mill those with a sharp blade and some feather boards.


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

If your unsure just take your time with it. Try one method , whether it be wood, foam etc on one strake. Worst case you grind if off flush


----------



## Boneheaded (Oct 4, 2017)

how necessary are the strakes? You can pole mine strake-less tracks great. Always thought the next big poling mod would be sponsors.


----------



## fjmaverick (Sep 18, 2015)

Boneheaded said:


> how necessary are the strakes? You can pole mine strake-less tracks great. Always thought the next big poling mod would be sponsors.


I think those strakes are more for lift and speed than they are tracking during poling


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

This


fjmaverick said:


> I think those strakes are more for lift and speed than they are tracking during poling


----------



## fjmaverick (Sep 18, 2015)

If your going to do the strake thing maybe bring them more towards the entry so they can help knock down some of the spray


----------



## BassFlats (Nov 26, 2018)

Mike H. Any updates on the hobie


----------



## Gianni Battaglia (Aug 19, 2019)

Interested to see where this went


BassFlats said:


> Mike H. Any updates on the hobie


----------



## Pedro J. RL (Mar 11, 2020)

Mike H. said:


> View attachment 51770
> View attachment 51776



Hi,
New to the micro skiff site.

Do you have more pictures of the transom rebuilt?

Doing mine and looking for info..

also did you put a below deck tank, that will be the next project after the transom.


----------



## Pedro J. RL (Mar 11, 2020)

Cut Runner said:


>


LOVE the way you Hobie came out. 

I Just stated to rebuilt my Transom and doing the below deck tank too. 
any suggestion / advice welcome. 
that fresh water wash  might have to do that too.


----------



## BassFlats (Nov 26, 2018)

Pedro, I just completed a transom replacement on my HPS. Here's a few pics. If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them.


----------



## Pedro J. RL (Mar 11, 2020)

BassFlats said:


> Pedro, I just completed a transom replacement on my HPS. Here's a few pics. If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them.
> View attachment 122656
> View attachment 122658
> View attachment 122660
> View attachment 122662


Thanks for info. 

I see that your skiff only have 1 drain plug , mine have 3 might close 2 off them (not too sure if the are isolated or they connect to the main plug at the transom)

are you planing on doing above deck tank? looking for some info to start that after i close the transom.


----------



## BassFlats (Nov 26, 2018)

These hulls evolved over the years and manufacturers. Mine has only one drain hole, yours 3. Some had foam under the deck, mine doesn't. The stringers must of trapped water in the bilge ,so they added additional drains. Mine will be a tiller set-up with a above deck tank back by the motor. I did make a below deck storage compartment ,forward of the center seat baitwell/storage, for castnet.


----------



## Cut Runner (Jan 25, 2017)

The 3 drain holes is because they kept the outer sides of the stringers sealed from the middle bilge. Mine had foam in the center bilge and none in the outside of the stringers.


----------



## Pedro J. RL (Mar 11, 2020)

Thanks for the info


----------



## CapnK (Jul 6, 2011)

Interesting. My Title says it is an Omni build; there was no foam in the center section, and I don't recall seeing it outside of the stringers either. Cut - who built yours, do you know? (And: Did you sell that fine lady?)

Came here to do some research, trying to find out if anyone has ever seen balsa in their deck...? A guy on FB says he has re-cored several and seen them built that way, yet I've never heard of wood anywhere but in the transom on these boats. He also says the deck on his HPS was cored with Nidacor.

Here's a piece of the deck from mine. Looks like Divinycel to me.

BTW - As noted, an Omni build, '87, just one drain hole.


----------



## BassFlats (Nov 26, 2018)

My 86 omni built has a composite deck, no foam under the deck and 1 drain hole in the transom. Maybe later manufacturers put wood cores decks in them. My decking core looks different than yours.


----------



## Liledgy (6 mo ago)

Cut Runner said:


> Thanks bud! You should see the boat I'm building now..
> I need my head examined


Cutrunner, beautiful boat and great video. My sons just purchased my buddies 1986 power skiff (deluxe console) with a 60hp merc.


----------

