Hobie 16 jib - sail attached to halyard cable?

I just bought an old Hobie 16, and everything on it is rigged wrong. If a part can possibly be installed backwards or upside down, it is! I'm no expert myself, so it's a bit of a puzzle trying to figure out how to rig everything correctly. Luckily, I have this forum for help. π
The jib has a wire/cable that runs through a pocket on the luff edge of the sail. The top end of the wire has a thimble (loop) for shackling to the jib halyard, and the bottom end of the wire has thimble for shackling to the forestay adjuster thingamabob. The sail has a grommet on the head and another grommet on the foot/tack.
So, my question is: should the grommets on the jib be attached to anything, in particular should they be attached to the thimbles on the wire that runs through the luff of the sail?
The way it was when I got it, the grommet on the head of the jib was lashed, with some thin line, to the thimble on the top end of the wire. The grommet at the tack of the jib was attached to nothing. (Seems to me that that grommet must be there for a reason, so it should be attached to something.)
Any help/advice appreciated. Sorry if I've screwed up the terminology!
Duncan
...

the tack (front/bottom) goes to the adjuster on the bridal wires (at the bows)
the clew (foot) gets little blocks and is attached to the jib sheets on each side of the mast (on the beam)
The head of the sail (grommet) gets attached somehow to the halyard... i will leave it to the H16 to give you more specific answers as i haven't rigged a h16 in about 5 years.
http://www.hobiecat.com/support/pdfs/H16_Manual.pdf
MN3

Here you go Duncan. http://www.hobiecat.com/support/pdfs/PARTS_14-16.pdf
This link to the Hobie parts guide illustrates the jib and thimble rig.
The original configuration is close to what you have. The top grommet is normally tied to the top thimble of the wire running through the luff edge "headstay wire." The bottom grommet is normally shackled to the thimble at the bottom of the same headstay wire. The top of the headstay wire is connected to the jib wire halyard by a "D" shackle. The bottom of the headstay wire connects to the 10 hole adjuster attached to the bridle wires.
After you raise your mast you will attach your jib to the halyard shackle and adjuster. You'll then downhaul the jib and cleat it off at the mast. This takes force off the forestay wire and will make it really loose. Some H16's have upgrades that include a "Aussie Rig." The Aussie rig works the same but has a higher turn ratio allowing you to take even more weight and force off the forestay. Keep the forstay attached to the adjuster along with the jib headstay wire.
Here's a great link that shows you how to rig a H16 http://www.sailtoronto.com/PDF/Hobie%20Rigging%20Basics.doc
I hope this helps.
Martin



Like that did you Andrew? π The link has some odd stuff but he shows how to set up the H16 in basic form. I figured the guy in the link didn't have a beach to launch on.
BTW. Duncan I removed the lacing from my jib. I have the sail attached to the headstay cable with two shackles.
Martin

If you look closely at the pics in the document, you will see that instead of using a shackle to attach the grommet to the jib wire, he uses a bit of (line)sting. I hate to say line, cause that implies thicker that it is, and I hate to say string.
I will have to say that my jib grommets are attached this way. When I bought my H16, there was no shackle on one end, and on the other end the grommet was lashed to the jib wire with a nylon string. For my repair, I lashed the other end in the same manner.
edited by: H16-71388, Aug 12, 2009 - 06:42 AM
Regards,
MC
H16-71388

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