Capri 14.2 Baby Bob fitted

Oregonbob

New Member
This is a 1985 Capri 14.2 Model #1 with a standard aluminum mast.

I bought a length of 1/8” thick x 2” wide aluminum bar and cut two pieces to fit on the outside of the Baby Bob mounts, and inside the mast.

The fitting is made very rigid by using 4 machine screws and nylon lock nuts that sandwich a ~1” thick x 2” x 2” wood block that i coated with water seal.

Drilling 8 new holes in the Baby Bob mounts was very difficult, but i just went slowly so as not to overheat the drill bit.

The whole assembly is easily removeable with no tools, and fits very tight with no movement. A lot of custom fitting went into this, but it turned out very nice:)

The other posts on how to do this were very helpful, thank you!!
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Thanks, the cost of making it was less than $20.

I’m thinking the 2” wide 1/8” thick aluminum bar is pretty common at well stocked hardware stores.

I’ll probably swap out the retainer on the sheeve pin to a circular keeper like is used for key rings.

The Baby Bob screws come with some sort of lock-tite, so after moving them several times, I used some lock-tite when doing final assembly to keep them secure.

The hard part was getting the wood block the correct thickness, which took a bit of hand planing and repeatedly fitting things together to see how wide the aluminum bars spread. When it was all done, it didn’t fit, so needed the bar edges filed down a bit at about a 45 degree angle until it just slid in perfectly. Thinking this also makes a wider contact area with the mast so as not to cut into or dent the inside of the mast when and if the Baby Bob smacks down on the water.

The water seal I used was teak oil, which is probably really too thin for soft wood, but I don’t expect it to be in the water much (fingers crossed).
 
Howdy! I also mounted my Bob using a bracket that was fabricated for me by a gentleman that has built more than a few of these. Now mine inserts into the top of the mast also but stops just short of the sheave. I drilled the holes for the through bolt 1/4" diameter which left 1/8" worth of "meat" between the top of the hole and the mast head. Put a wing nut on the bolt so it's super easy install/remove the Bob. Always take it off when I'm trailering, which i do a lot of. I should also add that the bracket slides in perfectly snug for a distance of 1 1/4" inside the mast, so I'm not concerned about the ability to withstand an impact if the deaded knockdown ever occurs. I would like to enclose pictures, do you know how transmit an email attachment onto this site?
 
Howdy! I also mounted my Bob using a bracket that was fabricated for me by a gentleman that has built more than a few of these. Now mine inserts into the top of the mast also but stops just short of the sheave. I drilled the holes for the through bolt 1/4" diameter which left 1/8" worth of "meat" between the top of the hole and the mast head. Put a wing nut on the bolt so it's super easy install/remove the Bob. Always take it off when I'm trailering, which i do a lot of. I should also add that the bracket slides in perfectly snug for a distance of 1 1/4" inside the mast, so I'm not concerned about the ability to withstand an impact if the deaded knockdown ever occurs. I would like to enclose pictures, do you know how transmit an email attachment onto this site?
Thinking to post a photo you need to save the emailed photo to your computer, tablet, or phone; then post it using the little photo icon at the top right of the message composition box that pops up when you hit “reply”.
 
Thinking to post a photo you need to save the emailed photo to your computer, tablet, or phone; then post it using the little photo icon at the top right of the message composition box that pops up when you hit “reply”.
Hokay I'll give it a shot tomorrow after work. I have a techie buddy there, should be able It's 100+ heat index in Chicago this PM so I'm either working on my boat in the garage or lounging around in my pool !
 
OK here's the pic. The unit's in there real tight, machined with incredible precision!
 

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And the beauty of it is the ease in which it can be popped on or off. When trailering you definately don't want it on! And on a light air day when I'm in and out on a given lake I don't bother putting it on. But it's a good insurance policy when things get hairy, I'm not afraid to take on the bigger winds!
 
Thanks, the cost of making it was less than $20.

I’m thinking the 2” wide 1/8” thick aluminum bar is pretty common at well stocked hardware stores.

I’ll probably swap out the retainer on the sheeve pin to a circular keeper like is used for key rings.

The Baby Bob screws come with some sort of lock-tite, so after moving them several times, I used some lock-tite when doing final assembly to keep them secure.

The hard part was getting the wood block the correct thickness, which took a bit of hand planing and repeatedly fitting things together to see how wide the aluminum bars spread. When it was all done, it didn’t fit, so needed the bar edges filed down a bit at about a 45 degree angle until it just slid in perfectly. Thinking this also makes a wider contact area with the mast so as not to cut into or dent the inside of the mast when and if the Baby Bob smacks down on the water.

The water seal I used was teak oil, which is probably really too thin for soft wood, but I don’t expect it to be in the water much (fingers crossed).
Oregon Bob, can you tell us what the final dimensions of the wood block became? I'm assuming you started with 1" thick and shaved it down to . . . ?
 
Oregon Bob, can you tell us what the final dimensions of the wood block became? I'm assuming you started with 1" thick and shaved it down to . . . ?
I used a hand plane to shave a little off here and there until the clamped together pieces slid into the top of the mast. I think the block i started with was about an inch thick. It required very little planing to make it perfect. When assembled with the through bolts, i needed to file the edges of the aluminum bars so that they fit in perfectly. It was just trial and error to get it right.
I’ve had the boat out about 6 times since fitting the Baby Bob and it still fits just as tightly as it did when first installed.
Really enjoying the Capri 14.2, after a very shaky start. I’m mainly sailing it single hand, on a nearby lake, with only the main sail. It is annoying when the wake of a powerboat sets up a rythmic hull slamming against the water, tossing the mast against the stays violently, but i’m usually able to predict the arrival of the wake and head away from it or take it at an angle. Great little sailboat, stores easily in the corner of my garage, and FAST! Sorry about the delayed response, took a while to figure out where i put my LOG IN info...
 
Agreed on the annoying stay snapping when hitting powerboat wakes on a light air day. I'm sure that doesn't do the anchor plates any good either. What I'm going to research is having a turnbuckle installed on the forestay. That would give the ability to get a perfect tension setting and eliminate the problem. It's too hard to achieve that with the pin setting arrangement. And yes my Mod 1 has a very "flexy" hull that kind of resonates when crashing into waves. But most of my sailing is on small lakes with no concern about dealing with waves. I tried Lake Michigan once and those sharp 2'ers made it almost impossible to hoist/lower the sails, and my small trolling motor had to work hard to power into the chop. I see no advantage to sailing a small boat on a big lake, too much risk, too little reward. Lots of people drown in big lakes.
Actually I prefer single handing with the system I developed. Tiller lock holds course while doing sail work. I had slugs installed on the main which enables bungeeing the sail to the boom while under power. A boomkicker holds the boom up, with main sheet tight the boom stays in place. Had large brass hanks put on jib then ran a small line through those for downhaul so jib work can be handled from the cockpit. Only time needed to leave cockpit is when you bungee the sail into a tube shape laying on the deck and then held in place by tensioning the sheets. Don't need to spend $500 for a roller furling setup, Now all this sail work is not possible in rough water, too much helm movement needed, it overwhelms the autopilot.
And the "flexy" hull turned out to be an advantage when a strong gust of wind knocked my boat off the trailer! I had just pulled out, boat was not centered on the pads but no worries, let's eat lunch and center it later. Well with the "Bob" on top of mast plus main bungeed to the boom, and I was broadside to wind (and parked directly next to the lake) , a 30 mph gust flipped it off and landed sideways on the asphalt! The hull got pushed in at the point of impact, I thought an expensive repair would be needed. Then after about a minute it popped back into shape all by itself! Some gelcoat damage but that's about it. Now if I had a mod 3 with the more rigid hull think of the damage potential........
Also forgot to mention I had reef points installed on the main. Able to handle some pretty hairy winds under main only now, it was a great investment. If you wanted to do these things to your boat I would be happy to share further information.........
 
Thank you so much for this forum and for this thread. All the talk about turtling and flipping had made me a bit nervous. I've been sailing a Capri 14.2, Mod 2 now for two months and have experienced many of the things you all write about. While I have been a keel boat sailor and racer for many years, this is my first dingy since a Sunfish forty five years ago. While I have capsized the boat, righted it, and sailed it again, at 68 I don't need to be worrying about turtling the boat so I'm going to go ahead and add a Hobie Baby Bob as suggested. Having flipped it several things I have learned-
  • Make sure all sheets are free to run clear when tacking. Having the jib get stuck on a windy day is going to take you over.
  • I keep the main sheet ratchet off and I never cleat it. Especially if it is blowing. The main doesn't take much muscle, not like my 23 footer did.
  • You need a way to get back in the boat after you right it. The first time I couldn't get back and a boater had to help me, rather embarrassing for someone who considers himself a pretty good sailor. I made a rope ladder that I throw over the stern and it works pretty well. When you are single handing, it seems climbing back in over the side is only an invitation to re-capsize. Suggestion: test the ladder before you need to use it as getting the length right is important.
  • When I tack, I generally will stand straddling the center-line of the boat. That way, if I get a nasty shift mid tack as often happens here on our lake, I can compensate for it quickly.
  • And finally, the boat I bought had a roller furling jib, something I was initially negative about. I'll tell you so long as I am not racing, it is great. I refitted the furling line controls with a micro cleat, fairlead, and plastic padeye so that I could adjust it on the fly, even furling the whole jib if need be. If you flip the boat, furling the jib makes it easier to right.
I'm still a bit tentative whey gybing the boat in anything but light air (otherwise chicken gybes) but I guess that will come in time. As a result of what I have learned, flipping has become a thing of the past. Again, thanks for all the tips. I have some other questions but I will post them in a new thread.
 
Several years ago, I was sailing my Minifish off NAB (Naval Amphibious Base, Coronado) in breezy conditions and heller chop... South Bay is more shallow, you understand, so the chop can get fierce, while the wind was blowing at least 15 knots, gusting to 20 or so. Well, I was close-hauled on the port tack, steadily thrashing to windward, and I turned my head to look over my shoulder at the wrong moment: gust hit, I rolled the Minifish pronto and followed the rig into the drink, pushing it downward even faster, LOL. I was all caught up in it too, took a moment to free myself and duck under the boat... luckily the daggerboard had not fallen clear of the well yet, so I was able to grab it and start levering the boat and rig back to the knockdown position. :confused:

There I was, wrasslin' with the Fish and trying to right her so I could clamber back aboard... some SEAL Team dude was passing by in a kayak, and one of the base security boats motored over to give me an audience. My straw hat was still on my head, since I had the goon cord tightly secured under my chin, and I was floundering around for a moment trying to get the boat in position to right her, head to wind and all. The SEAL Team guy saw me floundering and asked if I was okay... I growled, "YEAH, I'M ALRIGHT!!!" A moment later, I was still wrasslin' with the Fish, and the guy asked me, "ARE YOU SURE???" I finally managed to right the boat and clamber aboard, at which point the party ended and everybody went his own way, but in retrospect I found the incident somewhat comical. :rolleyes:

I'm in better shape than most people my age, and in my younger days I would've merely scrambled over the rail as the boat got knocked down, stood on the daggerboard, righted the boat and scrambled back on deck in a flash, gathering the mainsheet & tiller and sailing off as if nothing ever happened, LOL. But I'm no spring chicken anymore, and that knockdown was so fast that it caught me by surprise... plus my foot got snared in the mainsheet while I was in the water, and it took a moment to free my leg. Anyway, I hear your concern about being able to climb back aboard a boat once you right her: having had that experience with the Fish, I may very well take steps to insure that getting back aboard won't be so difficult. Maybe it's an age-related thing... I know my bum knee & shoulder aren't helping matters, LOL. ;)

I RECENTLY DECIDED TO GIVE UP SKATEBOARDING & 2-WHEELED DIRT BIKING, THOUGH I MIGHT STILL RIDE A QUAD... BUT I'M NOT GIVING UP SAILING, LOL. ON THE OTHER HAND, I DON'T WANNA DROWN DOING IT, DESPITE BEING A STRONG SWIMMER & LIFELONG SAILOR. :cool:
 
If you view that one thread I sent which shows a picture of my Capri's cute rear end you will see the boarding ladder i installed. It works great! I can provide additional info about the scenario if anybody's interested.............
 

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