Dimensions for the V1 AMA- Hobie AI

I have a few questions for anyone who owns a 2014 AI or has built the Revo 13 conversion…

I just ordered the AKA parts (left side only) for a 2014 model year AI from Wind Toys in Santa Rosa. It will take a while for those parts to arrive, and the order will not include the V1 AMA as they have been discontinued. I’ve built a pontoon in the past for my DIY outrigger setup on the outback I sold, so I have a bit of experience and feel comfortable fabricating the pontoon for my own “Revo Island”.

In order to finish the pontoon, I need to know where to place the holes that the AKA braces will slip into, attaching the AMA and AKA…does anyone know those dimensions?
Diameter of AKA tubing?
Distance between forward and rear attachment points?

I could wait until the parts arrive and take my own measurements, which I may end up doing anyways, but I’m admittedly a bit excited to get the pontoon glassed and finished. Anyone out there know those measures?

I’m also curious about the overall width and depth of the AMA, while I like the shape of the pontoon I’ve stacked glued and shaved, I worry it’s too narrow and will not provide enough buoyancy. If anyone has those dimensions, it would be great to compare and find out if I need to try a second pontoon.

I attached a few photos of the pontoon during the shaping process. I don’t have any pics of the finished shape on hand, but these are enough to give you all an idea of what I’m working with so far.

Thanks in advance!

Hi Sea-bree,

I still have the V1 AMA hardware and pontoon that I plan to sell them along with my Adventure after I use the AI one last time at Shelter Cove next month.  I will try to get the dimensions for you this weekend.

The holes in the amas are 60" apart, and the aka bars are  1 5/8" (that is, 1.625") in diameter.

If you need any other measurements, LMK. In fact, I've got a couple of amas that I'm not using at the moment, in case you want to take a closer look, or even borrow one.

I'll be interested to see how your DIY ama works out. I've thought about making new ones myself, as I'd like longer versions for my AI. In fact, I made a foam blank, similar to your picture, but got distracted with other things, so that is one of my many unfinished projects...

I should say that the holes are 60" center-to-center, in case that was not clear...

Awesome project! What products do you use to glass over the foam?

Thank you gentlemen! 

Speedy…I’m going to consult with the folks at TAP Plastics, but suspect I will use the Surfboard polyester resin and whichever weave mat they recommend. I suspect it will be a little on the expensive side, but I went cheap on my last one with Home Depot materials. It works, but the epoxy resin I used melted some of the foam and deformed the shape a bit.

Very cool, I'm curious what the folks at TAP recommend. 

I've been wanting to dip my toes with fiberglass (specifically over foam like what you are doing) for a while, but just haven't pulled the trigger yet.  Definitely interested in the process, please post some details/photos once you get going!

Thank you gentlemen! 

Speedy…I’m going to consult with the folks at TAP Plastics, but suspect I will use the Surfboard polyester resin and whichever weave mat they recommend. I suspect it will be a little on the expensive side, but I went cheap on my last one with Home Depot materials. It works, but the epoxy resin I used melted some of the foam and deformed the shape a bit.

I don't know about their fiberglass, but TAP is an expensive source for some other stuff that I've been messing around with recently (poured urethane rubber, release agent, etc.), like about 2x as expensive as some highly-rated online sources. Even their scrap bin has become prohibitively expensive...

I dabbled in this a year or so ago.... Sorry for the unsolicited notes:
- Unless the foam was purpose made for fiberglass work, resin probably won't bond super well to it, negating to at least some extent the structural integrity that purpose made foam would add
- Polyester resins tend to eat insulation type foams
- I priced a few epoxy resins out; Raka was significantly less expensive than others and was spoken highly of on forums

Looks like fun, looking forward to hearing how this goes.

Here you go Sea-bree.

Here you go Sea-bree.

Thank You

I dabbled in this a year or so ago.... Sorry for the unsolicited notes:
- Unless the foam was purpose made for fiberglass work, resin probably won't bond super well to it, negating to at least some extent the structural integrity that purpose made foam would add
- Polyester resins tend to eat insulation type foams
- I priced a few epoxy resins out; Raka was significantly less expensive than others and was spoken highly of on forums

Looks like fun, looking forward to hearing how this goes.

All notes/advice welcome. Thanks