Hobie vs. Other pedal drives

Starting the New Year off with a hot topic!

Having just replaced the idler drive on one hobie drive, and a drive cable on the other drive today, I have Hobie drive headaches on my mind.  I have had Hobies for about 14 years now and have lost count of the number of idler cable and drive cables I have had to replace.  I regularly rinse them, lubricate everything, e tc.  Granted now that I am retired I am fishing easily 75 days a year, but it just seems like an expensive pedal drive should be able to handle that much time on the water without regularly breaking down, which I have come to accept is just what the Hobie drive does. 

So, anyone out there putting 50 plus days a year on a non Hobie pedal drive that they can recommend?  This year in particular,  I also like the idea of a propeller spinning under my boat instead of fins doing their best to mimic a panicking seal to mighty whitey....

That yak that got munched in SC was an Old Town, no flippers.
I do about 55 days a year and have only replaced 1 idler cable (make sure they are not too tight) but both rear bearings on my 2 drives. I feel like I’m getting pretty good longevity.
But those Old Towns are pretty nice. Maybe Adam at MBK can let you test drive one.

Hey bud.  First off happy new year.  I’ve had my Outback
And revo for 17years now and never had a problem.  Same drives and never replaced a thing .  I easily do 70 or so trips a year.    Plus a shark doesn't care what flipper you
Have if he’s hunting he’s hunting…😃

I'm on the water approximately 50 days per year, averaging at least 10 miles per trip (range of about 5 to 20+), almost always on my AI, which has to put a lot of strain in the mirage drive. I do sail, but still pedal at least 75% of the time. I use the GT drive, and for the past couple of years, I usually carry a spare drive, although I've only needed it a couple of times. For my purposes, a propeller drive is not an option--even if I could get one to fit on a Hobie, it would be too much drag (also, when the Mirage drive fins are held straight down they act almost like a second daggerboard, which is useful at times).

I got rid of idler cables and use the bungee cord trick instead, which I highly recommend. I've never had any problem with that, and if you use the right size of bungee cord it will last all season.

The drive cable connection to the chain is a well-known problem area, and I've broken a few, but less than 1 per season. I always wash everything down, I inspect the cables regularly, and I have even preemptively replaced a few that looked questionable.

My goal is to come up with a modification to the GT drive that does not use cables at all. I have a "twisted chain" trick that works (see the short video below), but is not quite as smooth as I'd like. I've got an idea for an improvement, and I'm going to try to get a prototype put together before the end of this month. I'll post here when I do.


https://www.youtube.com/shorts/38sRPHBfuHk

I fish a lot.  my Hobie Drive is still going.

I hose it down and keep it lubed best I can.  I am prepared to get it fully rebuilt when it happens. 

I have seen a few drives for sale on FBMP and I am so tempted to buy a spare. 

for me, current and winds - there is no better drive than the Hobie version. I have towed two prop kayaks on the CA Delta when they couldnt move a foot when both current and winds were pushing against them.   I moved two boats. 

Old town has a better warranty than Hobie 5 year on drive and unlimited on boat i believe. You should check them out except the nearest dealers are pretty far from you. monterrey or sac

Well, I was hoping to find a magic solution here, but it looks like my experiences are fairly unique to me.  I do now have two drives because I decided awhile ago that having any down time was not acceptable.  Since 100 pct of my water time is in salt water, I may try doing some deep soaks of my drives in fresh water bin to better break down the salt.  Will see how the next year goes.

Well, I was hoping to find a magic solution here, but it looks like my experiences are fairly unique to me.  I do now have two drives because I decided awhile ago that having any down time was not acceptable.  Since 100 pct of my water time is in salt water, I may try doing some deep soaks of my drives in fresh water bin to better break down the salt.  Will see how the next year goes.

I've broken a few cables and a spine shaft on Hobie and Hobie clone drives. I did buy my current Hobie used from an NCKA member last year, but I think my next kayak is gonna be an Old Town Big Water with the propeller drive.

Hi all,
Love my old town but hate how heavy it is..... used for 3 years now and the only thing that is wrong with my drive is that it is corroding at the seams which about twice a year I take care of with a wire brush and cold galv spray..... both the boat and the drive are tanks but they way almost as much as one.

Troy

Well, I was hoping to find a magic solution here, but it looks like my experiences are fairly unique to me.  I do now have two drives because I decided awhile ago that having any down time was not acceptable.  Since 100 pct of my water time is in salt water, I may try doing some deep soaks of my drives in fresh water bin to better break down the salt.  Will see how the next year goes.

No you are not alone, every season 2 chain assemblys and 2 fin masts + usually something else. I have quite the collection of broken fin masts and I re-use what I can from the chain assemblys. Over the years i've replaced almost everything. This reminds me to order a spare pedal shaft since I broke one a year or so ago. Every trip the drive gets washed.

I made a short video, showing my GT Mirage drive disassembly/reassembly, with the emphasis on a few mods that I've made and such. Since I seem to have minimal trouble with the mirage drive (and I'd think that the AI that I pedal/sail would be especially hard on the mirage drive), maybe this will be useful to some people who have posted in this thread. I started a separate thread, where the link to the video can be found:

https://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=104750.0