Thoughts on this setup?

[Teledatageek]

Hello everyone - first time poster here but long time boater. I started out in my youth with a used Sevylor and a used Sears 4HP outboard - lots of fun. Sold my 21' Yamaha twin engine last May - no opportunity to get on the water last summer and while I loved the yammy - lots of work, ongoing expense, etc.

Fast forward a year and for my needs now I think an inflatable will be lots of fun. Typically I think it would be two of use - @300lbs + gear, maybe the 80lb Lab every once in a while. My two teens may also join from time to time - max weight @500 to 600lbs I think. Primary use will be to tour around, swim from it, etc.

Will use on small inland lakes primarily. Chatted with a nice rep here at iBoats - he thought the Zodiac Cadet 350 w/15 HP Honda would be a good fit. I think of both brands as having quality. The more we talked, the more the inflatable floor seemed to make more sense, I had been leaning towards an aluminum floor originally. I also was thinking 10HP originally but a 15HP isn't much more weight of $$ wise and I think that extra five horses might be nice.

Also thinking about getting a trailer hitch cargo carrier to put on my Explorer - capacity is 500 lbs - seems perfect and no trailering.

What do you all think of this set up? Other ideas, suggestions? Really appreciate it. I plan to pull the trigger in the next few weeks as I want by the end of June.

Thanks!

 

[Sea Rider]

Welcome to Iboats

A 350 will be too basic and non roomier for 4 and gear, it's good and comfy for 2 + gear. I would go for a 360- 380 alum floor sib, nice performance with a 15 HP engine, assume 4 strokes ? An air floor sib makes sense in terms of inflation ease and portability but with performance issues, frequent topic here.

You plan on inflating/deflating sib every time it will be used or plan to count with a trailer soon after you buy it ?

Happy Boating

 

[Guest]

First Welcome, now to business. Air floor is only good for someone living in an apartment that has to man handle his boat from car to apartment on every outing (get a pin hole in your airfloor and you your boating day is over). Knowing what i know now i would probably go for a folding rib with a 15 Suzuki (weight 97lbs) or 15 Honda (weight 104). If that is not an option go for a inflatable boat with wood or aluminum floor. Floor assembly will take the enjoyment out of boating trust me (a lot of people switched from inflatable boating to jon boating for these reasons). As for size, 360 - 390 should be ok. If you choose to get a sib, get one that is "thermowelded" seams and not "glued seems". Iboats has a good selection of boats. Customer service after the fact is a different conversation i will keep off of here. (my boat was an iboat purchase)

 

[Teledatageek]

Welcome to Iboats

A 350 will be too basic and non roomier for 4 and gear, it's good and comfy for 2 + gear. I would go for a 360- 380 alum floor sib, nice performance with a 15 HP engine, assume 4 strokes ? An air floor sib makes sense in terms of inflation ease and portability but with performance issues, frequent topic here.

You plan on inflating/deflating sib every time it will be used or plan to count with a trailer soon after you buy it ?

Happy Boating

Thanks for your note. Was not planning on a trailer but typically I would be using for a week or two at a time. e.g. - go to destination, assemble and use for at least a week. Was looking at Honda 4 stroke.

 

[Teledatageek]

First Welcome, now to business. Air floor is only good for someone living in an apartment that has to man handle his boat from car to apartment on every outing (get a pin hole in your airfloor and you your boating day is over). Knowing what i know now i would probably go for a folding rib with a 15 Suzuki (weight 97lbs) or 15 Honda (weight 104). If that is not an option go for a inflatable boat with wood or aluminum floor. Floor assembly will take the enjoyment out of boating trust me (a lot of people switched from inflatable boating to jon boating for these reasons). As for size, 360 - 390 should be ok. If you choose to get a sib, get one that is "thermowelded" seams and not "glued seems". Iboats has a good selection of boats. Customer service after the fact is a different conversation i will keep off of here. (my boat was an iboat purchase)

Any brand recommendations on a folding rib? Space is not an issue for me for storage. Are the floors that much of a pain to put in? No issue with being slippery when wet with an aluminum floor or the like? Thank you for the input.

 

[fbpooler]

Stair tread tape solves slippery floors. I would go with aluminum or wood floors.

 

[Guest]

Any brand recommendations on a folding rib? Space is not an issue for me for storage. Are the floors that much of a pain to put in? No issue with being slippery when wet with an aluminum floor or the like? Thank you for the input.

slipping is not an issue my friend has a boat with aluminum floor and we were on it last year with no problem. If you have the ability to stay away from any floor assembly do it. I have a video of me putting the wooden floor together which is exactly the same method as aluminum. fastest ever was 15 minutes and that's with a years worth of practice (i did notice the rivets start falling apart within time is another issue i would not like to have). frib is only sold by winboats or f-rib is a european version, you can google it and you will find it. Winboat looks promising but it's so new that local dealer is hard to find. If there was a local winboat dealer i can almost guarantee most of us would get it. here is a vid of assembly by me. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZhyuSA8yR0

 

[ronaldj]

Hate to be late to the party but
If you actually have access to a trailer skip the Sib altogether and just get a Rib
The difference is amazing. The rib will be faster with less hp and the floor will be more stable

 

[fbpooler]

Unless you have a particular use for an inflatable, you might just get a small hard hull boat. There is a large difference in inside room between the two types.

 

[Sea Rider]

+ An unpleasant side balance and weight difference of a small hard hull boat compared to any wooden or alum floor sib. Wing boat is a nice concept but still overpriced. Seems that the Russian ingenuity is costly.

Happy Boating