Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boat?

[canuckjgc]

I'm about to purchase a heavy duty 14' soft bottom inflatable (but aluminum floor) for a family boat. It will be for larger lakes and inlets (Indian Arm, Sechelt Inlet if you are familiar with BC).

But I can also get a 14 Lund SSV for roughly the same price. More deck space and has a deeper V.

Which boat rides better in the chop? What would be your choice? Or neither? I'm assuming the inflatable is the safest. I've looked for Youtube videos of each boat is rough water and the aluminum seems to slam down a lot harder, but the inflatables seem very wet.

Boat will live on a trailer so won't be packing up the inflatable.
2 adults, 2 little kids.

I haven't been in either boat - moving up from a canoe here. No chance to test drive either one.

I don't ever plan on being in rough water, but want to be prepared for the worst.

Thanks!

 

[shrew]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

What make/model are you looking at for the inflatable?

What activities are you looking to engage in with the boat? Will the activities be primarly with the entire family?

 

[canuckjgc]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

The inflatable will be coming from a China factory that builds commercial/work inflatables for brand names at 1.8mm PVC which is twice as thick as most others.

Activities will be beaching, touring around, camping at marine parks and fishing. Yes primarily with entire family. Safety is of course paramount.

 

[lncoop]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

As I recall you were considering the Saturn. It's a fairly new line, but it's been well received from what I've read, so quality shouldn't be an issue. I know of at least one iboater who loves his. That said, I think you'd be happier with the Lund for a number of reasons. First, it will last longer. Even the best inflatables have a finite lifespan. Everything does of course, but an aluminum Lund will outlast you if it's even reasonably well cared for. Second, the Lund will be more user friendly. You'll never have to worry about maintaining air pressure or developing hard to detect leaks or treating the boat with protectant to make it last longer. Heck, you won't even have to cover it if you don't want to. You should though of course. Third, the Lund will give you a lot more functionality. Imagine running trot lines or yo-yos out of a SIB. Difficult at best, and since you plan on camping out of it you'll be doing a lot of beaching. You can do that in a SIB, but it won't like you much for it. Plus, you can add rod holders, all sorts of other goodies, and a trolling motor fore or aft on the Lund, and while you can do that on the Saturn, it will require a lot more rigging. The Lund already has benches that can easily be fitted with comfy seats, the Saturn not so much. So, for these and many other reasons I think something like that Lund would be a better fit for you guys. Every boat is a compromise, and I'm not knocking SIBs. They're really neat and of course have some advantages, but in your case I'd say go for the metal rig. I think you'll be glad you did.

 

[canuckjgc]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

Very thoughtful reply, thank you! This particular boat is not a Saturn, but PVC just heavy duty.

The lund would be a 16' SSV, not 14' as mentioned above.

 

[lncoop]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

Very thoughtful reply, thank you! This particular boat is not a Saturn, but PVC just heavy duty.

The lund would be a 16' SSV, not 14' as mentioned above.

In that case, LUND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[NYGiants]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

defintley get the lund i have a 14' and its great i highly reconmend their boats. solidly built boats and my 14' with a 25hp handles chop nicely

 

[WN2712NJ]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

It sounds like you are in BC, and will be operating on salt water? If so, you've got a similar situation to us on Puget Sound.

1. From what I've seen, you never really "buy" an inflatable - better to think of it as a long term lease, at the end of which it will be worthless..
2. If you are going to be beaching it around here, it is going to be a pretty short-term lease. Way too many sharp rock, barnacles, etc.

Another thing to note is that RIBs of a given size will take a bigger motor to push thru the water than a tinny of the same size. A 14 ft Lund should do fine with 15-20 hp. Check the HP rating of the boats you are looking at, generally you will need at least 75% of the rated HP to be happy with the performance.

For operating on salt water, I would also recommend looking for an "Alaskan" style hull, with higher sides and transom (freeboard) than normal.

Safety will mainly be a function of you, the operator. Get some training, carry and use a marine/weather radio, signaling devices, etc.

YMMV,

-dm

 

[FH alumni]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

I have both. I have a 13'9" Zodiac Mark II Grand Raid with the aluminum floor. Boat is older, 1984 made of true hypalon with the inner communicating valves. This thing is basically military grade. Not in the same class as a PVC Saturn or Maxxon but it's still an inflatable and at 25 years still looks and runs great. A 2008 25hp Yamaha 2 stroke OB is my power plant. I purchased the Zodiac first and then came up with my 2 boat one motor idea.

My other boat is a 16' Tracker Pro Guide V-16 with a 40hp, top etc. Very similar to the Lund SV-16, (and yes I will admit the Lund has a better rep than my Tracker!)

For it's size the Zodiac is VERY stable and can take water much bigger than the 16' boat. I run the Zodiac in the ocean out of Newport in Oregon w/o fear. (WEATHER PERMITTING-Not suicidal) Never would do that with the 16'. 25hp pushes it along very fast (35 mph) and I used it last summer to tow tubes at Detroit Lake to great effect. I can break it down and put it in the pickup and still haul my travel trailer. No other boat can do this. Zodiac can haul a tremendous amount of weight.

This is my summer boat. I have crabbed with her and caught a fair amount of fish. Issue is it does not have much living space. Only 29" between the tubes with about 7' of length for people. Can haul 3 folks max comfortably with fishing gear. Crabbing with pots?? 2 people max, one to operate the boat and a buddy to pull the pots. It's interesting to say the least figuring out where to put pots but I have gotten it done. One should be careful around "poky" things but these boats can really take a beating. I think the inflatable is better in saltwater than a riveted hull boat. Rubber does not get eaten away by saltwater.

However, the 16' with the 40hp is much better for fishing and taking the wife and daughter out. It has lot's more space, has real seats, is "dry" (you will get wet in an inflatable there is a reason mine has 2 drain plugs with 1 way valves that are meant to be unplugged when running) It has a canopy to keep you warm. radio, steering wheel etc. The ride is much smoother (the Zed does hit hard in chop) and it is easier to attach things like rod holders to. I can comfortably take 4 people out. It is not nearly as fast as the Zodiac.

My plan was to purchase a new 15' Smoker Craft Alaskan DLX with a 15" transom, use the same trailer I made for the Zodiac (with a couple of quick change mods) and the same 25hp motor. 2 boats, 1 motor, 1 trailer. Infinite flexibility to do it all with the least $$ cash outlay and maintenance. Where I messed up is by buying the short shaft outboard before I came up with the 2 boat one engine idea. Used 20" transom aluminum boats are a dime a dozen on Craig's list in the PNW. 15" transoms very rare requiring buying new from dealer for $3200+.

I have the Tracker because the dealer had such a good deal on the used 1997 16' Tracker package I could get the whole thing for less $$ than the 15" smoker craft hull alone, I abandoned my original 2 hull one engine plan as a 15" transom on the Alaskan was less than ideal.

If I was going to do it again I would get the transom jack plate kit that will make the inflatable transom 20" (has a support that ties into the floor to reduce stress, my inflatable dealer stocks them ~$400) buy a 20" LS (vs. current 15" SS) 25 hp 2 stroke Yamaha (so you can have a chance of lifting it). The 2 stroke Yamaha with a 100/1 fuel mix only weighs 105 lbs and is very smooth, you can still buy these in Canada right??. Buy a new 14' inflatable and then find a good used 15/16' aluminum hull. Now you can have everything you want!!

Lets face it the major expense of a boat is not the hull its the motor and other gear such as life jackets etc.

FYI, the Lund WC-16 is another option to look at- slightly different hull than the SV that will run better with a 25hp motor.

 

[Alumarine]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

I don't know about the inflatable but I know if it turns out you don't like the Lund you could sell it easily, anywhere.

 

[AGENT 37]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

An inflatable is a specialty boat. You will find a lot more people running a Lund. All of the above is true about both. Sounds like an aluminum boat would better suit what you want to do. I run around in both all the time.

PVC filled with air is a pain in the butt for utility reasons. I had two major holes torn in my boat in the past year and though it wasn't a big deal because both times it happened within sight of my 23' welded boat...... it would have been a totally different story if we were using the inflatable on its own.

Now I'll tell you that you can safely pack more weight into an inflatable. You can swamp it and it won't sink. You can capsize it and re-right it. Both of which I have done. You can not do that with a Lund.

Extreme care must be taken using an inflatable and its things that average people don't pay attention to that that will deflate your adventure in a rubber boat. It was a deer antler that popped one of three chambers a few weeks ago and an anchor that took us down back in June. Fishhooks, knives, rocks, sticks, stray wires on a crab pot, fish spines, anchors, broken bottles..... so many things to look out for in a SIB.

Go with the Lund; watch the weather, load it properly, maintain the zincs, keep the round side down and you will have no problems. All of which you would still have to do with an inflatable along with so many other little sharps to worry about.

A welded boat would do you one step better. No rivets to wear into leaks. I've had a couple Bayrunners that were awesome.

 

[richardgreen]

Re: Aluminum skiff vs inflatable - have you experienced both? Best overall family boa

I have an Alumacraft V16 which is an extremely similar boat to the Lund SSV16 you are considering. I can say firsthand that it works great with a young family of four. If you go this route I'd strongly suggest the 20" transom model and 25hp or more on the back.

Here in the land of 10K lakes Lund is generally considered the gold standard of aluminum boats. It's hard to even think of comparing a Chinese made vinyl inflatable to it...

RG