First post here: New to me Protector 28

slojava · 30 June 2009, 06:38

Great info on this forum, I've enjoyed reading and learning.

I started with a 15' AB inflatibles boat w/75HP. After a great year with that boat I saw this model of boat on the east coast and found one on e-bay.

Protector boats in Alameda, CA did a great job on the maintenance needed, highly recommended!

One picture at the shop with the sun cover off and back bench seats out. 40'er in the background with another 28' protector.

Second shot on the water with a fresh pair of 150s.

Got the CA numbers on and building racks for the stern for 4 surf/paddleboards. The first trip is to Hollister ranch later this week.

Many adventures to come with this boat.

Maximus · 30 June 2009, 12:09

Very nice!saw one up close last season,enjoy!

prairie tuber · 30 June 2009, 12:45

Welcome! That is a very impressive boat!

jyasaki · 30 June 2009, 17:17

Welcome to the forum.

Saw another Protector (might have been a bit larger) in Monterey, oh, maybe 4, 5 months ago. Nice looking boat, as is yours.

What's in Hollister? Some lake? All I know about Hollister is that there are a bunch of cows.

Anyway, Congrats on the acquisition;

jky

slojava · 30 June 2009, 19:43

Hollister ranch is a privately owned stretch of coast line north of Gaviota, CA

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollister_Ranch

Many surf spots but difficult to get to unless you know a property owner, or have a boat.

dsteding · 01 July 2009, 00:24

Nice boat.

I've got an 18 foot Avon Adventure, and am putting it together to surf a bit on the Olympic Peninsula this fall. What are guys doing in terms of mounting boards on their RIBs when going to the Ranch? I was thinking of soft racks modified to strap to the tubes.

I have about 40 inches by 54 inches behind my center console, less up front. Probably be taking nine foot longboards out there. If you have any thoughts, I'd love to hear them.

-Doug

jyasaki · 01 July 2009, 16:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by slojava

Hollister ranch is a privately owned stretch of coast line north of Gaviota, CA

Ah. Thanks.

Cow ponds don't sound like as much fun.

jky

codprawn · 01 July 2009, 17:50

Protectors are great boats but not cheap. Made in New Zealand but pretty popular all over the World.

slojava · 06 July 2009, 16:51

After considering many exotic rack designs like roof supports and roof racks, over engine racks etc. a buddy of mine helped come up with a simple solution. I made some racks from a trip to Home Depot for about $50.

The Protector has a fiberglass bench seat that can be un-mounted from the floor. I ended up moving the bench seat forward about 38". This boat has a rubber floor coating so the seat stays put with weight on it.

(2) 2x4s are mounted with carriage bolts and wing nuts for easy removal using the holes made for the cup holders on the seat and some existing holes made for the engine guard rail which was removed at the stern. The 2x4s have (5) 1.25" holes with 32" lengths of PVC. I pounded in the PVC with a small sledge hammer and mounted D-rings on each end of the 2x4s for tie-down points.

I attached a couple of photos with 3 stand up paddle boards and 1 long board. Stand up paddle boards are a great way to get to and from your boat if it is moored.

For the 15' AB Inflatables VST boat I have (that I need to sell soon) I ended up strapping the boards together and strapping them across the bow (pointing to the side).

The tubes do a great job dampening the bounces if you can have the boards lay on the tubes directly. The closer you get to the stern the less the boards move around. I learned in 1-4 ft swell the boards don't really even need to be tied down with this rack set up.

I'd be interested to see what rack systems you guys have come up with.

BTW for a trip summary we had nice calm seas and it took about 1:45min to go from Port San Luis, CA to Government point around the corner from Point Conception. About a 165 mile round trip including checking out the surf breaks up and down the coast in the area.

Cheers!

jyasaki · 07 July 2009, 16:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by slojava

I attached a couple of photos with 3 stand up paddle boards and 1 long board. Stand up paddle boards are a great way to get to and from your boat if it is moored.

I've seen these stand up paddle board things in Monterey quite often recently. Seems like a kind of weird way of doing things (at least to me - I can fall over just looking at a skateboard...)

jky

kelson · 07 July 2009, 16:32

Killer vessel! I'm jealous. My MK2 Futura definitely has less beam and strapping my Brewer longboard across it is like having airplane wings on the zodiac. I also wasn't comfortable with having the board resting on it's rails, I prefer to distribute the pressure over a larger surface area. I didn't want the boards catching that much wind either. At first I used cut out ethafoam "bones" to cushion them when strapped on the side tubes, but the flex of the tubes appeared to put a bit of stress on the boards. So I made two racks out of Holland Speed Rail fittings and aluminum tubing. The mounts extend all the way across the benches and bolt on to each side so they can handle the leverage of the rack arm. The pipes running across the bench make great lashing spots for other cargo too. The rack arms are easy to remove when not in use, but the bench rails stay in place. Since the aluminum floor section doesn't flex much the racks stay in one plane and the boards are not tweaked even when launching over waves. It sure looks like you have a good system for your boat and I would only comment that PVC pipe is not particularly UV resistant and will become brittle over time with sun exposure. If you intend to use the system you have for an extended period of time I would at the very least paint it or consider replacing the pvc with aluminum. Rack failure will always occur at the most inconvenient time...

the boards float above the tubes

dawn patrol

dsteding · 07 July 2009, 17:50

That is helpful to visualize. I think I may use a soft rack variation on my tubes-strapping through the handles and the rub patches on top.

Pic here:

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x...g/IMG_0024.jpg

I think I can rig up straps/rack pads that will go on either side, should be enough to strap down a couple longboards on each tube. I'm hesitant to put in anything too permanent, because this is primarily my dive boat--and it already has racks for scuba tanks and the like.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kelson

Killer vessel! I'm jealous. My MK2 Futura definitely has less beam and strapping my Brewer longboard across it is like having airplane wings on the zodiac. I also wasn't comfortable with having the board resting on it's rails, I prefer to distribute the pressure over a larger surface area. I didn't want the boards catching that much wind either. At first I used cut out ethafoam "bones" to cushion them when strapped on the side tubes, but the flex of the tubes appeared to put a bit of stress on the boards. So I made two racks out of Holland Speed Rail fittings and aluminum tubing. The mounts extend all the way across the benches and bolt on to each side so they can handle the leverage of the rack arm. The pipes running across the bench make great lashing spots for other cargo too. The rack arms are easy to remove when not in use, but the bench rails stay in place. Since the aluminum floor section doesn't flex much the racks stay in one plane and the boards are not tweaked even when launching over waves. It sure looks like you have a good system for your boat and I would only comment that PVC pipe is not particularly UV resistant and will become brittle over time with sun exposure. If you intend to use the system you have for an extended period of time I would at the very least paint it or consider replacing the pvc with aluminum. Rack failure will always occur at the most inconvenient time...

the boards float above the tubes

dawn patrol

kelson · 07 July 2009, 19:58

Dang, sure wish I had a bigger RIB! Just be careful if you strap the boards down along the tubes. The tubes flex quite a bit if the water isn't all glassy and smooth, even with a rib. If your board is strapped down really tight it will get stressed. The other issue is tying down to just the handles. It is really hard to keep the boards from flopping around with a single point attachment. I was contemplating adding a few d-rings to the inside of the tube so I would have two points of attachment when strapping down on the tube. What can I say? My old Brewer longboard is a classic and I don't want to trash it, my shortboards aren't that valuable monetarily or emotionally. Give it a try and you'll see how it goes for you. A number of ribs around here have an overhead rack installed. Sort of the t-top type of idea. I would give that a go, but it would be quite top heavy on my little lightweight inflatable. Might not help the seaworthiness of my zodiac?

dsteding · 08 July 2009, 02:42

That is a good point about tube flex. I have a rear tank rack that I could probably put one cross bar on for this purpose-I may try and monkey with it a bit to get two in place. Come to think of it, I may be able to pull out that (it is stainless and removable) rack and put in a wood rack with shelves over the tubes for boards. Probably use the same attachment points.