My new RIB: question on fuel mileage

BC'er · 22 March 2010, 05:40

After perusing this forum for the past two years, I finally bounght this (barely) used 2005 Polaris 16.5' Seamaster. The boat comes equipped with a 60 hp Yamaha four stroke, as well as a 4hp kicker. Does anyone know what the capacity of the internal fuel tank would be on this baby? Any idea on what I could expect in fuel mileage? Thanks.

solos60 · 22 March 2010, 16:42

Congrats on your new RIB... A good place to get the answers to any questions regarding your new toy would be from the people that made it.
http://www.polarisboats.com/p/fiberg...ster_page2.htm
You will find them very helpful.

jyasaki · 22 March 2010, 17:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by BC'er

Does anyone know what the capacity of the internal fuel tank would be on this baby? Any idea on what I could expect in fuel mileage? Thanks.

On the first question, get your HIN (from the transom plate), and give Guy a call (the number on the site that Solo referenced.) He'll let you know.

Mileage will depend on lots of things: surface conditions, load, cruising speed, etc. In general, I'm getting around 4mpg (I think) in "normal" use; I'd expect you to get about 1.5x that (but that's just a guess...)

Congrats on the acquisition; always good to hear from a fellow Polaris driver!

jky

captnjack · 22 March 2010, 20:26

I have a 15.5' ali Polaris with the same engine.

Mileage is going to depend ALOT on the load you carry and how fast you run the engine. Loaded with scuba gear & people (800-1000lbs+) I run about 20 knots and 4500rpm. This is about 4-5mpg.

Lighter loads I typically end up going faster for the same rpm and I suspect I'd be on the high end of 5mpg.

I am still capable of planing and getting to 17kn with a full ~1300lb load but running WOT, getting 5200rpm and roughly 3mpg.

BC'er · 22 March 2010, 23:08

Thanks for the replies folks. I talked to Guy about buying this exact boat new, but my budget meant finding for a used one. After a couple years combing craigslist etc., voila. I realize they are very helpful, but not sure I want to pester them with questions about a used boat purchase.

Screaming04 · 23 March 2010, 01:41

Nice boat, now find me a 24 footer in the same condition!

jyasaki · 23 March 2010, 16:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by BC'er

I realize they are very helpful, but not sure I want to pester them with questions about a used boat purchase.

Give him a call. I think he'll welcome you into the family with open arms.

As an indication, he worked with me for about a year to get my boat design nailed down within my budget before I committed to having it built.

Oh, and tell him John Yasaki said Howdy.

jky

BC'er · 24 March 2010, 02:59

Will do John. I was really impressed with the time Guy put in talking to me as well. I am even more impressed with the boat up close. It really is a thing o' beauty! I've sailed, rowed and paddled quite a few craft in my day, but I have to admit I don't have a whole lot of power boat experience. I plan on fair weather boating to nearby islands etc. with my young family and more adventurous trips with friends fishing and surfing. The only electronics on the boat at present is a fish finder. The previous owner used a hand held GPS connected to an external antenna (no idea why). I happen to own the same GPS (Garmin 76CSx) and a have hand held VHF. Do you think they would suffice, or am I going to want a larger chartplotter and/or VHF w/DSC? I am assuming I will also want a spare prop but I haven't yet delved into that world. Once I have had the boat out a few times, I'm sure I will have more questions, but any words of advice would be welcome at this point.

jyasaki · 24 March 2010, 18:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by BC'er

The only electronics on the boat at present is a fish finder. The previous owner used a hand held GPS connected to an external antenna (no idea why). I happen to own the same GPS (Garmin 76CSx) and a have hand held VHF. Do you think they would suffice, or am I going to want a larger chartplotter and/or VHF w/DSC?

The GPS would do OK. On my small boat, I used basically the same unit (albeit with the monochrome screen) for day to day nav stuff. It worked fine, though the small screen was kind of hard to see when you get into rougher water.

The VHF is another story; I prefer having a fixed unit for the following reason: Handhelds are (as far as I am aware) limited to 5 watts transmitting power. Fixed units are generally 25 watts. If you need to scream for help,. more power is better, for obvious reasons.

I am running a Std Horizon PS-2000 (no longer made), and a Lowrance LMS-520C combo fishfinder/chartplotter. Works OK for me. I have a Garmin GPSMap-76 and a SH handheld VHF hiding in the console somewhere. Never had to use them in anger (though the GPS did come in handy when my antenna died.)

Quote:

I am assuming I will also want a spare prop but I haven't yet delved into that world.

Not a bad idea. I am running a SS prop, but have an aluminum spare that gets put on when ab diving (the river we launch out of is quite shallow, and dragging through gravel or clipping rocks is pretty common.) The spare lives on the boat, along with a spare hardware kit, and tools to change them out.

jky

BC'er · 25 March 2010, 23:12

I figured if I went offshore at all I would want a built in VHF. I will probably upgrade to a combo chartplotter/sounder in the future as well, but I will see how the hand held works for now. Cheers.

SBH2OMan · 21 April 2010, 16:20

For a great (IMO) combo GPS and Fishfinder unit at a really good price (around $200 USD), you might want to consider the Eagle Cuda 350 S/Map. Compact design, fits onto a small boat nicely, and is "good enough" for the needs you are likely to have on your boat.

Of course if money is no problem, there are an awful lot of other choices that are far superior, but in terms of bang-for-the-buck, I don't think you'll find a better deal. I've been running the 350 (and its predecessors) on my kayaks and my 11' Avon RIB for years and they are very easy to set up and use, reliable, and amazingly full-featured for the price.

I also use the Navionics app for the iPhone as a backup when I am along the coast, since the chart data is much more complete than what you'll find on the S/Map. But I'm usually within 3 miles of the coastline and just hitting fairly shallow spots (less than 50 meters) for fishing and free-diving/spearfishing. The 350 S/Map fits the bill perfectly for those purposes and makes it really easy to save spots and navigate back to them.