why are these Zodiac 733's so expensive?

[zip]

Stoo,

yep, the big sea swells can definitely make a difference, and can be kinda spooky too.

i am sure the 590 and 640 are great boats, but i am leaning towards the 733. i own a 23.5 foot pilothouse and a 10 foot inflatable Zodiac too. I would replace the 23.5 foot with the 733. when i go to Catalina on my big boat, i take my scuba gear, kayak, bicycle, and my 10 footer too. i think anything less than a 733 would not be big enough to haul all my junk. i would also intend to sleep on the boat too.

any opinions on the different engine configurations?

[achille2124]

Originally Posted by zip

Stoo,

great analogy.

why are you sluggish in calm conditions?

most of my usage is in the open ocean, so it is rarely calm conditions. sometimes i can't see over the next wave and i frequently get airborne. it is 37 miles from Dana Point to Avalon Harbor, Catalina Island. I would like to make the trip a little quicker, and not get beat up so much. My 14 footer does OK, but i am sure a 733 would probably do a lot better job.

would you go with the i/o diesel, or the twin ob?

Achille,

Why do you say these boats are hard on the body all the time? am i gonna get the crap kicked outta me on these too?

what is a 930ob? i googled it, and nothing came up.

thx for the input.

Sorry it was a typo, I meant 920OB. Here is a picture.



What I meant by "hard on the body" is because this boat is able to acheive very high speed in the worst waves, sometimes it felt like dirt bike jumping. When I was working for the Coast Guard we've always tried to go to emergency call the fastest way possible no matter what. We did not care about ourselves since we were a bunch of cowboys that liked jumping tug boats waves.

However, when I started working for whale cruise I had that same mentality, when a whale was spotted it was an emergency to get there! After few rough rides with couple of japanese-tourist-bodies-flying-everywhere I learn how not to kill my passengers.

By taking the waves correctly with the right angle I managed to make the ride confortable and get some tips. The Hurricane 733 is a beast that handles like nothing else, with time you learn how to use the deep and aggresive hull to make it respond like you want it to.

[zip]

achille,

got it.

733 should do the ticket for me then.

that 930 looks like it is ready for some serious business.

any comments on pros and cons for diesel i/o versus twin o/b?

[achille2124]

Originally Posted by zip

achille,

got it.

733 should do the ticket for me then.

that 930 looks like it is ready for some serious business.

any comments on pros and cons for diesel i/o versus twin o/b?

Personnaly, I really don't like inboard on an inflatable boat.

First: the inboard engine take a lot of space inside the boat. The major thing that people don't like about RIB is the lack of room inside the boat. So having a big inboard pushes the console forward and then reduce inside length and width.

Second: The weight. Usually on 733 the outboards are on a 26" bracket that gives extra flotation. That extra flotation eliminate some of the weight on the transom so it equilibrates the whole boat. With inboard you have a heavy engine at stern + a heavy sterndrive.

Third: If one outboard fail, you unbolt it and change it. If inboard fail, you have to open the whole thing and crawl like an ant to get access to it.

Fourth: Usually with inboard application on a 19-25 feet RIB, you'll have only 1 engine. With outboards it is more likely to have twin. Having twin outboard helps a lot with docking and touchy manoeuvers. By using forward and forward throttle you can spin the boat on itself. It was more true in the past but it is more reliable, if 1 engine fail you have one left. With today's reliability it doesn't count that much I believe.

I would love to hear someone who would say the opposite, I really don't know how to like inboard inside a RIB.

[pathalla]

If you can afford or find a larger boat I would opt for going larger. I have a custom built 30 ft. rib with twin 250 Yamahas on it and have never regretted moving up in size. A bigger boat will run through the slop easier, my boat does not have a really deep v but I can easily cruise in 3 to four foot waves or run in much more aggressive sea states. Having more space is always good especially if you are hauling gear aboard. Over the years I have had about 15 ribs of various sizes, a 22 ft. would be about as small as I would want to go these days. Performance with big outboards is excellent and fuel consumption has never been a problem for me personally but that all depends how far you run, a diesel can be quite economical. Twins are also very nice if a motor quits offshore, but I wouldn't be averse to a single. Comes down to what you want, they (ribs) are all fun. Some of my best days have been on a 12 ft. rib with a cooler, bikini clad company and not much else. It's all good.
By the way, I don't own a Zodiac, there are other boats out there, if you want a Zodiac fine, but I would not limit myself to one brand, there are excellent boats built by other companies. Pays to look around.

[zip]

pathalla,

thx for the input.

can you recommend other boats, and maybe post a pic of yours?

thx

[pathalla]

Good makers out there on this continent include Willard, Nautica, Polaris, Titan, Novurania and a lot of others that don't come to mind. You can do searches online to find companies mfg. ribs and then do searches for new/used boats on the internet to find what you are interested in. I would think in this economy you should be able to get a good buy.

Being as I did not want to spend 1/4 of a million dollars on what was a toy (for me) I bought my boat as an ex-military castoff and completely refitted it doing much of the fabrication and all of the rigging which was an education unto itself. It was a thoroughly enjoyable process. This is not the route everyone would take but it can save you a tremendous amount of money if you have time and the skill set to do so.

The pic shows Dad instructing the little one on the finer things in life, boats and beautiful days out...

[zip]

pathalla,

now that's a big boat!

i really like the seat. i bet that would help my kidneys out in the big stuff.

thx for sharing.

[Screaming04]

See the north America for sale section. Here's your chance, it's local for you. At the very least you can have a look at how big a 733 really is.