Honwave 3.8 Air V Floor or 4.0 Alluminum

surferbill · 15 May 2010, 16:46

Hello

i am planning buying either a Honwave 3.8m Air v floor or 4.0m Alluminum floor with a 20HP Fourstoke

I know the 4.0m is a lot heavier but after some advice on what the different handling will be at sea, which will be better in a rougher, performance etc

I plan on mostly using a trailer but maybe sometimes deflate it and put in the back of my transit if going on ferries etc

I am a keen surfer from thurso north scotland and am up for a bit of adventure and excitment, don,t mind getting wet.

Plan use it for general playing around, maybe getting to some of the more out of the way surf spots along the coast and on the islands, a wee bit of fishing that kind of think

like it to carry 3 people

Anybody with any thoughts, advice on these 2 boats

cheers

Andrew

longjohn · 16 May 2010, 15:03

i am planning buying either a Honwave 3.8m Air v floor or 4.0m Alluminum floor with a 20HP Fourstoke

I know the 4.0m is a lot heavier but after some advice on what the different handling will be at sea, which will be better in a rougher, performance etc

I plan on mostly using a trailer but maybe sometimes deflate it and put in the back of my transit if going on ferries etc

I am a keen surfer from thurso north scotland and am up for a bit of adventure and excitment, don,t mind getting wet.

Plan use it for general playing around, maybe getting to some of the more out of the way surf spots along the coast and on the islands, a wee bit of fishing that kind of think

like it to carry 3 people

Anybody with any thoughts, advice on these 2 boats

cheers

Andrew [/QUOTE]

I had a 3.8 airfloor - I think the hull shape of these is definitely better that the aly floor and the boat handles very well. The external form is very similar to a shallowish V RIB and the v shape internally gives more room inside but floor isn't flat and the floor is quite difficult to get to the right pressure without and electric pump. Only downside if the airfloor is that there is no possibility of fitting a steering wheel and remotes. Boat is very lively with a 20 and in-fact is rated for up to 25hp. It was just possible to launch and recover singlehandedly without a winch on a fairly steep slip.

bradosh · 17 May 2010, 23:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by surferbill

Hello

i am planning buying either a Honwave 3.8m Air v floor or 4.0m Alluminum floor with a 20HP Fourstoke

I know the 4.0m is a lot heavier but after some advice on what the different handling will be at sea, which will be better in a rougher, performance etc

I plan on mostly using a trailer but maybe sometimes deflate it and put in the back of my transit if going on ferries etc

I am a keen surfer from thurso north scotland and am up for a bit of adventure and excitment, don,t mind getting wet.

Plan use it for general playing around, maybe getting to some of the more out of the way surf spots along the coast and on the islands, a wee bit of fishing that kind of think

like it to carry 3 people

Anybody with any thoughts, advice on these 2 boats

cheers

Andrew

recken air flow is better as you only have 1 item to carry and open to inflate.
the ali floor version would only be better in my opinion if you were fishing all the time.
we have a little 2.7 honwave with air deck and the handling is exellent .
so the larger version should be quality
like the idea of using a trailer with the 3.8m that would take alot of hassle away also leaving the engine attatched to the transom will save your back bone when flushing out and storing away

good luck with your choice both are quality boats fit for purpose

MustRib · 18 May 2010, 01:22

Hi... I have had the Honwave 3.8 air floor for three years.
I started with a Mariner 15 hp 2 stroke and moved up to a Yam 20 d 2 stroke.

On a flat calm, the engine runs out of puff before the boat feels challenged.
Here are some of my ownership notes on the thing, I never had or considered the Honwave 4.0 with the rigid floor. There are a lot of posts on here regarding the Honwave 3.8 - just search on those words.

1) Buy the launching wheels - they are a bespoke item and not cheap but very very worth it.
2) My only time when I loaded the boat into the back of my landrover, with the engine and all the rest of the stuff, I almost passed out after 15 minutes from the petrol fumes from the tank. Just as bad with the tank empty as full.
In my opinion, boats and fuel belong on trailers not inside cars
3) The boat gets a decent enough V shape in the hull when the floor is inflated BUT in a moderate chop it is still very uncomfortable unless you are dawdling along.
4) Its very sensitive to trim. I dont sit on the stupid bench they provide, at the speed I want to go I want to sit IN the boat not ON it. So shuffling my position in the boat affects the trim dramatically. The floor flexes upwards when you get on the plane and does react to the changes in speed.
5) Unless you tie everything up in your boat, all your stuff will all inevitabley gather in the centre seam that joins the two air chambers in the centre of the floor.
6) Glue four extra retaining loops to the floor around the existing tank tie strap points because the strap will not keep an adequate hold on the tank when the boat starts to get thrown around.
7) My own opinion again, but having had the boat out in a 6 foot swell with a fairly short distance between crests and a good wind blowing, I grew a bit alarmed at the way the boat creased up at the point where the tubes start to point towards the prow. Normally it feels fairly solid, but watching the whole front of the boat bend up including the floor, and the tubes crease up I decided it was time to turn around....also bloody wet and uncomfortable

It was RIB weather not SIB weather. I guess what I am saying is keep an eye on the conditions and be aware of the boats limitations.

Hope this helps - PM me if you have anymore questions.

longjohn · 18 May 2010, 12:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by MustRib

Hi... I have had the Honwave 3.8 air floor for
7) My own opinion again, but having had the boat out in a 6 foot swell with a fairly short distance between crests and a good wind blowing, I grew a bit alarmed at the way the boat creased up at the point where the tubes start to point towards the prow. Normally it feels fairly solid, but watching the whole front of the boat bend up including the floor, and the tubes crease up I decided it was time to turn around....also bloody wet and uncomfortable

It was RIB weather not SIB weather. I guess what I am saying is keep an eye on the conditions and be aware of the boats limitations.

Hope this helps - PM me if you have anymore questions.

That sounds alarming - never saw that myself and went out is some quite rough conditions - sure your tubes and floor were pumped to the correct pressure? - as I said before I found it impossible to get the required pressure in the floor without a electric pump. The boat is very sensitive to the pressures and it needs to be correct to get the handling and sea-worthyness right. Rough seas are best negotiated with 2 people on board - thats bouncy enough - with one its very bouncy - and you need a tiller extension so as to be able to helm from far enough forward to get the balance right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FENvm2CvxTU

I found it stable enough to shoot the above video with one hand while helming with the other - going thro' the Old Harry race.

CJS · 18 May 2010, 17:19

Hi LongJohn

Haven't seen you on here for a while....

What electric pump do you use - mine only inflates to 0.25bar and the final haul has to be made with a wretched hand pump. I am surprised they have made a portable electric pump that goes the whole way to 0.8 Bar.

In regards to the original poster - like Long John I also have the Honwave 3.8m V Floor with 20HP - excellent boat, I have been out in some choppy conditions and have not experienced tubes bending as yet.

I have noticed though that the boat performs better with two people seated midship on the tube with tiller extension.

longjohn · 18 May 2010, 23:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by CJS

What electric pump do you use - mine only inflates to 0.25bar and the final haul has to be made with a wretched hand pump. I am surprised they have made a portable electric pump that goes the whole way to 0.8 Bar.

I

This is the pump you need - excellent but pricey bit of kit - they also do one with a built in rechargeable battery which is much more convenient for a SIB without electric start (ie not having a battery)

http://www.marinedirect.co.uk/bravo-...-hp-p-261.html

PS I've progressed to a bigger RIB - not so pressure sensitive as the hull is rigid
John

MustRib · 18 May 2010, 23:55

7) My own opinion again, but having had the boat out in a 6 foot swell with a fairly short distance between crests and a good wind blowing, I grew a bit alarmed at the way the boat creased up at the point where the tubes start to point towards the prow. Normally it feels fairly solid, but watching the whole front of the boat bend up including the floor, and the tubes crease up I decided it was time to turn around....also bloody wet and uncomfortable It was RIB weather not SIB weather. I guess what I am saying is keep an eye on the conditions and be aware of the boats limitations.

Ok - so didnt want to give the impression the boat was bending in two!!!!
But, it was flexing more than I felt comfortable with.
I do have the bigger Bravo that does go up to the correct floor pressure, but inevitabley have to top off with the foot pump.

These are extreme conditions and I suspect at the limit of the boats design being C rated.

MustRib · 19 May 2010, 00:00

Thanks for posting the video of the Old Harry Race, but I was trying to plow through 6 foot breaking waves, so a little more extreme than the confused sea in the video....as I said probably more at the edge of the design limit.

prairie tuber · 19 May 2010, 01:01

[YOUTUBE]FENvm2CvxTU[/YOUTUBE]

surferbill · 09 June 2010, 23:31

Well cheers for all the advice, i ended up going for the 3.8m V floor and 20hp Fourstroke. Pritty pleased with it so far. My mate gave me an old trailer but it was a bit short so ended up buying a kit one of the net and it seems to be pritty decent with the bunks supporting right to the back of the boat.

Maybe not quite as fast as i hoped for but still covers the miles quick enough and the fourstroke is so quiet and seems like it will run all day no bother. Very impressed with the little amount of fuel it goes through.

Bought the HP electric pump which works a treat but floor still ripples a bit over chop but i guess that is expected.

Had it out fishing, spearfishing and on a surf mission so far.

it has been named Rockhopper after the oil exploration company that struck oil off the falkland islands and made me a few quid from there shares to buy it in the first place.

Been a few calm days the last week when i have seen Orkney in the distance and thought, well maybe just go for it, Maybe one day when better prepared, was over there on the ferry the other day for some surfing and reckon the longer crossing from scrabster maybe better to avoid the mad tides further up the firth

MustRib · 10 June 2010, 02:13

glad your pleased with the 3.8
Just had mine in Scotland for a week at Skye.
Had it out in short chop and it reminded me why I like the Rib that much more ! It did take four of us across to Rhum and back from Ord on the Sleat peninsula. A little slow going 4 up and 11 miles there and back with a 20 hp 2 stroke, but it wasnt a race and we had time to mooch around with the dolphins. The 2 stroke is VERY loud compared to the 4 stroke, lighter and thirstier......Careful with the spear gun and the air floor!!!

xchsurfers · 18 June 2010, 22:10

Hi. Is me is it me or is it a flaw in the design of the 3.8 air floor, it is as if the boat is to long to be an air floor. I have been in discussions with honda for over a year now regarding the bending of the air floor of the 3.8 which they state is as rigid as a solid floor, when you get up on the plane the floor bends upwards which creates an airpocket underneath the boat which causes the boat to dramactily slow down and the engine starts to cavitate.They say they have never heard of this problem before.
Has anyone had this happen to them if so how did you remedy this,
I have a BST 12v Battery air pump which is excellent so I know all the pressures are correct
The unit runs with a honda 20hp four stroke to both new 2009
Any idea as i am getting nowhere with Honda
regards
Allen

MustRib · 19 June 2010, 00:19

hmm... all I will say on that front, is I find the boat very sensitive to trim and weight distribution, try trimming the engine in a little.
The floor does rise up as the boat gets on the plane, but then mine doesnt slow down, it seems that it settles down at the planing part of the hull
and is quite happy.
If I trim out the motor too much it cavitates, and too far in and the front end rides too flat...On my Yam 20 with a 5 position trim setting, its the
second hole back from the transom that works best.
I dont know if that helps with your Honda trim settings.
Shifting my own weight around in the boat can help also.

spartacus · 19 June 2010, 11:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by surferbill

Been a few calm days the last week when i have seen Orkney in the distance and thought, well maybe just go for it, Maybe one day when better prepared, was over there on the ferry the other day for some surfing and reckon the longer crossing from scrabster maybe better to avoid the mad tides further up the firth

Interesting thread. I know it's tempting when you can see land in the distance, but a lot can happen during a crossing, and often the journey there might be okay, but the wind picks up on the way back. Can definately be done - so never say never, but probably worth doing with another boat, plenty fuel, engine spares, VHF, etc. Check out Zodiacman's threads on here - fantastic stuff.

longjohn · 19 June 2010, 11:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by MustRib

hmm... all I will say on that front, is I find the boat very sensitive to trim and weight distribution, try trimming the engine in a little.
The floor does rise up as the boat gets on the plane, but then mine doesnt slow down, it seems that it settles down at the planing part of the hull
and is quite happy.
If I trim out the motor too much it cavitates, and too far in and the front end rides too flat...On my Yam 20 with a 5 position trim setting, its the
second hole back from the transom that works best.
I dont know if that helps with your Honda trim settings.
Shifting my own weight around in the boat can help also.

Have you checked with a manometer that you are actually getting the full pressure in the floor & tubes? Also without using a Halkey Roberts adapter to keep the valves open
http://www.force4.co.uk/6344/Bravo-I...g-Adaptor.html
the pump may be cutting off before full pressure is reached. The boat/floor is very sensitive to pressure and its imperative to get full pressure in the tubes and floor to get the best performance. I found this was only possible using the Bravo electric pump - I couldn't get the correct pressure in the floor with a hand/foot pump.

The floor is obviously not as rigid as a solid floor and mine did rise a bit and you could feel the wave motion beneath it. But mine didn't slow down and was good for 26 or so MPH in the right conditions.
The engine trim (Honda 20Hp) and load positioning was also important. I found max speed was achieved trimming the engine up to 3rd position from transom and sitting aft (one up)

John

xchsurfers · 19 June 2010, 21:17

Hi john
Thanks for the reply,I did checked the pressure with two different gauges, I also over inflated the floor 0.9bar to see if this helped, I will try and sit more midships when we take it out again this weekend. Thanks again to you and everyone.
allen

surferbill · 19 June 2010, 21:47

Interesting thread. I know it's tempting when you can see land in the distance, but a lot can happen during a crossing, and often the journey there might be okay, but the wind picks up on the way back. Can definately be done - so never say never, but probably worth doing with another boat, plenty fuel, engine spares, VHF, etc. Check out Zodiacman's threads on here - fantastic stuff.

Aye somedays it looks close and others a million miles away. My Wife works for the Harbour and i could only imagine the piss taking if the lifeboat had come out for me after a breakdown. Reckon i will stick to the ferry for now

Did a 20 mile round trip along the coast last weekend with my old man in my boat and my mate in his his old 3m Zodiac. Good fun and test of fuel consumption, reckon i used about 6 litres. My old mans pushing 70 and and spent a lot of time sailing in his youth. After we came back in i went out to do something else and by the time i got back he had sorted out all my anchor ropes etc, nicely spliced together and handy eyes made, Magic

Caught some good Cod but shame i had to head back offhore to work the nest day and had to give them all away