My new SIB, Avon S4-60

[Fishery Pokery]

Hi guys,
I have just got an Avon Sportsboat S4-60 with a Suzuki 25hp on a trailer. I am well pleased!
I started of wanting a sib that I could pack in my car, and keep in my yard, to fish off.
After buying my wood floored sib, I decided it was too much work to keep unpacking and inflating so started keeping it on top of a box trailer with a ramp to wheel it down. It started to give me a pain in the back whilst unloading and getting down the ramp, so I wanted a trailer that was much lower.
I also had a bad experiance with a PVC boat, so had decided if I ever got another boat it would have to be a hypalon.
So when I saw this not far from where I live I had to have it! Most seem to come up on the south coast and would mean a day off and a lot of miles with a unknown trailer.

There are a cople of issues with the boat, but nothing too serious (I hope). The keel has a puncture, and some one has "altered" the keel to accept a short shaft engine. Plus I probably paid over the odds.

The pictures:
1; The boat
2; "Paddles" that came with the boat, I think they are a snapped kayak paddle. Don't think there is a chance they would even move this boat. There is also a backwards facing attachment in this picture, there is one on each side on the bow, does anyone know what they are?
3; The doctored transom. How does this affect the boat? I guess its not good.
4; The engine, a 25hp Suzuki, 2 stroke. I have no idea about the engine but will ask about it in the engine section to find out the fuel mix etc.
5; How far the wheels are from the carpeted bunks. I think this is a problem but will post in the trailer section about it.

So, inflating it on the beach is a no no forever more. But I think the real plus' of sibs are fuel economy, ease of launch, ease of towing, ease of repair and ease of launching. So, even with its fault I am pleased.
One last question, when I launch, do I have to fully submerge the trailer and float the boat of, or can I "slide" the boat on and off?

Cheers for all your help!!!
Geoff

[markg]

hi geoff we have a similar boat, we have the original avon oars and although a bit sturdier looking than yours they are not very big blades,
transom, your boat is probably rated to at least a 40 or maybe a 50hp engine your 25 being lighter should not cause you much bother, we have a 30 and a cut down transom and get no bother with it, its not the fastest but it goes ok for what we want from it
i would not want my tubes subjected to chippings and cack thrown up from the road i would try to fit some mudguards to that trailer as for the grinding noise i would probably change the bearings just because then you at least know when they were last done,
is it a braked trailer it could be binding brakes
what is that piece of alloy with the bolts sticking out of the floor?
the rubber things inside the tubes i always assumed were for an a flag if diving but i may be wrong, what did you give for it if thats not too nosey?
mark.

[thornbackflound]

Originally Posted by Geoff_Jubb

Hi guys,
I have just got an Avon Sportsboat S4-60 with a Suzuki 25hp on a trailer. I am well pleased!
I started of wanting a sib that I could pack in my car, and keep in my yard, to fish off.
After buying my wood floored sib, I decided it was too much work to keep unpacking and inflating so started keeping it on top of a box trailer with a ramp to wheel it down. It started to give me a pain in the back whilst unloading and getting down the ramp, so I wanted a trailer that was much lower.
I also had a bad experiance with a PVC boat, so had decided if I ever got another boat it would have to be a hypalon.
So when I saw this not far from where I live I had to have it! Most seem to come up on the south coast and would mean a day off and a lot of miles with a unknown trailer.

There are a cople of issues with the boat, but nothing too serious (I hope). The keel has a puncture, and some one has "altered" the keel to accept a short shaft engine. Plus I probably paid over the odds.

The pictures:
1; The boat
2; "Paddles" that came with the boat, I think they are a snapped kayak paddle. Don't think there is a chance they would even move this boat. There is also a backwards facing attachment in this picture, there is one on each side on the bow, does anyone know what they are?
3; The doctored transom. How does this affect the boat? I guess its not good.
4; The engine, a 25hp Suzuki, 2 stroke. I have no idea about the engine but will ask about it in the engine section to find out the fuel mix etc.
5; How far the wheels are from the carpeted bunks. I think this is a problem but will post in the trailer section about it.

So, inflating it on the beach is a no no forever more. But I think the real plus' of sibs are fuel economy, ease of launch, ease of towing, ease of repair and ease of launching. So, even with its fault I am pleased.
One last question, when I launch, do I have to fully submerge the trailer and float the boat of, or can I "slide" the boat on and off?

Cheers for all your help!!!
Geoff

Hi there geoff ,so another sib ,looks nice mate, them OARS,,,,,,,,,,,are the sort you get with the toy type inflatables ,mostly abroad, i have a pair exactly the same with the 2 man inflate ,that i paddle around in when i go to spain ,greese ,etc ,mind you,you can get a decent set of alloy oars that are not to dear these days or you proberly can use the one's on your old sib,good luck with her fella

[Fishery Pokery]

Originally Posted by markg

hi geoff we have a similar boat, we have the original avon oars and although a bit sturdier looking than yours they are not very big blades,
transom, your boat is probably rated to at least a 40 or maybe a 50hp engine your 25 being lighter should not cause you much bother, we have a 30 and a cut down transom and get no bother with it, its not the fastest but it goes ok for what we want from it
i would not want my tubes subjected to chippings and cack thrown up from the road i would try to fit some mudguards to that trailer as for the grinding noise i would probably change the bearings just because then you at least know when they were last done,
is it a braked trailer it could be binding brakes
what is that piece of alloy with the bolts sticking out of the floor?
the rubber things inside the tubes i always assumed were for an a flag if diving but i may be wrong, what did you give for it if thats not too nosey?
mark.

I paid £1200, which may or may not be a lot I don't know, but it is what it was worth to me.
The bolts come through the aluminium "h" channel at the front of the last board. I am not sure why, but they don't rub the floor though.
What kind of speed do you think I will get with an occasional guest? I am not too fussed about speed, just wondering.
Thanks for your help,
Geoff

[markg]

£1200 would be about right i would think, i bought our boat and engine separately and built the trailer myself the whole lot came to about 950 ish but your boat looks a few years younger and slightly better nick than ours and i have had to service the valves change the floor and patch a few bits, we have had 8 people in ours at displacement speed but it planes easily and goes well with 4 adults in it , i would think you will be quite pleased with it when you get it out on the water

[chewy]

How far do you tow it?

You could fit smaller wheels? You need mudguards to for it to be road legal.
Looks tidy though and should do the job fine.

[prairie tuber]

That looks to be a very well built, sturdy SIB. I suppose that extra notch in the transom V cut for clearance of the base of the tiller arm. While it's not the neatest notch I've seen, as long as it is properly coated by a proper marine paint, there should be no problems at all with it.


For anyone with the space to keep a trailer, a largish SIB (4.5m - 5.5m) is probably the most versatile powerboat set up out there. Some of the benefits of SIBs of this length over RIBs of similar length are;

- less weight, fuel economy tends to be better, launching & landing tend to be much easier. With a SIB, there will be far more suitable launching & landing spots - especially if you have a good set of launching wheels in addition to the trailer.

- SIBs have much less draft than RIBs, giving you access to shallow rivers & creeks that could not be navigated with a rigid hull.

- SIBs can be run through rapids that would destroy the hull of a RIB.

- SIBs are easier to service since they can be taken down and the particular area or part that needs attention can be readily removed/transported or fabricated.

- SIBs can be stored in a relatively small space during the winter months.

[Fishery Pokery]

Originally Posted by chewy

How far do you tow it?

You could fit smaller wheels? You need mudguards to for it to be road legal.
Looks tidy though and should do the job fine.

I am hoping to tow it to North Wales in August, but other than that it is just short trips to my slipway 3 miles away. In the trailer section I had asked about changing parts including the wheels. When towing is it the bigger the better?

That looks to be a very well built, sturdy SIB. I suppose that extra notch in the transom V cut for clearance of the base of the tiller arm. While it's not the neatest notch I've seen, as long as it is properly coated by a proper marine paint, there should be no problems at all with it.


For anyone with the space to keep a trailer, a largish SIB (4.5m - 5.5m) is probably the most versatile powerboat set up out there. Some of the benefits of SIBs of this length over RIBs of similar length are;

- less weight, fuel economy tends to be better, launching & landing tend to be much easier. With a SIB, there will be far more suitable launching & landing spots - especially if you have a good set of launching wheels in addition to the trailer.

- SIBs have much less draft than RIBs, giving you access to shallow rivers & creeks that could not be navigated with a rigid hull.

- SIBs can be run through rapids that would destroy the hull of a RIB.

- SIBs are easier to service since they can be taken down and the particular area or part that needs attention can be readily removed/transported or fabricated.

- SIBs can be stored in a relatively small space during the winter months.

I am really looking forward to using it.
When you launch do you have to float the trailer off, or will it slide off with the bunks out of the water?

Cheers,
Geoff

[chris123]

The 'backwards facing attachment' takes a plastic tube (like a stiff hose) which supports the bow dodger. The bow dodger can be permanent (in which case someone has removed the one from your boat) or removeable (in which case there should be some round lacing pouints around the outside front of the tubes).

It should be possible to slide the boat off without submerging the trailer - good idea to do it if you can, so as to avoid immersing the trailer bearings.

Cheers

Chris

[m chappelow]

i used to launch recover an old humber 16 sib without immersing the wheels and i still do with my other sib ,peace of mind if your doing long journeys ,regards the transom cut out sometimes even with an engine the correct leg length for the transom you can get airation in tight turns ,with some sibs that have inflatable keels the underwater profile doesent go from the bow straight to the transom ,but is a bit bannana shaped ,its usually no bother but i have known some people cut the transom out a little more to over come it . it looks like you will have a decent boat for your fishing trips ,i would replace the oars though with someting a bit more substantial,,,only trouble is you get a bigger boat then fill it with more stuff lol,good luck mart, ,,,, ps ,, the seat covers ,looks like an ex triad gang had it, mart

[phillnjack]

with the suzuki 25 its an easy upgrade to 30hp.
On that model the only difference is larger main jet, everything else is exactly the same.
So you have another 5hp on tap for just a small amount of money and very easy to change the jet.
Would give about 4mph extra top end and much better pull away.


phill

[mirssant]

Originally Posted by Geoff_Jubb

Hi guys,
I have just got an Avon Sportsboat S4-60 with a Suzuki 25hp on a trailer. I am well pleased!
I started of wanting a sib that I could pack in my car, and keep in my yard, to fish off.
After buying my wood floored sib, I decided it was too much work to keep unpacking and inflating so started keeping it on top of a box trailer with a ramp to wheel it down. It started to give me a pain in the back whilst unloading and getting down the ramp, so I wanted a trailer that was much lower.
I also had a bad experiance with a PVC boat, so had decided if I ever got another boat it would have to be a hypalon.
So when I saw this not far from where I live I had to have it! Most seem to come up on the south coast and would mean a day off and a lot of miles with a unknown trailer.

There are a cople of issues with the boat, but nothing too serious (I hope). The keel has a puncture, and some one has "altered" the keel to accept a short shaft engine. Plus I probably paid over the odds.

The pictures:
1; The boat
2; "Paddles" that came with the boat, I think they are a snapped kayak paddle. Don't think there is a chance they would even move this boat. There is also a backwards facing attachment in this picture, there is one on each side on the bow, does anyone know what they are?
3; The doctored transom. How does this affect the boat? I guess its not good.
4; The engine, a 25hp Suzuki, 2 stroke. I have no idea about the engine but will ask about it in the engine section to find out the fuel mix etc.
5; How far the wheels are from the carpeted bunks. I think this is a problem but will post in the trailer section about it.

So, inflating it on the beach is a no no forever more. But I think the real plus' of sibs are fuel economy, ease of launch, ease of towing, ease of repair and ease of launching. So, even with its fault I am pleased.
One last question, when I launch, do I have to fully submerge the trailer and float the boat of, or can I "slide" the boat on and off?

Cheers for all your help!!!
Geoff

About your question No.2 the backwards on the bow some day where to suport the red bow cover you will not need any more

[Fishery Pokery]

Thanks for the replies, I didn't realise this was my thread at first!
I am very interested in the upgrade if all that is reuired is the jet.
I have two 25's, and o ne has to go, so am trying to decide which one to sell. One has been serviced and is "a good runner", so now I think I will get the Suzuki serviced, and try and decide which one to sell. I am leaning towards keeping the Suzuki at the minute.
Cheers,
Geoff