Tidalwave SIB?

[Keith Hart]

Hello folks

It has been a loooong time since I last posted - too busy out on my SIB to get to a computer.

Anyway, a question (I tried a search on the forum but with no result). Has anybody any knowledge of 'Tidalwave' SIBs and RIBs please?

I went with a pal of mine to look at a s/h one for sale today. It is not a make I have heard of.

Cheers

Keith (remember the brackets) Hart

[John Kennett]

I haven't heard of them before.

There's curiously little information about anything on the web site, apart from a bit of marketing hype. From the look of it I would guess that they are resellers of imported boats - possibly a rebadged generic chinese product.

Anyone else?

John

PS Hi Keith!

[Locozodiac]

Originally Posted by Keith Hart

Hello folks

It has been a loooong time since I last posted - too busy out on my SIB to get to a computer.

Anyway, a question (I tried a search on the forum but with no result). Has anybody any knowledge of 'Tidalwave' SIBs and RIBs please?

I went with a pal of mine to look at a s/h one for sale today. It is not a make I have heard of.

Cheers

Keith (remember the brackets) Hart

On the world market now a days you can find new brands with fancy & astonishing names, you can stamp your name on any prow if you would like to start a boat sales company. If sibs/ribs are made with good quality PVC 1.2 mm fabric, will be just perfect. The manufacture is the same for all of them, all have inner bafle air compensating chambers, just a true/lie sales issue, " we are giving more than other competitors", buy from us, we have the best manufacture technology. Agree with John, the mayority brands come from China or Korea factories with the buyer trade brand stamped on it.

Definitely this brand wont use Hypalon Dupont fabric, too expensive, a good quality priced Hypalon alternative following Dupont footsteps, Orca brand, life expectacy will depend on the Hypalon thickness employed on their boats. More and more Companies are using this brand lowering boat's prices compared to same Dupont fabric prices althought the price ratio can still be 3 to 1 comparing PVC to Hypalon.

Ask the selling Company for the brand name fabric employed and it's thickness, new buyers are not aware that both fabrics can be purchased in different thickness, the thicker, the better, the longer will last, although more costly. If you are not in a hurry to buy a boat, some companies are offering the possibility to manufacture customed boats with thicker fabrics, a matter of just inquiring and willing to pay more for, including months of waiting for the boat to be manufactured and delivered to you, final chain end user.

Happy Boating

[Slaphead]

There's one on E Bay under inflatables. 5 days to go

[prairie tuber]

Originally Posted by Locozodiac

Definitely this brand wont use Hypalon Dupont fabric, too expensive, a good quality priced Hypalon alternative following Dupont footsteps, Orca brand, life expectacy will depend on the Hypalon thickness employed on their boats. More and more Companies are using this brand lowering boat's prices compared to same Dupont fabric prices althought the price ratio can still be 3 to 1 comparing PVC to Hypalon.

Loco, please get your facts straight! Dupont makes hypalon. One of the 8 forms of hypalon that Dupont makes (H-4085) is used for coating fabrics ( http://www.dupontelastomers.com/Prod...n/techInfo.asp). Dupont does not make or sell hypalon coated fabrics for the inflatable boat industry under the Dupont label.

Pennel & Flipo is the French company that makes Orca brand hypalon coated fabrics (in different thicknesses) using Dupont hypalon. There are a variety of other companies that also make hypalon coated fabrics (of varying quality - some very poor) for the inflatable boat industry. Virtually all of the high end RIB and SIB manufacturers (and retubers) that use hypalon, use Orca brand hypalon coated fabric. They (Pennel & Flipo) do not make PVC coated fabrics for the inflatable boat industry under the Orca brand.

Some useful info available here:

http://www.ribcraft.co.uk/ribcollars/Pennel-angOK.pdf

http://www.tidel.biz/hypalonfabric.php

http://www.arancia.co.nz/about_our_boats.htm

http://www.pennel.fr/Pages/orca_prod_range_home.htm

[prairie tuber]

That last link was broken for some reason - should work here;

http://www.nrsweb.com/inflatables/nrsinflatables.asp

[jyasaki]

PT;

On the Ribcraft link (the PDF), first section: What is Reability? Is that supposed to be Reliability? The description supporting Reability does nothing to explain what it's supposed to mean.

Is this a French term?

Inquiring minds want to know...


jky

[prairie tuber]

Originally Posted by jyasaki

PT;

On the Ribcraft link (the PDF), first section: What is Reability? Is that supposed to be Reliability? The description supporting Reability does nothing to explain what it's supposed to mean.

Is this a French term?

Inquiring minds want to know...


jky

Being Canadian, I'm completely fluent in Franglais, which is our other official language. 'Reability' is a combination of the words 'readability' and 'reliability' - they make sure that any markings they put on their fabric are large enough so that they are reliably readable. Inquiring minds now know.

[matt h]

Which Sibs are made from Hypolon????

[Nick Hearne]

Quicksilver do some, Humber, Avon & Achilles off the top of my head!

[prairie tuber]

Arancia, Gemini, Polaris, some Zodiac (their military/commercial SIBs), zumro, off the top of my head.

[Andy JC]

Some others will offer it as an option like Quicksilver and Lodestar (both now under the Brunswick umbrella)

[Locozodiac]

Prairie, thanks for the corrections, I know Dupont makes Hypalon, didn't know Dupont doesn't make the final fabric rolls selling them as such, just the coating. Wrote my boat builder, they sent me an erroneous information regarding the PVC provider, it's made by Kyongin a Korean Company which produces high quality PVC, this material is used for Korean market boats and on the more pricy Chinese boat brands.

In the Asian market, the best & pricer sib/ribs are manufacture with Orca/Hypalon brand, the lesser priced boats with Taiwan PRG Hypalon, probably a cheaper, thinner version of the original Dupont coat ?

Boat builders are offering Hypalon alternatives to PVC, a matter of just inquiring about and willing to pay for the extra cost.

Happy Boating