New sibber - seapro 340 hd tohatsu 9.8hp

[Popeye1]

Hi everyone,

I've been watching from the side lines for a quite a while now, reading all the threads on sibbing to try and gain some knowledge. I decided to take the plunge and bought my first SIB. I live in the South east fairly close to London, so will be using my SIB on the south coast, mainly Kent. I havn't bought a trailer and will be looking to assemble and launch at locations where there are launching ramps. Do other members think this is achievable on my own, or will I need help? My main reson for getting the SIB was for a bit of fishing, so if there are any other members on here who launch from the south coast and would'nt mind a NEWBIE tagging along please feel free to PM me. I would feel more comfortable initially going out with other SIBBERS just to learn and also from a safety aspect. I must say this site is an absolute god send, it is so informative and I respect the knowledge of the members. I have a few questions listed below, that I would much appreciate some feedback on.

WHAT ANCHOR? AND HOW MUCH CHAIN AND ROPE?
WHAT LIFE JACKET AND WHAT MAKE IS BEST?
WHAT FLARES AND MAKE?

All help much appreciated

Kind regards

Popeye1

[Channel Ribs]

Going on a course probably seems a bit much for Sibbing, but an RYA Powerboat 1 will answer all of your questions and some that you don't know to ask yet. Well worth a day in my view.

And yes, it should be possible to assemble the boat on your own. Though you may find the lure of a trailer too tempting.

Happy Sibbing and stay safe!

Edit: I do not know their instructors, but the people at Erith Yacht Club are friendly and the RYA site shows that they offer PB1.

[lockieboi]

Hi mate welocme along.

I am southeast to and am fairly new to this aswell.

If you want somewhere to go in sheltered waters just to test your boat out i would recomend the River Meadway.

You can launch at a place called Allington lock in maidstone, nice slipway and parking but it will cost you, parking charges and a day licence for the river.

Like i say is a good place to go if you want to just get used to the boat in sheltered non tidal waters but it will get boring after a while.

I use a 8kg grapnel (folding anchor) for my 3.2mtr boat.

Other people will be along shortly with better advice about safety stuff.

Have fun.

[Popeye1]

Originally Posted by Channel Ribs

Going on a course probably seems a bit much for Sibbing, but an RYA Powerboat 1 will answer all of your questions and some that you don't know to ask yet. Well worth a day in my view.

And yes, it should be possible to assemble the boat on your own. Though you may find the lure of a trailer too tempting.

Happy Sibbing and stay safe!

Edit: I do not know their instructors, but the people at Erith Yacht Club are friendly and the RYA site shows that they offer PB1.

Hi Channel Ribs

Thank you for your reply. With an RYA one day course, is it done in a classroom format or out on the water. Where do I go for one of these courses?

Kind regards

Popeye1

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Popeye1

WHAT ANCHOR? AND HOW MUCH CHAIN AND ROPE?

There is no right and wrong answer. Some are better on different bottoms (mud/sand/rock) than others. On a SIB storage is probably your biggest worry. The folding grapnels aren't particulalry well thought of generally but for a small sib would probably do OK (I'm assuming you don't plan to go out in a F6+ very often!). I'd have thought something about 2.5 kg would be fine for you (I use a 2.5 kg bruce or 2.5kg fortress style on a bigger boat with no problems and its easy to lift) - you might get away with less.

3-4m of chain should be fine.

Rope 5x the maximum depth you ever expect to use it in.

WHAT LIFE JACKET AND WHAT MAKE IS BEST?

there probably is a "best" but it will depend on budget.

Decisions:

Lifejacket or buoyancy aid. If you plan to go in the water (e.g. wading in / out to launch and recover) then a buoyancy aid is probably more appropriate, it will also keep you warm in a cold wind. If you want something unobtrusive and don't expect to be bobbing around in wet stuff then a full life jacket might be preferable. A kayak style bouyancy aid often has a pouch on the front which is handy for carrying bits and bobs in. A buoyancy aid won't promise to keep an unconscious person face up - so you need to balance that risk

Auto or manual: Again if you plan to go in the water even very rarely then an auto may not be the best choice. If you are above your waste in water then it means something has gone wrong then an auto is probably best (no need to panic pulling cords, should still work when you are unconscious etc). A standard lifejacket may not turn you face up if you are wearing heavy clothing - but the 275 N alternative may be very difficult to move (e.g. climb back aboard in) especially if you are not wearing heavy clothes. There are two different auto firing principles, the cheapest (salt tablet dissolves) has a bit of a reputation for accidental firing - but its never happened to me.

Crotch straps are a good idea and make wearing it in the water much more comfortable. If you are planning to be out in the dark (or late in the day when a "rescue" could be after dusk) then think about a light. A spray hood could make the difference between life and death if bobbing around in nasty waves for a long time - but for a small sib being used in sensible conditions is probably overkill.

WHAT FLARES AND MAKE?

I've never heard anyone say that one make of flares was better than another.

The choices seem to be:

Red parachute: used to signal over longer distances.
Red handheld: used to signal within line of sight.
Red "mini": a compromise between the two - but also very small (you get 6 mini rockets in the space of one parachute) so popular with sea kayakers etc (and I would suggest SIB owners!).

Red flares are more effective in the dark or at dusk/dawn.

Orange handheld smoke: better in the daytime - but will require line of sight. Useful for guiding the helo to your boat amongst the dozens in the solent for example. Only last about a minute.

You do get a "personal flare" which has an orange smoke on one end and red handheld at other (carried by some/all RNLI Crew I believe) - but they are quite expensive (~ £50 each).

Buoyant orange smoke: Same idea, but bigger and lasts longer. IMHO too big to make sense for storage on your boat.

Here's the RNLI's suggestions on which combinations to carry: RNLI - Royal National Lifeboat Insitution

Personally I take the view that the mini rockets are "enough" for me (together with a vhf radio (one on me and one on the boat), and a large orange flag (with black !) for attracting attention.

[Channel Ribs]

Originally Posted by Popeye1

Thank you for your reply.

No trouble at all.

Lots of info on the RYA web site, link below.

The PB1 is on the water, a great day out even if you knew most of it already - get to play with other boats and see what gear they favour and talk about why.

RYA Training

|

[Popeye1]

Originally Posted by lockieboi

Hi mate welocme along.

I am southeast to and am fairly new to this aswell.

If you want somewhere to go in sheltered waters just to test your boat out i would recomend the River Meadway.

You can launch at a place called Allington lock in maidstone, nice slipway and parking but it will cost you, parking charges and a day licence for the river.

Like i say is a good place to go if you want to just get used to the boat in sheltered non tidal waters but it will get boring after a while.

I use a 8kg grapnel (folding anchor) for my 3.2mtr boat.

Other people will be along shortly with better advice about safety stuff.

Have fun.

Hi lockieboi

Thanks for that. I know where Allington lock is in Maidstone, I may well have to give it a try with all this wind we've been having recently! Ideally I would want to launch when the weather forecast is a 2 or 3, at the moment it's a 5 or 6! Not good for sibbers! The boat came with an anchor a 2.5KG grapnel with no chain and about 30M of rope. I thought this was a bit light weight. What do you think?


Kind regards

Popeye1

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Popeye1

Thank you for your reply. With an RYA one day course, is it done in a classroom format or out on the water. Where do I go for one of these courses?

As much time as possible should be on the water - but there are some elements of theory. If you look on the rya website (RYA) it should tell you who in your area offers courses (RYA Powerboat Level 1). I would call up a few and explain you have just bought an inflatable and are looking for training. Make sure they have a tiller steered boat in the school (as whilst helming a 7m, 200 HP boat is great fun its not quite the same!). I'd also want to get a feel for how much they know about powerboats and little "SIB adventures" or if they are actually a sailing school who offer PB1/2 on the side. There are of course a few well regarded powerboat schools who are trade members on here who should be able to tick your boxes.

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Popeye1

The boat came with an anchor a 2.5KG grapnel with no chain and about 30M of rope. I thought this was a bit light weight. What do you think?

Well lockeiboi has me doubting myself about mine now - but I'm sure mine are 2.5kg and have held my 4m heavier boat with a console (so higher windage than yours) in a variety of conditions.

It will set better with some chain on there (better direction of pull). The other advantage is the chain stops it chaffing on the sea bed. So long as you are only anchoring for a few hours at a time and keep an eye on the rope wear every time you haul it on board it would be fine for the odd "lunch stop" in reasonable conditions.

[Popeye1]

Originally Posted by Polwart

As much time as possible should be on the water - but there are some elements of theory. If you look on the rya website (RYA) it should tell you who in your area offers courses (RYA Powerboat Level 1). I would call up a few and explain you have just bought an inflatable and are looking for training. Make sure they have a tiller steered boat in the school (as whilst helming a 7m, 200 HP boat is great fun its not quite the same!). I'd also want to get a feel for how much they know about powerboats and little "SIB adventures" or if they are actually a sailing school who offer PB1/2 on the side. There are of course a few well regarded powerboat schools who are trade members on here who should be able to tick your boxes.

Polwart,

Thank you so much for taking the time and trouble to answer my questions in so much detail, it's so much appreciated. I am looking into one of the RYA courses and will be definitely asking the questions you have flagged up.

This forum is absolutely brilliant! So much help and advice given for FREE!! to fellow boaters, we are so fortunate to have internet in our day. There is so much one can find out before going to sea, potetially this all life saving advice. I wonder how many lives it has saved?

Thanks again

Popeye1

[willk]

I'm in the process of working out equipment for my SIB (2.7m airdeck). My usage is in sheltered waters, never more than a mile or so from shore but several miles from my recovery point. It's basically a bathtub sized thing. Scaling down from offshore cruising is tricky - but one has to be sensible as to what can be carried.

My Likely Incident Scenarios are:

1. Engine failure
2. Capsize (very possible in this pocket rocket )
3. Puncture/damage

Kit:

Oars
2.5 kg Bruce Anchor, 4m of 6mm chain and about 75m of fine braided line - currently in an small cordura sports bag but in a larger boat it would be in a flap draining bucket. I have a small bailer in the bag and a sturdy plastic bag to line the sports bag to act as a big bailer. There is a very small fender in there too, in case I need to ditch the anchor line in a hurry when fishing.
Sturdy painter and large Carabiner - anchor chain can be clipped to this for quick beach mooring.
Small tool kit - sufficient to change plugs, repair starter rope, mend fuel lines.
Spare fuel primer bulb and jubilee clips, cable ties, etc.
Clamshell puncture repair gadget. This means a pump too - looking for a good solution for this. Small cheapie pumps seem to be pants - any ideas?
The ground gear goes in the sports bag in the bow - keeps it down a bit.
Everything else goes in a 1300 Pelicase which is on a 1m lanyard. I have a small compass, GPS, divers torch, killcord, two smoke flares and a tiny 1st aid kit in there too. There's still spare space for a few energy bars, phone, car keys, etc. It's amazing what fits in a 1300 pelicase!

On my person I have a VHF and a PLB, maybe the torch if it was later in the day.

I don't carry spare fuel as the tank is 12L - the engine can only burn 4.5L/hr at WOT so almost impossible to achieve an empty tank in the few hours one wants to be in an inflatable bathtub for....

[lockieboi]

I am sure a 2.5 kg will be fine.
I think my 8kg is overkill but I would rather be sure its gunna stop me and its isn't that heavy.

Forgot to say I am a pack away Sibber! I have a 3,2 airdeck and a 9.9hp and it isn't that much trouble to do.

I am lucky enough to have a company van I can throw it all into though.

Given the choice and if I had a garage I would trailer it!!

[TIMO]

Originally Posted by lockieboi

I am sure a 2.5 kg will be fine.
I think my 8kg is overkill but I would rather be sure its gunna stop me and its isn't that heavy.

Forgot to say I am a pack away Sibber! I have a 3,2 airdeck and a 9.9hp and it isn't that much trouble to do.

I am lucky enough to have a company van I can throw it all into though.

Given the choice and if I had a garage I would trailer it!!

Ill be putting mine in the van and dismantling everytime,,, how do you get yours into the water,, with engine on ? any problems?

[willk]

Solid wheels/rollers for me - but I don't need to haul over sand...

[TIMO]

Originally Posted by willk

Solid wheels/rollers for me - but I don't need to haul over sand...

With motor on? mines really front heavy,,its a backbreaker moving this alone.

[willk]

My motor only weighs 26kg

[Popeye1]

Originally Posted by TIMO

With motor on? mines really front heavy,,its a backbreaker moving this alone.

Timo,

I tried mine very quickly when I bought it, lifting the nose up and wheeling it about 2 feet on the transom wheels. I was also a bit suprised of the weight! Factor in the gradient of the ramp and perhaps some sand and stones and the boat gets heavier!

Don't laugh, but i'm thinking of making myself a harness to pull it up the ramp?

I'm just goint to have a little drive down to Minnis Bay to check the ramp out. Thornbackflounder recommended this ramp to me. I want to see how steep it is?


Popeye1

[lockieboi]

Mine is on transom launch wheels. I load the boat up and put the OB on and then roll it in.

Simple!!

[TIMO]

Originally Posted by Popeye1

Timo,

I tried mine very quickly when I bought it, lifting the nose up and wheeling it about 2 feet on the transom wheels. I was also a bit suprised of the weight! Factor in the gradient of the ramp and perhaps some sand and stones and the boat gets heavier!

Don't laugh, but i'm thinking of making myself a harness to pull it up the ramp?

I'm just goint to have a little drive down to Minnis Bay to check the ramp out. Thornbackflounder recommended this ramp to me. I want to see how steep it is?


Popeye1

Daft question maybe,,, iwas thinking about fitting a wheel somehow to the bow,,, how would i do it though,,, i seen those foldable trailer jobbies , but its going to be even more time consuming building one of them everytime as well as the boat .

[TIMO]

Originally Posted by lockieboi

Mine is on transom launch wheels. I load the boat up and put the OB on and then roll it in.

Simple!!

I see how easy it sounds,,,lol... my boat probably has a nose weight something like 60 kilo,,, thats with th OB on the backend.