Engine (and 'bits') for 6.5M new toy?

[brucehawsker]

Almost certainly 150 optimax. But at the rish of starting a HUGE debate does anyone have alternative suggestions?

Likely to be at most four people although we have six seats.

Spec is to be:
Solent Rib 6.5m
Silver grey hull, yellow tubes with lifelines, upgrade to gery D fender and handles and bow fare lead.
Light grey upholstery, yellow piping.
Standard forward facing console with raised windscreen and stainless steel protection rail.
2 x stainless steel grab handles on console.
2 x single man seat pods with stainless steel backrest.
2 x double seat pods (40”) with 4 x stainless steel backrests. Front cushion hinging for access.
Elephant drain trunk at deck level.
Bow cleat. 2 x 12m D bolts in transom.
Stainless steel under floor 160l fuel tank with access hatch at rear.
Double A frame with navigation lights and radar reflector.
Anti slip floor in grey.
Rigging complete as outlined on rigging sheet.
This includes water separate filter, hydraulic steering, bilge pump switch panel see attachment in brochure.
2 x mooring lines. Foot pump and repair kit.
2 x fire extinguisher pods with fire extinguishers.
Water proof hatch under font hinged console seat.
Raised bow locker in bow of boat to create larger locker space and sunbathing area.
Mercury 150hp Optimax (black) with stainless steel propeller and black surround smart craft gauges.
Stainless steel engine lock.
Left hand throttle box.
Auxiliary outboard bracket.
Prop bag.
Single Axel Admiral roller coaster trailer, including lights, winch, lockable tow hitch, wheel clamp.
Ratchet strap.

Any comments, suggested additions (airline sick bags for example!), deletions would be welcomed.
Thanks

Bruce

Originally Posted by Nick Hearne

So Bruce what engine is your new toy going to have?
Nick

[simmons0]

Honda 150 vtec
Suzuki 140 4/s
Evenrude 150 fitch

As for the spec all looks good but ask for bigger hindges on the console than he used on mine because they have already bent from the shock. Looking at the another solent 6.5m at ribex his hindges had suffered the same fate so you might aswell put better ones on in the begining.

[Richard B]

Good spec, Bruce.

Few things I would consider...
1. Twin bilge pumps. They are such a pain if they fail.
2. Elephant's trunk - why not fit two - if you need them, you really need them!
3. "2 x stainless steel grab handles on console" - are these mounted vertically or horizontally? I've always found that vertical ones are very difficult to hold onto with wet hands/gloves and a single horizontal rail is much easier.

This point is possibly a bit OTT - but if I were speccing a new RIB I would get the elephant's tube cords routed to the driver's seat for remote release.

Oh, and if you want to be really flash, you can get LED nav lights!

What color will the lifelines be? Dark lines will mark the yellow tubes, and the salt deposits will abrade the tube. I wouldn't fit them personally. Unless I was planning to do a lot of rescue work.

[The Jackeens]

Good spec, Bruce.

get the elephant's tube cords routed to the driver's seat for remote release.

Why not have electric ones or better still remote control ones or even hydrolic ones - for feck sake !!!!!

Life lines, I wouldn't fit them personally. Unless I was planning to do a lot of rescue work.

Now ya are taken the piss Rich - why not leave out the radio and flares and life jackets cause ya mighten need em either and as for kill cord - the color might clash with the console.

Paul

[Richard B]

Originally Posted by The Jackeens

Why not have electric ones or better still remote control ones or even hydrolic ones - for feck sake !!!!!

Even better - get a li'l oirish fella to send back to do the jobs!

Now ya are taken the piss Rich - why not leave out the radio and flares and life jackets cause ya mighten need em either and as for kill cord - the color might clash with the console...

Now you're not thinking about this Paul... 'cos life lines are fitted too high on most RIBs (Look at The RNLI's Atlantic 21 or 75 - they're fitted as close to the rubbing strake as possible) and how many people are you thinking of rescuing... are you expecting the QM2 to go down and have survivors hanging along the whole length of the boat? (not that they'll be able to reach the portion of the life-line at the front) Better to have a loop of rope, or a webbing ladder that anyone in the water can get their foot in.

[The Jackeens]

Not the qm2 , people fall in, get flipped out, get pushed out, go swimming etc. no doubt there is many here how have been in that position and have used the lines for some or all of the above.

Again why bother with any safety gear. It may help and have a use if its there .

Regarding height - its a solent and the tubes are sitting in the water at rest.

A ladder is feck all use if your all ready in the drink
P

[Richard B]

Yeah, but what I'm saying is get something that's more useful - specially when the "casualty" could be really knackered and wearing waterlogged clothes (remember Martyn last October?) Your arms become tired very, very quickly when raised above your head. What you need is something to get your foot in - which will be a couple of feet or so below water That's why a rope stirrup (tied to a-frame) or a webbing ladder is more use. And if I remember correctly, you were looking for a fixed ladder last year to use when boarding after swimming?

(You can unpack our webbing ladder by pulling the velcro from in the water.)

[The Jackeens]

Originally Posted by Richard B

And if I remember correctly, you were looking for a fixed ladder last year to use when boarding after swimming?

Hmmmmmmmmmm
Rich... he tends to sit on board playing with the GPS while I try to haul my carcass back over the transom without
a) killing myself
b) flipping the boat
c) denting the engine...

I have been begging him to purchase a ladder but of course he doesn't see the need

Missus

[John Kennett]

Originally Posted by Richard B

Life lines, I wouldn't fit them personally.

I wouldn't have flappy-around-loopy-lifelines. I'd probably have a straight one though (for want of a better word!)

John

[brucehawsker]

It is amazing. I am spending 10s of thousands of pounds on a boat, looking for intellegent criticism of major items such as a state of the art engine, and what do I get for my troubles - "flappy-around-loopy-lifelines"

I promise I will pester the long suffering Lee tomorrow with a request to solve the problem of the flappy loopies (is he going to regret accepting my order!).

Now, can we perhaps focus on the major issues. Is the engine right? What should I do for electronics? What have I forgotten? What don't I need?

Can we raise the tone of this thread?

Thx

Bruce

[tue]

How about a Garmin GPS sounder 188C. You can then link it into a DSC VHF and all in the space of only two instruments instead of a separate sounder aswell. (You may enough room on your console for three but a flush mounted GPS Sonder and VHF would look very cool )

Also good choice of engine. Are you getting the Customer Helm Interface or just the Smartcraft guages?

[Richard B]

For what it's worth, I would (and have) fit a webbing ladder on the A-frame http://129.35.131.25/webapp/wcs/stor...1&itemId=29008 in preference to any tube-mounted life-line. Just remember it's there and use it

Engine's perfect!

Thought you had the electronics sorted?

(BTW do get a magnetic steering compass!) - have a look in the plastimo catalog again, the link was a bit dodgy, I'll try it again... Plastimo compasses for 5m to 9m boats

[brucehawsker]

What is the Customer Helm Interface? Sounds scary

Want to flush mount - less to break

Yes, Richard. Was going to get Icom 401 and Lowrance 330c. But.... realised the 401 did not have DSC and that was a costly upgrade (£100). And... lots of people have been enthusing about Garmin. So the debate got repoened.

Current thoughts are Garmin or Lowrance combined plotter / sounder and the Navman sub £200 VHF/DSC combo.

Love input from anyone on this...

Like the idea of a ladder on the A frame. Thanks for that

Bruce

[swginn]

Although lifelines are seldom used on most leisure RIBs for their intended purpose, ie: saving lives. I would rather have them than not as they are very useful for tying fenders too as you can place the fender wherever you want along the length of the boat. I'd definitely be very restricted tying fenders at marina berths if I didn't have them.

Engine is definitely perfect!! but then I would say that wouldn't I.

Agree with Richard on the Plastimo compasses, good value and very accurate regardless of electronics. Mount it in the centre of your line of sight also.

[Ribald]

We've got a Garmin 188C - brilliant bit of kit. Hoping to tie it into an Icom 601 soon (bit bigger that the current 401 so just the hole in the consol needs enlarging). Not enough space for the 401 DSC unit and would look rather untidy.

[Richard B]

Originally Posted by brucehawsker

Current thoughts are Garmin or Lowrance combined plotter / sounder and the Navman sub £200 VHF/DSC combo.

I would have thought that you can't go wrong with this sort of gear - Garmin are very easy to use and have terrific after-sales support, I've only used a Lowrance plotter once and that was also extremely easy to use (prob. even easier than the Garmin!). With DSC VHFs the market seems a bit polarised - either go for a "budget" combined unit like the Navman, or bite the bullet and spend £550 on the big Icom unit.

If you're going to mount the GPS/plotteer into the console, I would suggest that you get one that supports upload/download to/from PC by card rather than cable.

My own preference is to keep sounder and GPS separate. Why reduce the plotter screen to display additional info? There's already the speed, bearing, dist to waypoint, ETE, displayed and it's difficult enough to make sure you're reading the correct info. If you have a sounder that always displays depth you won't go far wrong!

[thorper]

Have a look at the Lowrance LXC-something combined chartplotter and echosounder (we've got the 19C). They're great bits of kit and the aftersales support has been very good as well. You can download a PC emulator for it from the Lowrance website, so you can see how it works before you buy!

We use Icom radios as well (handheld and mounted in the console) and have been happy with them as well.

On the loopy lifelines front - we use the boat for diving, and have lines along the outside of the boat from the console to the back of the boat, which you really need to get divers back in the boat (unless you have a ladder). You pull up on the rope and fin down at the same time and jump in. It also gives you something extra to grab on to when you're having a chat to someone out on the water.

Ricky

[Ribald]

Originally Posted by Richard B

There's already the speed, bearing, dist to waypoint, ETE, displayed and it's difficult enough to make sure you're reading the correct info.

Don't I know it On the R-T-I trip at Ribex noticed the speed dropping off with no decrease in revs - don't panic Mr M - then realised it was the depth dropping and not the speed - pheww

[Alan]

IMHO there is a lot to be said for having as bigger display as possible and individual units. So fishfinder to give depth, biggest chartplotter you can stretch too, and, if you're Richard B, seperate GPS alledgedly for backup but actually to display boat speed and course in big numbers

[Daniel]

Kewl choice of engine, you won't regret it. Make sure the oil tank is placed somewhere where it is easy to fill - IE you can tip a 4/5li can straight into it.

Don't buy a garmin depth sounder, but do buy a garmin chartplotter, the biggest you can afford/fit. I bought a combined garmin unit and regret it.

Icom 601 if you can afford it. Although i don't have firsthand experience the Navman would be my budget alternative. If you get the 601 get lee to fit a waterproof horn speaker on the A-frame so you can use the loudhail and auto-fog horn functions. Both have proved useful to me already.

Check you are getting both a rev. and speedo. smartcraft, they display different info, i've seen some of the newer (cheaper) 115opti's being supplied with revcounter only.

Get the GPS linked into the DSC (obvious) and the mercury smartcraft system. This allows the engine to estimate fuel required to waypoint aswell as COG and the speedo will shown GPS speed over, say, 20knts (this is programable).