Humber Ocean Pro 6.3 or Destyoyer 6.0

69cmw · 14 December 2011, 20:08

Another couple of ribs I am thinking about getting, any advice appreciated on them please, pros and cons etc etc and if possible owners views?

Thanks

Cypman · 14 December 2011, 21:33

Owned a 6.3m Ocean Pro (Suzuki DF140) at the same time as instructed on a 6m Destroyer (Suzuki DF90). Both are really good hulls but the Ocean Pro is much better, and drier, in the lumpy stuff. Downside, it is more expensive....but well worth the extra IMHO.

BruceB · 15 December 2011, 00:16

Buy anything bar a Humber if you want it to last, build quality isn't what it was........

Mr Flibble · 15 December 2011, 12:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by BruceB

Buy anything bar a Humber if you want it to last, build quality isn't what it was........

In your opinion.....

My 2 year old Ocean Pro is a solid, well built boat.

willk · 15 December 2011, 13:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr Flibble

In your opinion.....

The flipping great crack in his transom is not a matter of opinion, but rather a fact, posted on here with the pics and the ensuing saga of the two repair jobs.

It doesn't mean, per se, that every Humber has similar problems, but it certainly will have soured BruceB on the range. Bear in mind that he was a happy repeat Humber customer (new builds) and won't be buying a third.

All that said, you're a happy Humber owner, and your experiences are valid too, obviously.

9D280 · 15 December 2011, 15:29

For what it's worth, mine has jsut had it's 17th birthday and I think it might be time to start thinking about a toob change..... Even considering the abuse it saw in it's previous lives, my transom & hull are solid.

Granted this comment backs Bruce's comment up a bit more than Will's.......

Taking Humber out the equation momentarily, with any mass produced product there will always be a proportion of the output has a defect. It's a fact of life. If you are seriously worried about a company's build quality you need a LOT of data. Like what proportion of the hulls had a problem Vs build date would be a going in point.

Yes, Bruce had a problem. And quite a big transom cracking one at that. If however the other 10,000 boats from the same mould didn't have a problem, then Bruce has been very unlucky. If however half of them have the issue, then the "build quality drop" comment probably has some substance behind it. Either that or "designer scr*wed up". Either way you need data to make an informed choice.

BruceB · 15 December 2011, 17:03

It is also based on my mates similiarly aged 5.5m Destroyer which has also experienced issues with build quality and cracking of the hull plus a fairly rough repair at the factory.

We maybe both have been unlucky but experience of my last two new hulls has soured my opinion of them and I certainly won't be looking for another.

The unfortunate fact of the whole sorry story has turned me from a Humber fan who used them through dive cubs for years to someone who wouldn't buy another, I operate in remote areas and cannot afford the boat to start coming apart, again!

My old club has a older Destroyer exactly the same size as mine and 14 years and and two engine later its still going strong without a problem. The also had an old Attaque which went on for years even after a heavy collision which severely damaged the hull, it must have been 20-25 years old when the engine blew up and it was finally retired. Older products don't seem to have the problems I have seen with newer versions, even of the same titular product.

FFS I paid them 1k for an A frame last year when it was being repaired, again, and they didn't even bolt it on straight! I had to take it off fill the holes and refit it.

While I may have just been getting a "friday boat and workmanship" and was just unlucky everything I have ever posted is true and can be backed up by photographic and written evidence, or I wouldn't be posting about it on a public forum....................

Mr Flibble · 15 December 2011, 18:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by willk

The flipping great crack in his transom is not a matter of opinion, but rather a fact, posted on here with the pics and the ensuing saga of the two repair jobs.

Aye I've seen the thread before. The flippin geat crack in the transom is not open to debate, but what was the cause/solution? Never got to read what Mr Humber had to say about it. Anyway, all I'm saying is I've a good un and if Humber were continually turning out faulty or poor quality boats then this forum would be awash with complaints. It's not. One swallow doesn't make a summer.
Bruce is pee'd off with Humber and won't be buying from them again. Fair enough. I'm just giving a bit of balance here. Many are happy with their Humbers. I'm still pondering a RIB upgrade, trying to justify to myself a bigger (6.5-7m) boat. If I decide to upgrade, Humber, Redbay and XS are on my list of 3. If my Ocean Pro was sh*t they wouldn't be on my list.

HUMBER P4VWL · 15 December 2011, 19:24

Had the 6.3 OP with opti 175 for 3 or 4 years. Must say that it is a v dry boat and we've been v happy with it.

Re build quality, as others say, what % of the hulls/transom produced have cracked? How is that compared to others?

We have no idea of the history of bruces hull. Perhaps the published story is true, or perhaps it was dropped/hit etc we have no idea.

In our personal experience it's a great mould, the hull has a very good reputation, I don't think many can argue that.

the fit out quality will depend on who has done it. Humber, a 3rd party etc.

BruceB · 15 December 2011, 20:32

As usual folk can get awfully defensive when someone says what they have is rubbish,even when this is not what was actually said. My opinion is build quality isn't what it was, maybe i have been unlucky but it all the problems are just bad oluck then maybe I better stay away from trees in thunderstorms

I have enough personal evidence to stick with it as an opinion and am still teed off enough about missing two half seasons over the contiuing problems to be still annoyed.
My mates similiar issues mean that neither of us will replace our current boats with Humbers when the time comes, which is a shame.
(for the record he did drop his off the trailer and the hull cracked right along about 1/3 of the keel. His beef was that the damage was excessive for the actual knock and the very poor repair carried out at the factory to fix it, having seen the repair I can only agree

)

Mine hasn't been abused, full stop. And the problems with quality aren't all related to initial build, some of them happened during repairs and modification at the factory.

People may not agree and to be honest this is irrelevant to me if they do, they are entitled to their own opinion as I am to mine and if they are diametrically opposed then this is just life, as they say.
If they are of the opinion the build quality is fine then good luck to them, as I said, maybe I have a "friday" boat.

HUMBER P4VWL · 15 December 2011, 21:42

I'd agree with all you say Bruce and in your position no way would I buy another!

I like the hull a lot and for the money rate them. Given the choice now, what would I buy? Not sure. I like ribquest but they've changed hands, do unknown entity.

Prefer both hum and rq to ribeye and modern avon adventurea and other cheaper brands. It's v difficult as nearly all brands even more expensiveseem to have examples of problems.

Just have to save for a Goldfish!

9D280 · 16 December 2011, 09:25

In a similar theme a while ago when free insurance was being dished out with every small car I had three identical spec'ed and engine'd Ford Fiestas.

Two of them I filled with fuel, serviced occasionally and threw 25K miles at each of them. (was cheaper to swap cars & get the insurance than it was to re- insure!) The third one was a rolling warranty disaster. Was recalled on two separate occasions, and was taken back by me on another three for other faults in the first year. It then went on to do about 130K miles without too many issues. I took the balance of probability and bought my current Focus, which had a lumpy start (literally!) at which point I was in the "never touch with a barge pole again" mood. Thankfully this issue was fixed reasonably quickly and 140K later it's still going strong. I would now give them consideration when I change this car.

I don't blame Bruce or his friend for not wanting another. Based on that malarkey neither would I! If you are going in "cold" just remember that it's easy and makes a lot of people feel beter to rant about their frustrations & faulty goods online. Not so many feel the need to come online and praise the product. Look at any "reviews" section in a shop.

My point is that although bruce has a very valid reason for not going back, many do, otherwise they wouldn't still be in business.

I would be really interested to find out what the root cause of that was. As it has happened to two (that we know of) hulls, then something was done wrong at least twice. (or it was a design fault, but I would have expected a LOT more to be having the issue in that case) The three remaining questions are what, how many more have the problem and have Humber learned from it so it doesn't happen again?

We may never know the answer to the first. The second I hope none, and the answer to the third- only time will tell.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HUMBER P4VWL

It's v difficult as nearly all brands even more expensiveseem to have examples of problems.

My point in a nutshell.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HUMBER P4VWL

Just have to save for a Goldfish!

I bet they are not squeaky clean either.... In a similar vein to the Rolls Royce Dealers' recovery trucks being closed sided so you can't see it's a roller that's broken down...