New rib advice

[sonicoid]

I am looking to buy either an Avon adventure 620 or a ribeye 600 or 650 as the layout suits. Use will be calm days out with the family. Budget is £18000 Firstly, price vs age vs quality which boat do you recommend? secondly I want something with a bit of grunt which will move a family of five and tow a skier or toys. Engine choices appear to be 115hp yamaha or 140hp 150hp suzuki or yam, can you give your opinion on which engine would be best for my needs?

[andyjcox1]

Hi, I went through a similar decision process a few years back. I ended up with a ribeye 600 with a 115 yam on the back. It did everything I needed, including everything you mention. However, I would suggest the ribeye 650 with a 150hp yam or Suzuki would be the boat you should aim for if you can find one in budget. The only reason I didn’t get one was I had a lower budget.

Avon 620 has a moderate v hull rather than the deeper v of the ribeye meaning the ribeye will handle rough stuff abit better. The ribeye was also a soft riding hull which a family would appreciate.

[paulbrown22]

Where will you be using it?

I agree with Andy that the Avon Adventure 620 is a much shallower V hull than some of the other makes out there, but depending on your intended usage, that may or may not be a problem. We had one with a Yamaha 115hp 4 stroke as our first rib for several years, and used it all year round from Poole to the Solent and Weymouth. We were out in all weathers come rain or shine, and whilst now being able to compare it to many other RIB's it doesn't have the softest ride in a chop, the shallower V means it accelerates and planes very nicely, and was perfectly balanced with the Yam 115. We used for towing toys and skiing as well with no problems. Personally we never had any issues with the shallower V for our usage at the time, including some reasonable passages, and never felt the boat overly struggled in the rough. We only moved it on as Dad wanted a sailing yacht...

If in the future you're thinking about going further afield or might want more rough weather ability, then worth looking at other makes/models to future proof yourself and not have to change boats after only a year or two. But if it really is going to be a calm day family boat, an Avon 620 would do absolutely fine.

So I'd keep an eye out on what's available, and not necessarily dismiss an Avon if one came up in the right condition/layout at the right price.

[sonicoid]

Thanks for the advice. I intend to use it around the South coast including Cornwall. Also, will trailer it to the South of France and possibly Italy etc. Eventually I would like to build up to the channel crossing and the Isles of Scilly.
Have spotted a ribeye 650 with 200hp yamaha on it. Does anyone have any thoughts on this please?

[Maximus]

Originally Posted by sonicoid

Thanks for the advice. I intend to use it around the South coast including Cornwall. Also, will trailer it to the South of France and possibly Italy etc. Eventually I would like to build up to the channel crossing and the Isles of Scilly.
Have spotted a ribeye 650 with 200hp yamaha on it. Does anyone have any thoughts on this please?

That should go well!
It's all down to Price condition and if the Layout suits you're needs ..EngineType/Hours service History Trailer condition ect...certainly a better bet than the Avon IMO (What a shame they messed up so Bad after the genuinely decent Boats they once made!) It would certainly do all you intend...
I'd suggest from your previous posts (if you decide to view)take someone along with more experience and knowledge to help with you're inspection and decision..Good luck and Happy Hunting!

You've got a decent Budget so needn't compromise too much.
.....There's always another Boat!

[paulbrown22]

Originally Posted by sonicoid

...Eventually I would like to build up to the channel crossing and the Isles of Scilly.

If that's your medium-term goal, I'd definitely ignore the Avon Adventure series then - far better boats out there for those much longer passages. I think you would regret buying an Avon Adventure if that's the sort of thing you want to do with it, and would want to sell/upgrade fairly soon!

Definitely look for a deeper V RIB, the larger the better - potentially the Ribeye 650 you've mentioned, if it meets all your other requirements. Condition varies massively depending on who owned it and how it was looked after, so all you can do is go and look at a few, sea trial where possible, and get someone experienced or an engineer/surveyor to look as well.

[Ajsimp]

I traded up to a ribeye 650 last year with a yam 150. Compared to the other ribs I have experienced it is a great boat. I would like the extra grunt of the 200 yam but the 150 perfectly adequate and economical. I don’t think I would even consider a 6m rib anymore

[sonicoid]

Thanks for the advice everyone. Can you tell me sort of things to check for when buying a second hand ribeye 650 please? Do they have any particular weak spots or known faults etc?
Thanks

[Ajsimp]

Same as any other boat purchase, depends on the previous owners care & Maintaince! The only real issue I have with my ribeye is that I wasn’t happy with the quality of the wiring, I’m not too sure if it was original.