Repairing the RIB ( Rubbish Inflatable Boat)

BogMonster · 27 December 2006, 01:36

Today I embarked on the new tube ends for the orange satan so thought I would post some pictures...

...probably end up being a story of how NOT to do it but hey

I can already say that you should not repeat not do this job at all if you have a professional within 500 miles of you unless you are a complete masochist... pay them whatever they ask to do it for you. I wish I could.

Peeling the rubbing strip off (with a hot air gun) is a pig of a job. After fighting with it for a bit I jammed a bit of metal down the inside of the "D" part of the strake and put a ratchet strap across to the wall, to pull the strake away from the tube (all still inflated at this stage, no idea how you would manage if the tube was flat!). Unstuck a bit, pulled a bit, unstuck a bit, pulled a bit. Paul told me to peel it back and open up the seam but I decided I didn't dare do that because the orange layer started to come off the hypalon in lots of places and I decided I didn't dare fatally weaken the tube in case this fails and I have to do the "inflatable sausage" repair - anyway it looked like this:

Unfortunately it means that I will only be able to (at best) tape the bottom half of the seam (still better than original though - it was completely un-taped when built) but I figure that's the important bit so will try that first!

Then I tied the cleat off to the roof to try and make the tube as round as possible and not end up glued to itself:

Looking up the inside of the tube it is MOST interesting to note that it appears my boat is built out of gash material.... there was glue all over the inside from "something" which seems to be nothing to do with this boat:

You can also see the baffles which have a lot of give in them - this is with the forward chamber inflated to give it some shape.

Once I got it off it was interesting to look at the cause of failure which seemed to be a badly glued seam as well as fatigue in the material, the inner seam was coming off:

I looked back at the email I got from Humber which said "Generally throughout the rib manufacturing world problems like this occur due to wear and tear" mmm I suppose I must have hit something on the inside of the tube then...... must be more careful in future!

Following that, sanded it all up and primed it with glue then primed the tube ends too.

Tomorrow sees the moment of truth, did I measure the tube diameter accurately enough, will it stick properly, will I end up with it stuck to itself, or will it all go well in which case I might press on and do the other side.

More tomorrow

codprawn · 27 December 2006, 02:04

Wear gloves - if you are a true Landie nutter you probably ooze EP90 - no wonder the tubes keep coming unstuck!!!

Biggles · 27 December 2006, 13:12

Stephen,

Best of luck. I was trying to think of a way to keep the tube in a decent shape whilst you put the new cone in. But sorry I can't.

BogMonster · 27 December 2006, 13:25

Somebody suggested on one of the other threads, using a car inner tube to hold it in shape and then taking it out at the last moment, so I might try that I think. But actually, having it tied off to the roof like it is produces a better shape than I thought, I'm just a bit wary that if it isn't bonded in the perfect shape it will produce "tight spots" when inflated and that might be a weakness.

I think I'm going to order the sausages anyway - nearly half the cost of these was getting them here by air so if I order the sausages now to come by sea I'll have them here if this job fails. After the Christmas hols I won't have anywhere indoors to do another job like this anyway, only available because the garage at work knock off for the whole period.

My Land Rovers do not leak Mr Cod

Biggles · 27 December 2006, 13:58

What about a party balloon. Once all the work was done maybe the pressure of you pumping up the tubes would make it collapse. Doesn't sound quite right but I think you get the drift.

ollyit · 27 December 2006, 14:07

looks hard work mate, I've been in the same situation with my tubes - nightmare task

BogMonster · 27 December 2006, 15:37

Well there is only one word left to describe this

DISASTER

Do NOT ever try this repair it is TOTALLY IMPOSSIBLE. I now just have £250 more worth of scrap hypalon and a scrap boat with half a tube missing and no way to even bodge it up to get a couple more days use out of it. Tube end sticks to itself, to you, to every F thing except where it is supposed to be and once I did get it more or less on I realised there was no way at all that the ends were going to meet when I was 3/4 of the way around, it just goes all over the place. I take my hat off to anybody who works with inflatable boat repair for a living because I'd shoot myself inside a week.

Guessing it cost about £10000 all in with the other stuff I have bought, all for 40 hours worth of use. Fun as it is, I can't afford a £250 per hour hobby on my salary.

I wish I could sue Humber for the cost, stress and inconvenience of this bloody boat. I really do but I doubt I'd stand a chance and anyway I've wasted enough money on this heap of junk without wasting more on blood sucking lawyers. I think its time to draw a line under this disaster and get rid of it.

Thanks to all for the help and support, without you I would have given up in despair six months ago, but this chapter of my life is finished.... before it kills me.

DO NOT TRY THIS REPAIR YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Biggles · 27 December 2006, 16:13

We feel for you.

ollyit · 27 December 2006, 16:30

bummer mate

BogMonster · 27 December 2006, 16:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Biggles

We feel for you.

Thanks

The bit that perhaps p*sses me off more than anything is that I now have nothing worth selling to raise the money to get the Mac which is what I really want...

Neil Harvey · 27 December 2006, 17:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by BogMonster

Thanks

The bit that perhaps p*sses me off more than anything is that I now have nothing worth selling to raise the money to get the Mac which is what I really want...

Hi Stephen,

Sorry to hear the saga continues badly.

This suggestion probably won't go down too well, but did you think of a new set of tubes? At least you'd then have something you could sell.

Or how about taking this set off and sending them to Mr Tilley to have new ends put in. I know it's yet more expense (and hassle to refit the tubes) but at least you'd then have something you could either use, or sell on. And as for fitting the tubes, slimtim has done it, and from what I remember found it to be an OK job.

Just a few thoughts. Hope you can suss out something.

Neil

BogMonster · 27 December 2006, 17:27

Hi Neil
Its another option but the "more expense and more hassle" bit is what kills it for me. I just don't want any more hassle and in a way I'm not even sure I want a boat any more... much as I enjoy it on the odd occasions it is working. So far this year it has wrecked many weekends, wrecked my will to live, wrecked my bank balance and wrecked my Christmas vacation not to mention turning me into a gibbering wreck. Comes a point where nothing is worth that much hassle...
cheers
Stephen

bedajim · 27 December 2006, 17:43

I know it a f**k of a job but if you get the sausages made up can you not peel the rubbing strake back further and cut along the tube behind it, fit the sausage, cut out the old valve and make a hole for the new one. Re glue the old tube to the sausage and then seal it all with the rubbing strake over the join to hide any possible differences in diameter

James

Ian M · 27 December 2006, 17:58

Tough luck Stephen, if a guy who can keep Land Rovers going cannot manage it, then I guess no-one can

As Nick says, we feel for you.

Kernow Buoy · 27 December 2006, 19:43

Stephen, as you've already got the materials how much is a return flight for a tube repairer?

BogMonster · 27 December 2006, 20:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kernow

Stephen, as you've already got the materials how much is a return flight for a tube repairer?

About £1000 for the weekly civilian flight plus accommodation for a week, another £1000, plus I assume they are unlikely to come here for a couple of hundred quid and lose a whole week's income. They could come for four or five days on the RAF flight but the non resident fare is about £2500 so that's a non starter too I think. Thanks for the suggestion though

If I was going to the extent of flying somebody down I'd get a new set of tubes fitted I think, its an option but too expensive. Likewise I could ship the boat back to UK to be done properly but it'd be a couple of grand EACH way for the freight

plus a new set of toobs another couple of grand...

Another option of course would be to get a completely bare Destroyer 5.8 hull & tubes (probably not too expensive maybe £5k plus freight which would be less being on a cradle not a trailer and of course only one way) strip everything off the boat I have got and fit to new hull, I know it would fit the trailer and I know where everything would go on the boat and all the cables and stuff would be the right length. Maybe Humber will give me a new hull/tubes to preserve their reputation?

Anyway I have just used the materials for an alternative bodge which came to mind which will probably not work but was worth a try.... if I don't mention it again that means it didn't work....

tinker · 27 December 2006, 20:36

This post is at a bad time, give it a few days and some one will give you the answer how to do it, I hope.
If the navy are there one of them must know how to do it, really feel for ya, having been in the position you are in, ever thought about moving house?

happy new year
Mark

BogMonster · 27 December 2006, 23:34

[QUOTE=tinker;179827] This post is at a bad time, give it a few days and some one will give you the answer how to do it, I hope.
If the navy are there one of them must know how to do it, really feel for ya, having been in the position you are in, ever thought about moving house?

I can do it with sausages but it means probably another £1000 to get them here any time soon - not sure I can stomach spending that amount more when I just KNOW something else will go wrong (engine will blow itself apart, or whatever) the moment I get it back in the water....

Hightower · 27 December 2006, 23:38

Hey Steve, you got any sheet metal bashers on the Island?

Perhaps they could knock you up a hard end cone out of marine alloy or Stainless steel.

Might be an option.

I'll tell you what though and after reading all your heartache about this problem. I recon someone should leak (sorry about the pun) these threads to Humber to show them what bad publicity they're getting.

BogMonster · 28 December 2006, 00:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hightower

I'll tell you what though and after reading all your heartache about this problem. I recon someone should leak (sorry about the pun) these threads to Humber to show them what bad publicity they're getting.

The thing is, as everybody says, perhaps the majority of their boats are fine. Maybe 2000 was a bad vintage, who knows. At least some of the problem (significant delamination) is down to the material which I am sure they will buy in from a third party, even if corner-cutting in the build (non-taped seams at the most critical point on the entire boat, and no wear patches) was, in my mind, the main part of it - in fact I would say if the seams were taped and it had wear patches from new, this would probably never have happened. As Sue Richardson pointed out if everything they made was rubbish they would have gone out of business - doesn't help my case though. She did admit that the design of the tubes is now completely different and they now fit large wear patches as standard, which suggests the case is not entirely a one-off...!

If I bought another RIB it'd be a Vipermax (I love Hot Lemon!), but I doubt I will ever be buying another RIB unless I win the lottery!