So, size DOES matter, but what about experience?

[DGR]

I've been looking around RIBnet for a while on the basis that I'm planning to get a RIB - and between you all, you have already pretty much answered all the technical questions that I had about RIBbing in general!! I now know what I would like in an 'ideal world' (Scorpion 8.5 sounds GREAT!!) but I'm just wondering - how important it is to gain practical experience in a small boat before going on to bigger ones?? Does it really matter, or is it a 'must'?

Both Nicky (the Mrs) and I have done PB1&2 at Plas Menai, and whilst the little orange dories were fun, the 5.6m (?) Tornado was a complete and utter blast - and the bug has bitten!! I'm also planning to do the Advanced PB - although building up the recommended hours without a boat (including night hours) is a bit of a challenge!!

Any views?!?

Dylan...

[Charles]

Personally, I don't think there is a whole lot of difference helming a 6.5 and an 8.5. Go for the bigger of the two. I speak from experience, just after you have purchased a smaller rib, your grandmother, father, cousins etc, etc all want to jump on. You also soon run out of space, plus the fact that in larger seas a bigger rib will provide more comfort - that said, there are a good many 6meterish ribs out there that cope remarkebly well in testing conditions.

[MarkWildey]

Dylan

If you have the basic common sense to drive a boat then you will be fine in a 5.5 or a 10m cabin boat. You will take your knowledge from courses and experience and learn with each boat that you drive.

In most cases, imo, a 8.5 is easier to drive than a 6.5 because length has a great effect on the ride.

Regards

Mark

[DGR]

Thanks guys!!

8.25m Scorpion it is then (in my WILDEST dreams). Must speak to the wife about remortgaging the house.........

Dylan...

[timw]

I'm new to ribbing as well and bought the longest rib i could afford.
The only slight difficulty I have found with a long rib is that it tends to swing around lot in slow manouvering especially in the marinas, and it doesn't respond that well in slow reversing situations.

[wavelength]

go for something that you and the other half can manage without a trauma if you are trailering it.-- looking at where you live anything ove 5.5m will be a handfull on Knott End slip with a 4 knot tide under it or a bit of wind, and would be ridiculous at Stanah. Beach launching over soft sand and shingle is a non starter around here with anything over that size and even then you need a b****y god tractor. Big boats are great on easy slips and hard beaches-we dont have them around here As for a marina Fleetwood is fine BUT you only get a couple of hours either side of high water at best, down to 1 hr on neaps at teatime. Thats why my boats live on trailers.

[Alex Brown]

Even my 6m rib doesn't reverse in a straight line, but I guess that's something to do with the deep-vee hull..... it's also a nightmare to tow too

What I have found in 'sticky' situations, like when turning in the lock pits, unless some great power is applied, it's useless trying to do a 3 point turn cos it just doesn't work since the lock on the main engine is very limited compared to smaller engines. In this case, I can turn the boat on a sixpence by using the aux engine and going on a full 90 degree lock, and then everyone watches and wonders what the hell's going on

As for launching, I'm glad to not have gone for anything larger than 6m, since this is about at my limits for single handed launching - last weekend, I nearly lost the thing as the wind caught the boat with me trying to hold on for dear life.
On the tractor note, doesn't the JCB fastrack do something like 50mph? - that'd make an easy launch and recover on any beach, and still not breaking the legal towing limit on normal roads

If you do decide to tow however, remembering back to previous threads, isn't the max length somewhere around 7 metres for the tow?

I like the trailer side, cos storage in a boatyard is *much* cheaper than a marina, plus then you don't have to antifoul

-Alex

[wavelength]

"On the tractor note, doesn't the JCB fastrack do something like 50mph? - that'd make an easy launch and recover on any beachOn the tractor note, doesn't the JCB fastrack do something like 50mph? - that'd make an easy launch and recover on any beach"
and if you were going fishing you could use the bucket to dig bait

[Richard B]

Uh, what are all these reversing problems? OK - RIBs just don't reverse in a straight line as that's not what they are designed for, but get to know the limitations of the boat and you should be able to position it with pinpoint accuracy whan going astern. Remember that the pivot point changes completely in reverse - about half a metre from the transom. But the big advantage is that in a high wind, you can reverse into the wind much more easily than putting the bow into wind which would blow you all over.

Anyway - saw the worst reversing technique ever whilst on holiday recently. Chap puts boat into reverse at tickover, then wanders to stern of boat to fend off with an oar as he crunches into the boats moored on the opposite pontoon. Eventually arrives at harbour entrance via several other boats (including scraping along side of local lifeboat).

[Phil]

remember, at least with a RIB you have an all round fender;

the size of the cock up is equal to the number of spectators

[Richard B]

Originally posted by Phil
all round fender

- I like to fender my fenders!

[DGR]

Sorry about replying late - been away!!

Thanks Wavelength, that was what I figured. The same problems apply at Preston marina (+/- 1 hr at high tide I think, with 24 hours notice) - so whatever I do it needs to live on a trailer. With no slipways on the Ribble, I would need to be at either Knott End or Stannah - so all views and experiences of launching and trailing are REALLY appreciated!!

And Mrs R REALLY wouldn't appreciate her company car being abandond a mile or so on the wrong side of the prom............

Dylan...

[simmons0]

be a little careful when going for huge ribs (8m ish i mean) get some experiance of driving a rib that big. You may find that it takes all the fun out of Ribbing around the solent because in the 2-3 foot chop common around there it will be a case of power on and lie back. An 8 metre rib is impossible to tow so you would have to base yourself at one port around the country at least until youve built up the experience to go further a field. But yes, in general length is what counts.

[DGR]

I hadn't really thought about how practical it is to tow bigger RIBs (stupidly). Is there a limit (i.e. legal) or is it just impractical due to the sheer size and lugging/maneouvring of it, i.e. 'just a pain'?

I would be using a LR Discovery to tow whatever I end up getting, and the manual reckons it can tow up to 3.5 tonnes.........

I wondered why some owners didn't trailer their RIBs - I think that I might have just worked out why!!

Dylan...

[wavelength]

Originally posted by DGR
Thanks Wavelength,

No problem-come and have a run out with us sometime and you can see for yourself-we will be floating about all winter. PM me if you like and we can always nip out from Stanah / yacht club / Knott End for an hour. If you saw the river rescue on Granada TV thurs night that was me in the wooly 'at getting the yottie out of the water near Stanah. - taking the dog for a walk on the marshes a few hundred yards way when c/g MRSC Liverpool phoned me and asked if I could go there and how long would it take - answer a couple of minute if I run!

[Bilge Rat]

Ask any woman and they will tell you size does matter !! its a fact.

R

[simmons0]

Yes there is a size limit on British roads which i beleive to be 7.5 metres. Ill post again in about 20 mins time because ive got an old RI or SB and R magazine with a large article about towing.

[simmons0]

I found the article its Sports boat and Rib Mag Feb 2002
Ill just type out the extract as its pretty confusing:

Your trailer must not be more than 7m long, excluding drawbar/hitching device (that is not defined in law). Generally speaking the combined overall length of towcar and trailer together must not exceed (excluding projecting parts 18.75m. If a boat projects beyond its trailer by more than 1m at the rear special marker boards (and lights if used at night) must be fixed in specific positions. In addition if it extends beyond 3.05m at the rear the police must be told in advance and an assistant carried.

Now then, my understanding of that is:

If the trailer has to be 7m overall then that would probably allow for 6m of it to be under the boat. (thats the 7m minus the extra bit that extends out from under the winch where the nose of the boat will be to the ball hitch. That allows for 6m of boat plus up to 1m overhang, so its likely to be around 7m. Probably a little more.

Hope all that helps you, but i would still check maybe with a dealer or even solicitor? before you write off the idea of buying an 8m rib.

[Richard B]

The law on towing is a nightmare.

NTTA or Towsure provide reasonably concise info, but even that's difficult to reconcile to boat towing. There seems to be some difficulty defining trailer size and load (the boat) size.

I know several people who regularly tow 8.5m RIBs (with Disco's, Land Cruisers and Jeep Grand Cherokee's) and some who tow boats over 9m (using US import pickups or Landcruisers).

Comments on the forum from before indicate that all the Police are interested in is the plated weight of the trailer and the actual loaded trailer weight.

I choose not to tow mainly because my estate car (2-wd) probably wouldn't perform well on a greasy slipway.

[jwalker]

Originally posted by simmons0
An 8 metre rib is impossible to tow......

Is it?