Feeling the need for speed...

[Piers]

We've started thinking how good it would be to have a RIB for plying between the islands and just having fun with the children and grandchildren.

7.5m or thereabouts with a reasonable engine for 6 up. Ideas?

 

[z1ppy]

We've started thinking how good it would be to have a RIB for plying between the islands and just having fun with the children and grandchildren.

7.5m or thereabouts with a reasonable engine for 6 up. Ideas?

7.5 with 6 people will be cozy but you should be looking for something at least 250 upwards. We had a 7.5 with 225 opti which was much lighter than 4 strokes and it was beautifully balanced boat. Our 8.1 had 275 Verado and was good but with 6 people would have been less exciting than with 2 up.

 

[Stats007]

Ribcraft 7.8m with a Suzuki DF250 will happily cruise at 30 knots with 6 on board in most conditions - WOT around 46 knots. If you want something more suited to the 'leisure' market then go for a RibEye / Cobra / Ribtec etc.

225 Opti is only about 25kg lighter and considerably noisier and less efficient compared to the Suzuki.

 

[Oscar24]

Did a two day level 2 powerboat course at Stormforce coaching a couple of weeks ago using their XS RIB.
Think it was 7 1/2 meters with a 200Hp Mercury Verado on the back. A very solid set up which I was mighty impressed with. Would cruise at 25knt without any trouble and handled the chop in the Solent no bother.
It had 6 jockey type seats and a double bench seat at the front.
A bit 'commercial' but felt very safe, loads of grab handles and plenty of space.

 

[z1ppy]

Need for speed is all relative, personally i don't see cruising at 30 its as fast, the requirement for all our recent boats was a comfortable cruse at high 30s / early 40s with tops into the 50 kts which is very achievable for ribs these days.

Our last Scorpion 8.1 would cruise at 40 kts comfortably and if you really wanted to improve your carbon footprint you could open it up further but it liked to drink then.

Our Cougar R9 with 250 HP Inboard diesel would also cruise at high 30s with tops of mid 40s but used so little fuel it was amazing,

I agree that the Suzuki is a great engine but was back in 2006 i was not an available option and there is no denying that the 2 stroke engine gives you more immediate power than a 4 stroke. Spottydog on here has a beautiful rib with Suzuki 300 which is incredibly efficient and a very well balanced boat at 7.8 meters.

With 6 people on board my attention would be more on safe seating for all rather than outright speed. 6 people on a 7.5 meter rib is going to be tight. maybe 4 on jockeys and 2 on a rear bench seat... the guys on the bench seat are likely to get wet in anything other than fairly flat conditions.

depending on budget, i would seriously be looking at the Axopar / XO range which offer more protection than a rib yet very good sea keeping and without the rib premium price.

 

[Piers]

A really helpful thread. Thanks so much.

Having had a Cougar Predator 35 years ago and (I kept at Hamble Point when the Curtis's owned it) I'd love to see what Steve Curtis has created with the R series. Thanks also for the comments re 7.5m or more. All grist to the mill. Let's see where this takes us (or 'me' to be more precise!).

Piers

 

[Piers]

7.5 with 6 people will be cozy but you should be looking for something at least 250 upwards. We had a 7.5 with 225 opti which was much lighter than 4 strokes and it was beautifully balanced boat. Our 8.1 had 275 Verado and was good but with 6 people would have been less exciting than with 2 up.

Quick qn: O thought 2 strokes were not allowed anymore. Is this not the case?

 

[Whitelighter]

Quick qn: O thought 2 strokes were not allowed anymore. Is this not the case?

The big 2 strokes such as the Evinrude Etech that have oil capture systems and clean air filters are still legal.
It's the simple basic small 2 stroke motors which either can't have the clean tech fitted it it made them too expensive that are not allowed

 

[z1ppy]

Quick qn: O thought 2 strokes were not allowed anymore. Is this not the case?

The big 2 strokes such as the Evinrude Etech that have oil capture systems and clean air filters are still legal.
It's the simple basic small 2 stroke motors which either can't have the clean tech fitted it it made them too expensive that are not allowed

As Whitelighter says really. Obviously if buying used then there are plenty of Optimax powered boats still about.

No doubt Etecs and others are more noisy than 4 strokes but when you have the wind blowing through your hair at 40 + Kts noise is not really significant. i much prefer the pick up and response when "helming with enthusiasm" but the sheer grunt from the Supercharged verado is pretty significant.

would stay away of Yamaha's older HPDI which have a reputation for self destruction.

4 strokes are miles better than they used to be and as mentioned the Suzuki's are exceptional engines.

The R series are fairly rare boats in these parts, not sure they made that many here and haven't looked recently either. they are build under licence by airships ribs http://www.airshipribs.com/airshipcms/ if you want anything specific on them i can try and work my memory back to answer questions.

 

[Nick_H]

I think an ETEC G2 would be a great choice. Loads of torque, 5 year service intervals, and a really handy auto-winterize function, plus a clever integrated steering system. You can even choose your own colour.

 

[Oscar24]

Forgot to mention, whatever you get I would recommend getting the electronic 'fly by wire' option on the throttle as it makes going into and out of gear very easy.
A few years ago Yamaha seemed to be the motor of choice, but looks like Suzuki DF range is now popular.

 

[MapisM]

Forgot to mention, whatever you get I would recommend getting the electronic 'fly by wire' option on the throttle as it makes going into and out of gear very easy.

You must be joking. On any fast boat, that's the last thing you want...! :ambivalence:
Regardless of whether the throttle levers are electronic or not, on any half decent fast boat what you need are separate levers for gear and throttle, period.

 

[Stats007]

Why exactly?

Given no outboard manufacturer offers this option that could be difficult...

 

[Oscar24]

You must be joking. On any fast boat, that's the last thing you want...! :ambivalence:
Regardless of whether the throttle levers are electronic or not, on any half decent fast boat what you need are separate levers for gear and throttle, period.

I used a 'fly by wire' throttle system on a RIB a couple of weeks ago and it made slow speed manovering very easy. You just had to click it into and out of gear to maintain a good docking speed.

My old RIB has the conventional 'mechanical' gear and throttle control for its outboard and it's much stiffer to use and hopeless at slow speed.

In short, using a fly by wire system was a revelation compared to what I was used to. If the budget can stretch to it I would say (especially for a relatively large OB powered RIB) it's a must.

For an out an out powerboat, then seperate controls may be the answer but not on a RIB
All imho

 

[burgundyben]

Why a rib?

Why not a french peche promenade, White Shark, Axopar?

 

[MapisM]

Why exactly?

Given no outboard manufacturer offers this option that could be difficult...

Actually, I have seen original Mercury separate throttle levers (electronic btw, though that's just because nowadays all engines are electronically controlled anyway).
Not sure about other manufacturers, but the boat builder can always install some other control levers (like Livorsi, just to name the most well known) with any engine.
As I recall, Cougar does just that with some of their Honda powered RIBs.

Ref why, well, because on a fast boat being able to properly control the engine when wave jumping is MUCH more critical than convenience upon maneuvering, that's why.
Besides, in my experience, once you get used to separate levers, they are actually more effective also while maneuvering.
But I accept that this falls into the "each to their own" category - as opposed to boat control at speed in somewhat rough stuff, a situation where anyone who actually experienced it would confirm that separate levers are the only logical choice.

 

[Nick_H]

Forgot to mention, whatever you get I would recommend getting the electronic 'fly by wire' option on the throttle as it makes going into and out of gear very easy.
A few years ago Yamaha seemed to be the motor of choice, but looks like Suzuki DF range is now popular.

I agree that fly by wire throttles are nicer to use than cable, but I think on small boats the throttle should be interlocked, especially on RIBS where people walk past the throttle, and even more especially if putting skiers in the water. AFAIK it isn't an option with electronic controls, so as a minimum you need to get into the habit of using the neutral setting if leaving the helm to moor up, or when anyone goes in the water.

I think it's an accident waiting to happen