Water Skiing and Small RIBs

EME

EME

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I think a similar question was posed recently but can not find the thread now.

Most small ribs 3.1 - 3.4 metre ( and that size is important) eg Walker Bay and Zodiac are rated at 20-30 HP maximum.

The RIB needs to be used for water skiing.

What is the minimum HP that would work towing a skier behind a RIB of this size?

What HP would you recommend as a realistic maximum (given manufacturer's recommendations)?


Thanks for your replies
 
I can ski behind my 3.05 rib with a 25hp with no problem at all, also with monoski.
The only caveat is that you must start with two skis, which actually is a bit of a shame because you can't use a mono with the double boot, but I'm being fussy.
And you can't make any serious slalom behind a small rib anyway, regardless of power - the skier moves the rib all over the place, when pulling hard!
 
A good skier could ski behind a 20 or even a 15, because they can give the RIB time to build up speed. For beginners you need more power to help the skier out of the water. A 30 hp should be fine, if you prop it correctly.

This assumes you are towing adult males, for kids or smaller adults you can get by with less.
 
When I was younger I had a 3.1 Avon with a 15 which pulled me out easily. I later upgraded to a Zodiac 340 with a 30 and that was plenty of power. I wakeboarded - so not much wake to jump with, but great for a youngster to learn.:D
 
i agree with the above

we pondered the same question last year, in the end we got a 3 seater seadoo jet ski.
plenty of power for pulling skis and toys even with a couple of people on the ski and very stable if using as a tender.
also a lot cheaper than the set up your looking at and if its choppy out its good fun just playing on.
down side is maintenance, weight ( over 300kgs ) and size.
 
Thanks

Thank You very much everyone for your advice and experiences. Sorry for the delay but I've been out (working :eek:). Good to know its a very real practical solution.

Steve -- Not an option in this instance as I understand it .. has to be a "RIB".

$6M --question so which rib and engine would you get ... say 3.2m maximum and max power engine ( obviously having to be propped accordingly) --- transom on chocks.
 
Agree all the above. 25 or 30hp is fine for an adult, but monoskiers have to start on 2 skis (which is a shame, but only for afficionados like mapis and me who like both feet bound in before the start :D. To deep water start on monoski you need way more power than any <24m yacht tender will have. Well, unless you have a 24m OR80 or 70 with serious tender :D)

Crucial thing as nick said is the prop. 4 strokes have no power till high rpm. You need a minus 2inch prop for waterskiing, or forget it. My 50hp yam will not ski well on its cruising prop so i always put a 2 inch less pitch prop on for skiing (which is a ten minute faff but I can live with it!)

Such a shame 2 strokes got outlawed

Walker bay 3.4 genesis luxury version with 30 yam is a nice combo, lightweight, legal. Just buy 2 props and a bag of split pins. Get power trim and get it rigged right, with the (gel) battery weight forward. £9k.
 
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jfm said:
Agree all the above. 25 or 30hp is fine for an adult, but monoskiers have to start on 2 skis (which is a shame, but only for afficionados like mapis and me who like both feet bound in before the start :D. To deep water start on monoski you need way more power than any <24m yacht tender will have. Well, unless you have a 24m OR80 or 70 with serious tender :D)

Crucial thing as nick said is the prop. 4 strokes have no power till high rpm. You need a minus 2inch prop for waterskiing, or forget it. My 50hp yam will not ski well on its cruising prop so i always put a 2 inch less pitch prop on for skiing (which is a ten minute faff but I can live with it!)

Such a shame 2 strokes got outlawed

Walker bay 3.4 genesis luxury version with 30 yam is a nice combo, lightweight, legal. Just buy 2 props and a bag of split pins. Get power trim and get it rigged right, with the (gel) battery weight forward. £9k.
Click to expand...

Didnt you mean 40hp Yam for the Walker bay? :D:D

BTW the smaller pitch prop that I fitted last year definately made a difference.
 
Hurricane said:
Didnt you mean 40hp Yam for the Walker bay? :D:D
Click to expand...

Well yeah. Thing is, I happen to know the wider context behind EME's question (he will reveal all on here soonish) and in all the circumstances he maybe doesn't want an insurance argument about over-engining the boat, so yam 30 might be safer option. The w'bay, as you know, is offically rated/plated to 30hp and it's only loons/hoons like us that flagrantly disregard that and put up with the "that'll invalidate the warranty y'know" posts on here :D). BTW, as you know, the 30 and 40 are identical engines; the 40 is just chipped to squirt a bit more fuel in. There aint that much difference in performance tbh.
 
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jfm said:
Well, unless you have a 24m OR80 or 70 with serious tender :D
Click to expand...
Mmmm... you made me thinking.
On the 80, surely the space would be enough also for a proper skiboat, and a 2500lbs davit is available as an option.
Now, the Mastercraft 190 which is my favourite, at 2600lbs is not much above that limit...
...I'm sure there must be some other skiboats a tad lighter! :eek:
 
MapisM said:
Mmmm... you made me thinking.
On the 80, surely the space would be enough also for a proper skiboat, and a 2500lbs davit is available as an option.
Now, the Mastercraft 190 which is my favourite, at 2600lbs is not much above that limit...
...I'm sure there must be some other skiboats a tad lighter! :eek:
Click to expand...

Tee hee!
But would be a lousy tender imho? Imagine going to the beach in a shaft drive! I would fancy a custom Rib X about 5.5m and a Yam 125 or something in that bracket, as a general purpose tender and an acceptable (not perfect) ski boat. But heck, 2500lbs and that huge deck space gives you a helluva lot of choice :D :D
 
EME said:
$6M --question so which rib and engine would you get ... say 3.2m maximum and max power engine
Click to expand...
If waterski is important, I'd rather try to stretch the size to 3.6 and go with this one, with the 40 yammy (which it can use legally).
It's a very good tender also aside from w/ski, btw.
 
Thanks for the help all ... and I promise to reveal more if and when things materialise. This question is actually rather important in the whole.

I 'know that 3.2metres is fine .. and hope (subject to some engineering questions) 3.4m is OK . Unfortunately MapisM, I'm pretty sure that 3.6m is too much.
 
Of the two biggest brands, Avon and Zodiac (I think?), the Zodiac 340 has a shallower V, and is therefore less comfortable in a chop, but slightly better for skiing. The tubes are also mounted lower, and it takes a short shaft whereas Avon takes a long shaft, so it sits on the bathing platform a bit better, which is why I bought one. I think the Avon is a better RIB though.

edit: the perfect engine for one of these if you want to ski is a Mercury/Mariner 30 hp superlight 2 stroke. They weighed under 50 kgs, and being 2 strokes had much more pull. I was offered one brand new, old stock, when I bought my tender, but I opted for the quiter, less smoke option of an 80 kg Honda 4 stroke instead, which in retrospect was a mistake (although as mistakes go, its struggling to break into my top 100).
 
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Nick_H said:
edit: the perfect engine for one of these if you want to ski is a Mercury/Mariner 30 hp superlight 2 stroke. They weighed under 50 kgs, and being 2 strokes had much more pull.
Click to expand...
Just curious, what model year was that?
My 2 stroke Merc 25hp weighs 51kg (2 cyl, 400cc, no trim).
When I bought it (2003, IIRC), I wasn't aware of anything lighter, let alone more powerful. But maybe I missed that "superlight" stuff...?
 
jfm said:
Tee hee!
But would be a lousy tender imho? Imagine going to the beach in a shaft drive! I would fancy a custom Rib X about 5.5m and a Yam 125 or something in that bracket, as a general purpose tender and an acceptable (not perfect) ski boat. But heck, 2500lbs and that huge deck space gives you a helluva lot of choice :D :D
Click to expand...

Surely there is a missing factor in all of this!

The weight of the big ugly barsteward driving the thing, I think it might struggle to get on the plane let alone tow a skier :D
 
MapisM said:
Just curious, what model year was that?
My 2 stroke Merc 25hp weighs 51kg (2 cyl, 400cc, no trim).
When I bought it (2003, IIRC), I wasn't aware of anything lighter, let alone more powerful. But maybe I missed that "superlight" stuff...?
Click to expand...

IIRC Mercury and Mariner made both a 2 cyl and 3 cyl 30hp rated outboard, and called the 2 cyl version the "light". Quick google search also found this reference to it as the "portable". I don't know any model year data, but it was available right up until 2 strokes were banned.


http://www.boatsplus.com.au/mariner...iner-30hp-portable-two-stroke-lw/prod_58.html
 
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