wrote in
:


"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:09:16 -0600, cavalamb himself
wrote:

I'm a bit surprised about the RIBs as I didn't suspect they would
be that popular. Something to think about.

One of the nice things about RIBs is the ability to beach them
without tearing up the bottom. That's important when you are
cruising in the boondocks and want to go ashore.

I have a wooden dinghy and I am just about to order a RIB.
What is your take on a single hull vs. the double hulled RIB
Hypalon is a better material but this new German made PVC looks
promising, what do you think.

I much prefer a double hulled RIB to a single hull. My first dinghy (which
was stolen in Honduras) was an Avon with a single hull and since then I've
had 2 double hulled ones. The weight of the double hull makes it ride
better and the double hull provides a bottom which is much more amenable to
humans.

All of the dinghies have been Hypalon and have held up very well in the
Caribbean sun. I've seen a lot of PVC ones that haven't held up as well.
My current dinghy is an AB and I like it a lot. It rides well and is much
drier than most.

-- Geoff
www.GeoffSchultz.org

On Feb 22, 10:54 am, Geoff Schultz wrote:
... I much prefer a double hulled RIB to a single hull.
... The weight of the double hull makes it ride ...

Performance wise weight is a terrible thing in a planning boat.
Heaver boats need bigger engines and more fuel and that makes them
heavier still and you get a vicious cycle. I've got a very light
aluminum RIB with large diameter tubes. It is very much more seaworthy
than the my old Zodiac 285 air floor but not much heavier... It will
plane with two full sized adults or three small sized ones using an
8hp motor. As everyone keeps pointing out, though, best depends on
context. If you've got a mile to travel with your laundry upwind into
stiff trades you want a big powerful boat but if you are paddling ten
yards to the beach small and light is better... In the best of all
possible worlds the support team would arrive ahead of you with a huge
anchor, tons of chain and a powerful longboat...

better and the double hull provides a bottom which is much more amenable to
humans.

I put heavy duty dry deck style rubber tiles in the bottom of mine.
They keep the bags dry and you can sit on them in the rough stuff...

All of the dinghies have been Hypalon and have held up very well in the
Caribbean sun. ...

PVC is not nearly as good as Hypalon, but my 2000 Zodiac is still
functional and has spent virtually all of its life outside in the
tropics. After about 5 years in the sun it gets hard to get glue to
stick to PVC though.

-- Tom.

" wrote in
:

On Feb 22, 10:54 am, Geoff Schultz wrote:

better and the double hull provides a bottom which is much more
amenable to humans.

I put heavy duty dry deck style rubber tiles in the bottom of mine.
They keep the bags dry and you can sit on them in the rough stuff...

I was speaking of the shape of the hull. With a single hull you have to
deal with the floor being in the V shape of the hull. With a double hull
the flooring is flat, which is much nicer to get in and out of.

-- Geoff
www.GeoffSchultz.org

On Feb 22, 12:52 pm, Geoff Schultz wrote:
... I was speaking of the shape of the hull. With a single hull you have to
deal with the floor being in the V shape of the hull. With a double hull
the flooring is flat, which is much nicer to get in and out of. ...

Quite. There are a couple of advantages to having a deck. It can be
flat, it keeps things dry and it makes the boat stiffer. Weight and
restricted access are the only downsides I can think of. However, at
least on my single skin boat, the deadrise angle is so shallow aft
that it is not at all unpleasant to sit or stand on and the addition
of the tiles makes it reasonably dry. Dingies are just boats. They
are exercises in compromise and there is no universal best.

-- Tom.