How to roll up Futura Mk2 FR

[urbanbiketech]

Hi everyone,

I'm putting away my Zodiac MK2 Futura for the winter, and I can't for the life of me figure out the carrying wrap that came with it. The instruction booklet shows a different wrap/carrying.

The wrap is the same general size and shape as the boat, but has all sorts of straps and clips. About 3/4 down are what look like carrying handles with some heavier-duty straps/clips, but I just can't figure this thing out.

Thanks in advance.

[BumbleAbout]

Wow - I can't even lift the engine off mine !

On a 3m SIB, I deflate the tubes and roll the transom over the boat - rolling the resultant roughly cylindrical package over the cross shaped cover.

One set of straps then holds the roll together whilst the other set attempts to pull the ends in (if that makes sense).

[CJS]

I packed my Honwave 3.8 away on Saturday after giving it a good wash, a few hours of drying and deflated using the electric pump to remove all the air.

I rolled Transom end first tucking the tubes at the bow end in so they became narrower - had to do it a couple of times before getting into the bag.

I also covered the boat in Talc - I was advised to do this by the Honda Dealer.

In addition I used vaseline to coat the oar screws/ transom wheel bracket or any metal.

The boat will be stored through the winter in the back of my camping trailer as I live in a flat. I have chained it chassis to chassis of my boat trailer and I am using a ball lock where the trailer hitches.

The Engine lives in my living room reminding me through the dark days of winter of the Summer to come

[thornbackflound]

Originally Posted by CJS

I packed my Honwave 3.8 away on Saturday after giving it a good wash, a few hours of drying and deflated using the electric pump to remove all the air.

I rolled Transom end first tucking the tubes at the bow end in so they became narrower - had to do it a couple of times before getting into the bag.

I also covered the boat in Talc - I was advised to do this by the Honda Dealer.

In addition I used vaseline to coat the oar screws/ transom wheel bracket or any metal.

The boat will be stored through the winter in the back of my camping trailer as I live in a flat. I have chained it chassis to chassis of my boat trailer and I am using a ball lock where the trailer hitches.

The Engine lives in my living room reminding me through the dark days of winter of the Summer to come

Hi there mate ,is there anygood dinghy fishing off WARSASH,i fish BRONWICH beach a fair bit and have been looking to fish the said mentioned off the beach ,but if i could get me sib down that way ,well?

[CJS]

Hi Thornbackflound

I don't know how good the fishing is here but I assume its good because there seems to be plenty of fishing activity happening.

There are several launch sites off the Hamble although I prefer Warsash itself as one can rapidly get into Southhampton water/ Solent

For a boat under 4m it costs around a fiver for the day, although if one pays £20 in one hit you can launch any time/ anyday for the entire year.

The hard is directly opposite the Rising Sun Pub and the Harbour master is situated in the white tower like building. - Launch is preferable at Low/ Mid tide as there is more space to manouver the vehicle/ trailer on the hard, High Tide brings the water metres from the road adding the delights of smelly glutonous weed making it a little more awkward to push/ pull a boat on small Transom wheels.

There is a Car Park next to the launch with only a couple of hours parking allowing one to inflate/ deflate the boat but there is another car Park a 100m up the road which is free - best to get there earlier on a good day.

I notice that you are in Gravesend - there is a campsite up the road not sure of how much it costs but will find out if interested/ failing that there are plenty of B&B's around.

[m chappelow]

just remember to keep a check on a rolled up inflatable especially if stored in a shed or somewhere that rodents can get to ,i had some squirrels living in the folds of one of my old boats ,thankfully no damage but i have heard of a good few boats that have had holes eaten away in them by mice ,rats ect ,,i know of a few people that keep theirs suspended in the loft of the house or garage fully inflated but without the floor in place if they are not going to use it for a long time ,the talc/french chalk idea works too stops the folds from sticking ,

[kelson]

It would be good if you posted a pic of the wrap you have. It may not be the original. In my experience it is very difficult to get zodiacs packed down tightly enough to use the OEM storage wrap. Unless you are transporting the boat and absolutely need a compact package I wouldn't even want to roll and fold my boat that tightly. Compressed creases in the material are not a good long term storage solution. When I have carried mine rolled I went for a looser roll and fold wrapped with a small tarp (bigger than the original case) and secured with cam straps. Not as compact, but easy to do and not as hard on the material. As I added things like eye bolts and trim tabs the roll and fold thing just got to be too much of a pain. If you are going to store a folded boat that has anything protruding be sure to use something like ethafoam blocks to cover the offending accessories or attachment points. If the storage is relatively long term it is wise to unfold and repack the boat occasionally along slightly different lines to avoid damaging the material. I am attaching a copy of my Zodiac manual instructions. You indicate that you have the instructions, but maybe they are different?

[urbanbiketech]

Hi,

I'll definitely try to post a pic. It is not cross-shaped like in the manual I have. I do not see your manual attachment. Would you mind giving it another go?

I will be storing until next May. Perhaps I should go with the loose-roll approach.

Thanks,

Vince

[urbanbiketech]

Here is a photo of my carrier with the boat rolled up on top of it. As you can see, there are some hefty carrying handles on either side of the carrier. Also, right near those handles are some hefty straps and buckles. The problem, however, is that there is absolutely no way that I can get the boat rolled tight enough for those straps to reach to the other side of the wrap.

[kelson]

Hmmm, I put the link in the body of the post. Manual page jpeg image displays for me at the moment. I'll try an attachment. I think my image hosting service may be having a problem.

The cover doesn't look like most Zodiac bags I've seen, but those have all been old so what do I know. It was ridiculously hard to get my futura in it's wrap. Hopefully the attachment will work for you and you can see if that helps. The trick was getting the tubes to collapse and push them in over the floor as far as possible. Make the boat as narrow as possible before rolling. I needed help doing this and I only tried that when we had absolutely no space for a looser roll. Maybe small boats go back into the bag regularly, but my MK2 futura was not going without a fight. The bag was from a previous owner and I assume it was the correct bag. Looked like the wrap in my manual. Maybe someone else on RIBnet will have more experience.

I say roll it the best that you can and ignore whatever expectations are created by the bag/wrap. Can you really see yourself getting your boat that small? Extensions on the clips/straps might work to use the case, I bought a small heavy duty tarp instead.