Just recieved my new 4.3 metre inflatable!

[Sirius_Bane]

I just got my brand new Quicksilver 430 Heavy Duty inflatable SIB! Its got a 25 horsepower 2 stroke on the back and looks great. Ive blown it up and it is heavy but im gonna get a trailer within the next month or two. Im hoping to take it out tomorrow with the family. But without trailer itll be a lot of work. lol the boat and engine weigh around 350 lbs together. Ill be sure to post pics! As you can tell im very pleased.

[prairie tuber]

Congratulations,

Please post up some pictures when you get a chance! Do you have a pickup truck or would you be using a car to transport? The trailer will add to the convenience, but one of the great things about the SIB is having the option of whether or not to use a trailer. There must be alot of fantastic inland lakes in B.C. that can only be accessed via 4x4 trails where trailers wouldn't get through.

Is your outboard a Mercury? I'll probably be buying a 'classic' Merc 25 hp 2 stroke in the next few weeks as well. They are reasonably light (114 lbs) and very durable, and the integrated tiller/throttle/gear shifter is extremely handy when crawling through boulder strewn shallow areas.

Have fun tomorrow - looking forward to seeing some pictures posted.

[Sirius_Bane]

thankyou. im very happy 'bout my purchase. Yes, It is a brand new Mercury 25hp classic 2 stroke. Havnt ran it yet but i hear good things. Yes the sib is great for having the option of a trailer or not. Im going to be using it from the trunk of a JMC jimmy at the moment. It is necesarry to fold the seats down but that because a 2 door jimmy is a relatively small suv.

[prairie tuber]

Sounds like you're pretty well set. Another alternative to the conventional boat trailer is a small utility trailer for 4x4s like the military pull behind the Iltis 4x4s. Because they are very short and high clearance they would provide minimal obstruction on trails. The Forces frequently sell off surplus ones pretty cheap.

Another handy item is an inexpensive low pressure 12 volt air pump (where you can preset the automatic cut off pressure). With that and a set of launching wheels, set up and launch should be a breeze from just about anywhere.

[codprawn]

You can get some wheels that fix to the transom so you can push the boat along like a wheelbarrow - makes life a lot easier - they detach quickly so you may not need a trailer!!!

[Sirius_Bane]

How do they work? Do I just inflate the boat? and push it down to the beach? Do i attach engine before or after? The engine is heavy for 1 person. lol

[prairie tuber]

Originally Posted by Sirius_Bane

How do they work? Do I just inflate the boat? and push it down to the beach? Do i attach engine before or after? The engine is heavy for 1 person. lol

Here is a link to a (quite large) PDF file from zodiac's military site that is extremely cool and will answer some questions better than I could explain without picture. Basically it shows how four guys unpack 2 SIBs (a 4.7m with a 40hp motor & a 5.3m with a 75hp motor SIB from the back of a small utility trailer and within less than 1/2 an hour have both of them assembled with console steering.

The file may take a minute or so to load up (with high speed) but it is definitely worth looking at. It also has a picture of the sort of launching wheels codprawn had mentioned

ribpack file

[Sirius_Bane]

Those launching wheels dont look suitable for me. They are very big. (not enough room in the truck) and look just as hard to setup as just getting some guys to carry the boat. Thanks anyhow I might look into them more at another time.

[codprawn]

http://www.allinflatables.com/shoppi...om/wheels.html

these are the sort of wheels I had in mind - just fit to the transom with the engine in place - then just wheel down to the water and remove.