Opinions on JP Marine?

[ajrunke]

Hi all,

I just ordered this boat:

JP Marine 430 (14'0") Patrol Series Inflatable Boat

and was curious if anyone had any experience with them. They have a brick and mortar building located in California. The tubes are 1.5mm thick and have a double layer (3 mm) for the bottoms of the tubes. The tubes are Korean PVC, but it is assembled in the U.S. I will be getting it this week so I may post some photos, but in the mean time, I was wondering if anyone has knowledge of JP Marine.

Also, do you guys allow your dogs in your inflatables? I have two 85 lb dogs that I'd love to take fishing/camping with my girlfriend and I, but I'm worried about their claws damaging the tubes. I've never owned an inflatable before, so I don't know the durability of them.

Thanks !!

[achilles2011]

Nice looking boat- construction seems quite heavy duty. There is another owner of a new JP Marine over on iboats that has reported on his experience- sounds very good
My New 12.5 Ft. SIB w/ Pictures!

[ajrunke]

Thank you. I appreciate the link! But I've already been there and read that thread! I was just hoping for more opinions over in these forums since they're more active. My boat did come today and it took me forever to set up. 2 hours. It seems like it's good quality. I'll post some pics in the next few days. So much for thinking I can pack it up and toss in my vehicle. I'm already looking at trailers!!

[Pack Rat]

I run around 3 hours set up with mine ajrunke. Oh...and you'll never get it as small as it came out of the box.

[Dino89]

looks really nice. shame about setup time, sort of defeats the object of having a sib!

[SDDiver5]

Damn fine looking SIB. When I first started looking at SIB's I checked JP Marine out and they seemed pretty rad. Just a bit Pricey. Enjoy it!

D

[ajrunke]

They are pricey, but I got a great deal. I went through their ebay listings and they have a Best Offer option. I used that and got a substantially reduced price. They don't come with oar locks but I requested some and they charged $100 for them with the oars. I have it inflated in the garage and it held air overnight. It was as firm as when I first pumped it up (as it should be).

(I promise I'll get pics soon!)

[theboysmiffy]

Originally Posted by Pack Rat

I run around 3 hours set up with mine ajrunke. Oh...and you'll never get it as small as it came out of the box.

That seems a very long time! we take about 30 minutes max to assemble a mkII Zodiac with wooden floor.

[ribraff]

Originally Posted by Pack Rat

I run around 3 hours set up with mine ajrunke. Oh...and you'll never get it as small as it came out of the box.

Use a Vacum cleaner to suck the air out.... surely everyone's got one in their back pocket!

[ajrunke]

Some shots of the new boat! Now I just need a trailer!!