Highfield Ribs

[indaba1991]

Home | Highfield Boats - Tenders - Rigid Inflatable Boats

Has anyone ever come across one of these Ribs? Friend is looking at buying a second hand one - I have never heard of them. Any comments?

[chris.moody]

Is it a pink one for sale with 2 careful lady owners ?

A Highfield rib called pink panther completed the Round Ireland challenge this year.

You will find a thread on here covering the challenge, and the two ladies that skippered pink panther may be along shortly to comment.

--
Tigga - Avon SR4 Rescue with 40hp Yamaha 2 stroke

[Bushrider]

Ask for Steve - he was with another Highfield on the RI
Seaswift Boats » The Home of great deals on RIBs & Inflatable boats

[GordyP]

I haven't been out on one but did see them at a boat show earlier in the year. Looked nicely put together, saw a pink one which personally gave me the heave but each to their own!!

[indaba1991]

Originally Posted by chris.moody

Is it a pink one for sale with 2 careful lady owners ?

A Highfield rib called pink panther completed the Round Ireland challenge this year.

You will find a thread on here covering the challenge, and the two ladies that skippered pink panther may be along shortly to comment.

--
Tigga - Avon SR4 Rescue with 40hp Yamaha 2 stroke

Many thanks to all so far - question: are they all aluminium or did they ever make some in GRP?

[Daniel]

I believe highfield were available in grp or Ali, although now sea swift (exclusive uk main agents for both I believe) have x pro onboard the highfield is offered only in ally.

From what I have seen, they are worth a look.

[Gilles]

yes just call steve harrisson, he s really friendly and also did the round of Ireland on a second black and not pink highfield. cant say how they re cruising but they did the circumnavigation ...means something !

[Jwmarineuk]

The yacht charter company I was working for used a lot of these and they were terrible. Forever getting punctures through light use, royal pain in the arse.

[Exe treme]

Originally Posted by Jwmarineuk

The yacht charter company I was working for used a lot of these and they were terrible. Forever getting punctures through light use, royal pain in the arse.

The Round Ireland Challenge cannot be described as light use, and between the two Highfields, the only issue during the entire event was a blown nav light bulb.

On another note, Highfield make lightweight tenders and ribs; two very different products. The ribs have a proven track record with tough alu hulls and quality tubes from leading manufacturers.

Check out www.highfieldboats.com

[MustRib]

If it helps at all, the Highfields on the RI looked very accomplished, didnt seem to miss a beat in the seas, and were very reliable. They looked a good soft riding hull.

[clydeoutboards]

great ribs and I like the ali hull so if the price is right ( remember they dont need moulds for this boat so cheaper to make) then I would go for it and make it a nice xmas present to you.

[Poly]

Originally Posted by clydeoutboards

remember they dont need moulds for this boat so cheaper to make)

Interesting logic.

[indaba1991]

Originally Posted by clydeoutboards

great ribs and I like the ali hull so if the price is right ( remember they dont need moulds for this boat so cheaper to make) then I would go for it and make it a nice xmas present to you.

Thanks to all for input - has anyone had any experience with Alu hulls in the UK? When I bought Mini Indaba in the Caribbean, AB had an Alu option. More important than price was that it was much lighter (for the davits). I then looked carefully at a couple of used boats and noticed corrosion in certain areas. Significantly at the towing point area where you would attach a painter/rope -the white paint on the floor areas were peeling. I was also worried about the s/s fittings, especially the integral fuel tank. I then had a ride in one and it was definitely less able to cut the waves. On the other side beaching was much less of a worry with the strong structure. But in the end I opted for the heavier GRP. The Caribbean is particularly salty and wonder if this is less of a problem in UK waters. How do they balance the different metals in the boat however?

[Chunk]

I bought a Highfield OM460 at the start of the year and have had no issues at all - its had about 40hrs on the water so not exactly a long term test yet. It has a softer ride than my old Valiant DR490.

Fuel usage is very good too because of the light weight. With a Honda BF50 and 2 persons I average around 3.5 Km per litre (2NM per litre) cruising at around 22 to 25 Knots.

Received this quote from SeaSwift (by HMS) after the RI Challenge:
“The new Highfield 4.9 Aluminium hulled RIB is clearly an outstanding craft. One that punches well beyond her weight. Having completed the 2013 Round Ireland PBR Challenge without incident - through everything the Atlantic coast could throw at her, this pocket sized cruiser has proved beyond all doubt that both in terms of construction and sea keeping ability, she is a genuine leader within the international sub 5 metre market. No question about it!”
HMS. Editor
Powerboat & RIB Magazine

[Mookster]

Hi - especially chunk - don't abuse me too much for the next sentence but recently sold my Seadoo Wake Jet Ski - we primarily use this for wakeboarding in Abersoch North Wales - and it got both the kids up and going and I ran it for 3 years and lost just £500.00 when I sold it. So happy days really!

Anyway to get to the point I am looking at a new Highfield OM 460 with a 50hp Honda - I like the finish of these and the fact we can use the arch as a tow point (wake tower) for wakeboarding behind. The question is will the 50HP engine cut it? I have done some maths on the weight and it appears (unbelievably) to be 25% lighter than the ski I had (including the Honda engine) although that had a 155hp engine (albeit jet propelled). I'll be boarding as well if I can get a driver and I am around 12.5 stone kids are negligible (less than 7 stone each). So has anyone done any wakeboarding/skiing behind these ribs with a 50HP engine and does it cut the mustard? Had boats before and various jet skis but not a rib as yet so I would appreciate any thoughts people have on this for me. Having had a boat 50HP seems a bit on the small side for a 15ft "boat"? Also does anyone have any experience or thoughts on Honda's "Blast" technology that apparently gets you on the plane earlier with some clever boosting of the power at low revs?

many thanks!

Mick!

[C2 RIBS]

Originally Posted by indaba1991

Home | Highfield Boats - Tenders - Rigid Inflatable Boats

Has anyone ever come across one of these Ribs? Friend is looking at buying a second hand one - I have never heard of them. Any comments?

The RYA have them as their Youth RIB Championship boats Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship - Highfield UK

[Mollers]

What a thoroughly pants name for a range of ribs. :-/

[willk]

Originally Posted by Mollers

What a thoroughly pants name for a range of ribs. :-/

A good name is VERY important. Not all RIB companies realise this...

DING DONG AVON CALLING 1962 CLASSIC COMMERCIALS on DVD at TVDAYS.com - YouTube

[Mollers]

Originally Posted by willk

A good name is VERY important. Not all RIB companies realise this...

WTF do you know? The 5m Yardley Panache had it all going on.

[willk]

Originally Posted by Mollers

WTF do you know? The 5m Yardley Panache had it all going on.

S'funny how design moves on. I'm watching that Avon ad now and thinking r-r-r-r-r-r-rabbit