Vipermax Advice

[Richard Selman]

Looking to replace my trusty Northcraft 5.5 with something around the 7m mark. The osprey vipermax 7 is on my shortlist. Only concern is whether the raised tubes costs in stability terms. I intend to use the boat mainly for longer distance cruises in Scotland (contemplating a round Shetland run) and general thrashing around with the wind in my face (its my motorbike substitute - I like to go out when it is nasty) but occasionally I will use the boat for diving and sailing club rescue duties where stability at rest counts. Also is it noticably more difficult to climb on board from the water (we always dive with drysuits up here - plus the 25kg to 30kg of lead required to make the suit & beer belly sink). Anyone else use a vipermax for these types of activities?

Also the water round Peterhead are cold, rough and lonely. Looking for either a big main (>225 HP) and decent auxilliary (>12 HP) fitted on the transom for immediate use or a pair of decent HP twins (>100 HP each). Yamaha 4 strokes only being considered - they've never let me down. Only pictures I can find are of one main engine. Anyone got any experience (pictures good) of a setup like this? Too much metal on the back?

Regards

Richard

[Hightower]

Have you considered the 7m Viper?

Tubes much closer to the water than the Vipermax, don't know if they're in the water tho.

Will take a single 250 or twin 115's

[Richard Selman]

I want a wider rib like the vipermax (it will just fit through my garage door nice). There's just so little useful room in some of the more narrow ribs. Just trying to find out whether the higher set tubes affect the stability too much. Don't want to get one of those ribs that are really a hardboat with permanently attached fenders in disguise I am trying to get down south to try one out but work keeps getting in the way (8 hour minimum drive to Wales).

Richard

[Hightower]

I don't know any 7m Vipermax owners, but there are a few 6.5m owners on here and as the 6.5 and 7m Vipermax is moulded from the same mould, I guess thats the handling and seaworthyness would be very similar to each other. Everyone I have spoken too loves the hulls.

[Biggles]

Richard,

I've often wondered about the design and handling characteristics of some RIBs. I have been on a RIB with high set tubes, not a Viper or one of its sisters, and it wandered all over the place at low speed.

I guess you'll have to try before you buy. And when you do report back.

Nick R.

[Erin]

A timely post.

I'm just contemplating the Vipermax 6.5. I managed to get a brief but good demo in one by Roy Bishop, and I have to say it felt like it was running on rails... definitely no wander. I agree the tubes issue may leave it slightly less stable than others at rest, but I don't think this will be a major issue as whilst most ribs have tubes touching the water, they're not actually low enough to be providing actual buoyancy or support to the boat IMHO.

keith

[Hugh Jardon]

Erin....i still owe you some pics.....sorry forgot

Richard....there are two people on here with vipermax 7m boats

humper and ribster rache

they may be able to tell you how much the tubes sit above the water on their boats, if you look on the pwhelli cruise last summer there are probably some pics ther of them, i will see what i have of them as well to see if i can pull out a 7m pic at standstill

as for stability......unfortunatley i cant comment as i have never compared ours to other ribs with their tubes in the water from a stability point of view

[Downhilldai]

Here's a pic of Humper's 7m Vipermax at rest, next to a 5.8 which used to belong to Ribster Rache.

[Seaharrier]

Originally Posted by Richard Selman

Looking to replace my trusty Northcraft 5.5 with something around the 7m mark. The osprey vipermax 7 is on my shortlist. Only concern is whether the raised tubes costs in stability terms. I intend to use the boat mainly for longer distance cruises in Scotland (contemplating a round Shetland run) and general thrashing around with the wind in my face (its my motorbike substitute - I like to go out when it is nasty) but occasionally I will use the boat for diving and sailing club rescue duties where stability at rest counts. Also is it noticably more difficult to climb on board from the water (we always dive with drysuits up here - plus the 25kg to 30kg of lead required to make the suit & beer belly sink). Anyone else use a vipermax for these types of activities?

Also the water round Peterhead are cold, rough and lonely. Looking for either a big main (>225 HP) and decent auxilliary (>12 HP) fitted on the transom for immediate use or a pair of decent HP twins (>100 HP each). Yamaha 4 strokes only being considered - they've never let me down. Only pictures I can find are of one main engine. Anyone got any experience (pictures good) of a setup like this? Too much metal on the back?

Regards

Richard

I have some pictures of the Viper Max 7,5m. On one of them you can see 2 VM 7,5 and both have their tubes touching the water. Maybe that's due to the fact there are 4 persons on each boat ... I’ll try to upload the picture later on today.

Anyway, the tubes are not mounted very high.

If you install twins, even with one person on board, they will touch the water.


P.

[blufin]

here's a couple of pics of a vipermax 7.5m with twins. a 7.0m will take twins no prob. there is one in kerry somewhere with 2x90 mariners and also the police divers here have an older viper (or two) with 2x90 yams. its easy enough to get yourself back into a 7.0m single motor even with gear on.
atb
gerry