New joiner

[Aston]

Hi - just joined. Be grateful for some advice, I have not owned a RIB but used them in the military. Have been considering a Brig to use for days out fishing, fun with the family etc… quite keen to tow it as have the ability to store at home under cover. Zodiac has always a been a choice that feels great quality.

Be interesting to hear thoughts. Leaning toward 6M territory and 125 hp or more.

Any advice appreciated. Thanks. Aston.

[Fenlander]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Hopefully some of the RIB boys will be along soon with advice.

[treerat]

Morning and welcome.

From what I've seen of them the Brigs look good and I was looking at a Falcon 5.7 before I ended up with a Highfield 6m.

Where are you based? Brigs are pretty popular down here as Wolf Rock are the main supplier so we see loads around Plymouth / Salcombe.

If you're not that fixed to a brand then its what suits your likely area of operations, lay up and cost.

For instance I enjoyed my Zodiac but it was a bit restricted in a big sea, not an issue if you don't plan to be out in one.

[Aston]

Thanks for the welcome and comments. Based in Sevenoaks. Heading to the South coast. Have spoken to Wolf Rock who are super helpful. Looking at spending £35k.Like the Brig but have read concerns over quality - keen I can trade on easily whatever boat I acquire.

[Aston]

Just looked at the Highfield. Very nice �� are you happy with it?

[paulbrown22]

Originally Posted by Aston

Thanks for the welcome and comments. Based in Sevenoaks. Heading to the South coast. Have spoken to Wolf Rock who are super helpful. Looking at spending £35k.Like the Brig but have read concerns over quality - keen I can trade on easily whatever boat I acquire.

At the moment I would say the boat market is relatively slow, so if you are already thinking about trading on/up, I'd think very carefully about what you buy and/or try to buy the "next" boat to avoid losing money/time on selling the first one!

Where are you thinking of using it if based on a trailer in Sevenoaks, given that is quite a land locked location (albeit it one we love)?! I'd look carefully at the full ownership experience as towing it from Sevenoaks every time, launching, recovering, and towing home is quite a commitment that can influence how much you and the family want to go afloat!

[Orwell boy]

Hi and welcome ,can't help with brig as I haven't o wned one, look good at the shows however I,m not sure they make for a easy resale ! ,if you need bulletproof performance and resale you should buy ribcraft ,however prices are a little high ,which makes the question are they worth it ?
As tr suggests Highfield have certainly built a presence and seem to achieve good performance and the ally hull mens a good recyclable situation ,many seem to have got over the non hypalon tubes be which was a problem for some in the earlier years ,I had a 5 metre in 2014 which for me was a little small so I sold on ,the money I bought for in 2014 would probably exactly my expectation today so not so bad
It's difficult to recommend any ribs and I now run gemini waverider 650 which I am very happy with and suits my needs ,other possibilities would be ribeye xs and maybe redbay however @35 k you may well be looking for good secondhand ,most important to get as close to max rated horsepower as you can afford ,as no one wants an underpowered rib !
Check out the xs ribs used website as he seems to have a overcapacity and seems to be having a "winter sale "

[spartacus]

Welcome to the forum.

Healthy budget of £35k. Obviously factor in real cost of ownership. If you’re starting from scratch, then life-jackets, insurance, LED flare, PLB, VHF radio licence (unless you did that with military), offshore suits, anchor, ropes, etc. It all adds up.

I’ll dispel myth on Zodiac from my point of view. Leisure wise, great boats. These RIBs are fine for warmer climbs where sea conditions are a bit more predictable. Some of the smaller leisure boats have shallow V hulls and slap in short chop when the wind gets up. Most will be PVC slide on tubes. Some of the current open pros for example use Neoprene tubes. Everything with Zodiac, especially accessories is daft money. That said, it’s been a while since I bought anything boat related, so can only imagine it’s similar for most manufacturers.

Remember you don’t need to buy new. Work out exactly what you want. If you’ve used RIBs before then you’ll be used to something more utilitarian, but it comes down to seating (especially with a growing family), sea capability (so you get full use out of it) and power set-up, such as well maintained modern engine and more paperwork than a Brexit export.

Engine wise, most will be 4-stroke fuel injected. Go for maximum hp rated for the hull. Also work out if you want an auxiliary engine. North of the wall so-to-speak you can find yourself at sea with no-one close if you have a mechanical issue.

At home, then if under cover, also look at security devices, hitch lock, engine lock, wheel lock, tracker, etc. Unfortunately there’s a market for engines once stolen.

Ribeye A600 would be worth a look at, Delta 5.5m, indeed Ribcraft 585 has loyal following on here.

[Aston]

Thanks for all the advice. Much appreciated. Will take my time and review options. Think that’s a good point about towing long distances a lot may all become a bit painful. Cheers all.

[treerat]

Originally Posted by Aston

Just looked at the Highfield. Very nice �� are you happy with it?

Very - now at 500 hrs and lots of use in some very challenging as well as flat conditions. Construction is neat and tidy and the tubes look as good today as they were 4 years ago.

She is internally stored which helps keep the sun off and the tubes looking good. Space wise the deck is brilliant, seating well laid out and storage for kit and spare fuel is brilliant.

Currently sat on an Extreme trailer, we do trail each time but I rarely run more then 2 hours in any direction. If I was I think she'd be sat in a dry stack or trailer yard.