layout

[OceanCarl]

Why is almost all RIB's I see in here (mostly UK) having their console mounted all the way in front of the boat? Where I am used to go boating, Norway, Denmark, Germany, a console is normally mounted in the center (center-console) or ⅓'d from stern. Having the stearing position all the way back gives you a better overlook of your gear and passengers, better control while navigating through rough seas as you see most of your boat ahead of you and see how it copes with the waves. Immediately supervision of your technical gear, engine etc., and so on....

All the way in the front just looks silly to me, impractical and gives you a very rough ride.

So please enlighten me

[jeffstevens763@g]

Mostly for weight distribution, but if had one made from new I would have it 1/3 for a better ride at the helm

[beamishken]

[QUOTE=OceanCarl;843590 Having the stearing position all the way back gives you a better overlook of your gear and passengers, better control while navigating through rough seas as you see most of your boat ahead of you and see how it copes with the waves. Immediately supervision of your technical gear, engine etc., and so on....



All the way in the front just looks silly to me, impractical and gives you a very rough ride.



So please enlighten me [/QUOTE]

There's two ways to look at that, putting the console at the front protects the crew from the weather & will deflect some of the water in the event of a bad stuffing. Putting the crew in front of the console puts them right in the firing line of any weather or water with little or no protection. It also puts them in the worst position for ride the cox has control of the boat and can see his passengers from the stern but he cant tell how bone jarring the landings are in the bow. Siting the cox near the bow means he can feel the worst of the ride & drive accordingly.
Which is better is a matter of opinion

Sent from my SM-G950F using RIB Net mobile app

[gtflash]

I have a boat with the helm approximately 1/3 from aft. I love it. However as a leisure rib it has a huge amount of wasted space upfront, I have considered seating forward but it would block my view. Space aft is tight, but functional. Moreover the boat is setup for speed and this layout enables that. As a consequence when it gets rough or too much weight (fat blokes) aft it needs ballast forward to compensate. Luckily I have a ballast tank to manage that