What is the ideal size RIB for scuba diving?......

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Ahhhh, the "peaceful warrior" . That is a pretty sweet dive platform. They've also been known for a little tubing and other fun during SI.
indepth has a nice operation.
 
Ahhhh, the "peaceful warrior" . That is a pretty sweet dive platform. They've also been known for a little tubing and other fun during SI.
indepth has a nice operation.

yep, the tubing is quite the experience. My brother in law and I did multiple runs on the tube during our SI and our arms were aching the next day from hanging on for dear life.
 
What is the ideal size RIB for scuba diving?......

My wife and I bought a 4.6m RIB that we use to dive off. This cost us $7800 and is a perfect size for us. I can launch it by myself and when putting it away I can unhitch the trailer and push it into its undercover storage position by myself. Anything smaller I personally don't think would suit us or accommodate our scuba gear adequately. Anything bigger would mean that I wouldn't be able to launch it and retrieve it by myself meaning I would never use it as often.

boat.jpg

As for fishing, I love to fish off mine :)
fishing.jpg

Regards
Nick
 
I had a 12' Achilles inflatable with a 25HP Suzuki outboard that my first wife and I dive from for many years. We took it to Catalina Island (25 miles each way) many times. Even with two adults, two sets of gear, four tanks and weights plus a cooler for lunch we still got great mileage. When the ocean was flat we had a lot more speed than the local dive boats.
 
I've been around boats all my life, but I'm not sure what an RIB is. I'm guessing it means rigid inflatable boat? I'm pretty new to the site so I sort of wish there was a central location explaining the meaning of all the abbreviations.

Thanks
 
Welll I bought QuickSilver 4,3 m, Inflatable boat, Heavy Duty made of HP materal. It has 30 HP Yamaha outboard engine. And I would say it is perfect for me and my dive operations or projects.
It rooms very well 2 divers, with all their gear, and 2 others on board. The boat is very light, easy to put in the sea and out. I tested also 5 meters boat and it has more room on board but it was some heavyer. I would not have chose boat under 4 meters, but of course it depends on the projects.
 
This past summer I purchased a 10.5' Hypalon RHIB for diving out of. I am on a very tight budget, so there didn't have a lot of money to invest. I paid $500 for the boat, and got the 9.9HP engine as well as the trailer for free. Here are a few thoughts based off of my experience with this size:

>With two adults and no equipment, the boat will plane and maintain a speed of ~15mph. With two adults and 1 tank each, the boat will not plan, and will not go over ~5mph. With one adult and 2 tanks, the boat will plane and handle as if there were two adults.
>To modify the boat, I removed the seating and added a removable depth finder. I also named her the "Surface Interval"
>Space is a huge issue with this size. In even calm sea conditions, it is nothing less than a PITA to SCUBA dive off of her.
>I do like the fact she is incredibly light, and handles extremely well in rough conditions (when you don't mind getting wet). I have had this boat in 5-7 foot sea conditions with no issues (don't recommend, unless an emergency)
Although she isn't the greatest boat for SCUBA diving, I consider her the PERFECT boat for freediving. She makes a phenomenal platform for 2-4 people to freedive off of.

Here are a few pictures

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---------- Post added January 16th, 2014 at 09:04 PM ----------

I've been around boats all my life, but I'm not sure what an RIB is. I'm guessing it means rigid inflatable boat? I'm pretty new to the site so I sort of wish there was a central location explaining the meaning of all the abbreviations.

Thanks

Yes, it stands for rigid inflatable boat. Also known as a RHIB (rigid hull inflatable boat)
 
I was thinking about that also. What is the minimum size of inflatable boat to dive from ?

I was thinking of buying 3,80 meter inflatable with 15 Hp engine. Is that to small for 4 adults, 2 divers and 2 crew.

Any input or personal experiences would be very appreciated.
I 've had a 10 ft airfloor, a couple each of 12 and 14' aluminum-floored flat-bottom inflatables, and now have an Achilles 16' flat-bottom inflatable. Moving up from 14 to 16' was a big difference in usable room, ride, and seaworthiness. The bigger tubes and wider floor on the 16' boat make a noticeable and welcome difference. An even bigger boat would be welcome, but availability and price seems to change dramatically above 16'.

I've had 6 freedivers in a 14 ft boat, and other than crowding, 3-4 divers is manageable in that size boat, but that's a heavy and crowded load. A RIB is more 'boat' for the length, due to the hullform, so I'd say you could get by with 14' for 4 adults/2 diving, but you'd appreciate a bigger boat before long. You'll like it more if you're not pushing the load capacity of the boat.

A big piece of the satisfaction with any boat, especially an inflatable, is having enough horsepower. Get the highest HP 4-stroke or injected 2-stroke (lighter weight) that's within the weight capability of the transom and back ends of the tubes, especially if you go with a 'squishy' bottom boat instead of a RIB. Prop selection is an important factor in performance as well in rough water. Lower gearing is more often appreciated I find, than top end speed. I find it useful to have a couple of different pitched props, especially if your motor size is marginal.
 
I appreciate that this is a really old thread, but I figure it's a topic that may come up again...

I have a 20' RHIB with all the toys. It's a military spec boat which I acquired from a Marine Police Unit. Since I spend about 50% of my time wishing it was larger and the same amount wishing it was smaller, I figure it must be about right.

Most of the time there's only two or three of us diving from it, but we can carry four tec types with doubles and a stage. It's very full and heavy, but with a 150 HP on the back, it still scoots.

Perhaps the largest drawback to a boat this size and weight, is that you need a significant vehicle to pull it. With fuel and stuff, mine is around 5000 pounds.

Here's a shot of us returning to harbour in Tobermory...

Good Ship Verius_edited-1.jpg


And a link to a clip of us heading out two weeks ago in some snotty weather... we have three sets of double up front.

 
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I have part ownership with a buddy in a 4.65 m (15ft 3in.) Avon Workboat with a 40 hp outboard. It is an inflatable with an aluminum floor. It will handle 4 recreational divers quite easily but gets very crowded with 4 divers with doubles and stages although it is workable. I don't think it would work with a motor much smaller than a 40. It has Hypalon tubes so requires little maintenance other than a occasional rub down with a UV protectant.
 
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https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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