JUST HOW GOOD IS THE GOOD OLD CLUB RIB?

Your verdicts on boats

A RIB may make you eat your heart out when you see it on a stand at the Dive Show, but how will you feel about it five years later, when you've pulled it up the slipway a couple of hundred times, and it has lost its virginity? We asked the users of ten RIBs how their boats, from a wide range of makers, have stood the test of time.

Avon D560
Norman Hemmings,
Diving Officer, Elstree/ Borehamwood BSAC

Engine: Yamaha PRO 100hp
Length: 5.6m
Divers: 8
Trailer: Hallmark IC3
Construction: "The standard of fitting-out is very high and the quality of the boat is first-rate; you could not fault it. The control cables are routed below the floor, which gives a less cluttered deck. We had Treadmaster flooring fitted and a little bulkhead glassed in across the bows."
Space: "It is not as beamy as, say, a Tornado, but there is room for eight divers, although I think it is really a six-man boat when you are offshore."
Seaworthiness: "We are delighted with the way she handles. She copes well with choppy seas. She has a medium-V hull and there is little slip in a tight turn. We tested her in some rough water in the Solent just after we bought her and she did fine."
Towing: "She tows fine, although you will need a 2-litre car. She is also easy to launch."
Service: "Avon's agent - BHG Marine in Hampshire (David Martin), where we bought the boat - was very helpful. We rang them up and asked about building a bottle rack and they just said: 'Send us a drawing and we'll make it for you' - which they did."
Chinook Sea Fury
David Meacher,
Equipment Officer,
Gwynedd BSAC

Engine: Mariner 135hp
Length: 6.2m
Divers: 6-10
Trailer: Rapid Roller 9
Construction: "She is an excellent boat and the workmanship is high quality. She has a few dents on the bottom where people have been careless but you can see from them how thick the gel coat is. We are very pleased with her and I would recommend these boats to anyone."
Space: "If you are going on a long trip, you really want six divers and one cox, although we have done long trips with eight."
Seaworthiness: "She does exactly what we want her to. We have been very pleased with her. The only slight problem is cavitation, when the prop loses its grip in the water - but I think that may be due to the prop being too high, and that is due to our engine choice, not down to the boat. She has a deep-V hull and the balance of the boat on the plane is important or she tends to lean over to one side, although it has never been a problem. She floats upright when stationary and does not slam on big waves."
Towing: "I have a Range Rover and towing is no problem. We tend to launch from beaches and even with a car she is fine. My wife and I have launched and retrieved her with no problem."
Service: "When we first bought her, a man from Chinook came over for the day to see if we had any problems and made sure that everything worked."

Delta 5 Dash 5
Chris Rojek,
Diving Officer,
Peterborough BSAC

Engine: Evinrude 90hp
Length: 5.5m
Divers: 6
Trailer: Rapid Roller
Construction: "She's fairly rugged. The only thing is that the tube colour has faded but she is easy to maintain."
Space: "She's not a bad boat. Where you suffer is the width between the two tubes. By the time you get all your bottles in the rack and all your other equipment, it starts to get a bit crowded."
Seaworthiness: "She handles well and has a deep-V hull and cuts through waves well. She can handle most chops with a lot more comfort than many boats - but we need slightly more power to push through the waves. We found a problem with the low transom. If you get divers kitting up in the stern, water will come over it. I would prefer a high transom and an engine with a longer leg."
Towing: "The nose can wobble at high speeds and you need the nose heavy. When launching, her deep-V hull means you need a little bit more water than you require with other boats."
Service: "Delta has always been good. If I have any problems or queries it has always been quick to help."

Elite 5.3
Vince Austin-Anson,
Boat Officer,
High Wycombe BSAC

Engine: Yamaha 85hp
Length: 5.3m
Divers: 6
Trailer: Hallmark (braked)
Construction: "One of the best things is the console. It's a forward one and there is a flexible-bag fuel tank in the bow. Not having fuel tanks on deck gives us more room."
Space: "She used to have a double seat but I converted it to a single seat and that has given us a lot more room. The outside width of the tubes is 8ft, which also helps."
Seaworthiness: "She handles very well apart from the fact that she porpoises - you can be going along and the nose will be nodding, which has made a few people feel sick. However, I have been told the problem can be solved by moving the engine higher - and it's brilliant in rough weather."
Towing: "You have to be a little bit careful because she is heavy. As long as the trailer brakes are working it is fine, but if they lose efficiency, you feel the boat behind you."
Service: Bought secondhand.

  • The Elite is no longer made but Tornado has acquired the moulds.
    Bluewater Dive RIB 500
    Roger Williams,
    Secretary,
    Cotswold Divers

    Engine: Mariner 40hp
    Length: 5m
    Divers: 6-8
    Trailer: Sprite
    Construction: "We have not had any problems with her. She has a glass fibre, deep-V hull, the gel coat is nice and thick and the tubes are the same colour as when we bought her. We would certainly go for the same boat again."
    Space: "She is a very good boat and very beamy. We usually take six divers but can accommodate as many as eight with a crush. We have installed a bottle rack and still have enough room."
    Seaworthiness: "She handles very well and cruises along nicely, especially when you consider the size of her engine. She slices through waves and does not slap or porpoise. You can also turn the tiller hard and she will turn nicely. Hauling divers aboard is no problem either."
    Towing: "I tow her behind a Citroen ZX and I do not know she is there. She is also easy to launch."
    Service: "The company's service has been very good. We went back to it a couple of times to ask how to add our bottle rack and it gave us some good advice. We also adjusted the transom and they sent on the necessary gel for free. When we told them we were interested in buying a Dive RIB 500 they organised for us to take a similar model out for a test drive."

    Humber Destroyer
    Jim Thurston,
    Training Officer,
    Calshot BSAC

    Engine: Yamaha 115hp
    Length: 5.8m
    Divers: 6 -8
    Trailer: Rollercoaster
    Construction: "She is a very sturdy boat and my only criticism is about some of the workmanship. The console looks cheap and the trunking for the steering and throttle cables are on top of the deck whereas on a lot of other boats they are below the decking. The material on the tubes has faded badly. It was a nice bright orange but is now a salmon colour."
    Space: "You can get eight divers on board but it is quite full so we prefer to have six."
    Seaworthiness: "Her handling is very good. She has a deep-V hull and it copes with the sea very well. She does not slam and cuts through a chop well and gives a smooth ride. She also gives a tight turn and her stern will not slide around."
    Towing: "Not bad, but she is a heavy boat and you need at least a 2-litre car to tow her. Launching is no problem."
    Service: "We went to Humber with a spec and it put on everything that we wanted but because funds were limited we asked for the basic boat and bought the engine and trailer separately."

    Northcraft Sea Sport
    John Williams,
    Diving Officer,
    John Smeaton BSAC, Leeds

    Engine: Johnson 150hp
    Length: 6m
    Divers: 8
    Trailer: Rollercoaster 3
    Construction: "The boat is very well laid up and has a deep-V all the way down. The gel coat is really thick, because most of Northcraft's boats are designed for beach landing, and there are no rough edges or blisters. The tubes look as if they are part of the boat."
    Seaworthiness: "I'd have no worries about driving this boat hard into a following or head sea. She cuts through the waves like a dream. She has not slapped and never bounces straight off a wave. I have taken people on boat-handling courses and have had no worries about running her at over 40 knots - although I would not do that with an inexperienced cox. She does not slip in a tight turn, either."
    Towing: "She tows like a dream, as if nothing is there. She's also easy to launch and, because she sits high in the water, needs very little depth."
    Service: "You could not say we were happy because that would not be praising Northcraft enough. If you go there they welcome you, and you can see your boat being built. The company was very helpful and I would get another Northcraft tomorrow."

    Osprey Eagle
    Ray Rockey,
    Equipment Officer,
    Eastleigh BSAC

    Engine: Suzuki 100hp
    Length: 5.6m
    Divers: 8
    Trailer: Snipe and Rollercoaster
    Construction: "She seems a bit narrower than other boats but she has good sea-keeping abilities. The tubes have faded slightly but that is not a problem. The Osprey has a hard nose and the tubes start behind the bow, which is sealed in glass fibre. If you spear a wave, the solid bow just cuts through it."
    Space: "We find it is ideal to have six divers and eight is a bit crowded. We usually shove two in the bow while the others are kitting up."
    Seaworthiness: "A deep-V hull cuts through the waves well. How good the ride is depends a lot on the loading and you have to get the trim right. The Osprey has a cut-down transom and if the engine is shut down too fast we can take water over the stern - but there is a good-sized elephant trunk to drain the boat. She is stable when at rest and you can reach down and pull a diver aboard without her rolling. When she is up on the plane, she is very responsive."
    Towing: "We have two Ospreys and two trailers and we get different opinions on towing, depending on the type of car. We have one member with a Range Rover who prefers the Snipe trailer while others prefer the Rollercoaster. Snipe is better on a long shallow slip, the Rollercoaster on a steep slip."
    Service: "We have never had to contact them for any servicing. We do all the work ourselves."

    Tornado
    Tony Baskeyfield
    Private owner

    Engine: Mercury 90hp
    Length: 5.2m
    Divers: 6
    Trailer: Snipe (braked)
    Construction: "She has a medium-V hull and mine will plane at around 15 knots. The workmanship is excellent. The tubes stay clean, but that is because I fuss over her. I had a sump and a bilge pump fitted."
    Space: "Deckspace is limited because of the bottle rack. I've had six people on board with ponies and that took a lot of room. She is narrow in the beam and you only have about 10in to stand in when the bottles are in - which means you have to be well organised."
    Seaworthiness: "I use her for business and pleasure and I'm very happy with her and would not change her for anything else because she does everything I ask of her. She gives extremely good handling with light steering and she eats through the chop. If you hit a big wave the bows can slap so you have to be careful at times."
    Towing: "I tow her behind a 2-litre Sierra and it goes at high speed easily. Two people can launch her from a slip and three can do it with a tractor on the beach. Retrieval is easy but I have an extra bank of eight rollers on each side of the trailer and a twin-speed winch."
    Service: "Tornado has been excellent. I have been on so many boats that I knew exactly what I wanted. I specified bow lockers to store an anchor rope, shotline and weightbelts. There were a few small switches that were duff but it replaced them."

    Temptress
    Chris Rojek,
    Diving Officer, Peterborough BSAC

    Engine: Johnson 175hp
    Length: 6.1m
    Divers: 8
    Trailer: Hallmark
    Construction: "They had to put it together quite quickly. It is a fairly simple set-up, but drain holes had to be added and the transom height has been increased. We do not like the fact that there is a lot of glue around the seams and there are a few areas on the hull where the gel coat is cracking a bit - but these are the only two niggles we have."
    Space: "She is a nice and long boat but narrow and can be quite cramped with eight divers." Seaworthiness: "She is great to drive - especially with that engine. She is fast and gives a dry ride but does not handle chop as well as our Delta because she does not have such a deep-V hull. However, the club is happy with her performance."
    Towing: "She feels very well balanced when towed and launches easily."
    Service: "We originally ordered an orange and black boat but we ended up with a boat with a white hull and blue tubes!"

    Appeared in DIVER - April 1997
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