North Atlantic Inflatables

[Mischief Managed]

Wondering if any of you folks have any experience with the RIBs from these folks. We are contemplating the purchase of one of their 10' 8" aluminum RIBs and the price seems excellent. Online reviews and discussions of these boats are scarce, but very positive. The owner of the company was incredibly responsive to my inquiries. I really like the idea of the headquarters of the company being within an hour's automobile drive from my marina AND within my normal cruising grounds. I have no affiliation with the compaany. See: https://www.northatlanticinflatables.com/About-Us_ep_7.html



My goal is a light weight, well-made, simple, and rugged RIB, that will plane with 4 people aboard using the engine I already own; that I can possibly upgrade with a Euro Helm in the future.



My plan:

1. Buy the RIB from NAI
2. Replace the carburetor on my 2004 Mercury 9.9HP two stroke to convert it to 15HP. I have already done all the part number cross references/research between the two engines and I know exactly how to do this for roughly 260 bucks and 30 minutes labor; it's really easy.
3. Mount the 74 lb 15HP outboard to the NAI 125lb aluminum RIB and see how it goes. I love the idea of a 200ish pound dry weight RIB with 15HP. Rob the owner of NAI says it will perform very well with a 15HP two stroke, and should plane with 4 people aboard. If I have to decrease prop pitch to get the planing performance I need, I do have that have that option. It's equipped with a 9" pitch prop now and I can go all the way down to 5" pitch, in 1/2" increments, as needed. I can also add trim tabs or smart tabs and experiment with the Dole fin that I already have.
4. If performance proves to be as good as expected in tiller steer configuration, and testing proves it can still plane with 4 people plus an extra 140lbs, add a bench seat/Euro helm/remote control/remote steer/electric start hardware to the boat and motor for $3ish grand. If not, live with tiller steer configuration and enjoy the savings.

If it all works as expected, I could have a brand new, very light, aluminum RIB with a Euro Helm, powered by a low-hour/well-maintained two stroke (I LOVE carbureted two stroke outboards...) for around $7 grand out of pocket. IMO, it's possibly a perfect combination of old-tech engine and new-tech boat that suits my wants and needs perfectly. I am presently fabricating all the parts needed to install some beautiful welded aluminum davits on my transom for this upgrade to my dinghy situation.

 

[DavidM]

Looks good but pay the $900 premium and go with Hypalon tube material for better life.

Also install the Doel fin and maybe drop the pitch of the prop. Latter depends on what rpm you top out at.

David

 

[Mischief Managed]

Looks good but pay the $900 premium and go with Hypalon tube material for better life.

Also install the Doel fin and maybe drop the pitch of the prop. Latter depends on what rpm you top out at.

David

Hypalon was a given.



I have a 10' 2", soft-bottom PVC Zodiac now that I am not impressed with. It planes easily with 2 people and 9.9 HP with a 9" prop. Hoping that slightly more boat but with less drag (due to rigid bottom) and 50% more HP will get me adequate performance with 4 people. Doel fin is already installed but only to prevent prop ventilation which seemed to be caused by the soft bottom undulating at speed. I plan to test the new boat, with and without the fin.

 

[FlyWright]

I have a similarly sized Costco PVC dink (10' 10") that weighs about 115 lbs. It's an inflatable keel and less expensive ($500) with a 15HP Merc 2-stroke. I find that the motor is very well suited for the dink.

On my dink, the tiller handle just barely clears my 'backside' when steering hard to port. I noticed on your model that the aft bench seat is farther aft. You might want to make sure the tiller handle will not hit your back every time to turn hard to port. Also note the gas can pad and hold-down aft of the aft seat. Where will your gas can store?

I've attached a pics of mine to show the difference.