Inflatable boat - any owners out there?

[fishtales]

I'm looking at getting a 10-12 ft. inflatable boat. Anyone own one? What do you like and don't like about them?

I want to cartop it and would like to have one that is lightweight and manageable.

In looking at pics, I wonder where you'd put a fish finder, transducer, and rod holders? Hmmmm. Any input would be appreciated.

Thanks,

FT

[GeordyBass]

well,they are very seaworthy and they handle rough weather awesome!You can fit them in any car trunk.Most inflatables have a wood or fiberglass transom and you can screw a tranducer on with no problem on the transom....on the other hand,you can't be were there are sharp rocks because they can puncture the tubes....and they take some time to inflate.they are good and nice to have though....

[BIGRED KILLA]

You should also look into porta boats.






Bigred

[kelly k]

I'm looking at getting a 10-12 ft. inflatable boat. Anyone own one? What do you like and don't like about them?

I want to cartop it and would like to have one that is lightweight and manageable.

In looking at pics, I wonder where you'd put a fish finder, transducer, and rod holders? Hmmmm. Any input would be appreciated.

Thanks,

FT

I own one, it's actualy the second one that I've owned. Its a Mercury 14ft heavy duty with hypalon material(it lasts longer than the other material)and a 15hp Yamaha four stroke motor. I would suggest that if you were to buy one, that you would get one that is at least 12', anything smaller, some of the local lakes will not let you on, I think DVL is one of them.

The pros and cons are many: first the pros; portability, very stable in the water(no tippyness here), hard level floors, uses minimal garage space, high load rating, easy to fish from, you can stand up without fear of falling into the water, you can get back into the boat from the water fairly easy(again no tipping over,used by divers), light weight

The bad news(cons) They don't like sharp objects(keep away from rocks,hooks,etc) Handles rough waters "Just OK" (manageable) Kind of a pain to set up and tear down(small custom trailer would be great), you cannot have enough power(get the maximum or close to it),the need to have launching wheels(very helpful with or without a ramp)

As far as a fish finder mount, I bought a portable unit from Cabellas it come with a clamp on to the transom mount. rod holders are mounted on the seat also made another custom seat with rod holders made from pvc pipe, other than that its been a very reliable boat. Kelly k

[Lightline]

What about for salt water fishing?

fishing around the jetties and local kelp patties with an inflatable?

[GeordyBass]

What about for salt water fishing?

fishing around the jetties and local kelp patties with an inflatable?they are the best!You dont have to worry about corrosion messing them up or putting bottom paint(unless you have a fiberglass bottom)...trust i've had all kinds of boats...lol...

If you need an inflatable look into buying hypalon rather than pvc,,,they are more rugged and resistant to the elements...Also fiberglass bottoms handle bigger outboards and rougher water as well,but they are more pricier...yes i've had pvc,hypalon,and fiberglass bottoms,,,

no i do not have a problem...lol...

[Lightline]

What would you suggest for an inflatable? Maker and length.

Something that you can take out of the harbor like to kelp patties.

What about the fishing equipment, fish finders rod holders and such.

[Lightline]

Something like this would be sweet, with the center council.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGOtlj7ObTI

[GeordyBass]

What would you suggest for an inflatable? Maker and length.

Something that you can take out of the harbor like to kelp patties.

What about the fishing equipment, fish finders rod holders and such.
crash course...

10-14'...RIB(fiberglass floor),or plywood...any is good...

Achilles,Avon,Zodiak,Novurania,Quicksilver(Mercury ),Sea Eagle,Saturn,Mercury,Caribe...

hypalon material is the best,my favorites are achilles and caribe...

[Lightline]

How about one that you deflate it and can store away in the garage and when ready to go fishing take it out and put it in to a Honda element and inflate it at the saltwater docks and fish the jetties and kelp bends.

But is able to attach fish finders and rod holder and all the fishing equipment...

or outside the breakwalls or several miles out..

Would be nice if you could recommend something.

14' would be nice but can you take that sucker apart and load it on to a car and store it in a garage deflated? or would you recommend a trailer.

A trailer would be one more junk that will take up space.

[GeordyBass]

How about one that you deflate it and can store away in the garage and when ready to go fishing take it out and put it in to a Honda element and inflate it at the saltwater docks and fish the jetties and kelp bends.

But is able to attach fish finders and rod holder and all the fishing equipment...

or outside the breakwalls or several miles out..

Would be nice if you could recommend something.

14' would be nice but can you take that sucker apart and load it on to a car and store it in a garage deflated? or would you recommend a trailer.

A trailer would be one more junk that will take up space.hell yeah!lol,,,then fiberglass is not for you...go with a "roll up" inflatable...which is not a "RIB"....most inflatables that are not "RIB"s are roll-ups...go to this site...

http://www.seaeagle.com/SportRunabouts.aspx

[GeordyBass]

you might wanna take a look at these...

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/boa/906394656.html

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/boa/910618573.html

[Lightline]

thanks...

whats the biggest boat a person can get that can be deflated and stuck in the garage in the corner and when needed take out and fish the kelp bends?

Your recomendation is the inflatable. I think thats where i'm heading but the biggest is 14' right? and that can be taken apart easily..??

[GeordyBass]

thanks...

whats the biggest boat a person can get that can be deflated and stuck in the garage in the corner and when needed take out and fish the kelp bends?

Your recomendation is the inflatable. I think thats where i'm heading but the biggest is 14' right? and that can be taken apart easily..??

the possibilities are endless....i've seen 24' inflatables that can be taken down and stored easy....14' can handle rough seas well because the chambers of air....my friend had a 16' achilles with a windshield on the front(rare)...and he went to catalina islands and well offshore with it with no problems...with 14' inflatable you'll be set for good....just add a 25hp motor used($500-$1200),25hp new($3200-$3500) and your boat is good...you can screw a transducer on the transom,and you can do other customizations...and you'll have a sick portable fishing rig that will kill some fish!!!!

[Lightline]

How about this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7QBCDeLm_I&feature=related


or

http://www.seaeagle.com/SportRunabouts.aspx

[GeordyBass]

How about this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7QBCDeLm_I&feature=related


or

http://www.seaeagle.com/SportRunabouts.aspxboth are different...an inflatable is more sea-worthy and secure,but can puncture too close to rocks or sharp objects...a porta-boat is more rugged in a sense that you can crash into rocks with no real problems...but it is not as seaworthy and can handle less people than an inflatable...both have different qualities for different purposes....take ur pick...lol...

[kelly k]

thanks...

whats the biggest boat a person can get that can be deflated and stuck in the garage in the corner and when needed take out and fish the kelp bends?

Your recomendation is the inflatable. I think thats where i'm heading but the biggest is 14' right? and that can be taken apart easily..??

I have a 14' Mercury that leans on the wall in the garage. It takes up about 2' x 12' with all the pieces(floors, oars, engine, anchor/air pump/fire bottle/red flag/rope bag,fuel tank, wheels and seats) I've taken the boat out as far as 4 miles off the domes and 10 miles down from Dana point, Very sea worthy, sometimes we get the strangest looks from other boaters, I'm wondering if they are thinking " What the heck are they doing way out here"

I would recommend an Inflatable. A 14' is just about all I can handle by myself, the weight is about 217lbs for the boat only,engine weight is 110lbs(15horse four stroke) fuel tank 47lbs (full) and gear bag 50lbs and wheels 7lbs not to mention fishing gear, the total weight is 431lbs. Anything bigger and the weight goes up and the engine gets heavier, Less manageable for just one person.

As far as set up and tear down it takes about 20minutes for each, not hard but is labor intensive, especially pumping up the chambers to 4lbs each(try that at 7900'alt), I use an electric pump to fill the chambers and then finish up with the pump.(the electric pump cannot add air pressure just volume)

Other than that they are great boats, Kelly k

[drivelikejoewho]

What would you suggest for an inflatable? Maker and length.

Something that you can take out of the harbor like to kelp patties.

What about the fishing equipment, fish finders rod holders and such.

Hi There...

I have a a Sea Eagle SE9 motormount boat. My roommate and I bought it in the summertime and have used it about 5 times now. I live in Long Beach near Alamitos Bay and we take it to Bayshore beach and launch it and fish in the harbor all the time. Right now we just have a trolling motor but we're gonna get a gas motor soon. It will handle up to 5 hp I believe. With just the two of us it is plenty of room but we've put 3 adults in it before. It takes us about 20 minutes to set up and take down. That is inflating it manually not with the automatic pump which saves a lot of time. We are able to carry it to the water with all our gear loaded. I searched for a long time and price and space were the biggest factors. It comes with a 3 year warranty and I read a lot of good reviews about it. If I had more space/money, I think I would've got the sport runabout.

Hope this helps. There are a lot of options available.