Anyone know about inflatable boats and outbaords?

Question

Ok so Im looking to get a inflatable boat for fishing in the spring. The boat will be needed to hold 2 adults. So im looking at 4 person boats for ample room. I need to know where is a affordable place to get a 4 person inflatable and motor brace. also has anyone used a trolling motor and are they powerful enough?

Answer 1

I'm wondering why you would want an inflatible boat for fishing.I can envision all kinds of scenarios where you could have problems. Besides,those things aren't all that stable and they can get uncomfortable after long periods.

Trolling motors are great for manouervering where you want to fish, but you would want an outboard engine to get you from the dock to the fishing area if any distance is involved.

Answer 2

Cheap inflateables on ebay.

www.motors.ebay.com    click on boats...then "other boats"

Answer 3

i'd go with ebay or cabellas...

Answer 4

Lot's of good advice so far.  I would also point out, as has been alluded to as 'comfort', the bottom line is your butt is going to get cold being so close to the water, which will register in your mind as a 'not fun' pastime.

Also factor in the fact that inflatables like to be blown around like balloons, which they in fact are.

Answer 5

Here comes the long answer version:

Lots of uninformed answers here .... There are basically 4 types of inflatable boats.

1 - RIB - Rigid Inflatable Boat. This boat has a plastic or fiberglass bottom and transom and inflatable tubes. They can usually take higher powered motors for the length. These boats can be from 8' to over 30' long.

2 - Rollup - This boat has a soft bottom with slats that provide some bottom rigidity. They are normally used for tenders for cruising boats.

3 - High Pressure Floor - These boats have a high pressure  inflatable floor that provides rigidity for the boat. They have a semi vee soft bottom and fold up easily.

4 - Rigid Floor Board Inflatable. This boat has a set of plywood boards that fit into the bottom of the boat and provide rigidity to the boat. Most of these boats have a heavy duty wood transom that will support an outboard. Some have inflatable tubes all around and you need a special bracket to mount a motor to the boat.

All of these boats have thwarts of some kind for seats, either inflatable tubes or rigid slat seats that span between the tubes.  All but the RIB will fold up into a package that will fit into the trunk or back seat of a standard car.

For fishing with 2 people you would probably want at least a 2.8 meter  RIB or one with a wood floor ... it is too easy to drop something and damage an inflatable floor.  I had a 2 hp outboard on a 2.8 meter boat and it worked fine  but was slow .. I upgraded to 9.9 hp and it planes with 2 adults onboard. the gas tank hangs on the transom so there is more space in the boat .. it handles 2 people easily .. A troling motoer will work fine too .. but you will have to give up space for the battery and deal with the extra weight.   We  use cushions rather than the thwarts for seats .. The boat has no more windage thatn any other boat of its size ,, but because it is lighter is will drift more ... which might be good for some fishing ... use a small mushroom anchor to stay put .

Expect to pay at least $400 for a good used boat and $800 or more for a new one ..  Hypalon is the most durable material .. but is expensive .. PVC is next ...

Zodiac, Bombard, Mercury,   many other manufacturers

do a search on inflatable boats ...

good luck and happy fishing ...

Answer 6

If you already have an inflatable the brackets are ok, I have one for my older Udisco.

On mine you really couldnt use much more than a trolling motor because the inflatable is not real rigid.

If you haveint bought, think about looking at the rigid hull hard transom inflatables like Avon, etc.

They are great boats, you can put enough horsepower on them to get on plane and they are pretty much unsinkable, they bob like a cork in a bathtub, I have seen them a long ways from shore and they are very safe and stable.

One of those is every bit as stable as a similar size convenitonal boat, and easy to transport, you need some room of course but you dont need a separate trailer.