F-Ribs And Sibs - Inflatable Boat Community

I'm condidering an upgrade to a 4 stroke outboard from my current 2 Stroke 15hp Yam.

I'm hoping to up the power...but that means additional weight.

I don't have lauch wheels at the moment, but i'm considering them.

Lets say I get a 20hp Tohatsu, along with the T40 that will be around 140kg

Will the wheels be good enough for me to pull the setup say 10 meters up a sandy beach and then relaunch, or will it simply be too heavy?

Its the tyres you need to consider.
A sandy beach will put a lot more strain on the frames than tarmac.
A decent set of launch wheels with sand tryes should be fine.

Beach masters, as the name suggests are very good.
Although they do come at a price...

Dominic
There are launch wheels and there are 'proper' launch wheels
When you are researching your purchase take particular note regarding quoted weights, look at their construction, how they operate and type/gauge of stainless used in their construction
You are fortunate the T40 has a flat transom without the 'tabs' of the IE Honda inflatables which most owners get 'caught out on' with failures but you're still vunerable to failure because of the T40 being a heavier boat

Have a look around at what you fancy with links so members can advise you further
As Andy B says, the type of surface you're launching on makes a huge difference in your choice of wheel regardless of the arm/bracket

The heavy duty IBS wheels for the T40 are rated at 200kg. They have larger than standard launch wheels at 14"
Working on your 140kg assumption which I think is correct, will allegedly give you a 60kg window. Would I push it to 200kg? No thanks

So that means maybe carrying some gear rather than putting it all in the boat, perhaps look at a launch trailer as well as the wheels ?

Having lifted the 20hp twatso single handed myself, I'd hope your a burly built guy, it's not for the faint hearted.
55kg gets very heavy very quickly, hence I went for the Suzuki 15 with my Honwave.
Paul and Kaman will give you some feedback on the manoeuvrability of that superb but bloody heavy lump.

The vertical load on the t40 wheels due to no trim tab does help dramatically, but tugging 150-200kg single handed by that little lifting loop will hurt like hell. My FRIB and outboard weigh in at approx 100kg, that feels bloody heavy after a minute or two.
Again as said above by Paul, do your homework well and throw your ideas about in here for some great input.

Martin

Howdy all.
As the owner of a Honwave 3.5ae and a Tohatsu 20hp I am reasonably informed to share my tuppence on this subject.
The 3.5ae is a heavy brute - slightly lighter than the 4.0ae.
I used to build it at launch site and use the wheels to launch it.
I now trailer it and where possible get it to the waters edge on the trailer. I have a cheapo pair of aluminium transom wheels.
I upgraded the wheels / tyres for barrow sized inflatable wheels / tyres.
The larger wheels make launching easier.
On soft sand the weight of the sib / engine makes it a pig to move due to it sinking into the sand.
Wider sand hopper wheel set up is best suited to soft sand.
It really boils down to the terrain you are going to launch from and how many hands you have at your disposal to play at tug of war.
I wrestled with my Honwave on my Todd too many times , eventually the penny dropped that it was just too awkward on the beaches I frequented for solo launch / retieval.
Thats why I now trailer it and bought an SUV and lots of rope to aid launch / recovery.
Unless your on slipways or hard sand I would say the tohatsu 20hp on a Honwave 4.0ae is hoing to be too much of a handful for one person regardless of how good the wheel set up is


Honwave 3.5ae on trailer on hard sand beach awaiting a dip in the brine
Honwave 3.5ae on steep soft sand beach - trailer winch used to haul it back onto the trailer
Trailer dug into the sand to lower bunks to allow sib to roll on / off trailer.


As you can see my wheel set up pretty flimsy but sufficient to roll on / off my trailer.

Honwave 3.5ae pulled out of water on hard sand awaiting retrieval - car and trailer top right of the shot

Kaman saved me a lot of typing.. I agree with everything he wrote

Thanks for the info chaps.

I think I will have a look at other options.

No worries Dom.
Don't be completely put of from getting a set of good launch wheels tho.
They can be very useful in certain situations.
Just be mindful of their limitations - particularly with regards to your set up weight, terrain, available man power or access to a vehicle to aid the launch / recovery process.
Being able to get the car as close to the launch / recovery site is a big factor for me
If im doing a bit of fishing I use a smaller 2.5hp Suzuki 4 stroke as propulsion.
I can drag the sib along on its transom wheels with the suzuki on the transom much easier than I can when the 50kg+ tohatsu 20hp 4 stroke is hanging off the back.
I must say tho that the trailer and having an SUV makes living with the Honwave 3.5ae much much easier.
I got bored very quickly with the building, dismantle, wash, and pack away process.
As has been said on here numerous times there are no perfect boats just ones that best suit your needs / budget at a particular time .

kaman wrote:
Unless your on slipways or hard sand I would say the tohatsu 20hp on a Honwave 4.0ae is hoing to be too much of a handful for one person regardless of how good the wheel set up is

I agree.

I had a 15' SIB, alum floor, 258lbs with a Merc 20hp 4s, 115lbs (same as the Tohatsu) and a 6ga gas can with DIY launch wheels that looked like Kaman's. Can see my setup here;http://f-ribsandsibs.com/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=1280

I used a lifting harness hooked to the front to ease the weight down through my legs instead of my back. Hard surfaces at a distance of about 100 feet were all about I could do on my own. Could pull across rough harder surfaces at a slight incline alright, otherwise I needed help. Could pull up a typical/steep boat ramp to my trailer by myself but I was breathing hard, chest pounding and ready to quit by the time I got to the top. Family usually helped me. Went across flat, moist but soft sand about 50 feet once and had to take a long break in between.

Mine were the straight legged wheels with 2 bolt connections to the transom. I put them through the paces pretty good. Over really rough rocks and surfaces with it bouncing after beaching, using them as lower unit guards against boulders in the water and standing in the back of the boat with the gas can, gear and motor mounted and they held up really well. My hubs were metal with axle bearings and the tires were pneumatic though so I don't know if that is the difference.

Yup 9-R I've had the heavy breathing / pounding chest and dizziness wrestling with my lardy Honwave 3.5ae.
I carry a fair amount of clobber in mine including bow box with, tools, batteries for fixed VHF and echo sounder, fishing gear, camping gear, food, beer, water, 50 litres of fuel and auxiliary engine etc.
When fully loaded for an overnighter the sib must be near the quarter tonne mark
I normally get it afloat anchor it then load it up.
To assist in pulling the Sib along on the launch wheels I use a galvanised pole on a rope rigged to the stainless eyelets on the bow - see pic.
Doesn't make it lighter but makes it easier get a grip off and to pull it along.
I put my hands at the small of my back and do my cart horse impression when pulling the Sib out of the water when coming ashore:D
To launch once it's rolled off the trailer I hold the pole accross my front around hip heght arms straight facing the transom push it into the water.
The big barrow wheels are a pig to retrieve and deploy in the water due to their buoyancy.
I made a pole with a notch in it to push the wheels down and to retrieve them whilst aboard the sib - no more wet sleeves.
The aforementioned pole sits at the back of the sib in a rod holder ready for deployment.
As the wheels are basic up and over gravity lock set up, the buoyancy works to my favour to lock the wheels in position and to float them back up to the surface when being retrieved
It's taken me a few years to mod and perfect things to suit my needs.
Now that I've got it the way I like I can show the big boys up on the beach when launching and retrieving in record time whilst they wrestle about with their heavy boats getting their trailers and cars wet in the process.
Makes me laugh every time when they scratch their heads in bewilderment as the sib is wheeled out of the water and then wiched / rolled onto the trailer without getting the trailer wet.