Research

[Roy54]

I took a little trip over to Hamble yesterday, met Steve at F ribs and had a demo. I have to say that even though I new it was a folding rib , I couldn't help but be amazed when it was unfolded. That is a clever bit of kit ! The boat he had in the office was a 375 and I think it is probably a tad to hefty for me . Does anyone else use one singlehandedly ? I will need to see a 360 in the flesh . Steve steered me more to the 375 as occasionally I will have the whole family in it , Including the dogs. He also offered me a great package deal. Top bloke!!

[Martin]

Hi Roy,
I have the 375 and a 20hp suzuki outboard.
I can handle them all on my own but they are bloody heavy. To give you some idea of me, I'm 47yrs - 5'10" in height and around 85-90kg ish

I usually trailer the frib when i'm on my own just for ease..
With myself, the mrs and the 7yr old onboard, I'd not really want anything smaller than a 360/375... It's suprising how small they get when you start adding picnic bags and cool boxes to the boat load.

Martin

[Roy54]

Hi Martin , thanks for the reply, I had been thinking of the 360 before visiting Steve but he only had the 375 there. I am assuming you have the single skin 375. It's about 56 kgs I think, where as the 360 is 48 kgs, not a massive difference but it might make it comfortable to handle rather than a struggle. I may give nestaway a ring to see if they have a 360 on display.
The other thing is ,the internal beam measurement is presumably between the closest points of the tubes ,so for instance it would be 780mm just at the centre of the tubes and actually wider where the thwarts are located. Roy

[Martin]

Morning Roy,
Yes - mines the single skin 375, the first one off the line to the UK I believe.
It weighs in at 55kg, We weighed it at Frib HQ when I collected it.

Always worth ringing Alan at Frib S.E (Kent)
He’s a supporting forum member As well as a Frib dealer.
He’ll certainly do what he can to help get you the right package.

His website is https://www.frib-se.co.uk and you’ll find all Alan contact details on there.

Martin

[F-Rib South East]

Hi Roy,

I have a FRIB 360 (+ 15hp outboard) demonstrator here in Kent if you would like a demo. Great performance and good carrying capacity.

I can manage the 360 on my own, just! Another 8kg for the 375 would be too much for me. But fine if there's always someone around to help you. You'll find that some 375 owners keep their FRIBs on trailers for that reason.

Give me a call if you'd like to discuss further.

Cheers,
Alan
07865 091155

[Roy54]

Thanks Alan ,I may well be in touch soon . To be honest I will probably keep mine on a trailer eventually , but I feel the whole point of a folding rib is that it's portable without a trailer. I really was impressed with the 375 but to me it would be a struggle and would end up not being used as much. Got some work to do on the caravan floor that really needs starting and will be in touch after that. Thanks Roy

[Martin]

I keep my 375 on a trailer in the garage, but if I’m away with the caravan I fold the 375 up and chuck it in the boot.
55kg is a little heavy but a sack cart makes life easy.

If you decide a trailer is better for you, drop me a pm as we do a trailer discount scheme for supporting members.

Martin

[LoznMary]

Hi Roy,

I’ve dropped you a p.m about the sliding roof rack when carrying the 360.
Regards
Loz

[eddzoid]

Hi,

I have the Karitek.
Can you please give me details on the best way to get the boat on the rails without bending them?
thanks
Eddie

[Alan]

Hi Roy


I have a F-Rib 375 and 20 hp Mercury EFI motor. I use the transom wheels to move the assembled boat and motor combo on solid ground. Because I have a small place on Lake Huron I need to pull it over about 300 feet of soft sand to reach the water. The transom wheels sink into the sand so I use inflatable roller logs to cross the sand. They are great. Simply lift the bow and kick a couple of rollers under the boat and then roll it to the water. Simply pull the plug and just let them deflate at the end of the day.

To transport and mount the motor I use a unique 2 part motor trolley. The lower wheels clamp to the skeg and the handle is held to the motor by the transom locks. the hand grips on the handle have small wheels for tipping it into the back of a vehicle. I also pull the motor on the cart to the back of the boat and tip it on to the transom. Then I just unclamp the wheels from the skeg.