Beach landings and tubes

[kaman]

Hi bowline.
As your car can't tow you don't have the option of changing to a trailered boat.
I get the idea of putting rubbing strake along the tube.
Sods law tho, if you do strike a submerged object it will be on a piece of tube with no strake on it or it will go right through the strake and tube any way.
I would have concerns about the strake fouling the folding mechanics of the frib tho.
Not to mention possible performance issues as well as weight gain and the detrimental effect on resale value.
How much strake would you put on the tube as it's not just the centre of the underside of the tube that is susceptible to damage? You could potentially adhere strake to 40% of the tube diameter.
All that aside if it's going to give you peace of mind then it is worth considering.

[James]

Best thing to do is take care. I found out recently how strong the hull is and it's tough.

I'd imagine you have more chance of damaging the engines gear box than the boat itself.

My old sib had a diagram showing the layers of material that made up the thickness of the tubes. Each layer was quite thick. When I had that sib I never knew where to launch so I ended up just dragging it up and down a steep river bank which were covered with man-made broken up concrete slabs. One time I couldn't drag the sib out of the river by hand as the tide was really low and had no choice but to tie it to a car and pull it out. Apart from scuff marks it was perfectly fine. The boat was cheap as I only got it to see if I liked boating. I'd hope the F-Rib tubes are just as strong as my old chineese knockoff sib were.

I normally carry a long pole with me so I can feel the depths as I am approaching the shore.

As for getting scratches and scuff, don't worry about those. I use to try and treat my boat like it was my baby, now I am in the frame of mind enjoy it and use it.

[Bowline]

All really good points kaman, I'm going to give it a miss as there is too much possibility for cocks ups!! I will look for somewhere local that is more tube friendly.
I too have been impressed with how resilient the tubes are James, although I have not tried towing mine across the floor behind a car yet! The river I use is very tidal and is full of some massive lumps of wood, and although I have avoided them it has shrugged off many other smaller objects. Thankfully the approach to our shoreline is fairly predictable, not much in the way of submerged geography, it's the last 6ft of knee deep water that gets interesting.

[kaman]

Bowline you know your boat and your stomping grounds best.
I can only call it as an impartial outsider based on your posts.
If you ever change your car I would give serious consideration to a Polyethylene boat.
I used to own a sporty car that was not type approved for towing hence I bought a sib.
A few years of ownership I had bulged a disc in my neck - caused by wrestling the sib and engine accross sand, shingle and seaweed and rocky beaches.
I have since went down the trailer and SUV route.
Now it's a doddle to launch.
My needs have changed again, so next year I'm going to get a Highfield 380 CL rib instead of my beloved heavy weight trailered SIB.
No doubt your boating needs will change over the next few years too.
As has been said on here many a time, there is no perfect boat, just some that foot the bill better than others.