Outdoors Information

Inflatable Boats: An Overview


Inflatable boats are made from flexible material, usually rubber, canvas, or neoprene, and hold air at high volume but low pressure. They need to be fitted with a frame to which an oarlock mount is firmly attached. Such frames are either made of metal or wood, or a combination of the two.

Inflatable boats with motors are high speed, maneuverable, stable and can be easily launched from a ship. For this reason, US Navy SEAL's use the inflatable boat small (IBS) for their operations.

Twenty-three foot long Rigid Hull inflatable boats are best suited for retrieving people stranded on rocky pinnacles among the waves, and are used by the US Coast Guard during Search & Rescue operations.

There has been a lot of development in Inflatable boats. The large inflatable boats have rigid boards in them, and are called Rigid Inflatable Boats (RIB's). They can be driven by oars or outboard engines. The large ones are considered good enough to be used by the Lifeboat men.

The modern life raft is a well thought out, well-equipped, seaworthy fully inflated boat. However, if there isn't enough air inside, inflatable boats are apt to fold in the middle. Thus, they need to be pumped up to the proper pressure using bellows.

Most Inflatable Boats are portable rafts. An inflatable yacht that is 8 feet (2.4 m) long is rated to carry three people when used with a motor. It weighs 35 pounds (15 kgs.) when dry, which makes it a reasonable load for one person to carry for a long distance if necessary. The next size is 9 feet long, which does not sound much more, but the difference is great, in fact. The 9 feet boat is heavier and has much larger air tubes.

People use inflatable boats for exploring, and manually haul them to remote places. There are many brands of high quality inflatable boats available in the market, but whatever brand is chosen should be roughly 8 feet long, rated for 3 people, have a motor, be a reasonable load for one person to carry, and does not have a wooden floor, or other heavy parts.

Inflatable Boat Sales are taking place online. Inflatable boats are available for sales - both as new ones, and as used boats. Prices range from $25 right up to $2,800. The range covers 8-foot yacht tenders, fishing boats, and 14-foot inflatable sail boats.

Inflatable Boats Info provides detailed information on pontoon, rigid and fishing inflatable boats, as well as trailers, repairs, used inflatable boats and manufacturers. Inflatable Boats Info is the sister site of River Rafting Web.


MORE RESOURCES:

Johnson Outdoors Inc. Announces Fiscal 2008 Fourth Quarter and ...
MarketWatch - 3 hours ago
a leading global outdoor recreation company, today announced that while economic pressure on its markets led to lower sales and operating profit, ...


The Outdoors Life, With No Attitude
New York Times, United States - 10 hours ago
DOWNTOWN Salida, Colo., once a booming railroad town, is now attracting skiers and other outdoor adventurers. More Photos ยป He had never heard of Salida, ...


Johnson Outdoors will cut costs after 4Q loss
Forbes, NY - 1 hour ago
AP , 12.05.08, 07:55 AM EST Johnson Outdoors Inc. said Friday after it swung to a large loss in its fourth quarter that it plans to slash spending, ...


Outdoors Report: Dec. 5
Houston Chronicle, United States - 8 hours ago
By BINK GRIMES and WILKINS WEATHER For the Chronicle Anglers took trout, sand trout and redfish in the river, which was the only place to take refuge from ...


Outdoors Report: Steelheaders getting in some early punches
Seattle Post Intelligencer - 22 hours ago
By GREG JOHNSTON The winter steelhead season is well under way, not spectacular so far but definitely early and spread throughout the traditional streams of ...


OUTDOORS CALENDAR
Hartford Courant, United States - 6 hours ago
Mail to Courant Sports/outdoors calendar, 285 Broad St., Hartford, CT 06115, fax to 860-241-6600 or e-mail to sports@courant.com.


Steve Carson's 'Outdoors' column: Christmas gift guide for fishing ...
Enterprise-Record, CA - 6 hours ago
By STEVE CARSON-Outdoors Columnist Looking for that perfect gift for the avid angler or hunter on your list? Before you just give up and choose a gift card, ...


Outdoors: Mild weather makes for great fall fishing
Carson Times, NV - 5 hours ago
With a couple of short-lived exceptions, the weather for the past few weeks has been exceptional for fishing, and it is truly hard to beat fall fishing in ...
Outdoors: Fishing Report for Dec. 05 Carson Times
all 2 news articles


Johnson Outdoors posts loss in Q4; suspends dividend - Update
RTT News, NY - 3 hours ago
(RTTNews) - Friday, Johnson Outdoors, Inc. (JOUT: News ), an outdoor recreation company, reported a loss for the fourth quarter, hurt by non-cash charges ...


Gifts galore for the outdoors
Desert Valley Times, UT - 2 hours ago
When you're done reading this article, you'll be a bonafide official outdoors shopper. And if you're buying for a girl, lucky you. ...

Outdoors - Google News

home | site map
© 2006