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I recently purchased an Aria 10'' RIB made by AB. Unlike my Zodiac which had a total of 3 tow rings on the bow (one in the dead center and one off to either side) she only has a single tow ring in the center that is anchored to the hull. Any tips for towing her? With The Zodiac I would use 2 long docklines, criss-cross them and cleat them to separate cleats near the stern. This way I could control where she tracked. Perhaps the RIB will track better given the solid hull and its shape. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
The ring on the bow is generally not used for towing. You need one ring on either side of the bow to tow properly. I''ve never seen a dingy without these. You should consider installing them or having them installed. I doubt you will be able to make the present set up work satisfactorally
Thanks, I called the company and they gladly offered to sell me the necessary d-rings. What a joke. Im pissed. What idiots make an inflatable without towing rings. I wish I had noticed that before as this really puts a kink in our weekend plans.
I have had a Carib 10X RIB for almost 10 years. The bow eye works great for towing. Inspect it now and then..If its well built you should have no problem.
BTW : my friend has the same RIB and he glued the D-rings on. No difference in towing ability.
I also attach a safety line very loosely to one of the davit eyes just in case the line lets go when towing in open water
I have a 16ft zodiac w/ 50HP outboard and have towed it weekly for 7 years with only the bow eye. I tow with a fairly short floating tow line, and run a second line from a cleat on the tender''s bow. The second line is a good back up, and it also keeps the bow down in waves. It tracks fine. I haven''t towed in more than 6 foot seas, nor would I recommend it.
I learned the hard way about the second line, noticing a tender that looked a lot like mine a mile away with no one on it -- and in the busy shipping channel. hummmmm. What fool.....?
I have not tried to tow her from the bow ring but i was told 2 things; 1. that the bow ring lacks the strength necessary and will rip out and 2. that she will no track well using the one attachment point. I guess i can try it out and see what happens.
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