Achillies Inflatable Boats and honda 9.9

[atvaholic]

I was outside yesterday speaking to a neighbour. He noticed I had some fishing rods and we started talking. He purchased an Achilles inflatable boat a few years back with a brand new Honda 9.9 4 stroke motor. He used the boat and motor twice, then got ill. He was getting better but recently had a stroke - he is having a yard sale in a few weeks and is pretty much selling everything in his garage.

 

He told me he will accept a "reasonable offer" for the pair (he will not separate them).

 

He has the receipt for the 2002 Honda motor totaling $2900.00 and told me the boat was about $3000 new(he got some accessories with it). It is a 13 foot inflatable with a removable aluminum floor. I saw the motor, and it does look like new, as does the gas tank and the accessories. I did some research and it seems the boat has about a 1600 pd capacity and will hold up to 4 people. It will also accept up to a 35hp motor.

 

I like the fact that the boat tears down for storage, and that I can fit it in the back of my pickup to get to those backwoods lakes. I rarely fish any large lakes. I also like that I can bring my two boys with me :-) Don't know much about the 4 stroke motors though. I have had my share of issues with 2 strokes..

 

I don't know a lot about this type of boat..How to launch in a remote lake? how durable they are and anything else I need to research before coming up with an offer. Any opinions appreciated here..

Edited April 5, 2011 by atvaholic

[BillM]

If you can drive to those back lakes then I doubt you'll have a problem, but bushwacking even a small distance with that thing is going to be almost impossible.

[atvaholic]

If you can drive to those back lakes then I doubt you'll have a problem, but bushwacking even a small distance with that thing is going to be almost impossible.

 

Hey, I wouldnt even consider bushwhacking at all.

[BillM]

Hey, I wouldnt even consider bushwhacking at all.

 

I was just wondering because you said backlakes. To me that means lots of hard work, lol!!

 

Sounds like you and your sons could have a lot of fun with this boat

[Nipfisher]

Hey ATV,

I have a 9' Quicksilver inflatable with a break down wooden floor. I got it used last year and was only in it once with a 4hp Johnson with the built in tank. This year I picked up a 1984 Evinrude 8hp (rated for up to 9.9hp) with a remote tank and enough hose to put the tank up front. When mine is all rolled up the boat, pumps (12 volt and foot,) and oars can all fit in a large hockey bag. Too heavy to carry but it fits on the back rack of my 4-wheeler better inside the bag with the floor on the rack and the motor on top of the bag. They are made tough and would be no problem to launch even if you had to slide it down a bank. Mine has 4 separate chambers so if you did get a hole you still would likly not sink. You may find it a bit difficult to fish from as the seats are high up on the walls. Nice and stable and handles well if it has an inflatable keel. Not sure I would run a 35hp on it even though it is 13' long, until you plane out if feels like you are going to flip backwards. 9.9 will be a good start but it will push alot of water with 3 people in it. I'd suggest buying both then flipping the motor and upgrade to a 15hp - 20hp two stroke if you are more comfortable with them. Check out youtube and there are lots of videos on them if you search zodiac or quicksilver.

[atvaholic]

Hey ATV,

I have a 9' Quicksilver inflatable with a break down wooden floor. I got it used last year and was only in it once with a 4hp Johnson with the built in tank. This year I picked up a 1984 Evinrude 8hp (rated for up to 9.9hp) with a remote tank and enough hose to put the tank up front. When mine is all rolled up the boat, pumps (12 volt and foot,) and oars can all fit in a large hockey bag. Too heavy to carry but it fits on the back rack of my 4-wheeler better inside the bag with the floor on the rack and the motor on top of the bag. They are made tough and would be no problem to launch even if you had to slide it down a bank. Mine has 4 separate chambers so if you did get a hole you still would likly not sink. You may find it a bit difficult to fish from as the seats are high up on the walls. Nice and stable and handles well if it has an inflatable keel. Not sure I would run a 35hp on it even though it is 13' long, until you plane out if feels like you are going to flip backwards. 9.9 will be a good start but it will push alot of water with 3 people in it. I'd suggest buying both then flipping the motor and upgrade to a 15hp - 20hp two stroke if you are more comfortable with them. Check out youtube and there are lots of videos on them if you search zodiac or quicksilver.

Thanks Nipfisher..do you mind telling me what you paid for yours? Trying to figure a fair price for both sides..

[Nipfisher]

I PM'd you.

[John Bacon]

I am not familiar with the brand, but I would expect that a $3,000 inflatable would be pretty durable.

[atvaholic]

I am not familiar with the brand, but I would expect that a $3,000 inflatable would be pretty durable.

I would hope this is true. From what nipfisher says they seem to be durable. Maybe someone else will chime in.

[fishforfun]

I've owned inflatable for 21 years, the one I have now is a 11' Quicksilver with an 8hp Merc. They are made to be tenders for a larger boat, I own a 30' sail and a 24' power boat. I assemble my inflatable in the spring and disassemble in the fall and it's a lot of work and not a one man job! They are not light weight either, in a nut shell if I'm going on holidays and plan to do some fishing I tow a 14' aluminium and leave the inflatable at the marina. My thoughts would be buy the package and sell the inflatable to buy a tinny if fishing is gonna be your main goal.

[craigdritchie]

Achilles is a good boat, and $3,000 would be about right for a 13-foot model of circa-2002 vintage (the present model SGX132 sells for about $4,000). Most Achilles boats are made of a hypalon construction, so they're MUCH tougher than a PVC boat. Hypalon is what they use on commercial whale watching boats, that run out into the open ocean all day, every day, year round. It's pretty tough stuff. The downside is that it is also heavier than a PVC boat. That 13-footer might weigh close to 200 pounds. If that's a concern, then a small tinny might be a better option.

 

The company website is http://www.achillesinflatables.com Check the proper model of the boat, and you should be able to find the correct specs and probably get an owner's manual.

 

The Honda is a great motor.

Edited April 5, 2011 by Craig_Ritchie

[atvaholic]

I've owned inflatable for 21 years, the one I have now is a 11' Quicksilver with an 8hp Merc. They are made to be tenders for a larger boat, I own a 30' sail and a 24' power boat. I assemble my inflatable in the spring and disassemble in the fall and it's a lot of work and not a one man job! They are not light weight either, in a nut shell if I'm going on holidays and plan to do some fishing I tow a 14' aluminium and leave the inflatable at the marina. My thoughts would be buy the package and sell the inflatable to buy a tinny if fishing is gonna be your main goal.

I'd like to hear more about how hard they are to set up...He told me it was very easy...subjective I guess..

 

If there are 30 pieces to put together i'll end up throwing it in the lake, LOL

Edited April 5, 2011 by atvaholic

[Nipfisher]

I'd like to hear more about how hard they are to set up...He told me it was very easy...subjective I guess..

 

If there are 30 pieces to put together i'll end up throwing it in the lake, LOL

 

My 2nd time setting up it took me 26 minutes all by myself. I figure it will be about 15-20 when I do it the right way

[ld17]

I had a titan inflatable boat. It was 12' with aluminum floor. Once you get the hang of placing the stringers with the floor it's just a matter of blowing it up. Between 20-30min should be right. I could carry mine with two people but it was tough. I ended up getting a trailer for it and left it inflated. It becomes quite a chore inflating and deflating every use. You will soon find out. And deflating is always harder because your tired from fishing all day and the last thing you want is to take it all apart and put everything away before you leave. I had a 15hp on mine and with two medium built people it would plane ok. By myself I could get about 25mph on gps. I doubt you will hit that with a 9.9 All in all it's a great boat very durable and stable. Try and get a feel for what he is asking for the boat and hope it's in your price range. Good luck

[atvaholic]

Hey, I had him set up the boat for me. It took 2 of us about 10 - 15 minutes to setup without the floor.

 

I inspected the boat and noticed that glue looked like it was oozing out of some seams? See picture 2. Is this normal? He says it was..of course.

 

We pulled out the motor and it started second pull, and runs great. A few pics below:

 

[Sinker]

I'd call that normal.....the glue I mean.

 

Looks like a great little rig. I can see some specks coming over the side of it real soon!

 

S.

[Nipfisher]

Wow it looks awesome. I wouldn't worry about the glue at all. Don't try and clean it off with anything too harsh. That wheel kit is a great accessory and probably worth a good couple hundred $$. It will take you about 10 minutes longer when puting in the floor. I have to inflate mine a bit then put the floor pieces in. Good deal if you get it for the price we discussed.

[ld17]

Just one note to add. I bought a used zodiac and when I went to look at it the guy didn't have the right pump for it to blow it up so we managed to inflate it about 50%. No leaks no problem. Then once I got the proper pump to inflate to full pressure I had a seem blow on it. So if you haven't already bought the boat. Make sure it get's inflated to full pressure and see if it holds. Nice looking rig. Glue in normal.

[Governator]

Looks like a great inflatable you got there.

 

My buddy had a smaller zodiac for a couple of years when we started out. Just be extra careful when launching/landing at backlakes which often don't have smooth launches. Even though it looks very rugged its the rocks and sticks at rough launches that can rip it up.

[atvaholic]

Looks like a great inflatable you got there.

 

My buddy had a smaller zodiac for a couple of years when we started out. Just be extra careful when launching/landing at backlakes which often don't have smooth launches. Even though it looks very rugged its the rocks and sticks at rough launches that can rip it up.

Thanks for everyone's assistance..we made a deal today and the boat came home :-)

 

As was stated the floor is a total PITA not only to assemble but to take apart as well. Most of the lakes I fish I will not likely use the floor unless staying awhile.

 

Darn those 4 strokes are HEAVY.

 

I let it sit for about 2 hours before purchasing... seemed to hold air fine.

 

I am concerned about launching this into these lakes, does anyone have a tip to do so?

 

 

Edited April 10, 2011 by atvaholic

[DRIFTER_016]

With the beach wheels you can just roll it into the water and once she's floating pull the wheels up.

 

Your best bet would be to get a small flat bed trailer for hauling it around.

 

I have a smaller 8' inflatable that I can actually lift and throw on my roof rack, or I can drag it around on my snowmobile trailer if need be.

 

[Nipfisher]

Like I said....sell the 4-stroke and buy a 2 stroke with a remote tank that you can put in the front.

Edited April 10, 2011 by Nipfisher