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Sometimes it takes a while for a significant innovation to be recognized as the great thing it is. When Hardbottom Inflatables (HBI Boats), based at R.B Rodgers Yacht Sales in Noank, CT, launched their first boat about 20 years ago, a lot of boaters didn’t know what to make of it.
“No one knew what we were doing,” recalls Bob Rodgers. “We went to boat shows and people asked, ‘What is this?’ and ‘Why would I want this?’” That first HBI, a 20’6” center console model, mated a fiberglass deep-V hull with inflatable tube topsides. Designed by C. Raymond Hunt Associates, the boat combined the performance characteristics of a deep-V with the lower weight, stable, smooth and dry ride and sheer toughness of Hypalon tubes.
Another unique feature was that the inflatable tubes could be removed and replaced by the owner, thus extending the boat’s working life. This system, which employs channels on the rigid hull and twin boltropes on the tubes, was created in the early 1980s by Bill Cochran of Groton, CT. Rodgers, who was then selling Avon inflatable boats, saw the potential for larger rigid inflatable boats and bought Cochran’s patent.
Today, HBI offers models from 11 to 40 feet, all Hunt-designed with field-replaceable tubes. In fact, replacement tubes, which are available in several colors, are available for every HBI ever built. HBIs are typically supplied without engines or electronics, although the company will deliver a turn-key boat built to the owner’s requirements. Power options on larger models include outboard or inboard engines (including diesel) and outdrive or jet drive systems, and a wide variety of seating options and custom deck configurations (including teak decks) are available.
Among the new projects at Hardbottom Inflatables (incidentally, no other boat can be called an HBI – they own the name) is a 30-foot diesel-jet drive model. This boat’s standard equipment includes a Volvo D6 powerplant mated to an Ultra jet drive unit and a bow thruster. Owners can specify a traditional steering wheel or a multifunction joystick. For more information, visit hbiboats.com.
