Kapten Boat Collars are a small boat stabilizer for standard tinnies,
V-nose/flat-nose punts and fibreglass/plastic hulls up to 6 metres.
SOLVE TIPPY TINNIE ISSUES
Boats have always been rocky, so you just put up with unsteady boarding, strict rules about keeping to you own side and having scared passengers. Are you one of the boat owners that puts off getting out there because of this?
GET YOUR CONTROL BACK
You're not thrilled about crossing bars, because you know how easy it is for boats to broach, nose-dive and capsize on small waves. Perhaps a bit of wake is all that's needed to send your boat wayward.
TURN CHOP INTO CLOUDS
Your back suffers the "bang" through choppy conditions, and you're sick of spray drenching you and your crew. Sometimes even specific spray-rails can only stop half the water that shoots over the sides, onto you.
THE BENEFITS YOU'VE BEEN DREAMING OF
STABILITY OF A CATAMARAN
Like buoyant "feet" all around you, your footprint in the water is increased, making your boat feel much bigger, when you move around and when travelling. Other stability products only work when at rest, but your Boat Collar works at all times to keep you balanced and comfortable. Boarding of a monohull has never been this stable and safe.
Over half of all fatal boating accidents in small vessels are due to capsizing and falling overboard (NSW DoT findings for 2002 - 2012). Why do boats capsize? Essentially, because they're unstable. Why do people fall overboard? Usually, because their boat is unstable. A stable vessel is not just about comfort, it's about keeping your crew safe and secure in your vessel. The conditions on the water are simple: if you're not in your boat, you're in trouble.
Click images for captions and to enlarge.
4.2m Stessco Catcher
"[the kids] were moving about the boat like it was an aircraft carrier. I was about to remind them of our earlier brief, but the boat was so steady, I let it go, and they had a ball." - St John J.
4.8m Stacer
"...It’s like I’ve got a different boat altogether. It feels even bigger... The stability of my boat is now fantastic. In the two years I’ve had it, I can’t fault it, and I always recommend it to other boaties.” - Andrew Taylor
4.35m Allycraft Intruder
"Rhonda found it far more stable to climb into... Great stability and supreme confidence in moving around... We increased load to 3 adults and a small dog and felt like nothing changed at all. " - Steve
SOFT & DRY RIDES
Soft, dry rides is produced thanks to the down-angle of the reverse chine shape that traps vast volumes of water between your hull and your KBC, when you travel. This generates a great amount of pressure, for lift. "Lift" means you ride higher in the water, lessening the ups and downs and slowing vertical impact. And, of course, all that spray that's used for lift, makes for the driest ride you've ever experienced.
4.8m Stacer
"I used to arrive at the boat ramp drenching wet, but now I laugh at the other guys dripping wet, because I'm bone dry."
- Andrew Taylor
DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AND BROACHING RESISTANCE
Whether you're a small tinnie in a river, battling with other boat's wakes, or a larger boat crossing bars, you now have the confidence that your boat can handle practically anything you come across.
Just passing another boat's decent wake in a river is enough to put many boaties teeth on edge, as broaching, nose diving and capsizing happens in rivers a lot, too. That's why we've tested our Collars to the extreme, so you can rest assured that your boat is better equipped to keep you and your crew safe and steady.
4.2m Quintrex Dory
"I turned sharply to the left and ended up in a deep compression wave. The bow started to dig in, but the Boat Collar lifted the bow up, and I was able to keep the power on and get us out of it."
- Ranger Geoff J.
4.5m Savage w/ BarCrusher cab
"In a large following sea, the transformation is equally pronounced, with the vessel maintaining a far more consistent running angle. Especially as you approach the backs of larger swells ... the bow shows no tendency to plough, but just lift." - Colin B.
4.2m Allycraft
"The boat now tracks straight no matter the swell and fighting the tiller is a thing of the past... Coming into the river mouth at day's end was a breeze. [When] the afternoon swell...turns into a veritable washing machine fraught with danger...the boat tracked true and it was a real non-event." - Mike N.
4.2m fibreglass Rouge
"Even when the the chop was a good 2 metres, I was so impressed. The boat handled so well, I didn’t even think about the waves. I can take any waves at any angle, no worries." - Jake A.
WHEN WILL YOU REGRET NOT HAVING LEVEL FLOTATION?
Dangers of "positive" or "basic" flotation in boats
Dangerous, really? Yes, because this smaller amount of flotation is often placed under a vessel's floor or in the seats, so when that boat then takes on water, the buoyancy (air) is under or below the weight of the crew. Where does air want to go when it's under water? Like an upside-down cup of air that's held under water and released, your boat will also want to tip, to let the air up! In the same way, buoyancy that's placed in the centre of a boat makes the boat prone to capsize with even a small amount of water on top. When this water sloshes to one side, the boat becomes unbalanced and within moments, the crew is in the drink, and your fishing & safety gear is sinking.
So why is "basic" or "positive" flotation types used so often?
Well, Level flotation takes up more room inside, and is more expensive to build into a boat, so Basic/Positive flotation is used to keep space at a maximum and retail prices affordable. Basic/Positive flotation does keep a compromised boat from sinking down to the depths. But it leaves the crew paddling and clinging to the bow (usually) until help arrives.
How is "level flotation" better?
Level flotation is achieved when the right amount of buoyancy is placed around the perimeter of the boat, to keep the vessel, crew and equipment safe within the boundaries of the buoyancy. This keeps the flooded boat balanced, level and safe for crew to stay on board (even if they also have flotation under the floor). How Kapten Boat Collars do this, is by placing the flotation around the outside of the boat, so no room is lost inside, and the result of all that buoyancy around the outside is very similar to an inflatable boat.
All commercial boats in Australia must have level flotation by law, because it gives the crew of a swamped boat the best chance of avoiding injuries & exposures, like hypothermia, but also allows them a chance to motor ashore to safety.
At the end of this flood test, the crew of three were able to motor all the way to shore, with the bungs still out! In a serious situation, this ability could be a lifesaver.
Flood testing a 3 metre Polycraft Tuff Tender for commercial survey. Other than the 3 people, there are weights on the floor, so that the boat passed for 315kg.
The first thing Alyssa and Bryce wanted to do with their new Collar was conduct their own flood test. They got it so their 3m tender could double as a type of liferaft.
The above photo shows phenomenal stability of a flooded boat. One person stands in the centre and two are stand on the side, without any fear of the boat dangerously tipping.
After this flood test, Bryce was able to sit to one side, knee deep in water, and create all that motion of bucketing out the water, without any signs of tipping.
3m tender
"...we have attempted to sink her (pulled out the bung and filled her up) and she stayed afloat with both Bryce and I onboard. In the event that we did need to abandon ship and were caught in rough weather, we would use this same technique (filling her with water) to lower her center of gravity." - Alissa and Bryce
4.8m Stacer
“My 4.8m boat is well designed with good high sides, but it still got swamped by a wave and capsized, despite the seas being relatively calm that day.” - Andrew Taylor, who got a Collar after spending 10 hours clinging to his upside down hull (Epirb and flares sank). After sunrise, he swam 4 klms ashore, and his close-call made the paper.
Commercial 3m Polycraft Tuff Tender
Passed level flotation to 315 kgs (3 people + weights used for test). Passed by Nick Lockyer, of KPSmaritine.com.au. Two boats used for commercial day hire.
- Redcliff Hire Boats
Air spaces flooded, too
Commercial 4.2m Allycraft
"It is worth noting that the boat [with KBC] is in survey for 5 people - one more than the boat compliance places state."
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- Club Crocodile
DO YOU HAVE COMMERCIAL BOATS THAT NEED CERTIFIED LEVEL FLOTATION?
WHAT'S THE SECRET TO
MAKING BOAT COLLARS WORK?
MARINE GRADE FOAM THAT FIXES TO THE CHINE OR GUNWALE (TENDERS)
SPECIFIC ANGLE
The specific down-angled reverse chine is not only to capture spray and pressurise it for lift, but also to give lateral grip through water, for directional control (think board fins).
BUOYANCY
With non-deflatable flotation all along your boat, not only are your movements and journeys balanced, but you're basically enjoying a liferaft that can not sink.
TOUGH MARINE FOAM
For all the water pressure a KBC cops, it has to be strong. We only use marine-grade closed-cell foam (non absorbent), and pockets of metal plates for screws to fix it tight.
ABOUT THE INVENTION OF KAPTEN BOAT COLLARS
The boat you see on waves in this video is me, an old surfer since the 1960s, who has been addicted to boating since I was a boy. It's what drew me into becoming a qualified boilermaker - to build boats! I built many boats for others, before building my own sailing yacht in 1993, which we swapped for the family home, for 8 fantastic years. However, the unsafe choice of either a tippy tinnie or deflatable RIB, for my family's daily travel, really got under my skin.
However, it wasn't until 2009, when a bar crossing nearly capsized my 4.3m tinnie, that I was pushed to invent the Kapten Boat Collar. The near-miss scared me enough that I quit the best job of my life and put all my effort into solving the problems of most small boats, that had bugged me for decades.
To this day, I still live and breathe the Kapten Boat Collar (and now Waverider boat) solution, because I want to make a difference.
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CONTACT/VISIT
Office: (07) 5441 3636
Mobile: 0423 499 047
58 Arundell Ave Nambour, QLD, Australia 4560.
info@kaptenboats.com
BUSINESS DETAILS
Australian Patent # 2010210449. American Patent Application # 13/083,588 - Watercraft Accessory.
Marine Safety Innovations Pty Ltd.
ABN # 53 141 908 385
Australian owned & operated since 2010