hi everyone: i'm looking at a 51 Enc bridge Riviera for low impact/non tournament fishing and cruising with family. some guys have said they fall apart in heavy seas, some have said with no hard core fishing in tournaments and staying away from having to go fast in heavy seas, we should be fine. i am trying to get to the bottom of it. anyone know how thick the hulls are and what they are made out of? anyone know anything current about Riviera in general and this model in particular? thanks for any feedback.
I've only run 1 Riviera. But I highly doubt you are going to have issues with the hull in a rough sea. I think what people mean by falling apart would be issues with interior woodwork and stuff like that. I know they are not built as strong as say a Hatteras or Viking, but as long as you're not running at cruise in 8' seas you'll probably be fine.
thanks for the feedback. a boat broker in Texas said with the "Texas choppy water" they didn't do good, and one guy had some hull separation, and since Riviera was in receivership at the time, he had a tough time getting it resolved. i've since learned that the guy was a tournament fisherman and fished pretty hard. so i'm thinking that if i don't get after it like that, i should be ok. we really liked our 47 Cabo, and one person has told me that the boats are similar and if we liked the Cabo we should like the Riviera?
I would not compare a Cabo to a Riviera, they are simply not in the same league. I would say Riviera is your Searay of Sportfishes. Strong enough for the average owner doing your average owner trips and fishing. The electrical is weird on them, that much I can say. A lot of weird relays and things like that in the ER. I would compare them to say an Ocean, which I've never personally seen anything bad happen to the Oceans and I've been involved with several over the years. But it definately is no Cabo. If you were happy with the Cabo, why not go back to a Cabo? Or a newish Viking SF? or the 54' Hatt SF from the early-mid 2000's is a great running SF also........
Background - game fished out of sydney for a number of years and been around marinas for a while, but never owned a Riv. My business partner does. Rivs are built as family/crusing boats. Round nose for bigger room at the front, flatter bottoms, bigger salon, smaller back deck. They are not aimed at the offshore market. Build quality is appropriate for that market. Run it in a sea and they are usually wet and pound and not great in a following sea - simply because of what the hull is not aimed at that. Game/Offshore boats are finer nosed, deeper V, heavier, less space, use more fuel. Despite claims, its an imutable law. Light high volume hulls get knocked around. Heavier deep V's less so. So its a case of what you want it for. If its mainly crusing with family, its fine. It will also be ok at sea on a bad day - just go a little slower. Also, push most boats too hard offshore for a period of time, and bits will crack. If you have ever been on a good sized boat that has gone over a wave and found nothing but air, you know that sickening crash as the ass hits the water is doing some damage even if you can't see it yet. Summary - get it checked and assess it based on expected use.
