Wiking inflatable boats

Wiking inflatable boat yard Hanel KG
legal form	Company with limited liability
founding	1956
Seat	Hofgeismar , Germany
Number of employees	70 (1985)
Branch	Boat building
Website	www.wiking-schlauchboote.de
	As of November 30, 2005

The Viking boat Werft GmbH is a manufacturer of inflatable boats .

History of the shipyard

comet

The history of the Wiking inflatable boat yard began in the early 1950s with the construction of inflatable boats.

When the brothers Otto and Klaus Hanel were in the water on the Rhine in 1952, Otto said to his brother that you could build a floor under their car tires, then you wouldn't have to freeze anymore. With that the idea for boat building was pronounced. They then converted a tractor tire into a rubber dinghy in their father's wood processing company. After these first experiments, the siblings built their first series inflatable boat model in 1953, and boat manufacture was incorporated into their father's company as a new branch of the business. After great sales success, a separate company was registered in 1956 under the name Wiking Gummibootwerft Hanel KG.

From the initial paddle boats of the " Standard " type , the first of which swam on the Weser in 1953, the motorized rubber dinghy was created in 1954. In the first year, 200 units with Zündapp engines were sold. Further developments in the following years and 31 registered patents ensured growth in the shipyard.

In 1985, at the height of development, the siblings Otto and Klaus Hanel sold the Wiking shipyard to two long-term employees. Otto and Klaus Hanel emigrated to Canada with a new destination. They wanted to manufacture boats for the US market, but this idea did not prevail there. Both brothers continued to live in Canada and pursued other ideas and passions. Otto Hanel came back to Germany in 2000, where he died in 2004 at the age of 80. Klaus Hanel died on January 6, 2011 at the age of 87 in Ontario / Canada.

In the meantime, the shipyard continued to expand under the new management, so that in 1988 a new exhibition hall had to be built. After further years of growth, however, the economy fell, so that at the end of 2000 bankruptcy had to be filed for the first time. Despite the new business owner in the meantime, the shipyard initially ended in November 2005. Former employees tried to continue the business activities until a new managing director took over the shipyard in 2014. On August 23, 2017, Wiking Gummibootwerft GmbH in Hofgeismar was dissolved due to renewed bankruptcy and the old factory building was demolished on February 16, 2018. On March 1, 2018, the WIKING inflatables in Wolfhagen near Kassel became active again under a new owner, but their official website (Wiking inflatable boats) has been offline since the beginning of 2019.

Sales / publications

When the first production model was ready in 1953, dealers were sought. Since at that time a rubber dinghy was not yet considered a piece of sports equipment, no sales partner was found. On the spur of the moment, direct sales were carried out from the shipyard and were the only sales channel right up to the end. Later there were some representations in Germany and abroad (Switzerland, Greece, the Netherlands, Austria, Canada and the USA).

The in-house newspaper of the Wiking shipyard "Wiking-Ahoi" went to print for the first time in 1964 under the editorship of Werner Lange. It should serve to maintain contact with customers and deepen the contact of the pleasure boaters within the Wiking community, which at that time was already numbered tens of thousands. This annual in-house newspaper was sent to Wiking customers free of charge; the first issue was already 30,000 copies. Due to the increased costs and (quotation from Ahoi No. 30) “too low a number of depositors on a voluntary basis”, the last issue of Wiking-Ahoi was published in 1992. The newspapers that are still available have now become a sought-after collector's item among fans of the Wiking inflatable rafters.

Range of inflatable boats

The Wega 480 model is available with or without a foredeck

model	Length × width	Hose Ø	Weight	Max. PS	Bj.	comment
default	350 × 102 cm	30 cm	29 kg	3 hp	1953-1977	The shipyard's first official displacement inflatable boat (still without a transom). The first 50 were made with plastic tubing, from 1954 with rubber fabric and motorized, from 1956 with a slim bow and reinforced round tail, from 1957 with a blunt tail fin and V-shaped air keel
comet	390 × 145 cm	40 cm	75 kg	40 hp	1955-1970	Pointed bags and pointed bow, V-bottom, largest boat at the time
planet	350 × 125 cm	35 cm	62 kg	10-18 hp	1961-1969	Pointed cones and pointed bow, first V-bottom, long tail fins
Standard Heck60	370 × 120 cm	35 cm	47 kg	10 hp	1960-1970	Flat bottom boat with fork stern, planing boat
Standard Heck61	375 × 135 cm	40 cm	62 kg	20 hp	1961-1970	first speed record (50.92 km / h, 18 hp, France 1963), from 1964 with wheel control
Planet70	320 × 160 cm	40 cm	50 kg	25 hp	1970-1972	Pointed cones and pointed bow, V-bottom
Planet73	345 × 160 cm	40 cm	60 kg	25 hp	1973-1978
Minor	285 × 154 cm	41 cm	49 kg	10 hp		3-way Trevira / Synotex
comet	390 × 155 cm	40 cm		40 hp	1971-1976	Pointed cones and blunt, broad bow
Comet GT	410 × 170 cm	40 cm		65 hp	1972-1976
Comet 340	340 × 152 cm			40 hp	1982- ..	Speed tail and blunt, wide bow, V-bottom
Free boat 6	345 × 165 cm	45 cm	28 kg	6 hp	1977 -...	Speed tail, triple boat skin, 8 mm plywood slab boats. Also available with a five-fold boat skin, then 12 mm base plates and a weight of 45 kg.
Free boat 6	325 × 150 cm	41 cm	40 kg	6 hp	1978- ..	Speedheck, triple boat skin, 12 mm floor plates
Free boat 4	280 × 135 cm	36 cm	28 kg	4 hp	1979- ..	Speedback, flat bottom
Free boat 2.5	250 × 135 cm		28 kg	4 hp
Dinghy 2.5	250 × 135 cm		28 kg	4 hp
Sirius S	285 × 135 cm		33 kg	6 hp
Sputnik 315	315 × 153 cm		67 kg	20 hp
Octant	325 × 150 cm	41 cm	43 kg	10 hp	1987 -...	3-way Trevira / Synotex
Libra	325 × 165 cm	41 cm	59 kg	25 hp	1991- ..	PVC boat skin
Cat 3.8	380 × 168 cm	45 cm	55 kg	10 hp	1971- ..
Planet 15	350 × 158 cm	41 cm	62 kg	15 hp	1982-1985	Triple boat skin, V-plate floor, plexiglass bow pulpit
Planet 20	350 × 158 cm	41 cm	62 kg	20 hp	1986-1991
Comet Camp	350 × 152 cm	40 cm	70 kg	40 hp	1981- ..	Comet without a hood in front, replaced by a diving boat. 3- and 5-way Trevira / Hypalon
Diving boat	380 × 170 cm	40 cm	79 kg	45 hp
comet	350 × 152 cm	40 cm	72 kg	40 hp	1977- ..	3- and 5-way Trevira / Hypalon
Orion 350	350 × 170 cm	40 cm	82 kg	30 hp		Comet with GRP rigid hull
Saturn	380 × 152 cm	40 cm	85 kg	40 hp	1984- ..	3- and 5-way Trevita / Hypalon. Replaced by Draco 380.
Draco 380	380 × 170 cm	40 cm	86 kg	45 hp
Draco 410	410 × 190 cm	45 cm	111 kg	45 hp		in short and Long shaft version, also offered as offshore
Saturn FR	380 × 152 cm	40 cm	85 kg	45 hp		Saturn with GRP rigid hull, replaced by Dorado 380
RTB DL 400	400 × 204 cm		89 kg	45 hp		Work boat / lifeboat, PVC fabric
Dorado 380	380 × 170 cm	40 cm	110 kg	45 hp		Successor to the Saturn, also with a GRP rigid hull
GTS diving boat	420 × 180 cm	40 cm	98 kg	70 hp	1982- ..	Comet GTS open at the front
Comet GTS	410 × 180 cm	45 cm	105 kg	60 hp	1978- ..
Sea trip	410 × 180 cm	45 cm	141 kg	70 hp	1980- ..	5-way Hypalon, zipper in foredeck, Spider frame as standard equipment
Sea trip FR	410 × 190 cm	45 cm	148 kg	75 hp		Sea trip with GRP rigid hull, replaced by Merkur 410
Mercury 410	410 × 190 cm	45 cm	130 kg	60 hp
Meteor 460	460 × 210 cm	53 cm	174 kg	90 hp	1986 -...	replaced by Wega 480
Way 480	480 × 230 cm	53 cm	272 kg	105 hp	* .wmv
Hercules 700	710 × 250 cm		440 kg	200 hp		offshore
Wotan TDI 570	570 × 238 cm	61 cm	735 kg	150 hp	* .wmv	VW Marine, Z-drive Bravo 1, offshore
Titanium 570	570 × 238 cm	61 cm	370 kg	136 hp		Versions with inboard and outboard motors partially approved for up to 205 HP

Innovations / special features

V-plate bottom: The dismountable V-plate floor made of 12 mm special boat plywood brought increased safety and improved driving characteristics. Since these boats could be completely dismantled, they could easily be transported in the trunk without a trailer.
Speed tail: Since 1977 the boats have been built with the patented speed stern. The sharp tail cones were replaced by a straight end to the rear hoses. This lengthened the waterline, so the transom could be moved further back, which led to an enlargement of the interior. More buoyancy, better demolition of the water's edge and better handling characteristics were also an effect of this invention.
Spider frame: Optional steel profile strips that are standard on some models and are screwed to the V-bottom. In this way, the drive force and torsion could be better directed into the ground and twisting of the boat could be avoided or reduced.
Adrianboden: Plates that were fastened horizontally on the V-plates in order to obtain a level standing surface in the boat.
Glued seams: The hand-cut fabric parts were roughened and bevelled at the cut edges through manual skill and, in some cases, the employees' decades of experience.; The Hypalon models were manufactured with cold-vulcanized seams. This process achieved airtightness for several months and improved the durability of the seams. This is the reason why models that were made 30 years ago still hold the air very well to this day.
Boat skin (shipyard's own coating method): For models (except Planet, Cat, Oktant, Sirius and private boats) up to 40 HP, the boat skin consists of a triple skin. A layer of Trevira fabric ( Trevira - fiberglass-reinforced polyester-based fabric) was embedded between two layers of synthetic rubber ( neoprene ) . The outside was additionally coated with Hypalon in order to achieve good aging resistance.; Models over 40 HP consist of five-ply skin. Here two layers of Trevira fabric are embedded in three layers of neoprene. External coating also with Hypalon.; Models Planet, Cat, Oktant, Sirius and Freiboot are made of Synotex and thermo-welded seams. Synotex is an artificial word and trade name for a light, high-quality, PVC- based coated Trevira fabric . It was developed by Wiking inflatable boats | Wiking inflatable boat yard in cooperation with the company Haku.
Sails: There were sails for Standard, Cat 380, Planet70, Komet, Komet GT, Komet GTS, Saturn and Seetörn.

Racing / tours / travel

Sporting successes

Tours / travel: 1961:
At the beginning of June 1961 a Wiking inflatable boat of the "Komet" type circumnavigated Sicily (for the second time). The boat, equipped with an 18 HP Johnson engine, with the journalists Werner Lange and Lebrecht Knipping as a team, started on the Aeolian Islands and circled the island clockwise. The 1200 km were covered in 8 days in partly stormy weather.; 1979:; Trip from Lebrecht Knipping with an inflatable boat model sea trip from Venice to Port Said / Egypt, 1776 nautical miles in 16 days!; Entry in the Guinness Book of Records : most driven km with a Wiking inflatable boat; In 34 years, Knipping covered a total of 114,000 km in just under 4,000 hours. On the way he met famous contemporaries of his time on the high seas, including the marine researcher Jacques Cousteau (1910–1997), whose autograph is also on Knippings' logbook. The extraordinary achievements were enough to enter the trained businessman from Altena in the "GUINNESS Book of Records", born in 1993.; 1994:; In the spring, Bodo Müller and Henryk Wolski were the first Western Europeans to take an old Viking route from the Baltic to the Black Sea. The 2,500 km long rubber dinghy journey across rivers, through swamps and torrential streams was documented in the TV film The Wild East . The two-parter ran on MDR. The book Company Wiking was published by Ullstein Verlag from the same expedition .

References

Brochures from the shipyard
Wiking Ahoi born 1964 to 1991
Boats magazine 6/1996
Stander magazine 8/1996
Skipper 5/1996
Skipper 1/2005
Kassel District Court

literature

Werner Lange: Two buckets of air through the Mediterranean . Delius Klasing, Bielefeld, ISBN 3-7688-0061-X
Bodo Müller: Company Wiking . Ullstein, Berlin, ISBN 3-548-23780-0

Web links

Commons : Wiking Inflatable Boats - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

^ Obituary by Klaus Hanel
↑ Circumnavigation of Sicily. In: "Kanu-Sport", 30th year, issue 24/1961, p. 428.

[1] Obituary by Klaus Hanel

[2] Circumnavigation of Sicily. In: "Kanu-Sport", 30th year, issue 24/1961, p. 428.