Insuring the lot.

we are with cgu and maximum insurance for 4wd accesories is one third the value of the insured value of the vehicle .

Blokes,
I do my insurance through TCIS Insurance Brokers (You need to be a member of a 4x4 club &/or the VKS-737 network). They have had me insured with CGU up until now. My 2000 GU Patrol 4.2 T/D is curently insured for $40K and the accessories etc for $18K.
I got my renewal in the mail yesterday. They are recommending I change to Allianz and the monthly premium is reducing from $69- to $58-. Please note however, that these premium figures relate to the fact I have a 60% no claim bonus and I live in a SA country town (presumably a lower risk rating than the cities).
I listed ALL my gear, including, Bullbar, winch, roof rack, ARB fridge, flouro lights, Bow shackles, snatch/winch straps, water gerry cans plus heaps more.....2 pages of stuff.....(which is always in my truck 24/7) and they accepted it no questions.....but I don't have a boat or outboard.
I'd suggest you give TCIS a call....& if you don't belong to a club, maybe you could consider joining one.....there are other benefits too.
Cheers,
Roachie

Isn't this insurance stuff a nightmare? We also used TCIS for our campertrailer, and are insured through CGU. However, we are NOT members of a 4x4 club or VKS-737, and were never asked if we did belong. We found their ad in 4x4 Monthly and just rang them up. No problem.
Happy travelling
Anne

Problem is the insurers won't cover the porta boat. Has anyone succeeded with this?

I'm with jac , checked one out at last year's camping show and so far if i'm gonna get boat the porta bote looks like it for rivers, estuaries and flat water lake and bay stuff. but always keen for opinions, i have extensively trawled the net for stuff and found only minor complaints relating to water coming in over the bow if there is weight there, problem with the standard ores retaining salt water which leaks onto the caravan or 4WD (ie bad) - but solution was just to get oars from your local mariner place.

Hatcher,
We love the boat! It's great for creeks. estuaries and dams etc. Took it on Brisbane river and had no problems, felt very safe & stable but if you have to go a long way, she's a bit slow. (5hp Tohatsu short shaft keeps it under licensing regs). As far as water coming in we have had no probs whatsoever. It will just plane with 2 people in it and fly with one. The bottom is like a stiff waterbed, very stable.
With limited space at home it suits us, no trailer to worry about and easy to secure away. We have the 10'8" model and it weighs 25kgs. The bigger model is not worth it, too heavy (weighs 30kgs, hard to lift when made up), unless you want space for crab pots etc and the small motors it takes can't push it along fast enough. If you are going to do river fishing all the time get a tinnie, but if it's for camping/offroad 4-6 times/yr you wouldn't buy anything else.
Cleanings a breeze, just hose it out. The seats and transom are marine ply and tuff. The timber oars break in two and are fine, haven't had a problem. We also have the shade Bimini which gets a lot of use.
Takes 15mins to put together (easy) and 5 mins to pack away. The BOSS and I can carry it easily to waters edge. Current set up has pins for seats not wing nuts (much better and quicker). Tie it down on roof rack, motor on towbar mount and away we go. Throw it in the garage at home. It is extremely tuff.
The Australian distributor is great and very helpful. They should have come down in price with the dollar.
No regrets at all except for the insurance companys scratching their heads trying to work out where the hell it fits in the policy.