What is the Best Type of Dinghy?

[JT48348]

I've had a fiberglass hard dingy which was a 8' sailing dingy that could be rowed. Loved it.

I've had two zodiac brand inflatables,one with wood slat floor and one with aluminum panels. Both were PVC. And i had floor problems with both. One was in NC and it was the reason I switched to a hard dink. The other was in the Caribbean and it just could not take the UV.

In the Carbibbean I swtched to a hypalon RIB by Brig and it was bulletproof. Really a nice boat and built far better than Caribe, Avon or other brands.

Years later, I got an hypalon Achillies with aluminum panel floors. I liked it so much i would troll craigslist and buy up old achillies and resell them. They are simply one of the best inflatables around in my opinion

This is what I learned:

-hard dingy for cruising where you're just going ship to shore

-inflatable for cruising when u want to untether from the mothership and you want to explore, or u have alot of people or u need stability

-hypalon over PVC always

-really good oar system even if you have an engine

-RIB bottom over other if you can afford weight. Alum panels over plywoid or slats always

-get the biggest dingy (not the smallest) you can safely lift, tow, tether

i have a 14' Achillies w/ 6hp tohatsu now and if it wasnt for the fact it weighs 230lbs I would have it forever. Its a little overkill for an A27. I'll probably go back to a hard dingy when i cut loose in a few years

[DCatSea]

DesertAlbin736

Really enjoyed your pix; great setup on your 25. This winter I'm mounting our Watertender 9.4 on the swim step, and was very pleased to see that Weavers offer such a practical option.

Thanks for the input.

Doug

[DesertAlbin736]

Years later, I got an hypalon Achillies with aluminum panel floors. I liked it so much i would troll craigslist and buy up old achillies and resell them. They are simply one of the best inflatables around in my opinion

Our "other" dinghy is a 7' 6" Achilles hypalon with a wood floor and inflatable "pillow" thwart. We used to use it with our sailboat and kept it after we sold the sailboat. Unfortunately it developed a slow leak somewhere that I haven't been able to locate yet (I have the proper adhesive and patch material to fix it, only missing a "round tuit"), and won't hold air more than a day.

Would like to be able to carry the inflatable on our Albin like we do with the hard dink, except those Weaver snap davits for inflatables are of opposite design from the ones for hard dinks. That is, for hard dinks the "head" part that you pull to release attaches to the dinghy and engages a "hook" bracket on the swim platform. For inflatables the "hook" part attaches to dinghy with a glue pad and the "head" part attaches to the swim platform. And these things are not cheap! The hard dink setup like we have lists for $315. The swim board kit for inflatables is $415.

[JT48348]

I love my Achilles SGX 132. Buts it's too big at 13+ feet and it weighs a ton. I want to put my dinghy on the roof. So I'm thinking of going to an 8-10" inflatable.

[DCatSea]

A change of heart/mind. We were going to put a 9.4 West Marine/Watertender dinghy on Mazboot, but I am losing confidence in this model, after one exchange for transit damage, and now a considerable amount of water slopping around between the skins even though the boat hasn't been in the water yet, and stored upside down on a rack outside since purchase. (Purchased new from WM; they say they will exchange or refund, so fingers crossed.)

I am intrigued by the Porta-a-Bote concept, and with limited space on a 27FC for storage of traditional dinks I would be willing to consider this option.

Does anyone have any comments or insights on Port-a-Botes as dinghies - stability, safety, portability etc?

Thanks

[Beta Don]

There are as many 'answers' to 'what's the best dink or what's the best anchor' as there are boaters and whoever said 'it all depends' was spot on. What you'll use it for, how you'll stow it, and are you anchoring out or are you a marina hound will be huge factors in your choice. If you anchor a lot & have a dog, you'll be towing it more than you think no matter how you plan to stow it. Over the past 2 months and 1300 miles I've lost count of the boats I see towing dinks . . . . and we've towed our WM Classic Dinghy for all 1300 of those miles. We didn't start out intending to tow it that much - We do have the capability to set it up on the roof, motor and all and no doubt we will do that when we get into the canals where towing is impractical and you don't really need a dink anyway

After seeing and talking to so many boaters on this subject, I've changed my thinking a bit too. We've traveled a bit with a couple on a 40 footer off and on for much of the 1300 miles. We can actually run faster than he can, so oddly an A27 and an underpowered Marine Trader 40 are good companions

Anyway, someone earlier in this thread mentioned a Boston Whaler 11 footer and that's what they are using. With snap davits & rods, a simple block & tackle he can pick it up or launch it in about 5 minutes. He uses a Yamaha 15 two stroke because it's light and he stows it separately. *If you have the space* this is the best combination I've ever seen in about 40 years of boating! Why? It's FAST. With 2 aboard it does about 15 to 20 mph. It's dry. At most any speed, splash is not a problem. It's VERY stable - Almost like an inflatable. It can carry 4 adults and at a reasonable speed too. It's unsinkable with its foam filled floor. That same floor makes it self bailing. He got a couple inches of rainwater in it one night, fired it up and as soon as it started moving he pulled the plug and all the water ran out the hole. It tows like a dream too. They did make a 9 footer that looks just like it. If I ever find one of those for sale, I'll jump on it

I thought I'd never buy another 2 stroke, but if you want to go fast & still be able to handle the weight of the motor, it's probably the way to go

Back to our West Marine Classic Dinghy. We have a 5 hp Tohatsu 4 stroke on it and it's been a very good choice for us. It's very stable since it's nearly 4' wide at the transom, reasobaby fast though it won't quite plane with 2 aboard but it will safely haul the two of us and an incredible amount of cargo. A couple 5 gallon cans and a weeks worth of groceries are no problem. Because it's poly it doesn't bang the swim platform like a fiberglass dink would. Best of all though, it tows like nothing I've ever seen. In winds and seas that would flip over any inflatable, it just rides there on the stern wave, stuck like glue to the water and at the end of a 60 mile day it might have a quart or two of water in it, and I think most of that was probably spray which flew over the top of our A27. At about $500 it's truly been a bargain. But I'll still keep an eye out for a 9' Whaler

Don

[JT48348]

Some technical details:

9' whaler =165lbs
11' whaler = 210
13' whaler = 320lbs

15hp Yamaha 2 stroke = 71lbs

[DCatSea]

Getting a bit frustrated in the hunt for the "ultimate dinghy". Problem exacerbated by recent trip to UK, where it seems that everyone has a great dinghy slung on davits and a habit of saying things like "what do mean, you can't get Pioner Norwegian dinghies in the US". Aaaargh!! (Check them out at: http://www.pionerboat.com/all-products

That said, has anyone on the forum had experience with Puffin Boats (http://www.puffindinghy.com/) of Maine, Saturn Inflatables or Delphinus Inflatables? I have to admit that I am drawn towards hard dinghies, but as cruisin' season looms I am open to suggestions.

Thanks to all and hoping to see some Albin-action in the Chesapeake and Potomac this year.

[JT48348]

I looked into Saturn and some other "white label" brand inflatables. These brands are made at some of the same factories as a few of the better known brands. They are almost always PVC material boats. They have varying quality in their components like oar locks, oars etc. They're made in either a Chinese or Korean factory sold through US based internet dealers.

This is not to say they won't work for you. The price point is so sharp in some cases you could buy a new dinghy every 18-24 months. However it's almost impossible to resell one of these on the used market. It becomes a dispossible dinghy. For me the problem was the PVC. I'd rather have a hard dinghy or Hypalon inflatable or even roto mold vs PVC in a sunny climate. I think Saturn has a Hypalon inflatable but the price point wasn't as sharp and I wasn't convinced the material was same as Achillies or Brig. So I never pulled the trigger.

I like the puffin but the price is too much. I too wish there was a lightweight fiberglass classically designed dinghy. Preferably faux lapstrake. Priced $1000 or less. Weighing 100lbs. Taking up to a 15hp motor. I've thought about making a one off from a donor. But haven't found one yet

[joreyn]

I have an aluminum hull hypalon RIB. It is an Aquapro, and the one I bought came from New Zealand. It has been bulletproof. In came with a coated sunbrella tube cover which has protected the tubes throughout it's life - both from UV, and from wear and tear. Never had a leak. Unfortunately the New Zealand company sold the worldwide manufacturing rights to this inflatable to the Chinese, and the new models that show up from time to time are pure crap.

I've given a lot of thought to a Whaler. But can't bring myself to pull that trigger due to cost and weight. We carry the boat on the upper deck of Blue Moon, and we would not have that option with a Whaler. We would be exclusively towing.

But... for those of you who would really like a hard boat in the lapstrake style, consider Gig Harbor Boats Works. http://www.ghboats.com/

They make a 8' Nisqually, a 9.5' Captains Gig, and a 10' Navigator that are really sweet yacht tenders, and for those who enjoy a sail from time to time, they can be equipped for that. The Captains Gig weighs 88 lbs. (My Aquapro weighs 110, and is considered light for an RIB). The Navigator weighs 90 lbs in fiberglass, but there is an option for a Kevlar version (really strong) which weighs only 75 lbs! The little Nisqually weighs 72 lbs in fiberglass and 62 lbs in Kevlar.

Base price for both models is $1795. You can add varying degrees of wood trim, special rowing options, color striping and as mentioned various sailing packages as options. They also sell really nice oars and have rowlock options, and performance rowing (sliding seats). At the end of the day, you can have a really sweet rowing tender for about $3000.

They have a great web site, and they are very friendly. The boats are custom built to order. Check them out.

[DCatSea]

Some really excellent responses, so thanks to all who have opened my old eyes. I am on the Gig Harbor site as I type, and really like the idea of the Captain's gig, a bit bigger than I wanted, but I'm leaning towards bigger is better anyway. Puffin is sending an updated price list, so I will keep AOG up to date on that as well.

The game's afoot, and I have a scent, so we'll see what develops; no great rush, and I'm enjoying the search.

Doug

[JT48348]

75-90 lbs ! Pure magic. But I feel like a hard dink lapstrake ought to be close to $1000. There's a company in WA called the Dinghy Co.

$995 for a 9' lapstrake rower I think
No idea of weight or the shipping costs

[joreyn]

Just put 10% down on a 2011 Gig Harbor Navigator. $2100. Private party. Has Kevlar roving, reinforced sheer for storing on Weaver Davits. Two beautiful fir spoon oars. Adjustable rowing position. Boat is in beautiful condition. Weighs 75 lbs with the extra Kevlar and the davits. When I get it home I'll post some pictures.

[DesertAlbin736]

I like the puffin but the price is too much. I too wish there was a lightweight fiberglass classically designed dinghy. Preferably faux lapstrake. Priced $1000 or less. Weighing 100lbs. Taking up to a 15hp motor. I've thought about making a one off from a donor. But haven't found one yet

JT,

Being in Detroit if you could find a used Boatex from somewhere over the border, they're a good little boat, as seen in pics I posted earlier in this thread. The builder went out of business 10 years ago, but their should be some used ones on the market somewhere. But they won't take a 15 HP motor. Mine is almost over powered with a 2.5 HP Tohatsu. Ours is a bit like a Gig Harbor 8 ft Nisqually but not quite as nice. If you could find a Boatex 8 they should run somewhere around $250 to $500. Of course with an A25 we are limited to 8 ft length if we want to stow on snap davits. Even then it hangs out past the gunn'ls since A25 is narrower than 8 ft at the stern.