The Dinghy Thread

[WillieC]

The Oxford Comma! Such erudition from this humble boaty website! Nancy will be proud! You say Labour, I say Labor.
Let's call the whole thing off!

[DesertAlbin736]

I wasn't sure & didn't check if Canada even had a Labour day holiday. Yes, British Commonwealth vs Yankee spelling, harbor/harbour, liter/litre, metric centimeters & kilometers vs feet, inches, and miles, Fahrenheit vs Celsius, millibars vs Kilo Pascals. Takes a bit of getting used to. At least our car has the option of displaying speed in digital form as either miles or kilometers, so we hopefully won't get speeding tickets in Ontario or Quebec. At least we all drive on the right.

[Sunsetrider]

You can do a hundred on the 401!

[DCatSea]

Sunset,

I am very pleased with the sponson installation. Did it single-handed, using #8 x 3/4 SS bolts with SS washers and locking nuts, at 8" centers (or so). They say #6, but frankly I prefer to use #8s. Sponsons slid right on, but I think I am going to put a bit of Petroleum Jelly (Vaseline) on the runner. Regarding the Suzi 2.5. I will let you know later in the week how it pushes us along. It certainly did a decent job on my 9' Zodiac HP. Perhaps not what you would call scintillating, but pretty quiet, light and dead easy to lift on and off as it only weighs about 29 lbs. Also, the built in gas tank means that little room is taken up.

Desert Albin,

First, love reading your tomes on your travels. Thanks for posting. Your gig harbor is very sweet, and looks as if it gives sterling service. Regarding fitting of stabilizer; I could run the length of a football field and hit bleachers on both sides, so a little extra stability will not be amiss. And anyway the sponsons slide right on and off as needed, so if I don't want to appear too dorky I can always stow them out of sight.

Doug

[DesertAlbin736]

I think you will find that 2.5 HP is more than enough power for an 8 foot hardshell dinghy. Ours is of similar size & configuration, and with our Tohatsu 2.5 anything more than 3/4 throttle is too much. The bigger issue will be shifting weight to maintain fore and aft balance at speed. With one person aboard you'll want to try to sit as close to midships as you can so the bow doesn't rise up too much at faster speeds. With two persons, one needs to sit way up front and driver sits close the stern, or between stern and middle seats.

[Sunsetrider]

Here is a shot of the dinghy with new hardware, including re-positioned oarlocks. I still need to sand and paint the interior - have to decide on paint and colour. I should be able to run the tiller from the centre bench easier than from the rear seat. I don't think a tiller extension will be necessary but I might end up with a sore neck!

Also pictured is an item I just ordered from Amazon - it is to mount the motor to the top pushpit rail for storage. Now I just need the motor. The black plastic things are sleeves for inside the channels in the wood to fit a 7/8" tube.

The Suzi comes with a 6-year warranty just now. And it has good reviews, is carried by the marina in my village. So . . . might as well get on with it.

[DesertAlbin736]

That should do the trick!

[Sunsetrider]

Actually, maybe a tiller extension will be necessary after all. But I'll wait and see.
I follow a Facebook Group about the Albin 25 in Sweden. With translate it is very informative, although mostly photos of serene and isolated coves. The real fun is seeing pics of dozens of Albin 25s at regular get-togethers, and seeing what many have done to personalize their vessels. But I digress . . .

Today a Swedish member posted couple of pics and a brief vid which gave me the final push into deciding to get a 2.5 hp gas motor. The guy had lost his prop while out cruising. They rigged a 2x4 across the outboard ledge of the swim platform, secured their 2 hp Honda dinghy motor to it, and happily motored the A25 all the way home. (I could not figure out how to link to the post). Seeing is believing! Voyaging afar with a 45-year-old motor holds certain terrors, and having even this minimal level of redundancy is quite cheering.

The group is Albin 25 Agare.

[DCatSea]

Sponsons 1.JPG

Finally - Here are pix of the installed Seoladair 6" sponsons on our 8' dinghy. I also added a couple of SS handrails - Whaler style. Have yet to do any real cosmetic work - painting etc - and will leave that until cooler weather. The 2.5 Suzi should bang it along nicely.

Sunsetter - love the jury-rigged propulsion unit on the swim platform. Mazboot came with the pulpit rail doohickey, and it works well. I hang the O/B inside the railing. At 29lbs you can pretty much throw it around single handed.

[Sunsetrider]

Looking good, Doug! I went ahead and bought the same motor yesterday - the Suzi 2.5. Did the 15 minute idle breakin. It really pushes my little dinghy along. But I need to sit on the centre bench or the bow. Reaches for the sky. I ordered the 18 inch tiller extension and the sponsons.

[MayaMC]

We have a new 8' AB aluminum dinghy and use a Hurley H2O system on the swim platform ( https://hurleymarine.com/shop/dinghy-davit-boat/h2o).... works nicely, one person can load and unload the dink and rides nicely underway. No dragging.

[kerrye]

We recently bought a 14' Kaboat and really like it. It paddles about as efficiently as a 14' whitewater canoe. It can take up to a 10 hp outboard on its transom. We also use an electric trolling motor in addition to paddling. Pretty reasonably priced. Comes with hand pump, oars, repair kit and carry bag. We carry ours on the top of our A25. Light enough to get up there easily.

http://www.boatstogo.com/kayaks-sk430.a ... gIKa_D_BwE

[Sunsetrider]

Wow - would love to see a pic of the A25 with that atop.

[kerrye]

Thought I had one but I searched and couldn't find it so I guess not. The stern 'hoop' for our enclosure is permanently mounted 1" stainless steel. The Koboat rides on that and the wheelhouse roof.

[Sunsetrider]

I guess you have a hardtop over the helm - can't remember the pictures of your boat. I wonder if that might not be needed - if the arch and aluminum canopy support would be enough.