Stowing a dinghy on Albin 28TE hardtop

[BRISWISH]

Hey all. I'm new and just posted in the new member introduction forum . I searched AOG and found a lot of information about davits and dinghy sizes for davits, but haven't found much information on stowing a dinghy on the hardtop. Does anyone stow their dinghy on their hardtop? Pics? Dinghy recommendations?

I am a pretty avid fisherman and don't quite want to explore davits. I measured and see that I am working with 95 inches between the spotlight and stern side of the hardtop under the radar arch. Briefly looked into Takacats and the 260lx model would work, the 300lx is a maybe.

But now I am looking into other dinghy's with inflatable decks or non-ribbed decks. Need something light.

Also, if you stow your dinghy on the hardtop, where do you stow your motor? Thinking I may need to build stand... Don't want to store on the transom door.

Thanks!
Brian

[Sisu22]

We have a 10' Achilles with the hi pressure floor that we store on the hardtop. Nothing fancy, but we don't have a spotlight up there either. Been thinking about a more clever way to get it up on top, which is possible for two adults but a huge pain for only one person.

We store a small outboard in the transom middle storage.

[RobS]

In this linked thread there are two shots of my LSI260 (air floor) on my 28TE hardtop. Second shot was after I raised the radome with a scanstrut.

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=8125&hilit=dinghy

[BRISWISH]

Thanks @Sisu22 ! I wasn't sure I could fit a 10' up there. I also have a horn attached to the radar arch that I'll likely need to move.

Appreciate the pics @RobS. I came across a steal through a friend. He is selling me a PRU-3 Performance Roll-Up Inflatable dink (used once) with a 2.5hp motor. Similar size to yours. I thought I might have to deflate and inflate each weekend, but looks like I might be able to get away with stowing it on the roof. I have a front spotlight that I don't see in your pics which may be challenging. I'll figure it out next week once I pick up the dink.

[RobS]

I have a front spotlight that I don't see in your pics which may be challenging....

I had that spotlight and it fit inside the upside down dinghy without a problem. It also kept the forward end of the dinghy centered from movement..

[Mike Monte]

I have been stowing my dingy on my (28TE) hardtop for the past 17 years.
It is a Westmarine "roll-up" with slat bottom.
My fully-inflated dingy is stowed upside down with its stern facing the front of my 28TE.
-I installed two SS eyes near the front of the hardtop that clip to the running lines of the dingy (near the dink's transom).
-The bow of the dingy is secured with a line through/secured to the port/starboard eyes of the dingy and tied to the radar arch.
The bow of my dingy clears the "horn" by about 6"".

It's not the the most "speedo-looking" set up but is very efficient....I just untie/unclip, secure a line, and drop it overboard.
I can haul it myself....but at 62y/o I can see that hauling it in a couple of years may become an issue (gotta hit the gym I guess - lol).

[LillianpFD]

I sometimes just throw my inflated dingy (9 ft Zodiac fastroller) in my cockpit when i needed to bring it with me but it gets dirty from sitting in the marina as the summer wears on. I've switched to keeping it rolled up and in its' bag and blow it up when i get to my destination. I bought the ryobi high inflater tool that works with my 18V batteries and feel that for a long anchorage or an overnight i can inflate and deflate without too much hassle and only a little lifting. My 8 hp engine just lies in my cockpit on a towel and I only have it on board when i need it. I would have the same issue on space on my roof as i have the searchlight and the horn in the way.

[BRISWISH]

Thanks Mike and Lillian. I purchased a used 8ft inflatable West Marine dingy from a friend. Haven't had the opportunity to try and see how it would fit on the hard top. It starting deflating the first day of use and I blew it up on the water once anchored .

Going to see if I can fix the leak and if not, look into other new options.