Dinghy desires

[tomD]

Metzler inflatable

I use a Metzler with inflatable floor--transom and seat are wood, oars are sectional, the original "boat-in-a-bag". It tows behind the Catalina 22 with little fuss, is light and w. an ancient Evinrude 2 hp is ideal. About 9' long

 

[Don Evans]

Dinks...

For the type of sailing waters I find myself in, the hard dinghy I have works well for me. It is a Boatex, 8' fiberglass, with a nice lapstrake design, nice chines, large keelson. Tracks very well when pulled, rows like a champ, takes a 3 hp OB and sailing it is fun. I carry the sail, mast and boom on deck in a homemade nylon sack (to preserve the sail). Training the kids about sailing in her, but also holds the family (2+2) for shoreside excursions and fishing from it. Weighs 65 lbs so can hoist it onto the roof of the car at the seasons end. Comes with a custom cover, ores, locks and all necessary sailing hardware. Just about perfect for my needs. Built in Canada and you lucky Americans can buy one for about 40% less than I did.Don

 

[Eric C Lindstrom]

Nesting dinghy

We have a hard dinghy the actually comes apart into two pieces. The bow section fits into the stern section (flipped over). The whole thing is held together with wing nuts and rubber washers. Add a 2.5 hp Tohatsu (and two gigantic oars for when the engine conks) and you have the perfect Dyer dinghy.Both pieces apart can be carried by one person and actually fit in the back of my Jeep Wrangler!

 

[Evan Wright]

Real men don't use outboards

We use a 4 person Avon inflatable as well as a 2 person kayak. The inflatable stores in a duffel bag below, while the kayak sits on the deck. An outboard is messy, back-breaking, noisy and not worth the effort. Besides, the shoreboat is available for $5 and a radio call.... if you need to see civilization.... but that's what were getting away from....Plus its hard to find fuel in an uninhabited island.... This system works for us!

 

[Phil Correll]

Canoe? Can do!

Hello group, For three years my wife and I used an Old Town Discovery 174 as our "dinghy". Several points needed care. (1) Boarding our boat required standing on one of the thwarts to get high enough to put a foot on the gunwale of the boat. No boarding ladder on the Catalina 27 with an outboard through the transom. (2) towing the canoe was a trip. She had to be towed very close to prevent her from zooming off to one side or the other. (3) Returning to the canoe was as exciting as getting onto the boat, except it had to be done backwards. (4) I learned the futility of trying to regain my balance while in a canoe. I was rowing out from the boat to drop the anchor at some distance to allow us to kedge off of the mud under some thin water that we discovered. When I picked up the anchor to drop it over the side of the canoe I leaned back and was grasping for air several times before the splash and unplanned swim occurred. (5) The best thing about the canoe-dinghy was that we never had to worry about not being able to start the engine! BTW We have had a hard bottomed inflatable for two seasons. It's great in many ways. However, it is a Hudson Bay and the company is out of business! Enjoy sailing! Phil

 

[C. Degadt]

The right dinghy

My husband and I want to buy a dingy very soon. We have an old inflatable soft bottom-not great. On vacations we have tried a hard dingy and an R.I.B. We know the rigid inflatable is the way to go. We just aren't sure what size and what size motor we want. If you ever plan to swim from your dingy, keep in mind that it is next to impossible for most women, and difficult for men to climb into a hard shell. It is difficult enough with a RIB even with a swim ladder but better.

 

[John Nantz]

Dingy Desires? "Rum Runner"!

Dingy desires???? Rum Runner! I couldn't find a picture of her but she is my "desire". Rum Runner is the dingy to Coruba, a Nelson/Marek 70 ULDB type boat sailed by Rob and Suzanne Fleming out of the Seattle Yacht Club. Coruba is a stunning boat in it's own right but Rum Runner is the frosting on the cake. The dingy is a hardshell with grey pontoons that looks like an inflatable. It's only when you tap on the hulls and get a solid sound you learn it is made of fiberglass. The dingy is perhaps 14 feet or so long with a tiny "cabin" (probably enough to stow life jackets), small windshield (about 10-inches high), and twin outboards. Yup! Two of 'em. And EACH outboard is 200 hp! The arithmetic isn't difficult - that's 400 HP!!!You should see the young boys when she pulls into Roche Harbor towing this thing - "Daddy, Daddy! Look at this!". And daddy on his 24-foot Bayliner doesn't know what to say.Coruba may not be the most impressive sailboat around here but her dingy sure is!If I can attach the photo it's 'Zanne hugging the keel on Coruba. Who says size doesn't matter!

 

[Trevor]

Sailing dinghy

Personally (and people's choices in boating are all personal), I think the hassle of carrying extra gear and the drawbacks of a "tippy" sailing dinghy are worth it. I have always had hard shelled sailing dinghies. They take space on the foredeck and don't plane with huge outboards, sure. But for me, often the best part of a cruise is exploring a new anchorage under sail in a small dinghy. We used to have an 8' Quartermaster dighy... looked great, sailed well, but was HEAVY. I sold it with the boat (2 boats ago). Looking for a lightweight, good rowing boat that could accept a small outboard well, I now have a composite (with kevlar) 10' Gig Harbor Navigator. Rows exceptionally well and motors 5kts with a lightweight 2hp motor for those "longer" trips. Great fun to sail with a jib on and optional bowsprit. Weighs in at only 75 lbs for those hauls across beaches at low tide. We've even car-topped her across the US, sailing in bays on both coasts and several lakes in between. For me, dinghy sailing is half the fun....TrevorS/V DunoonCatalina 36, #640Seattle, WA

 

[Bill Kingsbury]

I Love My Walker Bay

I love my 8' Walker Bay because I can lift it aboard, it stows easily on the foredeck, I can row, sail, or drive it with a 2hp Evinrude. It can carry three adults in a moderat chop. It tows very well. It held up well during a seven-week cruise in the Bahamas, being used almost every day.

 

[Aaron Lasnetske]

"Rum Runner" by SafeBoats Intl.

John,"Rum Runner" was built in Port Orchard, Wa by SafeBoats International (See link). The boat is NOT fiberglass, it's an aluminum hull with a closed-cell foam collar. In fact, "Rum-Runner" was built (in part) by my brother B.J. when he worked for SafeBoats in their early years when they operated out of Kitsap Marina. SafeBoats has since moved to Bremerton, WA (out by the airport). You can see SafeBoats at any of the Seattle boat shows - where they'd be happy to loan you a baseball bat to test their collar durability. Since they're rather spendy, most safeboats go to govt. agencies - US Coast Guard, US Navy, various Co. Sheriff departments, etc. Of course being bullet-proof is a big selling point for govt. agencies (and I don't mean that as just an expression, the USN shot one up with a .45 and an M16 as part of a "durability" test - it sprayed water through the holes in the hull, but the collar stopped most hits and it will NOT sink) "Rum-Runner" is a one-of-a-kind designed to the owner's specs. I was lucky enough to be in the marina on the day she first hit the water, and went along for a ride - even got to drive for a bit - YEE HAA!BTW - they grey coating - Rhino Liner! Yep, the stuff they spray on truck beds.AaronC30 TBS #2489 "Storm Runner"

 

[Guest]

RIB Inflatables

Check out the Aquapros from New Zealand. Very light weight due to the aluminum bottom, about half the weight of a fiberglass RIB. I have the 8'6", but wish I had chosen the 9'. However, the 8'6' will plane with 400lb. load with an 8hp Yamaha. Love that dinghy! I can hoist it on the foredeck manually with no help.

 

[John Nantz]

"Rum Runner" Through Agate Pass

Thanks for the info, Aaron. I heard Rum Runner was made on the Seattle side and I also heard she was made in New Zealand but this clears it up.A couple or so years ago I was going though Agate Pass (for everybody else, this is a pass about 1/2 mnile long and maybe a couple hundred feet wide) when Rum Runner went though going the opposite direction - doing something like 50 mph or so. Just skimming on the top of the water. There were about three guys in it obviously having a good time.Maybe that was the maiden voyage??

 

[SailboatOwners.com]

Final results

Final results for the Quick Quiz ending 9/29/2002:The following best describes my dinghy: 51% Inflatable with rigid bottom or floorboard 29% I don't have/use a dinghy as a tender 13% Hard shell dinghy for outboard motor or rowing 07% Hard shell dinghy also equipped for sailing