Hellooo, anybody here? Pondering getting a H146 and was wondering if I could get the pros and cons about this model. Thanks, Diego PS/ I guess someone had to be the first to post in here.
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We're here . . .
. . . but it's winter now and the mind doesn't turn as readily to thoughts of sailing. How many people will be sailing with you? Will you be trailering? Sailing on small or Great lakes? Anything in particular you're looking for? I'm a 170 owner and I love my boat. It accomodates my family of four, plus an occasional guest or two. It's easy to set up, sail and trailer, even single handed. It's dry - no water comes through the centerboard well. Low maintenance! It's pretty forgiving for a dinghy - a good boat for novices or for teaching. Hope this helps a bit. I have no experience with the 146 but it looks like a small 170. Keep checking this site and sooner or later someone who has a 146 will give you their opinion.
. . . but it's winter now and the mind doesn't turn as readily to thoughts of sailing. How many people will be sailing with you? Will you be trailering? Sailing on small or Great lakes? Anything in particular you're looking for? I'm a 170 owner and I love my boat. It accomodates my family of four, plus an occasional guest or two. It's easy to set up, sail and trailer, even single handed. It's dry - no water comes through the centerboard well. Low maintenance! It's pretty forgiving for a dinghy - a good boat for novices or for teaching. Hope this helps a bit. I have no experience with the 146 but it looks like a small 170. Keep checking this site and sooner or later someone who has a 146 will give you their opinion.
it's a really nice boat
Hi Diego, It's a really sweet little boat. I test sailed one at the Michigan City boat show and loved it. I ended up buying a 170 because I found a really good deal on a used one. The size is really good for two adults or two adults and two kids. I think four adults might be crowded on it. It would be perfect for single handing and you can pick up and drag the trailer with one hand, I love the open transom, especially if you don't plan to strap a motor onto it. Of course what Mark said is also right. It's a boat that I would love in a 800 acre lake. If I lived on near Lake Michigan I'd probably want a boat with more mass, even if I wanted a small daysailer. Hope my two cents helps, John
Hi Diego, It's a really sweet little boat. I test sailed one at the Michigan City boat show and loved it. I ended up buying a 170 because I found a really good deal on a used one. The size is really good for two adults or two adults and two kids. I think four adults might be crowded on it. It would be perfect for single handing and you can pick up and drag the trailer with one hand, I love the open transom, especially if you don't plan to strap a motor onto it. Of course what Mark said is also right. It's a boat that I would love in a 800 acre lake. If I lived on near Lake Michigan I'd probably want a boat with more mass, even if I wanted a small daysailer. Hope my two cents helps, John
Thanks
Thank you guys, I will be sailing solo for the most part. My kids will be 1 and 3 years old this summer so it will be a while before they go out with me. My wife might or might not go out . . . depends on how much she likes it. If she finds a good spot to lay on the sun on the boat, then she will,
Sailing will be done on inland MN lakes, anywhere from 200 acres to 6000 acres, byt they are surrounded by forests and they are long and narrow rather than a big wide open circle. I think it would be fine on the lkes I have around here (10,000 of them). I love the aesthetics of the H146 and the H170 and I seriously thought that would be the one. Then in researching the Hunter, Catalina 14.2 and Precision 15 I came across people saying the hunter are hard to handle on anything over 15 mph and they are almost impossible to right if you flip over, so that scared me a bit. Never heard that on the Precision or Catalina boats. I can't wait to test sail them, that should clarify a lot of things in my mind, but I can tell you that I love that open transom on the back. Thanks again, Diego
Thank you guys, I will be sailing solo for the most part. My kids will be 1 and 3 years old this summer so it will be a while before they go out with me. My wife might or might not go out . . . depends on how much she likes it. If she finds a good spot to lay on the sun on the boat, then she will,
Sailing will be done on inland MN lakes, anywhere from 200 acres to 6000 acres, byt they are surrounded by forests and they are long and narrow rather than a big wide open circle. I think it would be fine on the lkes I have around here (10,000 of them). I love the aesthetics of the H146 and the H170 and I seriously thought that would be the one. Then in researching the Hunter, Catalina 14.2 and Precision 15 I came across people saying the hunter are hard to handle on anything over 15 mph and they are almost impossible to right if you flip over, so that scared me a bit. Never heard that on the Precision or Catalina boats. I can't wait to test sail them, that should clarify a lot of things in my mind, but I can tell you that I love that open transom on the back. Thanks again, DiegoMy 170 experience
I've sailed h170s for about two years. I find the 170 to be comfortable, stable and forgiving compared to other dinghies. I sail primarily on a long, narrow (mile wide) lake. It gets dicey when the wind exceed 15k, but with a reef you should be able to handle up to 20k. You wouldn't want to go out in stronger winds unless you have a stout heart and the skills to match the conditions (I don't). The biggest problem I've experienced in 15-20k winds is irregular gusts (primarily north or south winds on an east-west lake) coming off points of land in narrow spots. I have to be very quick with tiller and mainsheet under such conditions to avoid being blown down. I've spooked my wife and kids on an occasion or two when I haven't been quite quick enough. Avoid these conditions if you want your family to enjoy their sailing experience. (BTW, my kids love to sit in the open transom with their feet in the water. If I could only get them to stop grabbing the tiller . . .) It's easy to rig and sail single handed. I've never tipped it so I can't comment on righting it. I suspect the 146 shares the 170s characteristics because they are of similar size and design. If you plan to sail mostly single or as a pair, the 146 may be the better choice. Personally, I like the extra room to take as many as six (which is a crowd, I'll admit) plus lunch, etc. Plus I can still single hand it with ease. If you want to teach your family to sail either would probably be a good choice. I have no experience with the other two boats you're considering. You will probably have less cockpit room with the Catalina if I remember it correctly from pictures. I didn't know anything about the Precision. Perhaps someone else has some experience with these others that they can share with you. Do your homework and take a test drive on each if possible, then pick the one that best suits your needs. Good luck!
I've sailed h170s for about two years. I find the 170 to be comfortable, stable and forgiving compared to other dinghies. I sail primarily on a long, narrow (mile wide) lake. It gets dicey when the wind exceed 15k, but with a reef you should be able to handle up to 20k. You wouldn't want to go out in stronger winds unless you have a stout heart and the skills to match the conditions (I don't). The biggest problem I've experienced in 15-20k winds is irregular gusts (primarily north or south winds on an east-west lake) coming off points of land in narrow spots. I have to be very quick with tiller and mainsheet under such conditions to avoid being blown down. I've spooked my wife and kids on an occasion or two when I haven't been quite quick enough. Avoid these conditions if you want your family to enjoy their sailing experience. (BTW, my kids love to sit in the open transom with their feet in the water. If I could only get them to stop grabbing the tiller . . .) It's easy to rig and sail single handed. I've never tipped it so I can't comment on righting it. I suspect the 146 shares the 170s characteristics because they are of similar size and design. If you plan to sail mostly single or as a pair, the 146 may be the better choice. Personally, I like the extra room to take as many as six (which is a crowd, I'll admit) plus lunch, etc. Plus I can still single hand it with ease. If you want to teach your family to sail either would probably be a good choice. I have no experience with the other two boats you're considering. You will probably have less cockpit room with the Catalina if I remember it correctly from pictures. I didn't know anything about the Precision. Perhaps someone else has some experience with these others that they can share with you. Do your homework and take a test drive on each if possible, then pick the one that best suits your needs. Good luck!
That's Great!
That's great Mark, I was going to tell Diego about the kids with their feet in the water, but you beat me to it!! I was crazy nervous the first time they did it (they were three and six years old at the time). We mostly only take them out in pretty calm water. I had heard that the 170 was hard to right when flipped, so I flipped it to find out. I had no problems at all righting it, but I have a mast float onmine. I think you'd like it if you went with the 170 or the 146 Diego. john
That's great Mark, I was going to tell Diego about the kids with their feet in the water, but you beat me to it!! I was crazy nervous the first time they did it (they were three and six years old at the time). We mostly only take them out in pretty calm water. I had heard that the 170 was hard to right when flipped, so I flipped it to find out. I had no problems at all righting it, but I have a mast float onmine. I think you'd like it if you went with the 170 or the 146 Diego. john
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