I am looking at an INMAR as a tender for my sailboat anyone have any experience with them. Here is the boat I am looking at http://www.inmarinflatables.com/inmar-240H-TS-8-0-air-floor-tender-inflatable-p/240h-ts.htm any opinion is appreciated.
INMAR Boats as a Dingy
- Thread starter Capt Strapfoots
- Start date
Well it is an inflatable so there are all those issues. Additionally it would help if you could answer the following:
how many people max or cargo will you have to transport?
Motor or oars for power? Oars are an instant no go BTW as inflatables just don't make good row boats.
What size motor are you going to put on it (HP)?
do you plan to use the tender to kedge off in an emergency or use it as an abandon ship capability?
You have a 26' boat, where do you intend to store the tender when not in use? inside or tow or on deck, other?
How far do you usually go in the tender?
What is the max distance you need to go (non-emergency) in the tender?
Are you planning for storing gasoline on deck?
how many people max or cargo will you have to transport?
Motor or oars for power? Oars are an instant no go BTW as inflatables just don't make good row boats.
What size motor are you going to put on it (HP)?
do you plan to use the tender to kedge off in an emergency or use it as an abandon ship capability?
You have a 26' boat, where do you intend to store the tender when not in use? inside or tow or on deck, other?
How far do you usually go in the tender?
What is the max distance you need to go (non-emergency) in the tender?
Are you planning for storing gasoline on deck?
Two people very little Cargo
I think Oar for now
Small motor when we do 5 hp thinking maybe electric.
Yes using it as a Tender and a last ditch abandon ship/emergency use
The boat this is going on is the new one we just bought which is a 30 ft Allied Seawind Ketch I have Davits on the back so was going to use it for that
Only use short distance maybe 1/2 mile or mile at the most .
No max distance so like 1/2 mile at the most
and I keep a small can of gas for my honda generator
I know that is why I'm a little worried I can get a Mercury Air for a bit more but I liked the way this one sounded.
I would suggest a fiberglass dingy and towing it behind the boat. It will row better, tow better, and everything else.
OK if you are going to try an row an inflatable bring lots of beer as you will get frustrated and tired. They don't push through the water nearly as easily as a hardshell.
Electric will take a pretty sizable battery, how do you charge it and what do you do when it dies at the dock and you need to get back to the ship? stowing oars "just in case" is a real PITA.
If you really are considering it as a life raft then consider needing to go quite some distance to reach land. I chose a sailing/rowing hardshell for just that reason (and it is fun to sail when at anchor!)
A 30' sailboat with davits will have to be pretty beamy for her size to accommodate anything over an 8' tender. Getting into a slip with a tender on the davits wider than the boat presents some issue. Also consider not being able to get right up to the dock due to the tender sticking out from the aft if you back into the slip. and what is the viability to the rear when the tender is on the davits. My 5' wife could not see aft when we tried this. Course when we put it on the fore deck she could not see forward either so consider the rest of the crew when you explore this issue. And don't forget the aft nav light and wither it will be visable or need relocated.
Electric will take a pretty sizable battery, how do you charge it and what do you do when it dies at the dock and you need to get back to the ship? stowing oars "just in case" is a real PITA.
If you really are considering it as a life raft then consider needing to go quite some distance to reach land. I chose a sailing/rowing hardshell for just that reason (and it is fun to sail when at anchor!)
A 30' sailboat with davits will have to be pretty beamy for her size to accommodate anything over an 8' tender. Getting into a slip with a tender on the davits wider than the boat presents some issue. Also consider not being able to get right up to the dock due to the tender sticking out from the aft if you back into the slip. and what is the viability to the rear when the tender is on the davits. My 5' wife could not see aft when we tried this. Course when we put it on the fore deck she could not see forward either so consider the rest of the crew when you explore this issue. And don't forget the aft nav light and wither it will be visable or need relocated.
How do I put this.....Me and my wife are not little people LOL we are both larger and so we need a tender that can hold some weight. Also there is the money/cost that is why we were leaning towards inflatables. So if we went with an inflatable we should get a small gas engine and is there any more recommendations in regards to what we should look for in an inflatable, unless someone knows of a dinghy that will hold right around 900 to 1000 pounds and is in a 1k price range that is not inflatable .
For it's size I don't think you will find anything more buoyant than an inflatable. I agree with others that rowing an inflatable isn't easy unless you went with a rib. I put a little 2hp Honda on ours and it works just fine. I can row it, but it goes sideways just as well as it does forward.
Ken
Ken
The inmar boats look like a good deal. For you and your wife 9 to 10 feet should be fine. A rib will give the best performance but be more costly and very heavy. I just bought a west marine 9 air floor. I thought about the 10 footer but decided for us partability was more important than payload. I like the lightness of air floors and the keel should give some directional stability. Whatever you pick, all dingies like boats are a compromise. Your dingy, your choice....sorry Stu.
Let us know how you like your inmar.
Let us know how you like your inmar.
I was looking at an INMAR 300R-AL, in fact I put a deposit on it at the Boat Show. I was originally planning on getting an AB, but after looking at the INMAR I decided there wasn't enough difference to justify the extra cost of the AB.
I was going to pick it up from the dealer last Friday, but the called me when they got it unpacked to let me know there was a stain on the Hapalon tubing that couldn't be removed. The transom was bent on the starboard side where it connected to the tube. This was right out of the box.
Talking to the dealer they did have a higher warranted claim rate than other models he carried and I was also told that by another dealer that used to carry them. It looked really good when I looked at them at the boat show, but after seeing how this one looked I decided to go with the AB. Fortunately I found all of this out before I got it home and just applied my deposit to the AB 9.5 AL that I originally planned to get.
I am pretty happy with the AB, not sure how the INMAR would have turned out but I wasn't feeling very good about it on Friday.
Good Luck!
I was going to pick it up from the dealer last Friday, but the called me when they got it unpacked to let me know there was a stain on the Hapalon tubing that couldn't be removed. The transom was bent on the starboard side where it connected to the tube. This was right out of the box.
Talking to the dealer they did have a higher warranted claim rate than other models he carried and I was also told that by another dealer that used to carry them. It looked really good when I looked at them at the boat show, but after seeing how this one looked I decided to go with the AB. Fortunately I found all of this out before I got it home and just applied my deposit to the AB 9.5 AL that I originally planned to get.
I am pretty happy with the AB, not sure how the INMAR would have turned out but I wasn't feeling very good about it on Friday.
Good Luck!
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