Dinghy / inflatable recommendations

0 Kudo

Author	Comment
sarahb107	Dinghy / inflatable recommendations		Lead	[-]
Posts: 7 11/07/05 19:26:31	Tags : None We have just bought a 2004 3-cabin centerline for use in southern New England. We usually cruise with 4, sometimes with 6. We are looking for recommendations on the following: (1) light-weight RIB or high-pressure inflatable floor (the rib is about 40 pounds heavier), (2) 10' or 11', (3) horsepower (6 to 8 hp seems right for the pure inflatable, 10 for the RIB), and (4) manufacturer (Caribe seems to offer a nice balance of price and features). We would appreciate recommendations. Thanks! Keep your eyes out for the Sarah B!
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
do335	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#1	[url]	[-]
Posts: 278 11/07/05 22:31:07	We have a 10' 6" Mercury inflatable with high pressure floor and a Nissan 9.8 HP 4cycle engine. We are happy with it so far. Steve 642-2f TESA
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
symandalay	Inflatables	#2	[url]	[-]
Posts: 208 11/08/05 06:17:07	Here are a few random thoughts FYI... Hypalon stands up to the tropical sun much better. May not matter where you are. Debatable whether it is better to pay twice as much to get one that lasts twice as long or not. Inflatable floors cost $700 to replace, cannot be repaired, and I have heard of a number of failures. Get the largest engine your dinghy is rated for, otherwise it will not plane when fully loaded. A 10 ft RIB is plenty big for two people and gear. Bigger is usually more comfortable if you can physically handle it. We switched from a wood floor Rover 10' to a 10' RIB with big tubes and there is a huge difference in ride and dryness of the occupants in rough seas. We prefer a dinghy with no liner for weight savings and a deeper interior. We are on our second Avon. Both have performed well but customer service is terrible since Zodiac bought them. Caribe is well regarded in the cruising community. AB and Apex also have good reputations. Zodiac does not. Colin
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
ronjane	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#3	[url]	[-]
Posts: 46 11/08/05 06:47:47	Having "cruised" around a lot, bigger is definately better. We use a Caribe 11'6" rib with a 15 hp. The larger tubes keep your crew dryer when there's a chop on the water. Longer means more load capacity. Load capacity is important when you're hauling crew, laundry, groceries etc. If you're going to tow the tender, no problem how big it is really. If you're going to use davits (we have davits on The Usual Suspects), then it's simply a matter of leverage with the tackle used to lift the motor/rib combo. Think of getting from the anchorage in Nantucket to the pier area with your crew of four or five. Want to go 4 knots in the chop or would you rather plane and do 15 knots? By the way, that would take a 20 hp which is something fairly common with round the world cruisers. Good luck with your decisions. Ron LAndmann
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
azure42	re: inflatable recommendations	#4	[url]	[-]
Posts: 391 11/08/05 08:24:10	I agree with Colin's and Ron's assessment- the bigger the dinghy and outboard, the happier you will be on the water. The obvious limitations are costs and how you will haul & store the dinghy for passages. Overall we are very satisfied with our 9' Caribe RIB & 15 hp Mercury outboard. It has always been reliable, dry, fast and comfortable.....well, almost always comfortable -- my wife, the dog, me, and a load of groceries/laundry can fill the dink up surprisingly fast. Sometimes I wish I had bought the 10 or 11 footer, but this wish always lessens when it's time to haul the dinghy aboard. I also second the opinions to get the biggest outboard your dinghy is rated for -- especially if you will routinely be ferrying more than two adults and their gear back and forth to the boat. Dinghies look huge on the dealer's or boat show floor. For a good idea of how quickly space is filled, climb in with your wife, a few friends, and several shopping bags. pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/r3333_99/album?.dir=/1045 Rod Williams Azure, #343, 2-cabin Alameda/San Francisco Bay, CA.
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
cathyinct	cruising SNEngland in a RIB	#5	[url]	[-]
Posts: 310 11/08/05 08:29:30	We cruise with 2 adults, 2 kids and one pup in our West Marine compact 10"2" RIB bottom. It weighs #89 and our Nissan #8 that weighs #59 lbs. * We are restricted to a 10' dingy where we keep the boat. Together we can lift it to the dingy rack * We have Ocean Marine davits -- no lift. We trail the dink or we raise it with the engine on. * My 6'5" husband would love a 15 hp engine but its too heavy and we have to take the engine home each trip to the mooring. #60 lbs is the max for me. * 8 hp is the min we would have for jaunts in large harbors like Newport, Block, Cutty, etc. * He wanted something that he could "plane" in with the kids. We can't when we are all in there... you have to decide if that is important to you. * I am not thrilled with the oar holders locks-- we supplement that locking system with additional lines tied to the secured oars. We put our boat name on the oars * I love the RIB bottom, and we put the new rubber protective coating/strip down the middle for more protection. We will be on our season 3. * Installed larger U-bolts on the stern -- plus two black folding "cup holders" there. * Used to have an Achilles -- 10 years--and we sold it for a good price. We wanted a RIB bottom with as little weight a possible. * A friend just purchased a 15 hp and a heaby RIB and now he needs to get davits !! * An "unfilled dingy" is inviting mice bites during winter storage unless its covered up. This RIB comes in a case... and my 8 yr old son and I have the task to get it back into its cover each fall and dolly it into the shed. It was tricky the first time but we have it down to a science now. It washes up nice and it stands upright in our shed. CAthy
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
jbmason	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#6	[url]	[-]
Posts: 246 11/08/05 19:20:53	Bought an Aquadutch after laboring over the barious offerings from Zodiac and others. The high pressure floor and the extra large flotation tubes proved to provide higher weight capacity at a lower overall weight and compact rooled package. Hyperlon ARO $1300.00. Used it once, just sold the C42 and kept the inflatable.
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
raisingsarah470	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#7	[url]	[-]
Posts: 1 11/09/05 00:05:53	We have the 10' Caribe with the Honda 15hp electric start (should have gotten the 20hp weights the same) It is heavy and we use davits. One thing is if you use it for going to a beach even with the wheels, it is very difficult with two adults to beach. For everything else it is the only way to go. Every one seems to agree big is better. A 10hp for a 10' rib I think is too small. Congratulations on your new boat. Hope this helps and we like the name too. Bob Raising Sarah 470/57
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
countferrari	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#8	[url]	[-]
Posts: 103 11/09/05 11:28:11	We have a Zodiac with the HP floor and use a 10hp 2 stroke Mercury. Great combo... We have toted 6 but it is tight. It planes with 3 and I can hoist aboard the foredeck by myself on the halyard. S/V Jah Mon,1994, Mark I,Hull #428,Two Cabin,Fin Keel,Anacortes, WA,Puget Sound PHRF 122
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
tomca	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#9	[url]	[-]
Posts: 101 11/09/05 18:19:40	We recently purchased a new Achillies 10' SPD. It has the wood slat floor w/ inflatable keel. We have a Suzuki 8hp that has lasted us close to 10 yrs. I love this set up because it is just large enough to haul 6 people with dinner bags ashore in catalina and with the wheels it rolls right up on shore with little effort. For those times it is just the wife and I, I purchased a new Yamaha 4hp to tool around in. As for those times we need a larger tender we have a 13ft Boston Whaler. It is going on 17yrs now and has provided us with excellent service. I can't tell you how well the whaler has worked and all the uses that it gets. Plus no worries about punctures. Tom Maxwell #766
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
encore125	tenders	#10	[url]	[-]
Posts: 18 11/09/05 21:06:34	Hi All, Well, I may be one of the few discenters here when it comes to size. I like compactness for handling, stowing. We cruise with 2+kids-4-6+ and use a zodiac 8.6 HP floor. and 4hp. It stores on the foredeck between the mast and the forehatch allowing ventilation and even egress. It allows wonderful light below decks as well. Anything larger takes up most of the foredeck and blocks the hatch. I can easily overhand on the rail to the deck solo. I can pick it up by myself to dump water. It stows with a 5 minute roll and fits into the lazerettes or aft cabin for sailing longer passages. The engine is a easy single hand lift to the rail mount. 4 adults is usually max, so when we are maxed out, (perhaps 10% of the time,) we just make two trips. We're still kid like, two trips in the dingy is still usually fun, even if not planing. Truth be told, I just purchased my second used 42 and it came with a 10+ RIB, davits, and a Nissan 15. I am likely to remove the davits and keep the RIB at home port for fun or save for a real cruise (multiple weeks or months where the workhouse of a larger dingy makes sense to me) For now I will use the 8.6 as the away tender. But I will try out the bigger boat and see if it works. Just seems bigger than necessary. btw, we live in Seattle, but will likely have the boat on Cape Cod/Islands/ June-July 2006.
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
Unregistered(d)	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#11	[url]	[-]
Posts: 0 11/11/05 08:46:25	For those of you in the Pacific Northwest, I can offer a recommendation for AlaskaSeries. Very good quality, reasonable price. They've got nice "bear claw" hard rubber protection on the bottom of the tubes and centerline. One of my favorite features is that they come in colors besides gray! Ours is bright yellow. Everyone on the dock loves it. Seems like a good idea, from a safety standpoint. AlaskaSeries Ours is the 320S, 10'6" with two seats. Ken Fischer 2005 C42 #906 "Solaria", 3 Cabin Pullman, Fin Keel, Mast Furling Main, 155% Genoa
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
sarahb107	Re: Dinghy / inflatable recommendations	#12	[url]	[-]
Posts: 7 12/27/05 13:21:23	Thank you all for responding. After a good bit of consideration of your input, surfing to various web sites, and a visit to the West Marine "super store" in Fort Lauderdale (where they have a large range of dinghies on display), we purchased a 10' lightweight Avon RIB, and a 9.8 horsepower Nissan from Defender. Their prices were competetive and they are close to our new mooring at Dodson's in Stonington, CT. We were able to pick both up at the store to save shipping charges. As is often the case in boating, every choice involves some compromise. I think the combination will get us where we are going safely and reasonably quickly. The dinghy should hold our "average" cruising complement of four and an occasional group of six (in reasonbly calm waters, at least). The motor is a bit heavy, but we also bought a motor "crane" from Defender. It will be nice to have the power to plane. We will generally tow the dinghy and only have to lift it on board when we are away from the boat for extended periods. Thanks again! Sarah B
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
peterw	Dingy	#13	[url]	[-]
Posts: 105 12/27/05 14:27:05	Thank you for all the participation - I have followed this discussion, on the sidelines, since the beginning and the overwhelming consensus is that: bigger is better. (Where have I heard that before - being a member of the "only 3ft longer thats all we need" club) So I have bought a 10ft Avon RIB with a 9.9hp from West Marine. The dingy and motor are being shipped to the boat as we speak. I also bought a motor hoist from Garhauer and will install davits from Ocean Marine. Thanks again for that terrific response to this vein of discussion. This was good stuff and very helpful.
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
cathyinct	Sarah B	#14	[url]	[-]
Posts: 310 12/28/05 11:43:41	Sarah B, look for Siren's Song as we are always over at Dodson's. Fun little place and you should enjoy it there. Kids can have fun crabbing beneath the Boom Restaurant -- if they are little. Cathy in CT
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote
sarahb107	Sirens Song	#15	[url]	[-]
Posts: 7 12/29/05 21:15:51	As a matter of fact, our "kids" (now 22 and 25) have been hanging out at Dodsons their entire lives, starting before there was a restaurant at Dodsons. We visited recently and one of them pointed out that the bar used to be the laundry room! We look forward to seeing you there. By the way - thanks to the folks who suggested getting the biggest motor the dinghy is rated for - it helped me sell my wife! Seriously, we both think it's a wise idea to have a bit of power for those distant anchorages and heavy loads.
Interact My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Invite Blocking Ignore User's Posts	Reply Quote

<< Previous Topic Next Topic >>

Add Reply

Yuku free message boards

Dinghy / inflatable recommendations

Dinghy / inflatable recommendations

Quick Reply