Poll... Inflatables?

[malbert73]

Highfield CL290 with tohatsu efi 15 hp. 3 years and awesome so far. Pretty light, planes easily with 4 (but we’re all light relative to current human standards), great ride. Bow locker for fuel tank is awesome. I got the Hypalon version. I chartered a boat with the ultra light version and it felt almost too light in shop and breeze. So I prefer a few extra pounds for the locker and double floor which keeps everything dry also. Tons of bilge space so even with a decent amount of water you don’t get any on your feet
I bought from Annapolis inflatables and they said price difference for AB probably wasn’t worth it with what they were seen with highfield.

[MicHughV]

Choosing a dink, is more than just make and model, one needs to think of the engine size to put on it, how many people it will carry, where to locate the fuel tank, etc. Most dinks don't row worth a damn, so the oars pretty much always lay on the dink bottom, as the tubes are used for "sitting". I never use the supplied seats as they are just in the way, so I remove them from the dink.

I've seen a wide variety of engines on your average sized dink, typically from 5-20 hp...and this requires some thought. If you're just going to putter around the harbor, you don't need a large engine, but if you use the dink to dive offshore, you'll want to go big..as the dink will get loaded with people and gear. Bigger engines, mean bigger fuel tanks, more weight, etc. Dinks, generally will list the max. hp to put on the transom, so this needs a close look.

I made a habit of rigging another "tow line" from the stern. I made a bridle to go in front of the engine, attached to two eyebolts on the transom, so when I towed the dink, both the forward and rear towline were attached to the mother boat. I shortened the stern towline by 1/4"-1/2" or so at the cleat, so that the strain was in the rear towline, but the forward towline kept the dink straight. I found that the dink rode better this way, when towed, as the dink adopted more of a planing angle, vs. the bow up angle when towed by the bow, especially when the engine was still on, and the second tow line gave me some ease of mind, should there be a breakage in the tow line.

You may find that you'll need to patch the tubes somewhere. I did this one time, using 3M's 5200 as I had nothing else. It took a long time to "dry", several days, but it did the trick.

Finally, most all dinks these days are carried on stern davits. So this too, needs to be addressed. the size and weight are important, more so, if you leave the engine on the dink. The dink needs to have appropriate " pick up" points so it can be lifted.

Once on the davits, the dink needs to be securely braced. I have my own methods, so as to make the dink immovable. Don't forget to remove the drain plug.

In almost 40 years afloat, I've owned a variety of dinks. I don't have a preference. How much the dink costs, $$$$, also pays into this decision. I see the dink as a "workhorse"....much like a pickup on the road, still drives like a car, but can carry a load.

[Windswept-windy]

Thank you everyone for you're informative input!! Much appreciated.

Well, as indicated....I was seriously contemplating the Zodiac....as I've had 3 and had pretty good luck with them. Having said that....I'm very curious why all except one did not choose the Zodiac???

Best
Don

[Seymore]

Originally Posted by Windswept-windy

I'm very curious why all except one did not choose the Zodiac???

I will not forgive the French for the way they destroyed Avon.

[chrisr]

Originally Posted by Seymore

I will not forgive the French for the way they destroyed Avon.

or Moruroa Atoll...

cheers,

[Windswept-windy]

Originally Posted by Seymore

I will not forgive the French for the way they destroyed Avon.

Good reason....I also just heard that Zodiac is no longer building their dingys using Hapalon....only PVC???? If true, sounds like a critical mistake!

We did purchase an AB light weight 10' aluminum hull 95lbs. I like the construction and detail.

[Jim Cate]

FWIW: Re ease of repair of FRP vs Aluminium:

Our Al hulled Gemini is now nearing 18 years of age. It's on its third set of tubes, and there are many scrapes on the hull's outside, and it was once stolen and burned... and there has been zero need for repairs to the hull beyond scraping out all the burned goo that remained after the burning episode.

So, in my opinion worrying about repair of alloy hullls is a waste of time. They are pretty damn tough!

Jim

PS those were 18 years of full time cruising, most of our time we're anchored out, not in marinas, so the dink gets used a LOT.

[goboatingnow]

Best rib I still have ( 15 years now ) , is a Selva hypalon abs floor 2.9. Sadly it’s too big for my current boat.

Light , the abs floor is indestructible , hypalon .

I’ve not seen ABS floored ones since.

I had aluminium. There are great until you damage them on a rock etc

Very hard to repair

Don’t like them any more

[SV.Maverick]

Have had many inflatables and many a rigid dinghy, Bauer’s, Trinkas etc. Right now have hypalon fabric, aluminun body TUG brand RIB new 20hp Suzuki. This was a mistake and here is why, specks looked right, aluminum, hypalon, large tube diameter, storage compartment, but what you can not tell until actually riding in it is how wet a ride it is. Also know others with Tugs and they all mention how wet a ride it is. Also having it for a couple years the build quality isn’t great. Also no dealer networks or anyone to back the warranty. I still think AB at least right now is the best inflatable out there. Would love to see OC Tenders improve their supply network before my Tug dies which I don’t think will be that long and it’s a 2017.

[Auklet]

Originally Posted by Windswept-windy

Hello Members.....well, we are in the dingy market. I've had Zodiacs before and was quite happy.... but, that was over 25 years ago. Seems the market has quite a few choices now. So, looking for feedback?

I just sold the Zodiac that came with the boat Rib/glass/forward anchor compartment.....dang thing was just too heavy for Gloria and I to manage (if storing on deck). I'm thinking alumn rib, Cadet 300 or so? Please chime in with your experiences! Much appreciated!

Fairwinds!!

I’ve wrestled for years over which dink/engine combination to have and how to manage it on our 38-ft yacht. We now have a 9.5-ft inflatable PVC RIB w/ fwd anchor locker that weighs about 125#. I have both a Tohatsu 5-hp and an Evinrude 9.5-hp (two-stroke) for outboards. The dink usually rides lashed hull-up to the foredeck; inflated if not going a far distance in good seas or if not needing to deploy the whisker pole; otherwise, deflated for compactness and more room along the side deck. This model, OceanAir, that I imported from British Columbia, has four welded padeyes inside (cockpit) and two on the outside of the transom. So the thing can be rigged for lifting horizontally. I use a 6x block-and-fall hung from the spinnaker halyard to first hoist it by the transom to flip it over, then by a 4-pt-attachment bridle in the cockpit up over the lifelines and into the water. I can do this totally by myself standing on the foredeck b/c of the purchase. No need for davits and generally no need to tow it. Engine goes on/off using a crane attached to the radar post. The Evinrude will plane wife and me plus gear unless going “up hill” against even low seas. Me alone, however, at 15 kt in most conditions I’d want to plane in, etc. Very nice model; mostly a dry ride. Inexpensive.