Trying to pick my dinghy poison

[Mike OReilly]

Planing has been mentioned a few times. My 10' portabote planes quite easily with my 3.5 hp outboard with one (overweight) person on board. It will plane with two adults on board in flat conditions.

I don't scuba so don't have much need to get in and out of the bote from the water. I have done it, and I don't find it easy. It's kinda like getting into a canoe from the water. But it can be done.

Portabote also has a boarding step which attaches to the bow that is specifically designed for water boarding. If you wanted to use it as a scuba platform then I'd look into getting one of those.

[Tayana42]

SanibelSailor, you have gotten every variation of advice possible about selection of a dinghy. Every one of us has to make their own compromises about what is most important in a tender. I can only share my choice. I don’t want to carry a dinghy on davits. I don’t want to tow a dinghy in any but the most benign conditions. I want to be able to carry people, groceries, laundry etc with reasonable ease and dryness. I want a dinghy that will suffice with a small outboard motor and still row reasonably. I want be able to carry the dinghy up a beach. I want to be able to stow the dinghy below deck on passages. The best compromise I came up with with is a high pressure air floor with keel inflatable. Yes it can be punctured. Yes it needs to be inflated. Yes it may not last as long as a hard dinghy. Mine is a Walker Bay Genesis 310 hypalon. The air floor is pvc which I keep covered with indoor outdoor carpet. My outboard is a Tohatsu 3.5. For this size dinghy I would prefer a slightly larger motor but I already had this one and I don’t really need a bigger one.

[evm1024]

Very interesting thread. I'm with the Cate's in this - Larger, fast dinghy.

Back when I lived aboard a Cal2-29 (29') I used a smallish 8' rowing dinghy. It always was rolling around.

Later I moved up boats to an Ericson 39 and picked up a Zodiac, Zoom 3.5 meter dinghy. Just the run of the mill inflatable keel bet very stable. With a wife and 2 kids in it we could zoom around to fishing spots and place one of us at each corner with super stability. Those 18" tubes made for a dry ride. After 15 years or so it was coming apart at the seams so I sold it to someone from the local Zodiac dealer who rebuild it and is still using it. A France made boat.

Currently I have a Zodiac Cadet 310 AL which is a good boat. But that inflatable is just intended to cover our local cruising until we head out (looks like next year rather than this year, Covid...).

The 310 has 16" tubes and does not offer as "secure" of a feeling as the larger 18" tubes. Plus at 3.1m it has less interior volume for us and our gear.

I expect we will sell the 310 and go for something with 18" tubes and 3.4 to 3.6 m long. We have room but would get the larger dinghy even if we were still on the the 39'.

Zooming around is fun but at least in our current cruising grounds (Columbia River to BC Canada including the west coast of Vancouver Island) having a larger, more stable dinghy is of an advantage.

Also we currently use a 9.9 HP Johnson 2 stroke (won at a boat show!) that we will likely replace with a 15 hp.

The question is do we replace them here in PDX or do we use the 310 AL and replace it in Mexico or other points south.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by evm1024

Very interesting thread. I'm with the Cate's in this - Larger, fast dinghy.

Back when I lived aboard a Cal2-29 (29') I used a smallish 8' rowing dinghy. It always was rolling around.

Later I moved up boats to an Ericson 39 and picked up a Zodiac, Zoom 3.5 meter dinghy. Just the run of the mill inflatable keel bet very stable. With a wife and 2 kids in it we could zoom around to fishing spots and place one of us at each corner with super stability. Those 18" tubes made for a dry ride. After 15 years or so it was coming apart at the seams so I sold it to someone from the local Zodiac dealer who rebuild it and is still using it. A France made boat.

Currently I have a Zodiac Cadet 310 AL which is a good boat. But that inflatable is just intended to cover our local cruising until we head out (looks like next year rather than this year, Covid...).

The 310 has 16" tubes and does not offer as "secure" of a feeling as the larger 18" tubes. Plus at 3.1m it has less interior volume for us and our gear.

I expect we will sell the 310 and go for something with 18" tubes and 3.4 to 3.6 m long. We have room but would get the larger dinghy even if we were still on the the 39'.

Zooming around is fun but at least in our current cruising grounds (Columbia River to BC Canada including the west coast of Vancouver Island) having a larger, more stable dinghy is of an advantage.

Also we currently use a 9.9 HP Johnson 2 stroke (won at a boat show!) that we will likely replace with a 15 hp.

The question is do we replace them here in PDX or do we use the 310 AL and replace it in Mexico or other points south.

My first real cruise to Mexico in the Mid 80's I had a small rigid Dyer Dhow dingy. While it was a great built little boat, it was downright dangerous in any chop at all with two smallish people in it. Probably had 4-5 " of freeboard with groceries. Not to mention how wet you would get going to shore. It beat hell out of the sides of the mother ship too.

[Oohla]

You might want to look at the 8 foot blunt ended dinghy from Romarine in Bristol, RI. Possibly worth mentioning since it was very difficult to find their website.


I had somewhat similar concerns and decided on a 8 foot blunt nosed fiberglass dinghy from Romarine in Bristol RI instead of a Walker Bay because things can be attached to fiberglass easier than polyethylene.


Nice dinghy for up to 385 lbs and fits between mast and inner forestay. Rows easily.


Plopped a 6HP Nissan on the stern and clearly it is a little too heavy and too powerful, but goes on plane just above idle. So thinking about trading down to smaller outboard and/or putting foils on cavitation plate and sponsons from Easy Stow Fenders (much cheaper than hypalon tubes) on the sides of the dinghy.


Anyway, nice little FG dinghy and glad to have thrown away an inflatable.

[JPA Cate]

The question is do we replace them here in PDX or do we use the 310 AL and replace it in Mexico or other points south.

I think you'll have the best selection available either in the US or in Australia, but probably more affordable within the US, so I'd suggest you start with new.

Swift make some excellent RIBs with hypalon tubes in Australia, and they are pricey. Gemini use the same hull, but use a lighter weight hypalon, which in our usage was failing in a short (to us) time. It was ironic, because we at first thought the lighter weight dinghy would be better for us, but in fact, durability and longevity turned out to be more important than weight. Highfield dinghies (made in China) are also available here.

Our present RIB started out at 3.5, but it is on its 3rd set of tubes, and these are West German pvc, fabricated in China. It has reached its fifth year, and so far, no problems at all with the tubes. We made chaps for it the 2nd week of ownership.

Ann

[sanibel sailor]

The Romarine at 90 lbs is not light and with a pronounced rocker to bottom is not optimized for planing. At this size, wood is much lighter. An eight footer might fit a 42, but not my 35. I have 7'-6" from the front of my dorade boxes/guards to the inner forestay attachment, which leaves no room to work, meaning less than 7 feet taking into account working room and forestay slope. And that blocks the forward hatch, losing ventilation, inconvenient for sail changes and a safety issue in case of fire or other need for egress.
Since I am not interested in the big and bulky compromise of a PortaBote, I think my non-inflatable option is limited to a nesting dink of my own design, which could be satisfactory or not depending on how lucky I get developing the shape within the confines of the deck structure.

[JPA Cate]

A while back, I was saying it was only coincidence we became involved with bigger, faster dinghies. But I've been thinking about it a bit, asking myself, were there predictors that we would find "zooming around" fun?

I think there were, but it is only hypothesis. Here are some of mine:
*previously engaged in autocross and car gymkhanas
*enjoyed downhill skiing
*passionate swimmer and snorkeler
*push bike riding (never had a motorcycle)

Jim built and raced dragsters; was dive certified; and had motorcycles.

If you like going fast, you'll like it on the water, too, most likely. This is especially true coming across the South Pacific, but could be in general, if you live somewhere you do not have to pay extra taxes for more hp. The latter is conducive to slower, less far ranging dinghy usage. [The point being that both where one expects to go, but also conditions at one's home port is likely to affect your choices.

Ann

[Telesail]

I have had an F-Rib for 18 months and it ticks all the boxes. 3.30m and can take a 15hp outboard. I actually use it with an ePropulsion Spirit most of the time (speed limits in anchorages mean no need for more power) but can definitely recommend the dinghy Either way.

[sanibel sailor]

I had never heard of the F-rib. Seems appealing. I have emailed the dealer- they have 2 stores, both 100-150 miles away. The newness of it gives me pause. I generally prefer someone else be the guinea pig.

[Muaddib1116]

I don't think they are super new, I believe they've been around for about a decade. I just don't think that they get much exposure, and it's sort of a limited demographic. Most of the people that don't want a full rib go the much cheaper route of a roll-up.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

A while back, I was saying it was only coincidence we became involved with bigger, faster dinghies. But I've been thinking about it a bit, asking myself, were there predictors that we would find "zooming around" fun?

I think there were, but it is only hypothesis. Here are some of mine:
*previously engaged in autocross and car gymkhanas
*enjoyed downhill skiing
*passionate swimmer and snorkeler
*push bike riding (never had a motorcycle)

Jim built and raced dragsters; was dive certified; and had motorcycles.

If you like going fast, you'll like it on the water, too, most likely. This is especially true coming across the South Pacific [...]

CF has a bias towards RIBs. Another major sailing forum has a bias towards hard dinghies. Part of it is self-sorting. Part of it is geography. The CF-quintessential 3.3 meter RIB with 15 hp 2-stroke perhaps makes sense in the Bahamas and the South Pacific but less so in the Sea of Cortez or the Chesapeake; they are uncommon indeed in coastal Maine. On western Lake Superior sailboats are as likely to carry a kayak as a RIB because RIBs are too large to explore the sea caves.


Sailing is an adventure sport. I think it's interesting how much overlap in background there is among people for whom sailing is a significant part of their lives. Many are SCUBA divers, unsurprising perhaps because of the opportunity. Many are pilots, and like fast cars, and motorcycles, and mountain climbing, and skydiving, and whitewater kayaking.


A fast dinghy is not fast enough to make my propeller go around. I am building a nesting dinghy this winter, that I can row. If I end up in the South Pacific I guess I'll probably get a RIB like everyone else there does. Hard dinghies last a lifetime, hopefully mine will still be there after the RIB has come apart at the seams or been stolen or whatever.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by sanibel sailor

I had never heard of the F-rib. Seems appealing. I have emailed the dealer- they have 2 stores, both 100-150 miles away. The newness of it gives me pause. I generally prefer someone else be the guinea pig.

We’ve got a folding transom rib. Not really the same hull shape as a normal rib, smaller tubes, etc...but it stows on our deck between the mast and the dodger.

It’s got a list of negatives, but also quite a few positives.

Fewer folding seams than the f-rib, just food for thought.

[Jim Cate]

The CF-quintessential 3.3 meter RIB with 15 hp 2-stroke perhaps makes sense in the Bahamas and the South Pacific but less so in the Sea of Cortez

How so? While not a RIB, we sure enjoyed our old Zodiac MkII (!3.5 m) hard floor inflatable keel boat with 15 hp 2 stroke during our 18 months in the SOC. Lots of longish trips to dive sites, fishing grounds, and distant provision sources. Seemed pretty good to us! And a RIB might have been even better, but that boat, at only 36 feet LOA was better suited to something demountable.

Jim

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Jammer

...Sailing is an adventure sport. I think it's interesting how much overlap in background there is among people for whom sailing is a significant part of their lives. Many are SCUBA divers, unsurprising perhaps because of the opportunity. Many are pilots, and like fast cars, and motorcycles, and mountain climbing, and skydiving, and whitewater kayaking canoeing..

Just gotta say, I tick a lot of your boxes, yet I still prefer my 10' portabote with my little 3.5 hp engine. But I get your point.

I've not cruised in the Caribbean, nor the south Pacific. Perhaps a big dink with a large engine makes sense there. I've certainly been in locations where I would have appreciated a larger dinghy and outboard, but I still managed just fine with what I had.

I think it more comes down to the individual, and perhaps what you're used to. I'm happy putting along at a nice slow pace. Others will come to different conclusions.