New Tender/Dinghy Ideas

[capttonyf]

After thinking for the last year or so about placing a davit and a full size RIB or Whaler on the Bow of our 45C I think we've decided to go with a smaller Tender that we can put away when not in use and not have to have a davit and a carrier on the bow.

That being said does anyone have any suggestions or ideas. I'm thinking of like a 10ft inflatable with either a roll up floor or a blow up floor with anywhere from a 5HP, 9.9HP to 15HP motor. When travelling Id' remove the moter deflate it and put it away, tilt it up on the swim platform for short distance or tie it down upside down on the bow. I've also seen people on here post some hard, light weight tenders, some with even clear bottoms like a glass bottom boat.

My requirements would be +/- 10ft, under 150 to 200lbs without the motor, that would be max wieght so that me and another adult male would be able lift it to the bow if need be. Could be Inflatable or a Hard boat. Just looking for something of good quality and that's affordable. I don't want like a custom Kevlar $30,000 dinghy.

I understand this is a wide open subject, so any brands, expieriences or sugesstions for me to take a look at and consider would be appreciated.

Thanks

Tony

 

[season]

capttoyf,
Here is one that is less weight, in the size range and will accommodate your hp.
Randy
http://www.westmarine.com/buy/west-marine--classic-dinghy--11985512

And here is a Walker Bay rigid. 125lbs and a little over a $grand.
http://www.walkerbay.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/WB-10-SPEC-SHEET-2014.pdf

 

[thoward]

We had a 12' with solid floor and a 15hp 2 stroke. It worked well. It was similar to the Zodiac Cadet 340.

 

[GJH]

I think you will find that manually getting anything out of the water and over the bow rails is a PITA.
Anyway, Defender has their annual sale on inflatables going on right now and it is at least a good way to shop through variations. Personally I like the looks of that West Marine skiff posted. The Walker Bays work too. Put a little ballast in them and they tow pretty well.

 

[Boatsb]

I have a walker bay 8 that I can lift to the bow myself. 2 people can ride in it 3 if their small. Put a 3 HP on it and chug. We just used oars.

Haven't used it since the kid got his whaler though.

 

[Dan Mapes]

Having had all sorts of dinks I have to ask what do you expect to do with it? In the Bahamas we use it like a car. If all you intend to do is go from a mooring ball to shore, sure. A small dink works. But as soon as you think about going a couple of miles you should go with the larger dink and crane. Of course the budget will rule, but if I had my way, I'd opt for a hard bottom dink and a crane.
If you are planning to get around much in it consider a larger dink etc..

 

[SKYCHENEY]

For weight savings look at Highfields aluminum RIBs.

 

[Colwyn D]

I now have the crane and rib for the reasons Dan mentioned but for several years used a 10' inflatable with an inflatable floor. The floor gets pumped to quite a high pressure and has an inflatable keel underneath. I'd certainly consider it again if light weight and stowage were considerations. It was a big improvement on the plywood or ali floors I'd had before. Not sure if they are available on higher powered inflatables though.

 

[Dan Mapes]

Sky's point on aluminum hulled ribs is certainly worth consideration. I came very close to an aluminum 14' ab.
Here's their 10' http://www.abinflatables.com/alumina-10-alx

 

[Timeout]

Aluminum AB rib and powered transom davit. Launch and retrieve in under a minute but not a good solution for a fishing vessel.

 

[capttonyf]

Having had all sorts of dinks I have to ask what do you expect to do with it? In the Bahamas we use it like a car. If all you intend to do is go from a mooring ball to shore, sure. A small dink works. But as soon as you think about going a couple of miles you should go with the larger dink and crane. Of course the budget will rule, but if I had my way, I'd opt for a hard bottom dink and a crane.
If you are planning to get around much in it consider a larger dink etc..

I wouldn't use it to really travel any distance. We actually dock 97% of the time and only anchor out over night once in awhile just for something different. But we do anchor during the day just off a beach from time time and just want something that we can use for putting around back and forth from the beach to the boat or around the marina etc. In the keys and especially the Bahamas I don't like to get to close to shore and accidently dink a wheel or worse. Aside from the cost of the repair the logistics of removing and repairing the wheels 250 miles from FT. Lauderdale in the Exumas or Abacos because of a mistake kind of bothers me. The kids are always asking to get closer to the beach. This way with a little dinghy I wont have to worry as much.

If the boat already had a davit I'd consider a larger Dinghy but if we're not travelling and just cruising and fishing around Ft. Lauderdale I prefer a clean/clear bow and a dingy thats put away in storage when we're out of town and not needing to be maintained on the bow. Not to mention the cost of Purchasing a davit and cutting holes in the deck etc. A smaller Lighter Boat I think is just the better way to go.

I had an 11ft High Pressure floor dinghy with either a 9.9 or 15HP Motor on a Hatteras 54C I managed and it was a nice little boat. with 4 adults in it, we could get up and run pretty good. we kept the motor in the engine room on a mount and the boat on the bow when travelling. Then we got home we out in on a rack in the owners garage. It worked out well and I'm looking to do something similar.

I saw a few around 10 to 11ft infaltebles with a hard fiberglass bottom that only weighed like 116lbs. Going to look at those, they cant be put in a bag like a soft floor but may handle a little better.

I saw one somewhere one time with a "Clear Bottom" but I can't remember where I saw it or what it was called. Does anyone else know?

Thanks again for the help everyone

Tony

 

[Walter P]

Hi Tony,

Caribe makes (or made) a nice RIB with a clear panel in the bottom. I have one. It's kind of cool to watch stuff in the water by opening the little trap door over the glass panel. The trap door is probably only there to protect the plexiglass from scratches etc. It's eleven feet long and I store it on the aft deck hardtop on my '82, 48 MY.

Walt

 

[saltshaker]

I think you've answered your own question. Do as you did on the 54C and get a boat with a HPI floor. Even a light weight RIB will be heavy to lift up over the bow rails. On our 46C we had a 10' Zodiac with the HPI floor and it worked very well for the exact same usage you describe. Nice thing was I could lift it easily over the rail and not worry about any part of the boat rubbing against the hull. I stored mine on the bow when we were using it and kept the motor on a bracket in the cockpit. I had a 9.9 Yamaha and it was more than enough to shuttle 4 of us around. I now have a 14ft Avon rib with a 50HP 4 stroke. Tons of fun but we use it for more than just a tender. I take the kids knee boarding, skiing, tubing etc. It's also a great little boat to run around in when we aren't out on the big boat. We get to explore some of the smaller islands and marsh areas we otherwise couldn't get to. It's also fun for taking to dinner instead of driving. Most of the waterfront restaurants don't have slip space or deep enough water for me so the tender is great for dock and dine.

 

[34Hatt]

I think you've answered your own question. Do as you did on the 54C and get a boat with a HPI floor. Even a light weight RIB will be heavy to lift up over the bow rails. On our 46C we had a 10' Zodiac with the H.P floor and it worked very well for the exact same usage you describe. Nice thing was I could lift it easily over the rail and not worry about any part of the boat rubbing against the hull. I stored mine on the bow when we were using it and kept the motor on a bracket in the cockpit. I had a 9.9 Yamaha and it was more than enough to shuttle 4 of us around. I now have a 14ft Avon rib with a 50HP 4 stroke. Tons of fun but we use it for more than just a tender. I take the kids knee boarding, skiing, tubing etc. It's also a great little boat to run around in when we aren't out on the big boat. We get to explore some of the smaller islands and marsh areas we otherwise couldn't get to. It's also fun for taking to dinner instead of driving. Most of the waterfront restaurants don't have slip space or deep enough water for me so the tender is great for dock and dine.

Well for weight you now can have a rigid floor for the same weight as H.P floor.
Yeah I didn't believe it at first put saw this one at the boat show 9.5' same weight as my 9.5' H.P floor its 79 lbs. At that weight one person can pull it up over the bow it has welded seams not glued. It is pvc but so is mine and my last pvc one I had for 12 years and traded it for a 400 lb mooring. If mine wasn't just 2 years old I would have bought one because with my 8 hp 2 cycle Yamaha it would scoot along nicely.

http://www.highfieldboats.com/boat/ultralite-290/

Local place near me was selling them which usually only handles good stuff and specializes in Inflatables.

 

[saltshaker]

Well for weight you now can have a rigid floor for the same weight as H.P floor.
Yeah I didn't believe it at first put saw this one at the boat show 9.5' same weight as my 9.5' H.P floor its 79 lbs. At that weight one person can pull it up over the bow it has welded seams not glued. It is pvc but so is mine and my last pvc one I had for 12 years and traded it for a 400 lb mooring. If mine wasn't just 2 years old I would have bought one because with my 8 hp 2 cycle Yamaha it would scoot along nicely.

http://www.highfieldboats.com/boat/ultralite-290/

Local place near me was selling them which usually only handles good stuff and specializes in Inflatables.

That's a neat little boat! If I was in the market I'd check one of the bigger ones out.