Go Back   Cruiser Log World Cruising & Sailing Forums > Cruising Forums > The Bosun's Locker > Other Equipment
Cruiser Wiki Click Here to Login

Join Cruiser Log Today

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 12-02-2008, 06:22 AM   #1
Moderator
 
delatbabel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 700
Send a message via AIM to delatbabel
Default

Well my 10+ year old 2.8m Caribe RIB has bitten the dust. I'm going to take it in to the repairers one more time but I think this time the Hypalon has just been rubbed and scraped and busted up so many times it will be one for the knackery.

I have my boat sometimes on a mooring, sometimes at anchor, and sometimes on a rickety old berth at a marina. So I'd like a fairly solid dinghy that I can leave in the water. On the other hand the RIB has been useful because I can deflate it and bring it up on deck.

I'm thinking, as a compromise, to get two dinghies. One fibreglass or aluminium to leave behind and one fully inflatable / roll-up which I can take with me while cruising. I think I've found a pretty good fibreglass one second hand but I was wondering about the inflatable. There appear to be so many options these days -- air floor, slat floor, wooden floor, Hypalon vs PVC (considering I'll probably keep it rolled up and stashed away much of the time) etc. What do others have and what do you recommend?
__________________

__________________
= New South Wales, Queensland,
delatbabel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-02-2008, 05:29 PM   #2
Moderator
 
redbopeep's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Home Port: Washington DC
Vessel Name: SV Mahdee
Posts: 3,236
Default

You might check out a Porta-Bote which is a fold up boat which holds a lot, can take abuse, and folds to the size of a surfboard to put aboard your cruising boat. We've seen several at the dingy docks near the mooring fields here in San Diego, so they seem popular enough. We plan to get one someday, too. Our current dingy situation is a very good condition Hypalon (spelling?) Tinker Traveler RIB and a lovely Merrimack cherry ribbed fiberglass canoe. The canoe must stow on deck, the Traveler has a spot below deck. We'd like to have a "beater" of a dingy and think the Porta-Bote will work for us as we'll likely be able to store it easily on deck and creatively below deck if need be.

I've heard bad things about PVC but all in relation to UV exposure.

Best of luck.
__________________

__________________
"Do or do not. There is no try." - Yoda

What we're doing - The sailing life aboard and the Schooner Chandlery.

redbopeep is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-02-2008, 08:37 PM   #3
Admiral
 
JeanneP's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 2,098
Default

For cruising we always had an inflatable. Our best, in our opinion, was the Achilles with inflatable floor, the last dinghy we carried on sv Watermelon.

Because Peter insisted that we not tow our dinghy, we deflated it and stored it even when we were only going on a day sail to the next bay "up the road". With the inflatable floor and a 12V dinghy inflating pump, we had the boat in the water less than 1/2 an hour after dropping anchor. The dinghy also stored easily without those board floors to find a place for.

Achilles at the time we bought it was the only hypalon dinghy with a fully hypalon floor as well. We can vouch for the greater durability of the hypalon in the tropics.

Downside of the inflatable floor - it's a bit "squirrely" compared to the hard keel of a RIB or the inflating keel of a dinghy with floor boards to keep the keel deep. In other words, getting into and out of the dinghy needed a bit more care or the dinghy would zip out from under your feet. It took some time to get used to it, but then we were okay and no more missteps.

The other reason we liked the Achilles was that we carried only a small, 4 HP outboard, so the (much) lighter Achilles still moved well with the small outboard. And carrying the outboard and dinghy up the beach in significant tidal areas was a snap - THE most important feature for us.

Now, with davits on the power cat, we have a RIB. And because our boat is an indulged child, it's not just any RIB, it's an AB with aluminum hull. About 50 pounds lighter than the comparable GRP hull (and perhaps $1,000 more expensive, though I might be exaggerating). For us, two old cruisers past their prime, it's nice to still be able to carry the dinghy up the beach. Still using just a 4 HP outboard.
__________________
In 1986 we went cruising for a few years. After 20 years and 50+ countries and several oceans, we are STILL "cruising for a few years".

SY WATERMELON |
MV WATERMELON (New) | Cruiser's Dictionary, free ebook

= Cruiser's Dictionary, North America,
JeanneP is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
dinghy


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Dinghy Distress atavist General Cruising Forum 16 09-19-2009 11:29 AM
New Dinghy Wildernesstech General Cruising Forum 10 03-12-2009 05:17 PM
Dinghy Decisions Wildernesstech Other Equipment 9 07-17-2008 12:51 AM
Dinghy Covers Wildernesstech Other Equipment 2 07-05-2008 02:51 PM
Dinghy Dinghy Dinghy!what Is Best In This georgetheleo1 General Cruising Forum 5 07-08-2007 09:53 AM

Our Communities

Our communities encompass many different hobbies and interests, but each one is built on friendly, intelligent membership.

» More about our Communities

Automotive Communities

Our Automotive communities encompass many different makes and models. From U.S. domestics to European Saloons.

» More about our Automotive Communities

RV & Travel Trailer Communities

Our RV & Travel Trailer sites encompasses virtually all types of Recreational Vehicles, from brand-specific to general RV communities.

» More about our RV Communities

Marine Communities

Our Marine websites focus on Cruising and Sailing Vessels, including forums and the largest cruising Wiki project on the web today.

» More about our Marine Communities


All times are GMT. The time now is 04:29 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
SEO by vBSEO 3.6.0
×