Dinghy stowage - was [Public-list] Propane

Fri Aug 12 08:25:07 PDT 2005

Hi fellows - sorry for the long email but I find dinghies almost as
interesting a topic as anchors.

We tow a Boston Whaler Squall dinghy.  It is an 10 footer that has an
integral centre board and a nice long keel moulded in.

I prefer it over the lighter hard dink and inflatables we have had for the
following reasons:

- it sails really well and is a perfect 'first command' for my sons; I say
perfect because besides safety, in contrast to most sailing dinks it
actually handles well and as a sailboat should (good positive steering, no
lee helm etc) Many so-called beginner's boats are actually harder to sail
than 'real' boats.
- it has tons of bouyancy: the four of us can go ashore in one trip.
- it is self-bailing even with two people in it
- it has terrific stability -  I can stand on one gunwale, and even climb
aboard over the side from the water.
- it is a very solid working platform for carrying out anchors etc in
conditions where a lighter dink would be unsafe or an inflatable would be
impossible to row to windward.

On the negative side:

- it tows rather heavy - towing at 5 kts under power it takes the engine
nearly 100 more rpm to hit that speed than without the dink astern.   That's
a fair bit of drag. (
- on two occasions when we have run aground while towing it (we sail in
Georgian Bay where people say you are not doing it right if you don't touch
the rock every year or so...) the first thing that happens after the boat
stops is the solid wallop on the stern from the dink - which no doubt is
delighted to get back at the mother ship for holding it captive.

In an earlier exchange I described the funnel I have on the tow line which
has mostly solved the last negative and also made the thing safer to tow in
following seas.

On the whole I think the positives outweigh the negatives; but I would not
recommend towing a dinghy offshore unless you did so with the foreknowledge
that you would likely have to cut it away in heavy weather.  Having even a
lighter dinghy tossed into the cockpit by a following sea would be lethal.

These boats are not made anymore but if you can find one I would highly
recommend them.  I googled the model name once and found  that there is an
association for them - crazy.

Gord #426 Surprise

PS we named it 'Ringle' which makes sense to people who have read the
O'Brian books...

> Pete,
> 
> The dinghy was designed by Evan Gatehouse. I bought the plans here:
> 
> http://boatplans-online.com/proddetail.php?prod=FB11
> 
> I built the dinghy in my spare time last winter.
> 
> It weighed 88 lbs before painting. The front half is about 40 lbs, the
> back half is about 48 lb.
> 
> There is a fair bit of rocker in the hull which makes for a sweet
> rowing displacement hull form. The down side is the hull isn't
> intended to plane and therefore it won't tow as well as a flat
> bottomed boat. That compromise works for me because I want a nice
> rowing boat. I seldom tow it, and never when the sails are up. I don't
> have an outboard for it, but I eventually plan to buy one.
> 
> This design is not sold commercially. I know of only one nesting
> dinghy available commercially, the NN10 by Nicolls Lite.
> 
> http://www.niccollslite.net/page3.html
> 
> It weighs more, and the dimensions might be slightly longer than my
> dinghy when nested. If so, it could interfere with the deck cleats on
> the A30. I have about 3" space between my dinghy and the deck cleats
> which allows good access when picking up the mooring or anchoring.
> 
> I'd be happy to answer any other questions you have.
> 
> Todd, that photo is deceiving. Although it doesn't look that way in
> the picture, the lifelines run between the shrouds.
> 
> John
> 
> 
> On 8/12/05, p.a.amos at tesco.net <p.a.amos at tesco.net> wrote:
>> John,can you supply some details,weight,price,where to buy etc
>> Pete TaitTait #478
>>> 
>>> From: John Irving <a30blueteal at gmail.com>
>>> Date: 2005/08/12 Fri PM 02:11:40 GMT
>>> To: Alberg 30 Public List -- open to all <public-list at alberg30.org>
>>> Subject: Dinghy stowage - was [Public-list] Propane
>>> 
>>> I have had success using a nesting dinghy (hard dinghy) on my A-30. It
>>> takes 5-10 minutes to stow and launch, has no detrimental effects on
>>> visibility, and leaves sufficient room for deck manouvers. I can
>>> launch and retrieve the dinghy by myself without a halyard or lifting
>>> device because the dinghy is handled in halves.
>>> 
>>> Here are some pictures:
>>> 
>>> http://www.roundthecorner.com/dinghy/launched.jpg
>>> 
>>> http://www.roundthecorner.com/dinghy/ondeck1.jpg
>>> 
>>> http://www.roundthecorner.com/dinghy/ondeck2.jpg
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> On 8/11/05, p.a.amos at tesco.net <p.a.amos at tesco.net> wrote:
>>>> My last tender was a 7.5ft Mercury pvc inflateable.The sun here in Florida
>>>> and Bahamas melted the adhesive and it literaly fell apart.Storing it on
>>>> the foredeck was o.k if the front chamber was deflated,but there was no
>>>> access in or out via the hatch and it was a dancing exercise to get to the
>>>> bow when it was lashed down.The easiest way to get it aboard was to remove
>>>> the forward stanchion and drop the lifelines then use a halyard to winch it
>>>> up (singlhanded).
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>> 
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