What Dinghy for CD25?

[henry hey]

Hey CD25 folks.

I have been shopping for a dinghy for some time. I was sort of set on Achilles LT-2 because I figured it is so small on collapse that it might be able to fit in the cockpit locker.

As you know, space is at a premium on the CD25 and I would love to find a dinghy that I didn't have to strap to the coachtop.

I would also like to find a dinghy that I didn't have to tow.

thoughts?
-henry

[Roy J.]

Henry,

The smaller Zodiacs 200 or 240 w/slats, not inflatable or rigid floors, roll up and will fit in the CD-25 cockpit lockers. I have an older version of the 240 marketed by West Marine that works very well. When the temperatures drop below 45 it is a little more difficult to get the inflatable in and out of the locker because it becomes less flexible, but overall it is very serviceable. It is pretty easy to inflate with the footpump in the cockpit.

Roy

[Dean Abramson]

Henry,

I sent you a PM.

Dean

[Carl Thunberg]

I was very intrigued by this unique solution to dinghy storage when I saw one at the Maine Boat Show (not the Maine Boatbuilders Show) a couple years ago. They're very light and they fold flat. I have to admit, I did not buy one because I wasn't able to try it out on the water. I saw one on the water once around Cape Neddick and it seemed very stable. Does anyone have first-hand experience with the porta-bote, good, bad, or indifferent?

http://www.porta-bote.com

[Judith]

For stowing in a locker, Porta-bote looks interesting. I also keep returning to the idea of building this one http://www.duckworksbbs.com/plans/origa ... /index.htm

Right now, though, besides a traditional-type dinghy--which does have to be either stowed on deck or towed--we have a little Dragonfly inflatable kayak. It's the one-man size (they come in a two-man size as well), and folds down to almost nothing. . .It seems, Henry, like the carrying capacity you require would determine how small you can go.

Judith

[Nancy Martin]

We have an inflatable and a port a bote. We have a CD31 cutter so we don't have the place on the bow to keep an inflatable in a "ready to go" state.

The port a bote tows great when the painter is tight and the bow is out of the water. We pull the boat vertically with a spare halyard and rig and derig vertically. We then stow on the side deck like a surfboard. The seats and the transom then are stowed. The boat is not as stable as the inflatable but it is easier to stow then the inflatable.

We keep the port-a-bote in the water all the time. Our friends with dogs love this boat. Their dogs have no problem jumping from the seat into their boat....with no fear of puncturing a hull. A quick spray with a power washer the boat looks good as new....although it is UGLY.
Nancy Martin

[henry hey]

Will the portaboat fit in the CD25 locker?

That's really the question.

thanks.

h

[Nancy Martin]

No, it will not fit into your lockers.
Nancy

[Joe CD MS 300]

When shopping for a new RIB last year I looked at a few Avons with the high pressure inflatable floors. I was surprised and impressed with how rigid and hard the floors were. I was selling an old Avon with plywood slat floors. Only had it for a year and did not like the feel of it at all. I would guess that you could find a size that would roll up and fit in a locker.

[Al Levesque]

When we had our CD25 we used an inexpensive inflatable that we rolled up and could store anywhere. The kids liked it for swimming and playing in the water too. Now, for our CD33 we have an 8ft Sea Rogue inflatable that came with a folding wooden floor. I think the floor is stored in the attic of the shed, we throw a couple of cushions onto the floor of the inflatable instead. When we deflate the dinghy we keep it in the mainsail bag and store it with the sails in the seat locker.

We do have an 8ft hard dinghy and a 16ft tender with outboard, but we leave them at home when we sail or cruise.

[Dave Brandt]

Henry,

I have a Mercury 200RU that I got on sale from Defender, like you I wanted something I could store in the lockers and this was the smallest dingy I could find. It is only 6'7" long and it would fit in a locker, but we never bother, it is usually towed, but sometimes I have lashed (deflated) it to the deck in front of the mast.

What I found is that it is really to small to be practical. There was not enough room to row it efficiently, so I ended up getting a small motor. It is OK with one person, will work with two, but that is about it. We use the dingy all the time where we sail, so at some point I plan on getting a bigger one.

That's my two cents.

Dave Brandt

[The Patriot]

... What I found is that it is really to small to be practical. There was not enough room to row it efficiently, so I ended up getting a small motor. It is OK with one person, will work with two, but that is about it. We use the dingy all the time where we sail, so at some point I plan on getting a bigger one ...

I think you have made a very important practical point. I know that much of what follows is already common knowledge and perhaps "old hat," but then I kind of like older hats.

I am not the first to suggest that there is no single answer to "best dinghy." In the Bahamas where diving is common, getting back into the dink is no simple matter when the dink is a traditional rowing boat. OTOH, rowing a rubber boat is an exercise in futility. Many Bahamas cruisers carry both types for these reasons. Oars are important, and if you have had to take a heavy, pointy, sharp anchor out in the middle of the night you already know this. But consider another aspect. Rowing in from the mooring at 0600 means you are more likely to make friends (or at least not lose any) than if you crank up the outboard at that same hour. Also in the majority of cases the typical cruising sailboat simply does not have the real estate to carry a proper rowing dinghy on deck, so if you are going to be stuck towing then why not tow something practical, comfortable, and easily propelled by oars?

Example. A friend based near Miami who is a Bahamas veteran of many seasons has modified a 12 foot Sears aluminum boat and ended up with a very practical solution. His 9.9 outboard can move the boat at nearly 40 mph (although I never had the guts to try this). A number of times we carried 6 adults in this boat in a chop with no problems and a considerable margin of safety. The boat also rows well, the main drawback being that aluminum boats need special fendering and they are LOUD when moving about or baning into a dock, etc.

I own an 8 foot rowing boat and a 9 foot inflatable. At times I have carried both, but in the last few years (or is it decades?) I have carried one or the other depending on the application. BTW you don't need anything fancy I once owned a CD 10 with a sailing rig, trailer, etc., but I sold it and replaced it with a cheap Howmar that was unlikely to be stolen during a planned cruise to Belize, Mexico, and thereabouts. I still own this cheap junker, and it still floats. And rows. This coming summer I will ship out with a 1981 Achilles that's still going strong, because I cannot tow the hard boat where I hope to be going.

Just some "old hat" thoughts.