Dingy & Motor

[chriscournoyer]

My first venture of buying a dingy and a motor for a
Catalinia/Morgan 38 ('92-Hull #1). Will be two 60'ish people for
the best part, one sure footed and one not quite so. Will take
bo'swain plus four once in a while' mostly just the two of us.
Would appreciate your thoughts as to what type, motor size, any
caveats come to mind. This will be sailed, for the most part, in
the Cheseapeake Bay, upper and lower. This will be used for taxi
mostly between boat and dock, vs gunkholing. Is hoist required?
Safty chain/cable with lock needed? To bring dingy parallel to
the stern, is there a hook combo to ensure dingy doesn't push
away from the stern? Motor with gas better than outside tank?
Electric start vs pull start? Weight of motor, hp required,
weight of dingy (hard or soft)? Towing easire with...? Least
trouble.
Will be much better informed after hearing from the
experienced people who have been through this prior.
I thank you for your time....Terry Quinn

 

[cavale]

<div>Terry
Here's a couple of thoughts from 25 years of owing a hard dink and 12 years of owning an inflatable.
-The hard dink can take serious abuse. Ours is 25 years old, has been repeatedly patched & repaired but it just keeps going.
-The hard dink tows easier.
-The inflatable, ours is a 10'-2" Achilles with a 6hp Yamaha, is a much more stable platform. For getting in and out at the boat or a dock it beats the hard dink hands down.
-The inflatable with an outboard allows you to anchor further out in a harbor, away from most of the noise & bustle, and still get into town for dinner without working up a sweat.
-An inflatable of less than 10' can be quite squirrilly to control. Especially on a windy or choppy day.
-Air cooled outboard motors are so noisey that you will find yourself dreading to use it.
-For anything more than a short distance on a calm day it's best to lift the engine off the inflatable. We had our dink flip in a sudden T-storm, dunking the engine and losing all the gear in the boat. There are lifting rigs on the market that make the job rather easy. We us the boom and mainsheet on the 382 to lift ours.
-Scuba diving and snorkling from a hard dink is impossible. From the inflatable it's a joy.
-Ultraviolot light is the worse enemy of an inflatable. Ours is kept on a trailer in the garage. It's now 12 years old.
-Wooden floorboards in the inflatable are the pits. We replaced ours with a plastic cutting board like material.
-You can't beat the inflatable for hauling gear to and from the boat. One trip fully loaded would take 3 trips with the hard dink.
-With the inflatable you can't look back and enjoy the beauty of your Morgan as you row ashore on Sunday evenings.I hope some of these thoughts help you come to a decision. Jim
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[chriscournoyer]

Jim,
Appreciate your comments re th hard dink and the inflatable. Appears the 10'er is the one we should look at with the quietest engine possible. What HP do u use for your inflatable of this size for the 100 yards or so shuttling? Do you lift inflatable to the foredeck or aft (out of water) when sailing or always take in tow?
Have a great summer, Regards, Terry Quinn

 

[captrob]

<div>I agree. I have an Achilles SE12, with a 15 HP Johnson. The boat is bullet proof (except for barnicles and oyster shells). I have had almost as much fun in the SE as the "big boat". I have had the 12 for 11 years and had not a clue what I was doing when I bought it. I got real lucky. The SE adds re-enforcent on the keel that other models do not have. Like I said she is bullet proof. My son hit a stump with the engine locked down running full speed (22k), sheared the mounting bolts off the engine. It flew off the transon and went down running. Not one scratch on the boat. The engine took some work thought but it to is still in service.I would add two things. First, a Garhauher engine crane. The cost is about $200 dollars and every bit as good as the high priced spead. I would also add the optional aluminum floor boards (wood is the pits). Get as big a dink as you can store on deck. The extra room is a joy and makes for a great time exploreing with friends or just DWI (Dingying While Impaired). I tow mine most of the time (less engine). It has been towed from Solomans, MD to Charleston, Ocracoke and all over the Pamlico Sound with no problems. Off shore she goes on deck.Good luck with your search and I hope you are as happy with your choice as this sailor has been. I would not be without a dink.Fairwinds and Rum Drinks,Vic C.
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[cavale]

Terry
You should fit the largest HP engine on the dink that the boat is rated to carry. You may not need all the power just to shuttle back and forth to the dock but when your anchored in Nantucket Harbor on the outer fringe of the field you'll be glad you have it. All the engines above 6HP seem to be water cooled and therefore run rather quiet. We tow the dink, sans engine, most of the time. If we're heading offshore we'll lift it onto the foredeck using the main halyard and winch and a three point bridle simular to the ones advertized in the magazines. We use a 30' x 1/2" nylon painter for towing. Depending on the wind and seas the dink is either snubbed in close to the transom or let out to ride in a good position in the wake.
Jim