Dinghy on Deck

Stewartn · February 03, 2009, 04:02:32 AM

Trying to decide on a dinghy. There's the Mercury 8'10" and the Mercury 9'4". Anyone have any experience stowing either one of these inflated and bottom up on the foredeck of a 34 Mk II ? Any thoughts appreciated. Thx.
Stewart Napoleon
Desiree #1472, OGYC
stewartn@optonline.net

BillG · February 03, 2009, 05:23:41 AM

I have a Mercury, 9'4 inflatable bottom and stored it for 2 seasons on the deck when not sailing. It was a pain to get it up and off the boat, and makes it pretty much impossible to open up the forward hatch unless you remove it. Finally got tired of the hassle and paid the inflated fees to store it on my marinas dinghy racks.

Ken Juul · February 03, 2009, 08:49:44 AM

I think mine is 9'6". It's about 8 years old, not carried by WM anymore. I use the spare jib halyard to raise lower. Can be done alone, much easier with a helper. Have also read of rerouting the tail of the halyard to the bow pulpit and feeding it to the windlass to help raise. Haven't tried it yet.

Under way it does block the forward hatch. But it is usually closed anyway. At anchor/dock the bow can be lifted with the halyard to open the hatch for ventilation.

Jon Schneider · February 03, 2009, 08:54:59 AM

Fantastic shot, Ken! Stewart, I do the same as Ken regarding using the halyard (actually I use the spin halyard). I also have a webbed cradle-like product that I got from Defender to have equal weight at all lifting points. I actually think my dink is 10'5". No big deal.

Ken Juul · February 03, 2009, 10:00:25 AM

Thanks Jon,

We have a YC member who flies the local EMS helo. Usually has a camera with him. If he is in the area he takes aerials returning to base after missions.

Stu Jackson · February 03, 2009, 11:47:40 AM

We have a 10'-2" Zodiac, works just fine.

A search on dingy foredeck finds this, among many others: http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,2042.0.html

Ron Hill · February 03, 2009, 07:01:44 PM

Stewart : I've had both a 9' 6" inflatable floor and a 8' 6" hard bottom(RIB)dink and have stored both on the fordeck. The smaller 8 1/2 ft dink is easier to pull up and launch (even though it's heavier). Another advantage is the extra space that you have at the anchor well with the shorter dink. A thought

Hawk · February 03, 2009, 07:14:53 PM

Stewart,

I don't think the 6 inches will make a difference when you stow it the foredeck. I have my 9' inflatable floor dingy upside down on the foredeck. If I think it'll be used it gets muscled over the side to be towed(but rigid bottoms are heavier).
I think the rule of thumb is get the bigger dingy if you can make it work. More passengers, larger outboard, more stable.
Then you'll need the outboard lifting arm...thats another thread (:

HAwk

tonywright · February 04, 2009, 07:00:47 AM

It really depends on how you plan to use the dinghy. If you will ever want to row it, or have it steer in a straight line in a cross wind, or worry about sharp rocks or coral underneath, you might want to think about RIB. Also less prone to tip over if you go for a swim and want to climb back in. It is heavier, and you cannot roll it up for storage, but the other advantages are pretty significant. Sounds like Ron has made a good compromise between size and utility.

I have a roll up aluminum floor in mine, but have often thought that a RIB would be better when approaching crab-wise in a cross wind.
If you have a lot of sun where you are, consider hypalon or make sure you have a cover and use it.

Tony

Braxton · February 04, 2009, 10:57:02 AM

How are people keeping it tied down on deck. Has anyone installed custom padeyes or are you doing something different?

Stu Jackson · February 04, 2009, 11:03:45 AM

We just use some extra line and tie it down to the handrails. I frown on adding anything extra to the boat that's unnecessary and use the available. When going offshore, we add extra lines tied to the base of the forward stanchions to tie down the bow of the dinghy.

Ron Hill · February 04, 2009, 06:25:04 PM

Stewart : I'd go with the smaller dink unless you have to normally haul more than 4 people. The more people the more life jackets!! In my 8' 6" RIB, I can go on plane (5hp outboard) with me and 1st mate (about 300lbs + garbage or groceries). Speed really makes a difference if you have to dinghy aways or get caught in a rain storm.
I'd definitely go with Hypalon rather than PVC - I've had both.

Bob Kuba · March 15, 2009, 12:21:10 PM

Here is a view of what an 8"8" dink looks like on the foredeck of A 1994 Mark I.

It weighs about 75 lbs., and had a rigid floor(wood).
I use the spinnaker halyard and the windlass to bring it up on deck. It can be raised single handed unless there is a good breeze blowing, or if it's after happy hour. Then you'll need a hand to steady things a bit. I also use a webbed harness from Defender that equals the lifting load, and raises it level.

My halyard is internal and the exit point is about 4 feet above a cleat on the port side of the mast.
I attach a snatch block to that cleat and run the halyard forward to the windlass. Then I step on the button and tail the line as the dink comes up on the port side. It helps to release tension on the headsail sheet line to keep out of the way.

Once on deck, I flip it over and slide it toward the mast so the tubes are on either side. The bow is held down by the extended painter and tied to the base of the forward stantions. It doesn't move around much, even in big seas or high winds. The outboard is mounted on the stern rail pad on the starboard side. It's a 4 cycle 2.5 hp Yamaha that only weighs 35 pounds and has a built in gas tank. In hindsight I would have gone up a step on the horsepower, but I wanted something light enough that I could lift easily with one hand, and I didn't want to deal with an external gas tank. Tradeoffs are part of cruising I guess.

There's plenty of room to access the anchor locker, but it does cover up the forward hatch. Unless you lift the bow with the halyard, the forward hatch will only open about 3 inches.

I've even had two bicycles and the dink up there at the same time, with enough room to walk around everything.
The bikes stand on the cabin top and lean outward and are velcroed to the shrouds. It helps to loosen the handlebars and align them fore and aft to keep from snagging a sheet during a tack.

I haven't figured a way to get the bikes into the dink and then row to shore yet. It's easier to offload at a slip.

WTunnessen · March 15, 2009, 06:46:52 PM

Great shot!

Another trick for storing an inflatable on the foredeck is too take an foam swimming "noddle", cut about 10" off it, slit it down the middle, and then stick the slit noddle on the dinghy's engine mount. This prevents the engine mount from damaging the gel coat around the mast.

waterdog · March 15, 2009, 10:40:47 PM

Quote from: Braxton on February 04, 2009, 10:57:02 AM
How are people keeping it tied down on deck. Has anyone installed custom padeyes or are you doing something different?

I've decided that I'm going to put half inch shackles at the chainplates instead of clevis pins on the forward lowers. And I'm putting another set aft for a preventer. I like this idea of creating some sturdy tie down points without any new holes in the deck.