Anyone ever travelled on a flubber with one air chamber punctured and flat?

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fredrussell

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I’ve always assumed that if you punctured a flubber en route somewhere you could get by by shifting all your weight onto the two still inflated tubes. Is this correct? Anyone been forced to do just this?
 
I was trying to secure the Duck-House in my channel last summer ... one tube went down ....

I ended up 'throwing' my mobile phone and smartkey from car onto the bank as I struggled to stay out of the water ...

??" two still inflated tubes.?? My Avon and the Soviet - both dinghys only have two tubes in each ... where's the third ? Unless you are counting seat or floor ??
 
johnalison said:
It was certainly said to be possible with the old round Avons, which would leave you with the half-boat and thwart, assuming that you folded the deflated part over the thwart to turn in into something like an inflatable coracle.
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I also read that - but having years ago - had a faulty valve on one section - that Avon round tail was not as safe as claimed !!
 
Well I wouldn’t do it willingly.

Very difficult to row a soggy leaky Avon. The moulded rowlocks move instead of the oar blades!
 
Refueler said:
??" two still inflated tubes.?? My Avon and the Soviet - both dinghys only have two tubes in each ... where's the third ? Unless you are counting seat or floor ??
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pretty sure most modern ones have three chambers - bow, port and starboard. Plus many have inflatable floor like you say. Still a very buoyant thing you’re sitting in even with a tube gone.
 
A funny story
Many years ago I was out diving and stabbed a flatfish. After getting back in to the boat a fellow diver said you should 'despatch' it and said "I will do it" he took out his diving knife and holding the blade, hit the fish with it, as he struck the fish, the point of the knife punctured the inflatables tube!
It took him a long time to live it down 😄
We were off Portland Bill and got back to Chesil beach ok by holding a hand over the puncture and using the foot pump.
 
Refueler said:
I was trying to secure the Duck-House in my channel last summer ... one tube went down ....

I ended up 'throwing' my mobile phone and smartkey from car onto the bank as I struggled to stay out of the water ...

??" two still inflated tubes.?? My Avon and the Soviet - both dinghys only have two tubes in each ... where's the third ? Unless you are counting seat or floor ??
Click to expand...
The Soviet? I deduce you have a rubber dinghy from the USSR.
As an ex-Lada driver I of course now want one, but I suppose they'll now be pretty rare, though probably quite cheap once-upon-a-time. Sovs did some cheap folding kayaks and I considered going to Leningrad/St Petersburg to try and buy one, but never did
I have a Gummotex (Czechoslovakian) pre-glaznost inflatable kayak import, but thats really too small and tippy for tender duty.
 
ducked said:
The Soviet? I deduce you have a rubber dinghy from the USSR.
As an ex-Lada driver I of course now want one, but I suppose they'll now be pretty rare, though probably quite cheap once-upon-a-time. Sovs did some cheap folding kayaks and I considered going to Leningrad/St Petersburg to try and buy one, but never did
I have a Gummotex (Czechoslovakian) pre-glaznost inflatable kayak import, but thats really too small and tippy for tender duty.
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mAPn1Dz.jpeg


It was repaired last year - but has developed another slow leak .... trying to decide what to do ...

It cost me $100 in Tallinn about 20yrs ago ...
 
Refueler said:
mAPn1Dz.jpeg


It was repaired last year - but has developed another slow leak .... trying to decide what to do ...

It cost me $100 in Tallinn about 20yrs ago ...
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Looks OK. and doesnt owe you much, but if it was new when bought its about 15 years post-Soviet, though probably a Soviet design
 
My rubber dinghies both have 3 chambers, port starboard and bow. Some others have port starboard and inflatable floor.

I have damaged a valve going ashore alone at Lynmouth and sort of paddled the part deflated thing with single oar it into the tideway to enable navigator to up anchor (with great stress as mechanical winch was fairly useless and her back is poor) and motor over to me.

An outboard would possibly have sunk it and floppy rowlock precluded actual rowing but we got there

I would never ever buy a two chamber dinghy
 
The way I see it, with a two chamber job like Refueler’s, if one tube goes you’ve lost half your buoyancy and half of your ‘structure’. If a tube goes on a three tube dinghy you’ve lost a third of your buoyancy but only a quarter of your structure - as the hard transom (assuming…etc) forms one side of a square, the three tubes being the other three sides.
 
oldmanofthehills said:
My rubber dinghies both have 3 chambers, port starboard and bow. Some others have port starboard and inflatable floor.

I have damaged a valve going ashore alone at Lynmouth and sort of paddled the part deflated thing with single oar it into the tideway to enable navigator to up anchor (with great stress as mechanical winch was fairly useless and her back is poor) and motor over to me.

An outboard would possibly have sunk it and floppy rowlock precluded actual rowing but we got there

I would never ever buy a two chamber dinghy
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For many years .. Narwhal ... Avon .... Zodiac etc -- ALL produced two chamber dinghys for the yacht tender market ... in those days you had no choice.
 
fredrussell said:
The way I see it, with a two chamber job like Refueler’s, if one tube goes you’ve lost half your buoyancy and half of your ‘structure’. If a tube goes on a three tube dinghy you’ve lost a third of your buoyancy but only a quarter of your structure - as the hard transom (assuming…etc) forms one side of a square, the three tubes being the other three sides.
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The Avon in the rear of the picture is the standard Redstart round tail .. and is a two chamber dinghy. No inflated floor ... only an inflated seat held by webbing ...
 
I had one go down slowly on me a few years ago. It was the aft starboard part. The transom and engine began to slide downwards. Creating. Lot of drag. I sat on the port side revved the engine and hurried towards a pontoon, it was not fun but without an engine I think it would have been fine to bob around in but rowing would not have been possible...
 
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