Are small pram dinghies the work of the devil ?

Tam Lin said:
I bought a ten foot dinghy after a scary experience down the end of C row in an eight foot! It can get a bit choppy there! Now I have moved up a bit I am thinking of an eight footer as it is a bit heavy to handle. I wouldn’t go smaller than that though. On a drying mooring you could always walk out..............:)
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Dave and I both got stuck in the mud this year going to sort out our moorings , we both got in up to our thighs luckily we were two handed but it was still a struggle to get out. I’ve walked out to my boat over the mud quite happily for the last 10+ years, but this year the mud seems to extra deep and gloopy.

If my 6ft dinghy works out maybe we can come to an arrangement on my 8ft grp?

You know where it is !

Richard.
 
Look at the Palourde. Small, light and stable. With ball wheels at the transom. I use one to get to my mooring and leave it on the buoy. Because of its shape and colour it is called the Soap Dish.
 
Another alternative - how about one of the smaller Sport Yak dinghies?
They are very lightweight, have positive buoyancy, row very easily and are much more stable than the average pram.
We had one for many years - it even once transported two 6' men from the mooring to the shore, although they had to each have an oar and paddle, rather than row in the conventional fashion.

http://www.bicboats.co.uk/Dinghies

And the cost? Approx GBP 350 for a new one.

Contrast this to GBP 2,000 for a new nesting pram from Nestaway Boats

https://nestawayboats.com/shop/8ft-nesting-pram-dinghy/
 
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Applescruffs said:
I can see why !

:0)

I think Palourde means clam in French.....I can see that too

R
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Seriously, do the test that Seajet and I are recommending. On a day when the water is warm, ie late summer, deliberately capsize a small tender, in your depth, off a beach (Osea?) or the end of the hard, and try to right it and get back aboard.

A small pram cannot be re- boarded because the stern transom goes under.
 
Minn said:
A small pram cannot be re- boarded because the stern transom goes under.
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That is because small prams that have simple hard-chine hulls built in plywood usually have a miserably low freeboard with the aim of lower cost and ease of construction.
When I deliberately filled Murphy until it could take no more water, the mid-ship section was awash but the top of the transom was still several inches above the surface. Applying my weight to the transom did not submerge it because of the buoyant aft bench; instead, the bows slowly rose out of the water and most of the water that was in the hull spilled out. I then quickly wriggled over the transom whereupon the bows came down again with me inside the boat. Murphy was afloat but was not awash. This meant that I could 'calmly' bale out the remaining water.
At that time my weight was 73-75 kilos. The buoyancy of the aft bench is around 130 litres (from memory).
 
By a strange quirk of fate I’m doing a capsize training exercise next month, on a wayfarer as part of RYA dinghy level 2 course

I will be wearing my dry suit and will already be wet so yes, I’ll get the tender out and give it a go in the afternoon.

I realise that capsizing a tender will not be the same as the wayfarer but from what you are saying I think it will be a bit of an eye opener and maybe a bit of a game changer in the way I use a tender in future

If I can’t right the tender and get back in even in shallow water and under controlled’ circumstances then what?

That may be a real frightener !!

It’s said that most fatalities involve using a tender.......

Now I’m worried !

R
 
Back in the mists of time, I was in a 6' Sportyak with a mate going out to his dad's Iroquois in Penzance Harbour. We came alongside, he got out, with me prepared to balance the dinghy, the bows followed him into the air, and I finished up swimming. Six foot is not big enough for a dinghy and a pram on the Blackwater would be 'orrible...
 
A Bic 245 which is 8' long is pretty much uncapsizeable - very stable, unsinkable, rows OK, potters along under engine (I have a torqeedo - it could probably do with something a bit more powerful but, hey, what's the hurry?). Not too heavy and has built in wheels on the transom so easily handled ashore. Brilliant boat overall. They cost around £600 new but sell for around £250 second hand.
 
I tried capsizing our little Sport Yak once - I had to run the painter through the oarlock to give me leverage to flip it over (in the same fashion as using a daggerboard on a sailing dinghy).
And then I could climb back in over the transom - ok, this was in the tropics, so I wasn't encumbered by lots of clothes weighing me down.
Some water got shipped as well, but this could be bailed out easily.
And as Aeolus says, if you can manage an 8' dinghy, then the 245 sounds pretty much ideal - especially if they are available for around GBP 250 second hand.
 
Bajansailor said:
I tried capsizing our little Sport Yak once - I had to run the painter through the oarlock to give me leverage to flip it over (in the same fashion as using a daggerboard on a sailing dinghy).
And then I could climb back in over the transom - ok, this was in the tropics, so I wasn't encumbered by lots of clothes weighing me down.
Some water got shipped as well, but this could be bailed out easily.
And as Aeolus says, if you can manage an 8' dinghy, then the 245 sounds pretty much ideal - especially if they are available for around GBP 250 second hand.
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Good tip on the painter through the oarlock.
 
Kayaks are becoming more popular here (US) as tenders for single handers (the OP). I'm curious as to why this alternative is dismissed.

Pluses
* Much faster.
* More fun for exploring. Much greater range.
* Lighter. 15-40 pounds.
* More seaworthy in open water.

Minuses
* Reboarding does require some technique, but the kayak isn't swamped.
* Boarding a boat requires some balance, but they won't tip if you keep one foot in the center.
* More than 6' (typically 8-10'), but slender.

I use the kayak more than the inflatable.
Boat%u00252B3-25-2015%u00252B018.JPG
 
Kayaks are great fun, but not much use if you have other people or gear to carry.
Could be an option for someone who can always bring their boat back to a jetty or pontoon to load, but that's not us.
We tend to use the tender to wheel a week's worth of gear and groceries from the car to the slip, then leave directly from the mooring.
 
lw395 said:
Kayaks are great fun, but not much use if you have other people or gear to carry.
Could be an option for someone who can always bring their boat back to a jetty or pontoon to load, but that's not us.
We tend to use the tender to wheel a week's worth of gear and groceries from the car to the slip, then leave directly from the mooring.
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The OP is a singlehander. I was only talking about singlehanders. Carrying a week's worth for one should not be a problem.

I'll offer another practicality. I can take a kayak through moderate surf, common enough for the coastal cruiser. That won't happen in a pram.
 
we have a large tandem kayak,(not as a tender) but we once thought that two smaller ones, and an arrangement to make them a temporary catamaran would be a practical way to carry loads. Daft idea we will try out one day if we find a pair of cheap kayaks :D
 
Seajet said:
Offering the average cruising wife - or even potential girlfriend - a trip out to the mooring in a kayak would be a surefire divorce or goodbye in most cases ! :)
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My wife and daughter paddle.

My conclusion is that kayaks have not been adapted in the UK. Quite common here. Far more common than a rowing pram; I may not have seen one of those in a year. Just one a regional difference in practices. In the US RIBs with oversized motors are ridiculously common; they make sense in some places, but mostly they are "what you need to have." A tender that is rowed is unusual in most areas. I'm not trying to say that makes sense, just relating what I see.
 
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Without wanting to sound like a know-it-all I do have an inflatable canoe...a good one by Sevylor...that I use on the upper reaches of the river and the Chelmer Canal, (it’s a lot nicer than it sounds!), and I wouldn’t feel confident in it on the tidal reaches.

My balance isn’t great, I have a touch of vertigo, and getting in and out of a small kayak or canoe tied to my boat sounds like an accident waiting to happen !

:0)

I’m going to collect the pram dinghy this morning and will try it on the river, if I think it’s unsuitable I’ll put it up for sale straight away and think on.

When / if!, I return from my experimental trip I’ll report back.

Cheers to all for comments, advice and interest

R
 
Applescruffs said:
Without wanting to sound like a know-it-all I do have an inflatable canoe...a good one by Sevylor...that I use on the upper reaches of the river and the Chelmer Canal, (it’s a lot nicer than it sounds!), and I wouldn’t feel confident in it on the tidal reaches.

My balance isn’t great, I have a touch of vertigo, and getting in and out of a small kayak or canoe tied to my boat sounds like an accident waiting to happen !

:0)

I’m going to collect the pram dinghy this morning and will try it on the river, if I think it’s unsuitable I’ll put it up for sale straight away and think on.

When / if!, I return from my experimental trip I’ll report back.

Cheers to all for comments, advice and interest

R
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Likewise, I do not intend to sound wise, but Sevylor primarily makes toy kayaks. I'm not sure you can draw any parallels because they do not paddle the same. A proper kayak is rigid with knee braces.

http://theotherchesapeake.blogspot.com/p/kayak.html

Everybody has different requirements. My wife has terrible inner ear problems. However, given the choose, I would always chose a proper kayak (not a low pressure inflatable like Sevylor) in open water. That said, stability does depend on skill development to some extent. A kayaker braces against waves with strokes, which becomes unconscious, like riding a bike, with practice. Bear in mind that kayaks were developed with the ocean in mind!
 
I took the pram dinghy out this morning!

Pros: nice and light, easy to launch, recover and pull up the slipway, seems stable enough....but then it was quite calm today.

Cons: I can’t seem to row it properly, my knees get in the way of the oars as they have to be bent to fit in the boat. Can I shorten the oars at the handle end to make it easier or will this make them impossible to use? Archimedes’ Law of leverage springs to mind.

I have a small 2hp Mariner that I could use, but would prefer not to, or I have the opportunity of buying a 55lb thrust electric motor from a friend.

Any thoughts? The dinghy seems to suit me....if only I could row it properly !

Cheers

Richard
 
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