Classic Small Clinker Dinks? Who has one...

[Roach1948]

....and how do you rate it?

I am interested to know who have and use hard tenders and stow them onboard. I am trying to work out whether it is worth building a hard dinghy for Roach this winter. Before looking at designs I would like to know whether the concept is worth persuing or shall I continue to deflate the flubber which takes up the whole forepeak.

1. How easy is it to haul-up onboard and can one do it alone? (does one end up towing the thing because of this).

2. Particularly interested in people with small pram designs (Under 8ft) - are they really as tippy as one might suppose?

 

[Bajansailor]

Little pram dinks

I have a wee (it is 7'7" overall length) two part nesting pram dinghy that I designed and built - I based the design on Danny Greene's Chameleon which is about 10' long - I just scaled it all down a bit. It stows happily in 4' of length, and I can easily lift up the two halves each in one hand - they are probably about 30 - 35 lbs each.

Its is rather tippyish, as it is only about 3' wide at max beam, but that is the price you pay for excellent rowing ability - it does scoot along nicely!
I am sitting on a removable longitudinal thwart (in two halves) on the centreline.

 

[Seanick]

I have a lovely clinker dinghy. Last year put it on deck. Hoisted it up on the halyard, then lowered it onto the side deck. The whole process and turning it over took so much paint of me bulwarks etc that I shan't bother again. Also its a 2 person job. Didn't do the dinghy much good either. My Avon Redcrest flips onto the deck in a jiffy, an deflates quicker than I can tie the other dinghy down. Folds up nice and small and goes anywhere. A Seagull Featherweight egg whisk makes it trad enough for me!

 

[Scarboroughsloop]

Yes, any soft tail dinghy will stow smaller then one with a solid transom. I have looked at deck stowage of a rigid dinghy and have all but given up on the idea.

 

[Simes]

We have a hard dingy

Gladys is about 14 foot LOA, is wonderfully stable a great load carrier and a good sea boat. Way better that any inflatable.
I agree that she is a little on the large side and that she is difficult to get on deck, however her usefullness as a tender far outweigh the downsides.

Going to build an Auk (or something similar this winter as a second Dink' for SHM.

If you are having problems with getting her onboard then try a jib, a crane jib, a short spar from the foot (or so) of the mast to allow you to hoist the Dink' up and aloft with out scraping her against your topsides.

Simes

 

[laurance]

To me a cruising yacht is incomplete without a hard tender, though flubbers will always be the better swimming/snorkelling platforms due to their soft sides and stability.
Oughtred has both stem and pram dingys under 8ft and between 40-70lbs. Launching and recovering boats of this size and weight is easy enough with a little forethought.

 

[Tranona]

Went through that cycle 25 years agao when I built (and sold a few) epoxy clinker ply 8ft prams. I kept two - the original in 3/16 ply which is now solely a garden feature and a "production" one which is usable and part time garden feature.

Excellent for getting to and from swinging mooring. Useful to tow for children to play with (both had sailing rigs). Useless to get on board despite light weight as far too bulky even for 26 footer mother ship.

Like Seanick, the best all round tender is a Redcrest with a Seagull! Stows deflated on a teak grid platform, inflates easily, rows adequately, very safe and lasts forever. What more could you want.

 

[Roach1948]

Hard Tender

My idea was something like this: Build a decent large hard tender to keep at the yacht club in order get to the mooring with all water, and passengers. Leave that tender on the mooring but have another hard, lightweight dink on the boat already stowed on deck abaft the mast over the butterfly hatch. I was thinking of a Oughtred Feather pram which will fit, but maybe, like others say, an Avon might be better than such a tiny pram.

The appeal of something hard is dedicated deck stowage, which looks good, and where I can still use the butterfly hatch in the rain. There is also the advantage of not to carring an outboard and the possibility of a small sailing rig too.