How big a dinghy for solo launching?

[DownWest]

Oh, if I could find a clean Hobie 14 for sale on the south coast, it would soon have an asymmetric. ?

We had a Hobie 14 on the Chesapeak. Not so sure about more sail.. Two up, in a good breeze, we were both very well aft, as they have a habit of tripping up over the lee bow, leading to an uncomfortable arrival in the water. Maybe main only for single handed..

 

[dancrane]

Hmm, that reputation for pitchpoling is one reason I didn't much regret never getting one. Plus I like some decent dry stowage for my lunch, towels, etc...not just a void in a narrow hull. And I prefer sitting with my feet in a recess, than on a level trampoline.

 

[westernman]

For lightweight dinghies, there is always the RS Aero which looks like it could be good fun.
Unfortunately no asymmetric.

But not for Dan Crane. No good place for his lunch, towels, change of clothes, etc.

 

[dancrane]

Hmm. I've seen them many times. I guess if the OP is desperate to avoid any effort ashore, it makes sense to buy a featherweight boat...but I think he said his fitness is about average.

I'd rather have a full wallet and a bit of a work-out moving my boat. Even an old Laser (which is hardly heavy) is a handsome design beside the Aero...and a secondhand Aero is usually the wrong side of £5,000.

It's worth adding the obvious, that boats which have been determinedly pared down in size and weight, handle differently from bigger steadier ones. If the buyer wants to be kept very busy just staying upright, that may be perfect.

 

[westernman]

It's worth adding the obvious, that boats which have been determinedly pared down in size and weight, handle differently from bigger steadier ones. If the buyer wants to be kept very busy just staying upright, that may be perfect.

The shape of the hull plays a roll.

The RS Aero is very flat shape, to as it heels, the centre of the pressure from the water moves. I.e. it has form stability. Which makes it a lot less tippy than for instance an Albacore which has a very round hull shape which has almost no form stability. This remains tippy despite a very heavy metal centre board.

I think you will find you are kept a lot less busy than you expect.

 

[dancrane]

I admit, I'm basing my view on the number of Aeros I've seen upside down on breezy days.

I was thinking also of the little Europe dinghy, which I found exhausting to sail just because it's very small, and any slight movement of one's weight has a profound effect. In theory that's very effective for getting the best from the performance - but it's not relaxing.

Keeping my big, heavy, old Osprey under control singlehanded in more than ten knots is a difficult art, but the hull itself rolls slowly and feels very stable. I could definitely swap - it isn't really a financial issue - but I don't want to, so the enormous savings are a bonus.

 

[Alfie168]

Heron number 157 (or was she 57?) was my first boat.

Dad bought her for me around 1965.

'Howzat' had a rotten bottom, so we ripped out the old, and in our typical woodworking style, very roughly glued in the new.

Back then, Dad worked for a marine coatings company, so the hull was (shock, horror) sheathed in a layer of grp woven mat.

She gave me several years of young adventures on the Crouch.

I started out when dad bought Heron no 258 "Sixpence" in 1958 with cotton sails and we sailed her right on the Pennines at Huddersfield sailing club to start with. Then we moved to Ripon and sailed on the river Ure at Langthorpe at Boroughbridge. Happy days ! We never did get terylene sails before she was swapped for a nicely homemade Enterprise 6022. I'd love a heron now gunter rig or otherwise.

 

[Alfie168]

Ah. Got that wrong then. I bet you're going to suggest I'm too far aft as well ?

The roach on our shrunken cotton sails was inverted ?

 

[dancrane]

Always quite fancied a Gull, for low-stress idling......the latest ones are like very pretty mini-Wayfarers.

I saw a Youtube video of a newish example being swamped by not-very-big waves, with only one person aboard. EDIT: I think it was just mishandled...around 4 minutes 40 seconds into this clip...

 

[tico]

Ah Dan, at the risk of thread drift, I started sailing on a 'Fish' #5 to be precise. As I understand it they were the prototype for the Osprey, wooden clinker built... somewhat heavy (took 4 to lift her) but went like stink in a stiff breeze.

 

[dancrane]

A clinker Osprey...I can imagine it. Quite a beauty I'm sure; and quite a maintenance commitment!

 

[ianat182]

Its surprising that no-one mentioned the National12, or the Merlin Rocket . I remember years ago that the weight of a wooden Merlin was 216lbs - my own was a Proctor Mk9 . I don't recall the weight of the N12 but obvious ly even lighter. The 9B was the faster of the two ; a more planing hull and flattened run aft, whereas the Mk9 was better shorter tacking ,(though
she still planed well,) with its more veed rocker section. Neither needed special trolleys and easily handled afloat and ashore.
The Nat 12 was an elderly Uffa Fox design with galvanised steel centreboard and wooden mast!
Enterprises were'nt a bad choice either .

Most associations have list of boats available for sale, not all are that pricey .

ianat182

 

[AntarcticPilot]

Its surprising that no-one mentioned the National12, or the Merlin Rocket . I remember years ago that the weight of a wooden Merlin was 216lbs - my own was a Proctor Mk9 . I don't recall the weight of the N12 but obvious ly even lighter. The 9B was the faster of the two ; a more planing hull and flattened run aft, whereas the Mk9 was better shorter tacking ,(though
she still planed well,) with its more veed rocker section. Neither needed special trolleys and easily handled afloat and ashore.
The Nat 12 was an elderly Uffa Fox design with galvanised steel centreboard and wooden mast!
Enterprises were'nt a bad choice either .

Most associations have list of boats available for sale, not all are that pricey .

ianat182

Isn't the Burning Sprocket a development class, with many variants? I'm asking from a vague recollection, not knowledge!

 

[ianat182]

You are correct.
Both are development classes , together with the International 14 and the Cherub - high performance dinghies too.(12 footer)
Merlins come in all widths and hull mods controlled by rise of floor rules as I remember.the late Spud Rowsell was a very good sailer/builder of these, and his partner who designed them and several very succesful N12, and Int 14.s.
Every meeting is like looking at immaculate varnished furniture, not a scruffy boat among them which is why their prices are steadily rising, even the GRP versions now too are beautiful.
The Cherub is probably the lightest one in timber construction and high performance at only 12ft and massive spinnaker.
The Firefly could be another optionin the small weight boat category, and, as mentioned before, the Miracle.

Ianat182

 

[Caraway]

The roach on our shrunken cotton sails was inverted ?

Shrunken bolt ropes have been the bane of my pre-owned boat ownership. I did unpick one once and freed off the luff. But it leaves you with a gap at the foot. Sewing some extra rope in did kind of fix it.

 

[dancrane]

"Shrunken bolt-ropes!" sounds like something Captain Flint might have exclaimed.
The uncle, not the parrot. Although possibly the parrot too...

 

[westernman]

You are correct.
Both are development classes , together with the International 14 and the Cherub - high performance dinghies too.(12 footer)
Merlins come in all widths and hull mods controlled by rise of floor rules as I remember.the late Spud Rowsell was a very good sailer/builder of these, and his partner who designed them and several very succesful N12, and Int 14.s.
Every meeting is like looking at immaculate varnished furniture, not a scruffy boat among them which is why their prices are steadily rising, even the GRP versions now too are beautiful.
The Cherub is probably the lightest one in timber construction and high performance at only 12ft and massive spinnaker.
The Firefly could be another optionin the small weight boat category, and, as mentioned before, the Miracle.

Ianat182

From time to time you can pick up a truly beautiful wood International 14 for a very small fraction of what it cost when new as this is a very competitive development class. So a boat design which is more than a few years old is no longer competitive.

However, International 14s do not have the reputation of being the easiest of boats to sail. They do have an asymmetric.
Which is unlimited in size . 300sq ft is apparently considered reasonable.

They are quite light, and when right side up, they can really go like the clappers.

A totally different class from Fireflys, N12s, Enterprises etc.
More in common with Cherubs and the Australian 18ft skiffs.

But slightly easier to keep right side up than a foiling Moth. Although the Moth is very light and easier to get to the water (but not right side up).

 

[dancrane]

I want to get a sailing dinghy for pottering and small excursions...

 

[Spirit (of Glenans)]

Just a bit intrigued by this advice re pneumatic tires. I watch many friends launching dinghies with pneumatic tires and the problem is that the trolley floats. Thus it is difficult to get the dinghy on to the trolley. Surely hard rubber would have no floatation so be easier to get dingy on. Granted if you had a long way to pull your dinghy on trolley pneumatic would be easier. Am I missing something? ol'will

A removable ballast to neutralise the buoyancy of the tyres would help here.

 

[Spirit (of Glenans)]

I want to get a sailing dinghy for pottering and small excursions in West Cork. The plan is to keep it on a launching trolley and launch from a slip. The problem is that I'll be on my own most of the time. I'd prefer not to need a car and trailer for each launch although this would allow me to cope with more weight. I'm 58 and my strength and fitness is about average for my age. The slip I plan to use is of normal steepness.
I need to strike a compromise between comfort/seaworthiness and manageability. Something like a Wayfarer would be ideal once in the water but might be too heavy to launch or retrieve solo. What do you think is a sensible weight limit for a boat in these circumstances?

In the event that you buy something heavish, like the Wayfarer, for launch and recovery why not use about 10-12 metres of rope connecting the trailer to your tow-hitch. I have seen this done many times in Baltimore and other places in West Cork.
Reverse the car+trailer halfway down the slipway,lower your jockeywheel, unhitch then lower the trailer down the slope until the boat is in the water. Having secured the boat to the side of the slipway, drive the car+rope+trailer up onto horizontal ground, where the trailer can be re-hitched without too much effort. Recovery is the reverse of this procedure except that you have to reverse down the slope until the trailer o the end of the rope is immersed sufficiently to float the boat on . The beauty of this method is that your car's wheels and brakes do not get immersed, and you can keep it above the slippery coating of seaweed that is to be found on slipways in the early part of the season which has previously caused cars to slide into the sea, sometimes with tragic consequences.