Inflatable Advice??

[Bottle_of_Rum]

I am looking at purchasing an inflatable to use as a tender etc for my swift 18.

Your recommendations as to what to get and where to buy would be great.



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[snowleopard]

important questions:

is it far to your mooring? (i.e. can you row or must you motor?)

what are you going to do with the dinghy once you get there- leave it on the mooring, tow behind or take it aboard?

the answers to these questions will pretty well define what you need. the remaining question is whether to buy hypalon (expensive, lasts almost forever) or PVC (cheaper, limited life - say 5-10 yrs)

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[Talbot]

how do you plan to use the tender, leave it at your mooring or take it with you, inflated or rolled up?

Assuming you are taking it with you rolled up, then stowage is going to be the biggest nightmare, thus the tender needs to be as small as possible and not have a solid/inflatable floor or solid transom. You might even consider one of the better made versions of the toys for use on beaches/rivers that are always being advertised cause they take up a lot less room!

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[Bottle_of_Rum]

Actually i am currently on a pontoon, but that may change in the future.

I was looking for something to tow behind and use when visiting and or beaching. Deflate and stow when I am not aboard.

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[Bottle_of_Rum]

As we have no lifeboat I would tow it. But deflate and stow when away from the boat

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[gtmoore]

Definitely watch out for how big it packs up to be for when you do want to stow it. After waiting for 4 months I finally got a Suzumar 265 delivered only to find that packed up it's massive, weighs a ton (well a lot!) and won't go in any of my lockers!

<hr width=100% size=1>Gavin

 

[snowleopard]

in that case i would go for an all-soft dinghy e.g. the small avons like <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.avoninflatables.co.uk/boatfile/b001285>this</A>. they roll up small, are light to manhandle, can be rowed or used with a 2hp motor and are very tough.



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[fastjedi]

I am going through exactly the same dilema for my Gem Micro 18. As we use our trailer sailer for whole weeks away it is generally cram packed with stuff! I have ruled out anything with plywood in it as that are generally over 20kg and more than 1 metre wide packed away. This narrows the choice down to Plastimo and Wetline who make a 1.8m round tails and the 2 metre Compass Series 100. Although all are rated at 2 persons ...... the Compass Inflatable is rated at 196kg ... which leaves a bit of scope for our 1 year old and weighs in at only 12 kg ....... so, I think my money is going on a Compass Series 100 from www.towsure.co.uk.


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[MIKE_MCKIE]

I inherited a very elderly Avon Redstart with my boat. It is made of Hypalon, which probably accounts for its excellent condition after all this time. It packs into a nice bag with handles on & ends up about the size of a good rucksack/backpack & is easily carried by one person. I actually bought a 12v electric inflator, but the foot pump gets it up in about 3 minutes, so I dont bother with the electric anymore. (I find that I have to do the last few pounds with the foot pump anyway) The redstart has an inflatable transom, with a metal & wood bracket for a 3hp max o/b. It also does not have a wooden or inflatable floor, so is very easy to pack & stow away.
Looking at swindlery catalogues the avon comes in about £890, against the cheaper PVC type from £250 upwards. Most (all) of these have rigid transoms, so can be more difficult to fold & stow, and as per previous posts PVC lasts a hell of a lot less than Hypalon.
Certainly for convenience & long life would thoroughly recommend the Avon, but horses for courses. No I dont have any connection with Avon, although I wear out their products on my car!
Happy inflating!
Mike

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[Evadne]

I would recommend you visit a boat jumble. I got my Avon Redstart from Beaulieu 15 years ago for £95, if I recall. Thery were then about the £500 if I recall correctly so I could afford to buy a far better dinghy than I would have got at "new" prices, and a good old one will usually outlast a rubbish new one.

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[Guest]

Earlier post here says their Restart packs away nicely ------

WISH MINE DID !!!! It takes up too much space - in fact I have relegated it to cabin top to get it out of the way !

I even use the pump to SUCK every last drop of air out of it to get it as small as possible !!!


<hr width=100% size=1>Nigel ...
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.qqbaltic.com/index.html>http://www.qqbaltic.com/index.html</A> For all those disbelievers ! /forums/images/icons/cool.gif

 

[gtmoore]

Is that a viable place to keep it long term? I've put mine on boats and outboards but would really like to keep it. It's in a valise - how is yours covered?

<hr width=100% size=1>Gavin

 

[Guest]

Its old, patched, well past its sell-by-date and NOT covered !!

I did think about getting a piece of tarp from the DIY shop - but then thought again !!!!


<hr width=100% size=1>Nigel ...
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.qqbaltic.com/index.html>http://www.qqbaltic.com/index.html</A> For all those disbelievers ! /forums/images/icons/cool.gif

 

[Evadne]

We keep ours on the cabin top in a bag made from acrylic canvas (from a sailmaker) by SWMBO at home. Only needs a cheapo sewing machine and a few nights of sewing. The trick is to have a bag that fits, rather than the Avon one that uses the minimum amount of canvas! The original bag required you to roll it up and feed it into something the size of a small child's duffel-bag. We now roll ours up on deck, drop it in then close up the velcro'd opening. It protects the dinghy as well as anything can.

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[ships_parrot]

Personally I wouldn't tow it - the drag on something like an inflatable that's inherently bulbous is quite something, and as well as slowing you down is putting a lot of stress on the inflatable itself.
Given you aren't going to be out sailing in a boat that is about to sink at any moment, do you really need to worry about the lifeboat aspect? Besides, a frightened man with a foot pump will inflate a small inflatable very fast...
I'd go for a small Avon - tough as old boots and you can pick them up second hand fairly easily...


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[seaesta]

I would definately go for a good old Avon. Mine is one of the originals and its a bit like a having a fibreglass boat with osmosis. It looks bad but it works and feels safe enough when you are in it and is most likely safer than a newer more fragile model.
I have given up a berth and use this to store the inflatable below (with various light but bulky items on top). This keeps to topsides clear and avoids uv degradation of the hypalon.
If I statrt to sink i will get it out and inflated asap. I think the delay caused by towing is more of a hazard than the potential delay in inflation.

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[Ric]

I have a Bombard AX3, which has one unique but very useful feature - little bellows in each side so that you can pump it up without a pump. This is very useful because you inevitable find your dinghy is a bit soft when half way between boat and shore in big waves. I'd definitely get another.

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[spark]

I'm considering an inflatable kayak/canoe instead of a dinghy. Dinghies are the devil to row any distance, especially 2 up into a wind/chop and I don't want the expense and hassle of an outboard.

Worth looking at Sevylor and Sea Eagle - both the price of a high quality dinghy but you save on the motor.

<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.qei.co.uk/spark.html>http://www.qei.co.uk/spark.html</A>

 

[roger]

The weight!!

A lot of cheap inflatables are very heavy. This may casue you problems hoisting it inboard or getting it out of a locker.
Doughnut ring types are a pain to use with an outboard compared with rigid transoms. My experience with wooden floors is that as the dinghy shrinks with time they put unnecessary strain on the joint between fllor and tube.

<hr width=100% size=1>Roger

 

[LadyInBed]

Re: Bombard

I found that the AX3 was a bit big for my 22 footer, I had the AX2 which rolled up nice and small.

P.S. I have it for sale /forums/images/icons/wink.gif

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