New 2.7m Tender - Light Weight or Heavy Duty?

[Freeloader]

I currently have an old but very tidy and perfectly serviceable 2.3m inflatable, which has a slatted floor, inflatable middle seat and weighs about 27Kg (all up in its bag). I am looking to get something bigger but am in a bit of a dilemma about whether to go for a lightweight model or a heavier but more robust boat. My original thinking was that I would inflate / deflate it on each use and store it in its bag in the engine compartment. Therefore, light weight and ease of assembly was a key issue. However, having gone through this process a few times, it all seems a bit of a faff and so I am now thinking of using the dingy davits (the snap-fastening type bolted to the bathing platform). I would probably deflate and pack the tender away when I'm not on the boat but, for trips down to the boat, I would probably just keep it in the davits. I have not used these type of davits before (the boat already had them fitted when I bought it) but lots of boats in the marina have them and the owners just seem to leave their tenders permanently perched on the transom.

I have briefly tried a Highfield 2.5m lightweight tender (with inflatable floor) and found that (although it was not fitted with the davit rings) it was quite easy to hinge the inflatable up onto the transom. However, the Highfield only has 35cm tubes, a relatively flat bow, modest 1.3m beam and a tiny transom built into the othewise round-tail type boat (with a single occupant, this puts all the weight at the back - not ideal). Looking in Piplers Chandlery (who sell the Highfields), they also do a 2.7m Highfield but also had a more traditional inflatable, a 2.7m Seago. This is considerably more heavy at ~36Kg against the 2.7m Highfield's ~20Kg but it has 41cm tubes, a higher bow, a wider 1.5m beam and the more usual wide inset transom.

I'm assuming that the davits would take the majority of the weight, so levering the heavier boat onto the transom (with a rope tied to the opposite side?) might possibly not be that much more effort? Suggestions...

Often, it's just the wife and I but sometimes there will be four adults, so a dry ride when loaded is important too. The almost roundtail-type build of the Highfield gives lots of space for occupants but the bigger tubes and higher bow of the Seago ought to give a dryer ride, although possibly a little tight for space. I would suspect that the Seago will be better one-up too, as the motor and occupant will both be placed further forward in the boat. I know that there are other options on the market but, simply from a lightweight vs heavy duty perspective, I would be grateful for suggestions / comments / recommendations either way...

N.B. I have a small 3.3hp two-stroke Mariner outboard with an integral fuel tank.

 

[jrudge]

We had a 2.7m "fairline" tender on our T40. It think it was made by valiant.

This has a rigid fibreglass floor and was safe and sturdy.

We had a 5hp engine on it and it would plane with one adult and one child on it. I bought a 9.8 2 stroke engine but never tried it as i sold the boat. With that it should plane with 2 adults and 2 kids. Jimmy the builder has this set up I think.

I would recommend one.

You are not going to be able to deflate and store it but if on davits you would not do that anyway

 

[Whitelighter]

Why not go light weight and robust with an aluminium hulled boat.

Ribeye do the TL series and they are seriously light but strong and tough

 

[pks1702]

Why not go light weight and robust with an aluminium hulled boat.

Ribeye do the TL series and they are seriously light but strong and tough

Agreed.

Bought one at LIBS this year very impressed.

 

[Resolution]

I think if you want to carry four adults in any safety you will need to go bigger than 2.7m. We have an old Plastimo P270 (slatted floor, horrible handling under motor) and it is really only usable for four elderly adults in really calm waters.
Thinking of trading up to something around 3.2m as we often need to carry four.

 

[Whitelighter]

Ribeye TL 280 (2.8m) is only 35kg
Ribeye TL 310 (3.1m) is a mere 43kg

Although just rereding your initial post it seems you want to deflate it so a rib isn't right. Not sure the robustness is an option then, though id definitly get an air deck if the rib is out.

Makes you see how light the ribeyes are

 

[Freeloader]

I'm planning to have a look around the Boat Show and get a few ideas... The Ribeye's look very nice but are way more expensive that I had at first considered - I was really just looking at inflatables and was wondering what to look for. Ideally, I would like something that will keep us as dry as possible - does that rule out lightweight dinghys?

 

[Keith-i]

If you are going for an inflatable and keeping it on the transom you need to decide wher you go cheap and cheerful PVC which will degrade over a few years in sunlight and need more frequent replacement, or pay more for more durable hypalon (like old Avons). Either way, I would now always choose air deck and inflatable keel. I really doubt balance with one person will differ much between transom or round tail, but bear in mind round tail gives more buoyancy at the back.

 

[Greg2]

Having had various makes of tender (three rigid hulled and one air deck) I would say that if you are going to use snap davits then forget a rigid hull (Ali or GRP). When we had snap davits on a sports cruiser we had a Valiant 3m RIB (GRP hull) and it was never going to work on snap davits so we bought a Honwave 2.7m air deck and it was superb. Bigger tubes than most and a high pressure inflatable hull with a shallow V to help with planing and tracking. Very well made and the bigger tubes meant that we could take a family of four but it was snug. Not hypalon though but then I am not aware of any air deck types that are. It would be my choice if we ever go back to snap davits.

As an aside out current AB 3.19m RIB with an aluminium hull and hypalon tubes is quite simply the best we have had and the best of class IMHO. A deep bow and excellent build quality combined with a hefty price tag mean that it is a keeper!

 

[Freeloader]

Thank you for your insight Greg2 - I will look out for the Honwaves at the Show.

 

[matm]

Just having a quick look through this thread and I have pretty much the same requirement. However, I don't want to inflate/deflate all the time (have a Seago 240 airdeck at the mo). The Ribeye 280 looks nice but would like to sit it on removable chocks on the bathing platform.

I've seen the key-hole stuff that others have however was wondering where to get the chocks made for this kind of thing? Looking for teak and removable.

If they're custom, do I buy the Rib first then measure and get them made or are they off-the-shelf-ish and someone will know the "V" of the rib.

Cheers

Mat

 

[Freeloader]

I had a good look around at the Southampton Boat Show and was happily surprised to see so many inflatables on display.

Having seen the Honwaves, as recommended by Greg2 (above), I was intrigued to find that these had an inflatable 'V' floor, rather than the usual flat airdeck and an inflatable keel - a design also shared by a number of other exhibitors boats. Whilst sold as a better performance option (unlikely to have much benefit with my small 3.3hp Mariner outboard), these types of boat appear to sit higher in the water and ought to give a drier ride. The downside, though, seems to be that they all have trailing floor sections behind the transom (trim tabs apparently) that will make the fitting of small dinghy wheels impossible. Any water that finds its way into the boat will also end up slopping around on the floor too, whereas it would disappear under the floor with an airdeck...

Then, to add to my confusion, the November copy of MBY arrived today and on page 84 there is an article about tenders with folding transoms. These allow the motor to be permanently attached to the boat and can be stowed within the body of the boat. The Geniuss models are too large (and way too expensive) but the Cabrio range includes a 2.75m fibre glass RIB that would fit nicely on my transom (my boat's max beam is 3.0m). This might be a bit over-the-top for such a small outboard but, if it really does work so well, I could end up with a bigger motor... It's a similar size to the Ribeye TL280 but, whilst having 42cm tubes compared to the Ribeye's 39cm tubes, the Ribeye is certified as Design Category 'C' to the Cabrio's 'D' rating?

If, as I now suspect, the dinghy is likely to spend most of its life on the snap davits rather than packed away, I'm coming around to the idea of a solid floor. However, I'm a bit concerned that Greg2 also suggested that a solid RIB on snap davits was a bad idea - is this just because of the weight (many of the inflatables seem to be just as heavy...) or is there some other problem with snap davits that I haven't yet appreciated? Ultimately, the bathing platform simply isn't big enough to take a tender, so whatever dinghy I buy will have to be able to be stored on the snap davits.

 

[petem]

Its a nice idea but when I enquired on here a few months ago the consensus was that you wouldn't able to stow the outboard Geniuss style then pull the whole thing up on Snap Davits. Also beware that the tender isn't so long that it impedes access to the cockpit and side decks.

 

[Freeloader]

Some time has now slipped by and I still haven't done anything about getting a tender yet.

However, as I think it will probably stay on the snap davits most (all?) of the time, I'm now not so concerned about being able to roll it up and pack it away - a solid floor RIB is, therefore, an option.

Whitelighter suggested a Ribeye TL280 earlier - looks well made, CE Cat 'C' and rated for 4 persons. However, it's made of Hypertex (PVC I assume?), so is it really suitable to be left out all the time (in the UK) or, at this sort of price, should I be looking for Hypalon?

Also, following Greg's earlier advice, should I avoid any sort of RIB when using snap davits (note, the Ribeye TL280 actually weighs the same as an airdeck Seago 270)?

Thanks again for any input!

 

[Greg2]

Having already offered my thoughts on a solid floor RIB on snap davits I won't add anything further.

On the question about Hyoalon you pays your money and take your choices. PVC is cheaper and the quality makes will be fine up to a point. If you invest in a cover so that it isn't constantly exposed to UV then it should be fine. For what it's worth our last Valiant suffered only on the plastic rubbing strake, which got very sticky over time. The tubes were fine.

I think that the Ribeyes are fine but they're were not our choice due to what appeared to be smaller tube size than others. The AB that we plumped for wasn't cheap but it is seriously good quality.

We have just taken delivery of a couple of Highfields at work and whilst the Hypalon tubes were a special order so we had to wait they appear to be very well made.

 

[Freeloader]

Thanks again for your input Greg2. Other search results seem to concur with your observation that PVC might not be a deal breaker in the UK, so perhaps I'm worrying unnecessarily.

However, with regard to the RIB / snap davit issue, is it just a question of weight or does the solid hull present other issues? The reason I ask is that the Ribeye doesn't weigh any more than the (much cheaper) airdeck Seago that I considered initially.

 

[Greg2]

It was the weight issue and my perception that the hull sitting on the joint with one tube wouldn't be good. Maybe I was unnecessarily concerned but I thought that the Honwave was better suited. It would be interesting to hear if someone has used snap davits with a RHIB. Maybe the Ribeye would work if it is lighter than the Seago?

 

[neale]

I have a lightweight Valiant hard floored RIB on snap davits and it seems to work fine. A heavier model might be a problem though, I don't know. What I would add, to address one of the OP's earlier concerns, I don't think you will find a sub 3m RIB that will guarantee to keep four adults dry. It doesn't take much for a small chop to start splashing over the bow when you have four PAX on a boat of that size. There is simply not enough room to all move aft.

 

[webby]

Why not go light weight and robust with an aluminium hulled boat.

Ribeye do the TL series and they are seriously light but strong and tough

I agree. I am selling a TL 310 c/w 9.9hp. Lovely boat and virtually unused - http://www.apolloduck.co.uk/feature.phtml?id=473377 It is too big for the snap davits on my new boat but I will be replacing it with a smaller Ribeye. Very good company to deal with.