Offshore life raft or Leisure

[Rhylsailer99]

The half inflated dinghy folded on deck is a compromise that can save you ... enough to help keep you afloat ... once in - grab pump and add more air.

That's what I'm currently doing, but my dinghy takes up a lot of space being 2.6m.

 

[Tranona]

That's what I'm currently doing, but my dinghy takes up a lot of space being 2.6m.

Somewhat akin to rubbing the rabbit foot you keep in your pocket!. That all started when inflatables first came in (mostly Avon Redcrests) and it was an easy way of stowing the dinghy7 on deck because the inflated chambers were split for and aft. This was deliberate to help stowing half inflated. to make a virtue out of a necessity it was suggested that it would also be of use in the event of the boat sinking. In reality it is pretty useless, first because you have to unlash it and inflate the second chamber, then it is of little use as a survival capsule in the sort of extreme conditions that result in a yacht sinking. Where such a thing has been useful is as a complement to a liferaft to hold extra stores etc (see the Baileys and Robertsons stories for example), but the combination of circumstances are very unusual.

Before liferafts became "cheap" there were several attempts to make dual purpose dinghy/rafts - Avon and Tinker for example but the requirements are so different that they end up being not very good at either job. In real terms liferafts are less have half the price they were 25 years ago and require less maintenance meaning more people can afford to buy them, even though they will never need one.

 

[Daydream believer]

Somewhat akin to rubbing the rabbit foot you keep in your pocket!. That all started when inflatables first came in (mostly Avon Redcrests) and it was an easy way of stowing the dinghy7 on deck because the inflated chambers were split for and aft. This was deliberate to help stowing half inflated. to make a virtue out of a necessity it was suggested that it would also be of use in the event of the boat sinking. In reality it is pretty useless, first because you have to unlash it and inflate the second chamber, then it is of little use as a survival capsule in the sort of extreme conditions that result in a yacht sinking.

In the 70s I had a petrol fire (Stuart Turner P4MC) on board my Stella en route from Ostend to Burnham. About half way between Longsand Head & Ostend. It was flat calm & we were motoring. I had 2 crew. There was a part inflated Redcrest on the cabin top over the hatch. We had to duck under it to get inside. Fortunately I managed to put the fire out, but they had the dinghy almost fully inflated & ready to launch as I put it out. Believe me when I say that if the last blast of the last fire extinguisher had not put it out, we would have been more than glad of that little Redcrest.
It is amazing how quick one can pump up one front section when pressed.

 

[ashtead]

We didn’t buy our first liferaft until crossing channel -simple 4 man valise by seago-decided to replace last year and went for basic again-its still a heavy beast to store in loft each winter but sits just about under cockpit sole. I do remember the old avons with gas cylinders strapped in but never tried using the cylinders .

 

[Tranona]

In the 70s I had a petrol fire (Stuart Turner P4MC) on board my Stella en route from Ostend to Burnham. About half way between Longsand Head & Ostend. It was flat calm & we were motoring. I had 2 crew. There was a part inflated Redcrest on the cabin top over the hatch. We had to duck under it to get inside. Fortunately I managed to put the fire out, but they had the dinghy almost fully inflated & ready to launch as I put it out. Believe me when I say that if the last blast of the last fire extinguisher had not put it out, we would have been more than glad of that little Redcrest.
It is amazing how quick one can pump up one front section when pressed.

Fortunately fire (like petrol powered ST engines) is extremely rare these days, like all the other things that resulted in foundering in the past - at least in our coastal waters.