Tender Garage?

[speedfiend]

Being a sportscruiser type of guy and now at long long last getting close to being able to upgrade, a quick question for my learned brethren:
Tender garage or tender on the bathing platform?
Probably looking at a Williams 325 as a tender.
Is it too much hassle getting the tender in and out of the garage (electric winch obviously) or does the tender get too knackered and in the way on the bathing platform?
Thanks for your thoughts on this.
S

 

[jfm]

Being a sportscruiser type of guy and now at long long last getting close to being able to upgrade, a quick question for my learned brethren:
Tender garage or tender on the bathing platform?
Probably looking at a Williams 325 as a tender.
Is it too much hassle getting the tender in and out of the garage (electric winch obviously) or does the tender get too knackered and in the way on the bathing platform?
Thanks for your thoughts on this.
S

If you want a will325 I think (will happily be corrected) you need a 60 footer like Targa 62 to fit it in a garage. 50 ish footers tend to take only a will 285 afaik

I find the dinghy on platform is easiest. It doesn't get in way because we always launch it when anchored (in the med). It does get dirtier of course, so a garage has its advantages as well as looking better. It's a 6 of one half dozen of t'other question to be honest

 

[alt]

I can't help but feel that tender garages are a waste of space in IRL/UK as you lose a lot of seating and you'll hardly ever use the sun lounger. Might make sense in the Med though where the sun lounger could get a lot of use

 

[kashurst]

I agree with JFM, I had a tender garage on last boat and although you get the thunderbird 4 moment as the hatch goes up, it is easier to have the tender on the bathing platform and lift/drop it in. When ever we go swimming off the boat I always put the tender in anyway as a safety boat so blocking the bathing platform isn't really an issue. As long as you have a cover for the tender when your away to keep the worst of the carp off it. You probably have more choice too in tender size and design

 

[MRC]

I prefer tender in the garage. Not a fan of the look of tenders on platform plus find garage easier to recover tender.

Garage - looks neat and keeps tender nice and clean
Platform - frees up space, is ok I suppose
Flybridge - never had one up there but told its easiest to recover if weather not great, keeps the lines of the boat but then you loose some flybridge space.

SS Portofino 53 has garage for Avon 320 DL / Williams 325

 

[jimmy_the_builder]

Princess V62 gives you both choices - platform and garage. (And is a v nice boat, as well). Alternatively a late v65 (and perhaps also a late v70, altho I'm not certain) gives you two garages and a platform...

The princes v56 and v57 also bat for both teams. Personally I'm a big fan of the garage, I don't find it any real effort, and I also liked it for the uk because it protected the tender against the rigours of the British summer .

Cheers
Jimmy

 

[P430]

You can get a Williams 325 in a Targa 47 garage if you let the tubes down slightly (apparently). Not tried it personally by Essex say it can be done and has been.

 

[rubberduck]

We use our tender garage / sun pad on the east coast. Kids & teenagers seem quite happy lying at the back. We just make sure they are aware if we are going to hit the throttles hard, but then that applies to everyone on board really.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

I had a tender garage on a Targa 48 I once owned and it was a PITA for a number of reasons. First even though I had the correct tender specified by Fairline, it was always a struggle to load and unload the tender often requiring 2 people to complete the operation. In the end we used to partially deflate the tender to assist. Second, it ate into cockpit space because all the designers can do is put a sunbed on top which of course is not as useful as seating. Third and perhaps most important, it restricted access to the engine bay and reduced headroom down there with the result that it was impossible to get to the back of the engines. Fairline did provide a removable panel in the garage floor but of course you had to remove the tender to get to it.
I looked at an Elegance 64 flybridge boat a few weeks ago which was fitted with a tender garage (for a Williams 325 coincidentally). Firstly the owner had had the same issues loading and unloading the tender and had to deflate it. Second, even on a big boat like this, the tender garage badly hampered service access to the rudder mechanism and 2nd generator. Also a useful crew cabin/storage area was lost
IMHO a well designed pasarelle or crane lifting system for handling the tender stored on the bathing platform is the simplest and best system. The only provisos I would mention would be to check that the pasarelle/crane has sufficient lifting capacity for the weight of tender you intend to use (the Williams tenders are heavy) and that the tender doesn't foul crossed mooring lines if you normally moor stern to. Some designers dont seem to think about that when they position aft mooring cleats
Whatever system you choose, IMHO the aim should be that launching and stowing the tender should be a one person operation and that it can be done safely and without too much physical effort

 

[oldgit]

My chums tender garage on his T43 was a real pain. The tender had to be part deflated to get into garage at all.
On arrival at nice beach ,first job was to clear anybody off the rear sunbeds,once the door was up you had to wiggle tender out of garage and into water,then shut door again cos it looked naff and got in the way if left open.
Getting it back in was real drama(after moving peeps and getting door up etc) you had to half clamber into garage and guide inflateable into opening by a series of tugs and shoves while somebody else operated winch.
All a bit of a pain really.After a few trips out in sad looking half inflated inflateable,nobody could be asked to get the thing out.

 

[speedfiend]

Thanks guys , that's a lot of feedback with both points of view neatly explained. I have been considering a tri-cabin sportscruiser with tender garage, but these tend to be falling out of favour with the builders below say 55ft. I originally wanted a Princess V53/Targa 52 but like the newer mid cabin versions with no garage . I suspect I need to get some hands on action with a garage and see if its for me.
S