The trouble with nesting dinghies...

[Kelpie]

Apart from being hideously expensive, the nesting dinghies that I'm aware of all split apart amidships making for a chunky square object. Maybe it's just me and my boat, but that's a real pain to stow.
Has anybody designed a nesting dinghy that splits longitudionally, into two long and narrow sections? This would stow neatly on, say, the aft deck. Obviously one side would have to incorporate the 'keel' leaving a smaller section which could nest inside. Just a thought.
Sounds like a fun project for winter actually...

 

[tillergirl]

Problems with bracing comes to mind. You could brace one side ok but the other would not fit into it.

 

[tobble]

neat idea but it'd be tricky or impossible to have it stacking neatly while maintaining a bit of bulkheadage in the 'outer' bit. The cut would prob have to be a few inches of the centreline to help stacking, and it'd prob have to be canoe sterned, or very boxy, because you'd need a longitudinal bulkhead on each 'half' to keep the water out, and for stiffness, therefore it would have to stack one bit through 'the deck' of the other, having been turned round. that's a terrible explanation...

if you put bouyancy tanks all in one half you'd end up with something not very well balanced, unless you ballasted the other side.

However, there are almost certainly ways around all these issues, and I say go for it, and let us know how you get on! cardboard models are the order of the day

 

[Kelpie]

Valid reasons all! Any kind of fixed structure, such as a foot-brace or buoyancy chamber, is going to interfere with the nesting ability. I had envisaged this being a truly tiny vessel, so you could brace against the transom, and perhaps with an inflatable ring around the gunwale to provide fendering, buoyancy, and reserve stability. I think some of the walker-bay dinghies have such a device.
Must get to work with the cardboard and see what I can come up with. It will have to wait a week though- off to the Shiants for the weekend and then down to Uist

 

[jswindel]

Phil Bolger designed a tiny boxy dinghy which split into three longitudinally. The centre box was an open well that was just big enough to sit in to row. The two side parts were sealed bouyancy boxes, which unhooked to stack inside the open well for storage. The stowed boat was then full length but half of its floating width. It looked awful but probably represents the smallest thing that rows and stows. I've seen it on the web somewhere, but can't track it down. I think it is in one of his books which is on Google books.

 

[jswindel]

Found it. It's called teh Breakdown punt and it is in Bolgers book "Boats with an open mind" You can see it here on Google books if you scroll down to around page 3. It actually supports two people and looks better than I remember.
http://books.google.com/books?id=vBQjV3NZ6LwC&lpg=PP1&dq=bolger&pg=PA3#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

[Boathook]

Might be easier to purchase a fabric folding dinghy. They might also give some ideas on how to brace anything you design / build.

 

[Bajansailor]

On the subject of folding dinghies, the Concertina is a very neat alternative to the Sea Hopper - http://www.concertinaboats.com/

Would one of these nesting dinghies be too big for your boat?
http://www.wavedancer-yachtdesign.com/html/Piccolo.html

I wonder if it would be possible to create a 2 part nesting dinghy using Bolger's wee Tortoise (aka Brick) as a basis?
http://www.instantboats.com/tortoise.htm

Edit - just had a look at jswindel's link above to Bolger's Breakdown Punt - brilliant!

 

[robertj]

Is it me or do others agree this dinghy is a rip off? Where on earth do the figures come from?
It's a lovelly craft but the cost!
Surely the builders are taking the p--- and taking us boaters as fools?

 

[charles_reed]

Apart from being hideously expensive, the nesting dinghies that I'm aware of all split apart amidships making for a chunky square object. Maybe it's just me and my boat, but that's a real pain to stow.
Has anybody designed a nesting dinghy that splits longitudionally, into two long and narrow sections? This would stow neatly on, say, the aft deck. Obviously one side would have to incorporate the 'keel' leaving a smaller section which could nest inside. Just a thought.
Sounds like a fun project for winter actually...

Look at the Porta-Bote

 

[barnaclephill]

nesting dinghies

I have attached some photos of nesting dinghies here.

The ones called "contact" and "banner" are sold as a plan from someone in New Zealand. I don't have there name here, unfortunately.

The one called "100_0367" is from a neighbour's yacht. It looked to be made of aluminium and made by him ( a boilermaker by trade). The sides unbolt as you can see. Whether they fold or remove to the inside I do not know.

The geen nesting dinghy (a24) is a 9-foot canoe-sterned version that I made from one of the 2 nesting dinghies offered by www.bandbyachtdesigns.com/spin.htm . This now fits in the triangular area on the front deck (of a 26' yacht), but I don't use it now as it got in the way of anchoring and an inner forestay. I just made another front section of the nesting dinghy, but 8 inches longer, and then chopped off 8 inches of the pointed section. I can't find a photo right now of it sitting on the foredeck, though I have one somewhere.

My boom is too low to store a dinghy there, so now I use a folding Origami dinghy, (www.woodenwidget.com) . It's similar to this concertina one on this thread. It comes in 6 and 8 foot versions, but having made one, this design is modifiable.

 

[PabloPicasso]

Berthon Boat

A Berthon type boat might be a better alternative. It's a folding dinghy invented by the Rev. E Berthon in 1851. The boat had longitudinal ribs in the form of arcs running from stem to stern, the upper¬most pair forming the gunwales. The whole was covered in canvas, and the ribs were arranged to swing down to meet the keel, making a flat package correspond¬ing to a longitudinal section of the developed hull. It is many years since I have seen one, but I live in hopes that they will be revived - with modern materials it would be easy to make a very effective collapsible dinghy after this fashion.