On 18-Dec-12 12:32 PM, Bill Buller wrote: Hi Jim, Carrying a dinghy on board an M15 - except for in inflatable - is an impossibility. Before owing the M15 I needed a dinghy for my Bolger MICRO, and built a hard-chine Bolger NYMPH dinghy. The NYMPH tows easily and rows well. It is a bit on the tippy side when you first get aboard, but after sitting down, it is very stable. Bolger solved that minor problem by design the REUBENS NYMPH - a foot wider in the beam, and a much stabler platform. The NYMPH rows well with real - not itty-bitty toy oars - and I have covered miles with it on calm mornings before we could go sailing. It is also light enough to be easily car-topped. 40 years ago I tried a Zodiac inflatable, with the same ideas that you have in mind: on longer passages I could deflate it and stow it up forward, and when we got to our destination I'd haul it out; inflate it; and go exploring. But, .... - Inflatables take forever to get inflated. They also take forever to deflate. That is the minor problem. The major problem is: -They are terrible for rowing; the seating position is wrong; the take-apart oars are a joke. They have to have an outboard to get anywhere. They are wet.... So, I bought a Dwyer 7'-9" fiberglass dinghy and enjoyed it for many years, as long as we had our big boat. It rowed well; it sailed well; it was a joy to use. - I couldn't put it on the foredeck or cabin top of a 29-footer, but it towed very well. On arrival in a new port it was also instantly usable, to set a second anchor, or to row over to a friend's boat to join them for Happy Hour. Try that with your Zodiac if 15 knots of wind are still blowing in the harbor... My recommendation is a hard dinghy that you tow, and that will carry two or three people (we carried four in the Dwyer) Connie
I cruise a 23 foot boat and use a West Marine Roll up inflatable ( Zodiac ) It goes on foredeck. Blows up in 5 to 7 mins. I got it used for $275 and will sell for $225. I gained weight (230 plus weight of wife ). 350 lbs. Works fine but I also have 11 1/2 foot Zodiac and a 10 ft hardbottom. These shore boats all have different uses. The small boat gets us to shore. The larger ones let's us explore a 10 mile radius not having to move mainship. We cruise San Juans and Gulf Islands and North I will be at Lake Havasu City Feb 10 to 17 th. I will have the little inflatable in my van. I think it is 7 ft. Used 7 times
Sent from my iPhone
On Dec 17, 2012, at 3:50 PM, Jim Sadler <jimsadler@jascopacific.com> wrote:
Any skippers have ideas for a small dingy that I can carry on my M15? Just need to row from the anchorage to the dock approx 50 yards.
Captain ePoohJim skipper sailing vessel Pelican M15