Interesting Question about Dinghy Security...

[Shantyhag]

So, my wife and I were just perusing an interesting sailing blog, Moira's Blog, (San Diego to Puerto Vallarta), reading about a couple's journey down the Pacific coast in the Baja Ha-Ha and beyond, when she says "my question will forever be, how does one keep from getting their dinghy stolen?"

Interesting question, at least to me. How does one protect one's dinghy in moored ports-of-call? Surely this is a real issue?

Thanks,
Shanty (and VeniceSeaShell, who at this point has leeched onto my account and not yet joined herself)

 

[LaBomba]

So, my wife and I were just perusing an interesting sailing blog, Moira's Blog, (San Diego to Puerto Vallarta), reading about a couple's journey down the Pacific coast in the Baja Ha-Ha and beyond, when she says "my question will forever be, how does one keep from getting their dinghy stolen?"

Interesting question, at least to me. How does one protect one's dinghy in moored ports-of-call? Surely this is a real issue?

Thanks,
Shanty (and VeniceSeaShell, who at this point has leeched onto my account and not yet joined herself)

We had a dingy and a Seadoo stolen last weekend in our marina. 3 am apparently. Police found the Seadoo later in the morning out of gas on the lake. I have a long cable run from the davits on my boat, thru the D rings on the dingy, thru the outboard handle and back to the davit and padlocked. They may get it but they will have to bring the right tools.

 

[Rambler]

A cable & lock, light weigt and stronger than chain of similar weight. It's not going to stop anyone serious enough. If you plan to leave it for a while, it might be safer to lock it up. There are threads here and in other boating crusing forums we won't mention that discuss how others have done things.

 

[Phil Fill]

Don’t have the most expensive/fanciest and newest around. If they have a choice between our old beat up ding or a new fancy one, which do you think they will take? For sure they will not take if they have to row it or if it’s a pull start.

 

[Shantyhag]

We had a dingy and a Seadoo stolen last weekend in our marina. 3 am apparently...

Sorry to hear that, LaBomba. We had our restaurant broken into a few weeks ago in the early morning hours. It's a hell of a feeling to awake to, no?

Good advice from all, and thank you. I think VSS is mostly wondering how one secures the dinghy from threats if one takes it in from mooring. Do most ports have a relatively safe place to which to tie and lock the boat ashore?

(This is, I'm sure, one of those really newbie questions which one might expect from absolute novices such as ourselves).

I think the 'don't have the newest/best' suggestion has a lot of merit, Phil. A little like our neighborhood now. We live in a mountain/resort area with a lot of second homes. We never worry about being broken into because, in an area like this, are you going to hit the house with lights on and dogs barking or the one where the owners haven't shown up in months?

 

[Bay Pelican]

Lock it or loose it is the rule. This is especially true in the Bahamas or elsewhere in the Caribbean. Take one look at the dinghy dock where you cruise and you will see what others are using. Remember to also lock your motor to the transom by something other than a padlock through the handles of the screws holding the motor on. A number of good dinghy lock devices are sold, Master Lock has one for about $25 but the bar portion only lasts a year or two in salt water.

As to locking the dinghy, cable or chain. Make sure you check with your insurance, some companies will not cover a dinghy that is not locked when stolen.

Marty

 

[Sailor of Fortune]

inflatables are targets for thieves. A distinctive dinghy may help. Lock/cable and common sense will help.

 

[Steve]

I use a long nylon coated Stainless cable with a loop swaged on each end, and lock it with a well lubricated padlock. I have a shorter cable which I thread through the gas tank, ice chest, engine and a ring on the hull. Neither is theft proof but hopefully a enogh of a deterrent to make a thief look elsewhere. At night we raise the dinghy on the davits.
Steve W.

 

[psneeld]

The best defense I ever saw was a leaky, tin boat painted bright orange...with a whitewash brush ...and a motor that was fairly new..but nicely antiqued....

and it was still locked up.

 

[jukesy]

The poor fella tied up next to me in Victoria harbour had his gas can stolen this weekend.

 

[Phil Fill]

Like I said I attribute that to the newer fancier boats stuff around us, but also it looks like somebody is around/on board most of the time, even when we are away week at a time. We leave lights, radio, TV on and stuff not put away/locked so a person might think somebody is on the boat or going to be back soon. Most of the stuff I know that’s been taken was from the water, not the land. If they want it they will have the tools to take it.

My feeling is if you can not afford to have the stuff broken/stolen then it’s to fancy expensive to own. So if they take the 200 buck, 9 year old 2 stroke engine., or the 9 year old 500 buck dink, its no big deal and its insured.

 

[Marin]

(Shanty-- PM'd with our method.)

 

[MikeM]

(Shanty-- PM'd with our method.)

Marin,

Admittedly, I am a newbie and a lurker on this forum. I used to enjoy reading your posts. Now I just wonder what you are PMing and why. I feel like I am missing out on a good source of info.

Mike

 

[jwnall]

When were were anchored in Lake Isabel (up Rio Dulce in Guatemala) we used to haul the inflatable up the main mast with a halyard before going to bed at night. Lots of cruisers used to lose them if they left them alongside or tied to the stern even if they were on board.

John

 

[psneeld]

Marin,

Admittedly, I am a newbie and a lurker on this forum. I used to enjoy reading your posts. Now I just wonder what you are PMing and why. I feel like I am missing out on a good source of info.

Mike

not really.... like big brother...when you need it....you'll get it!

When you get to 20 posts...you get one of those projectors you turn on and it shines a symbol on a cloud when you seriously need boating advice ...

 

[BruceK]

Because we are on a mooring, like many Sydney boats, we keep a f/g dinghy on the shore. The inflatable we use when we want. First thing I did to a new f/g dinghy was cut a hole in it to install a screw in inspection port. Others do it too. When I leave the dinghy secured on the shore, I remove the cap. Yes, a smart thief may carry a range of caps, so far no problem.
Should adapt to any dinghy with a hard underwater or waterline surface. Be sure to get a good seal.

 

[gwkiwi]

Insurance, cable and lock, and a Kimber 1911

 

[FF]

Really hard to steal a dink held up in davits every night.

On shore Da Bronx system Show Sh*t is easiest.

Chew up the outboard cover , and paint the outboard lower unit to look like it was assembled from used parts.

Patch a condom boat with visible , not very fine workmanship .

Paint the boats name on the dink sides , floorboards and motor cover.

Use a good long cable (20ft +) and key lock.

The key lock is easier to operate in the dark after a couple, the long cable gets the boat away from a crowded dink pile , so harder to just jump into.

Good luck, tho with these (and other ) techniques I managed to cruise the Carib with a 13ft Boston Whaler and 18 Evinrude for a couple of years , and still have my dink .

 

[ksanders]

I have the perfect solution...

Our skiff weighs 750 lbs, and sits up on the fly bridge.

If we disable the crane nobody is getting it down.

People that steal things look for the easy targets.

 

[theran5317]

Paint the boats name on the dink sides , floorboards and motor cover.

Do you really want to do this??

Doesn't this just advertise that the boat has been left unattended??

 

[psneeld]

Do you really want to do this??

Doesn't this just advertise that the boat has been left unattended??

I think a thief intent on the boat will watch the boat for movement...otherwise there could be a paranoid crewmember onboard with a shotgun...

Sure it suggests that no one may be home..but I'm pretty sure that's only the first filter the average thief uses...

 

[markpierce]

Dinghies are allowed to have their own names.

 

[Bay Pelican]

Same goes for TT (Boat Name). An open invite that the boat is unoccupied.

Another suggestion, if the motor is larger than a 9.9, change the numbers on the motor cover so that it is a "cheaper" motor.

Marty

 

[FF]

A second real crap dink , an old leaky condom boat tied to the mother ship will keep the wandering folks away.

In the carib a Sears 12V 5 mile cattle fence unit to lifelines and stanchons made for fewer folks grabbing on to beg or extort.

 

[Adelaide]

Marin,

Admittedly, I am a newbie and a lurker on this forum. I used to enjoy reading your posts. Now I just wonder what you are PMing and why. I feel like I am missing out on a good source of info.

Mike

His feeling is that he spends too much time on this site. So he refuses to take up his time posting...... but the way he's going, he's posting twice. The PM and the notification of a message in the thread. Obviously there is more to his refusal to post than meets the eye. With that said, I too enjoyed reading his posts and would welcome him back to the forum.

 

[Larry M]

..."my question will forever be, how does one keep from getting their dinghy stolen?"....QUOTE]

We hoist the dinghy every night it's in the water and we have changed the decals on the motor. And as previously posted, it's securely locked when on shore.