Steel jon boat for dinghy?

12 feet , easy tow, unsinkable, tough and easy to fix on the fly.

I still really love my daily driver the 12 T Livingston.

Put it on the dock last April. Rolled it over for a look after 8 years in the water. Ya it had a hole in the bottom I had made a quick fix on the beach. Found three more I had no idea where there. Weekend on the dock , cleaned, epoxy fix the holes, bottom paint its all good.

I keep thinking of changing it out for something light yet stable, tough, fixable on a beach etc etc. The dam canoe seems my best option along with the kayak but they both make the dog too the beach a bit more exciting than I want.

How is it the toy seems one of the hardest choices we have to make. Wish I had room for em all, plus a 17 or so fishing machine < grin >.

You mean like this one? There used to be a real expensive jet RIB there, but the owner got tired of fixing the engine and the tubes-over and over so he put this beater on there and now doesn't worry about Alligators so much on the St. Johns, or clams up on the Chesapeake.

"A friend bought one of those and when he gave the Honda 2HP motor a little power the transom and bracket folded under."
I would expect that his boat was under inflated for that to happen but it is a pretty cheap boat.

There is no reason a motor bracket can't work with low horsepower motors. Avon made a boat called a Redcrest that sold by the hundreds back in the seventies. It had a bracket mount. It was almost the standard dinghy of the time. It was usually powered by a Seagull Outboard.



And then there is this.

manyboats said:

The inflatables have so much wasted space it's hard to believe anyone would buy one. But the thing that puts me off totally is how stupid they look.

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Well, we love our Ribs even if you do think they look stupid. As to space, we have more seating capacity than the same length Whaler. Just a matter of personal preference. Now our ribs are jets so more interior space. And before others talk about reliability of jet ribs, there have been many changes over the years and most of the reliability issues were older models and models designed for PWC (such as older Yamaha). Ours are Weber and Yanmar engines and trouble free so far and we put a lot of hours and miles on them.

Still we recognize jet is not for most people and ribs may or may not be one's thing.

As to space, we have more seating capacity than the same length Whaler.

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Well unless you are seating people on the tubes, I'd be very curious as to what RIB you have. In 2008, when we were still somewhat new to our boat I took a tape measure to the Miami boat show and measured the interior of every RIB in the 13-14 foot class, and all brands you can think of were there. None came close to the interior space of our 130 Sport. We like RIBs, don't think they look funny at all, and were new to Whalers. But since the Whaler was in many ways our family car at the time, ferrying supplies, groceries and people and luggage to and fro moorings and anchorages every day, and exploring extensively, we decided there was no way we could give up the space not just seating , but as importantly cargo.

caltexflanc said:

Well unless you are seating people on the tubes, I'd be very curious as to what RIB you have. In 2008, when we were still somewhat new to our boat I took a tape measure to the Miami boat show and measured the interior of every RIB in the 13-14 foot class, and all brands you can think of were there. None came close to the interior space of our 130 Sport. We like RIBs, don't think they look funny at all, and were new to Whalers. But since the Whaler was in many ways our family car at the time, ferrying supplies, groceries and people and luggage to and fro moorings and anchorages every day, and exploring extensively, we decided there was no way we could give up the space not just seating , but as importantly cargo.

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Well, part of it is whether we're looking at how many people you can pack on a Whaler or what it's plate capacity is. Much like the problem you have with engines. So just a couple of comparisons. A Whaler 110 sport is 11'4", seats 4 and a 130 sport is 13'3" with a capacity of 4 as well. A Williams 325 which is under 11' seats 4 and a 385 which is 12'7" seats 5. Now in deck space the 385 at 12'7" takes less length than an 11' Whaler plus outboard. A Williams 445 is 14'11" so takes up about the same deck space as a 130 sport and it has a capacity of 6. In comparing length for one you're carrying on your bridge, you have to add at least 18" and probably 2' for the outboard. Now I'll freely admit that I would say for practical purposes 4 people for the 385 and 5 people for the 445.

Now we don't use our tenders as much for hauling cargo as we do for people and exploring. So definitely a different purpose. I like Whalers but my other issue today is their rated motor. Planing is difficult with 4 people as the 110 is only rated for 25 hp and the 130 only for 40 hp. I know they will take more but I'm not willing to accept the liability associated with putting more than the plate amount on one. We do have larger ribs too but the 110 and 130 are the boats we compared to. The Whaler clearly has more open floor space for carrying supplies. The Williams has more performance and as we do have many days we've covered 80-100 nm in a tender that's helpful. Williams 385 and 445 have 120 hp which is the equivalent of around 90 in an outboard and run 45 knots. We seldom run it over 25 knots though.

Your need of ferrying supplies, grocery and luggage is not something we often use one of ours for. We are normally docked for those things. The few times we do use one for that, typically we only have 2 of us in it.

We do understand our needs and likes are very different than most. By the way, what engine do you have on your 130?

Edit: Those are some of their gas tenders. The diesel obviously adds a lot of weight but the 445 does also comes with the option of a 100 hp Yanmar as do their larger tenders.

My Sport 130 has a plate capacity of 5. Look at how cramped that Williams is, which also costs what, 3-4x as much outfitted? On my Whaler there would be room for everyone's luggage or cooler, beach chairs and picnic basket behind the helm. At least 25% more interior room.



My 130 has a 40hp Merc 2 stroke. About 22 knots fast cruise.

HopCar said:

This might be my next dinghy. I've started building it. I'll let you know how it works in a couple of years when I finish it. The fellow in the video has solved the theft problem. He carries his folding bicycle to shore in the dinghy, then tows the dinghy behind his bicycle. I'm building the 9 foot version.

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If you put a mast with a gooseneck on it it will look like you are floating around in an upside down umbrella.

I bookmarked that website quite a while ago. Possibly from a previous post you made? Good outside the box thinking on his site.

caltexflanc said:

My Sport 130 has a plate capacity of 5. Look at how cramped that Williams is, which also costs what, 3-4x as much outfitted? On my Whaler there would be room for everyone's luggage or cooler, beach chairs and picnic basket behind the helm. At least 25% more interior room.

My 130 has a 40hp Merc 2 stroke. About 22 knots fast cruise.

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Well, the current 130's only have a plate capacity of 4. I do agree the 385 shown in that photo is very crowded for five people. But I find the 445 a fairer comparison to the 130 Sport as it fits in the same deck space. However, even with it, I find 4 passengers to be very comfortable, 5 to be acceptable. The Williams certainly won't carry the supplies a comparable Whaler will. Our typical usage though is 2-4 passengers and no supplies, groceries, or luggage and they handle that very well. And a 130 is crowded with 4 and 5 passengers as well. You put two people in the back, one on the cooler, two in the bow and that's packed.

Your point about cost is the biggest advantage the Whaler combination has. The Whaler 130 Sport typically runs $14,000 to $18,000. The Williams 445 runs just over $40,000.

Jet ribs do have an advantage of shallow water navigation and safety. Whalers certainly have an advantage in terms of maintenance and in expected life of the boat.

I don't argue that the Williams is a better choice than the Whaler for most people. I think they both have their places as do many other tenders. I really was just responding to the comment that said:

"The inflatables have so much wasted space it's hard to believe anyone would buy one. But the thing that puts me off totally is how stupid they look."

There are those of us who do like them. There are more people who use Rib's as tenders or dinghies that any other type. It's like all types of boats. You have to find what works best for you. Some are better for one use and others are better for others. We really just use ours for passengers and to explore and enjoy the water.

Somehow we have got wayyyyy off the OP, asking about using an aluminum john boat or alternatives, to touting $45,000 jet boats.


OK here's a 445.

The Whaler 130 Sport typically runs $14,000 to $18,000. The Williams 445 runs just over $40,000.

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? Last I looked the 385 had a base of $43,900. The 445 2,000 more

2014 Williams Performance Tenders 445 Turbojet Power Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

The other advantage I'd give the Whaler, or a john-type boat, traditional dinghy or just a plain old outboard powered RIB, is user serviceability. One of my favorite definitions of cruising is "Working on and repairing your boat in exotic places" .

caltexflanc said:

The other advantage I'd give the Whaler, or a john-type boat, traditional dinghy or just a plain old outboard powered RIB, is user serviceability. One of my favorite definitions of cruising is "Working on and repairing your boat in exotic places" .

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Certainly if a user is inclined to service, although some have more knowledge of inboards. Still, I'd agree that overall servicing of an outboard is easier for most people. I must confess I've never owned an outboard although my father did have them.

And the price I quoted was what they tend to sell for, not what they list for on yachtworld.