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03-05-2018, 03:01 PM
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#1
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Guru
City: st pete
Vessel Model: 430 Mainship
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 3,498
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Shopping for a dinghy
All,
Dinghy shopping and need some advice.
I currently have a 8ft Walker Bay RIB, and it's a great boat, but just too small and unstable.
Looking for at least 10ft, perhaps 12, but weight is an issue and want to keep the boat below 150 to 200 lbs. So, I'm not looking at fiberglass. Aluminum looks interesting and a lot of RIBs are fairly light (at least the 10 ft ones).
Have a 6 hp motor to propel it.
Thoughts on one that's fairly stable and fairly quick with 7 hp, and reasonably dry?
__________________
Seevee
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03-05-2018, 04:59 PM
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#2
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Guru
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 5,036
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We have a 10'4" Achilles RIB with a double floor and bow locker. It is very dry and stable and it weighs 160lb.
Achilles also has the same length with a single floor and it's lighter.
When we first bought it I had an 8hp and it planed with both of us, but just barely.
__________________
Jay Leonard
Ex boats: 1983 40 Albin trunk cabin, 1978 Mainship 34 Model 1
New Port Richey, Fl
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03-06-2018, 07:04 AM
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#3
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Guru
City: Punta Gorda, fl
Vessel Name: Escapade
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 37 2002
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,231
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Look at the AB Aluminum Hulls
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03-06-2018, 07:28 AM
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#4
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Member
City: Hailing Port: Neoga, IL .. Located? Wherever the Boat Is!
Vessel Name: m/v Optimystique
Vessel Model: Mariner 40
Join Date: Aug 2012
Posts: 9
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Dinghy Options
We just bought our AB 9' aluminum RIB and love it. But while we were looking, we also seriously considered a Highfield aluminum Ultralite RIB. Less expensive than AB & seem well-made.
They make a 10' version and online it says it weighs 108 lbs (?), but be careful because they make them out of PVC as well as hypalon . Hypalon is the only way to go in our opinion. Good luck!
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03-06-2018, 08:07 AM
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#5
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TF Site Team
City: Jacksonville
Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 11,680
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jleonard
We have a 10'4" Achilles RIB with a double floor and bow locker. It is very dry and stable and it weighs 160lb...
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We have a 9.8 hp 2 stroke on ours that will plane with two adults, the dog and some gear. The bow locker is nice for the 2 life preservers, small anchor and some tools. After 10 years she’s still going strong but starting to show her age.
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03-06-2018, 08:21 AM
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#6
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Senior Member
City: Toronto
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 271
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Seevee
All,
Dinghy shopping and need some advice.
I currently have a 8ft Walker Bay RIB, and it's a great boat, but just too small and unstable.
Looking for at least 10ft, perhaps 12, but weight is an issue and want to keep the boat below 150 to 200 lbs. So, I'm not looking at fiberglass. Aluminum looks interesting and a lot of RIBs are fairly light (at least the 10 ft ones).
Have a 6 hp motor to propel it.
Thoughts on one that's fairly stable and fairly quick with 7 hp, and reasonably dry?
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Having had 2 Zodiac's over the years, I would " never " touch another one ... heavy like hell, wet ride and the chronic valve leak. We own a 10.5 Highfield Al. double floor deep V, large tubes ( dry ride ) about 100 lb. I love this boat.
fb
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03-06-2018, 08:22 AM
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#7
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Guru
City: Seabrook, Texas
Vessel Name: Small World
Vessel Model: Defever 50
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 611
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Check out Highfield boats. Some have aluminum hulls and are pretty light for the length. We have one and love it.
Paul
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03-06-2018, 11:00 AM
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#8
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Guru
City: Inside Passage Summer/Columbia River Winter
Vessel Name: Alaskan Sea-Duction
Vessel Model: 1988 M/Y Camargue YachtFisher
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 8,050
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We also have a Walker Bay. Keeping the weight down will be your biggest challenge. We are at a hefty 850lbs.
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03-06-2018, 11:18 AM
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#9
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Guru
City: Ft Pierce
Vessel Name: Sold
Vessel Model: Was an Albin/PSN 40
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 28,143
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West Marine hypalon so far seem to be pretty good quality dingies.
They usually have a blowout sale around the 4th of July. Got mine with a 30 percent discount or so.
Even less expensive than Defender brand.
The 3.10 single floor is great with an 8hp 4 stroke and 1 person, not bad with 2...but struggles to plane with 3 or more.
Less hp and you may only plane with 1 person.
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03-06-2018, 11:53 AM
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#10
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Guru
City: NARBONNE
Vessel Name: 'Snow Mouse.'
Vessel Model: BROOM FLYBRIDGE 42.
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,733
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Check out this site, they sell dinghy's also.
www.sailors-exchange.com
I hope someone finds this site helpful.
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03-06-2018, 04:48 PM
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#11
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Senior Member
City: marina del rey
Vessel Model: Goldenstar sportfisher
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 177
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I have a 12 foot Aluminum Valco U12 which is pretty stable, and weighs only 125 pounds, less the outboard. Powered by a 5HP Tohatsu 2 stroke and moves pretty well and seats 5 comfortably.
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03-06-2018, 09:06 PM
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#12
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Senior Member
City: Cruising North Towards Boston
Vessel Name: Lemon Drops
Vessel Model: 2001 Grand Banks Europa 52
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 358
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We're looking at a AB 10AL with a Tohastu 20E w/ Tiller. We have to finalize the davit system first though.
Jim
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03-06-2018, 09:50 PM
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#13
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Guru
City: Longboat Key, FL
Vessel Name: Bucky
Vessel Model: Krogen Manatee 36 North Sea
Join Date: Oct 2009
Posts: 5,196
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Larry M
We have a 9.8 hp 2 stroke on ours that will plane with two adults, the dog and some gear. The bow locker is nice for the 2 life preservers, small anchor and some tools. After 10 years she’s still going strong but starting to show her age.
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Yeah, Larry, 10 years old....people are beginning to talk.....better get rid of it. I'd take it off your hands since you're probably going to order a fresh one now. My old Caribe 9 suffered a double blow-out in Irma.
__________________
Larry
"When life gets hard, eat marshmallows”.
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03-07-2018, 07:34 AM
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#14
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TF Site Team
City: Jacksonville
Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 11,680
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Quote:
Originally Posted by healhustler
Yeah, Larry, 10 years old....people are beginning to talk.....better get rid of it. I'd take it off your hands since you're probably going to order a fresh one now. My old Caribe 9 suffered a double blow-out in Irma.
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We’ll be up your way next week. Maybe we can make a deal.
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03-07-2018, 10:03 AM
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#15
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Guru
City: Carrabelle, FL
Vessel Name: Morgan
Vessel Model: '05 Mainship 40T
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 2,162
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We have a Caribe Light 11 with a 20hp Zuki which we keep on the swim platform via modified trick davits. I know a ton of people have posted to your thread with lot's of good options, but since we both have the same big boat, I figured my experience might be relevant.
The Caribe has been good, ours is a 2007, it holds air great (I treated it with a pour in sealer 2 months ago and haven't pumped it up since), but it is starting to look pretty rough.
I'm a few years off, but I will likely go with either a 12' Aluminum AB or a 12' aluminum Highfield. I like that AB leaves the aluminum bare. I'm concerned about the long term durability of the powder coating on the Highfields. We are hard on a dinghy, dragging it onto beaches frequently.
12' will stick out a little wider than the transom so I'll have to be careful docking.
I don't notice much performance difference in the big boat with the dinghy on or off.
Hope that helps.
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