This summer, I was able to sail my boat a few times; when out, I tested several methods for launching the dinghy from the deck and also lowering and raising the engine. I have a 10 ft. RIB with a 9.9 2-stroke Yamaha. Well, I am not 25 anymore and found the whole process to be a little dangerous. I would prefer to not use a dinghy, but that's not really an option...so.
I have been looking at davits from Atkins and Hoyt. They are well built, look good and, most importantly, can be completely removed when one wants to just go sailing or racing - nice, clean appearance.
I am wondering if anyone has installed davits. Do you have pictures. Does the pinched stern detract from the usability of the davits. In the case of the ones I am considering, the recommended distance between supports is 90-100 inches - the max I can get is about 55 inches.
a 10' RIB for a 44' boat? I would suggest to take either a smaller and lighter inflatable or a larger boat.... Anyway I would not like the view of a Swan with davits and dinghy astern... Much better to deflate it and when cruising with fair weather to tow it..
FW, Matteo / grampus 47_016
Hah! A bigger boat is always the answer....if the money is there! Well, You make good points. I have removed most of the excess "stuff" on the stern and will ultimately remove the rest. I really don't like a cluttered boat. However, I do like convenience and that's what davits provide.
On the fence about this one. Any other thoughts are appreciated.
Thank you Chris,I have a 8'6" RIB and I leave it on the foredeck.
I arranged to apt a light 2" pole from an old mast of a Laser for hoisting it. I am glad with it.
Maybe it is better to show through the pictures, you can see the pole on the side of the spinnaker pole.
Please note too how the foredeck has been changed from the original design.
I am not personally keen on putting davits on Swans and I think it would be hard to get the weight distribution right with our longish overhangs. On Tigris we store our rib on the foredeck but when cruising we always tow it. It means that its always available and if someone was to go overboard it might be useful to have behind. Gavin
Chris
A towed dinghy is likely to slow you most at low speeds. At higher speeds the added resistance from the dinghy becomes a small fraction of the total.
If you have enough data about your RIB a resistance calculation would be an interesting exercise.
At higher speeds when the yacht generates a stern wave it is advantageous to adjust the towing line length so the dinghy rides downhill on the stern wave.
It is not a good idea to tow a dinghy in open waters. If wind and waves get up the dinghy will fill or flip, then the towing line or its attachments can usually not take the load.
Kind regards
Lars
Chris, as we anchor a lot when cruising, our tender choices are very important. With our Swan 41 and 47, we had two sizes of Zodiac Futura's which have inflatable floors using the Metzler system, they have big tubes and smaller tubes underneath so they are a bit like a catamaran in the water. We tie the fuel tank near the bow and always use a towing bridle and a very long stretchy floating line. We do do what the professor says, and adjust this to enable the dinghy to run downhill on the stern wave.
On Tigris where we have a rib, we have replaced the GRP one with a 4m AB in alloy which weighs with its engine, exactly half the weight of its predecessor. This makes for easier handling and beaching and of course, it planes well when towing. As far as drag is concerned, a light dinghy will not be a lot and we have sometimes overtaken similar boats but with us towing a dinghy.
I share my experience.
We used to tow our small 2.2m inflatable Zodiac and never had the impression of a noticeable drag. The reason for towing was obvious: no encumbrance on deck, no need to deploy it, and last but not least, an additional safety in case of need.
Until the day when, doubling a cape, we were caught in a sudden increase of wind (25 knots or so) that flipped the tender. The sudden tension snapped the cable and, as we were sailing fast, the next thing we saw was the little boat drifting very far away. We lowered the sail and started the engine but spent almost half an hour to recover it and it was not an easy job. A good exercise for a MOB! The outboard was not affected because we never keep it mounted unless strictly needed.
Since that time we carry it always on the deck, upside down, forward of the mast and very well tied. A relevant but unavoidable encumbrance, of course.
I add that it covers completely the forward hatch and I console myself considering this an additional, although unintended, safety.
Dear Chris:
A dinghy on davits is a bad idea, just my opinion! Towing is bad too, although we towed a 14 ft inflatable w/ motor from Seattle to Los Angeles behind a 74 ft Ketch. I carry a 7½ ft fiberglass dinghy over the fwd hatch, upside down, oars strapped besides. Advantage: It lives there permanently and keeps the rain out of the hatch when it is open at night while anchored. Close the hatch under-way! For cruising to more remote places I take a 13 ft rowboat. It also is upside down on the foredeck, but takes up a lot of room. The small boat then stays at home. When I have arrived at protected waters I hang it on a halliard outside of the lifelines and lash it to two stanchions so that it cannot swing. It is then right-side-up and very easy to lower. It does not bang at night. Any rain it collects is easily sponged out because the boat hangs high enough just outboard. It is high enough so that if a particularly high wave or wake usually doess not reach it, and when it does, it just rides up on the lashings. I sail usually alone and ease-of-use is important. When I had a dog, I would lash the small boat like that to where the rail of the boat was about three inches above the rail of my ship, and the dog learned to enter and exit the small boat from the deck. Because it was lashed, it would not wiggle. I like hard hulled boats. I had rubber ones. They deteriorate. I can patch up my fiberglass ones and paint them. Eventually they chafe at the keel where they have been run ashore. I also have a 2HP outboard, but it is more hassle than oars.
The specs for my dinghy are approximately: 10'4" long; approximately 160 lbs (without engine); tube diameter - 17".
However, with much thought given to the replies to my question about davits, I am planning to sell this dinghy and replace it. So, with that in mind, please do not make any calculations on my behalf. Also, one of the reasons I asked about the dragging characteristics of a a RIB like mine is that I experienced a high-degree of drag which I measured by pulling on the painter while under way - not scientific, I know - and it was virtually impossible to pull in.
My previous dinghies have all had soft bottoms and I have dragged each one behind the boat. I think this dinghy is just too heavy for me!
Further, I like the idea of deflating the dinghy for off-shore passages without cluttering the deck.
Of course, I also like the idea of building a glued, clinker tender - but where would I put that?
Hi Gavin,
Thank you for your advice and continued support. Like you, my choice of tender is very important to me and my family. I also single-hand (or have and expect to)a lot so weight and ease of use are dear to me.
My first tender, when I was living aboard a Sparkman and Stephens designed Tartan 41 was a 9 foot Avon with a wooden floor - I loved this dink until it was stolen in St. Martin. Ugh! I pulled that dinghy behind the boat through the tradewinds with no trouble and when I made long-distance passages, it stowed on deck.
Recently, I saw a dinghy at West Marine made of hypalon, my preferred material, that has aluminum floor boards which may be removed when one wishes to deflate the dinghy. I don;t remember the weight but it was very low.
It may take me a while to make the final determination but one thing is now certain; just because the dinghy I have came with the boat doesn't mean that I should try to fit the boat to the dinghy!
Dear Daniel,
Thank you for your note. I have had similar experiences around even small capes. One time, off the northern cape of Long Island in the Bahamas, with full sails on my Shannon 50 flying, picture attached, the wind doubled from 12 knots to 25 - that was a true scramble!
On another occasion, we left Saint Lucia, dinghy attached securely, we thought, until about 20 minutes into the trip I noticed that the dinghy was not in sight! A quick gybe and two hours later we found it!
Thank you for your advice. I agree with all of it and I have completely and forever given up the idea of davits!
However, I like to have the foredeck completely clear, if possible, while sailing. As mentioned in a previous note, I have had great success towing a light-weight dinghy behind the boat. That is like the way I will proceed...but, I would really love to build a Paul Gartside sailing dinghy using the glued lapstrake method.
That, of course, gets me right back to the fore-deck issue! Life is a balance. For now, I know that I have a beautiful boat and the dinghy issue will work out.
