Davits - Are They Necessary ?

[Tom Hildebrandt]

My last boat did not have davits, and we managed ok but it was tedious always hauling the dink on board and lashing her down every time we went for a sail as I felt the chance of losing the dingy was too great whilst being towed, my current boat has davits, and I love them. I do not carry a big dingy, (currently a portland pudgy which replaced an oooold Avon Redcrest) nor a big engine (5 HP down now to a 2.5 HP) the engine comes up with the dingy and in side of five minutes it is all strapped in place. No need to lock it at night, and on passages it rides fine (so far I have crossed the Indian Ocean and the Southern Atlantic via South africa), I feel the dingy is as secure there as it would be lashed on the foredeck, and as it serves as my liferaft, it is readily accessable in case of fire or throughhull water issues, (IMO no dingy or liferaft can be launched and boarded in heavy weather so...)

Of course the boat has to be big enough (Juno is 40 feet) and the construction has to be robust (Juno is a steel hull with aluminum deck, and the davits are welded aluminum) and the boats design appropriate (canoe sterns are more difficult).

The bigger the dink you feel you must have, the bigger the mother boat, I think most davit problems stem from folks wanting too big a dingy and the corresponding engine.

Cheers and good sailing