A couple of questions on dinghy and motor logistics

[Jim Cate]

LauraLee, we've managed our 15 hp outboards for decades using a home built harness on the motor and the main halyard. One hoists the o/b a couple of feet off the dink (tied alongside near the shrouds) and then walks the halyard back towards the stern. This raises the motor further and when you reach the stern pulpit where the bracket is, why surprise, the motor is at the correct height to slip it onto its mount. Well, that's how it works now, after a few hundred repetitions... Ann knows just how far to hoist and it works pretty seamlessly.

What I like about this is that it uses equipment already on the boat and way oversized in terms of loading. Having the dinghy amidships means that you are at the point of least movement if the boat is pitching, and we've managed this transfer under some fairly sporty conditions (due to bad planning!).

And if we can do this at our ages, you young whippersnappers should have no issues at all!

Jim

PS The harness is made up of some 1 inch tubular webbing (from a climbing shop) and sewn together by hand with needle and palm. There's one black plastic buckle to allow removing it quickly, but it is placed where there is little load on it, so high strength ain't needed. Total cost around 5 bucks... and an hours work cause I sew slowly!.

[JPA Cate]

To those who suggest this might be hard on someone's back: well, Jim has never mentioned it, possibly because the halyard carries the weight, and he only has to move the locking handles across, then I lower it, so he can secure it to the bracket.

It may not be ideal, the PO of our boat had a smaller OB, and it would fit on a bracket in the lazarette, which is even more secure. But then he had to hoist it to put it on the dinghy, and we only carefully lower it down.

Jim also has made a step, which hangs from our toerail, to facilitate getting into and out of the dinghy at the shrouds, or for use as a boarding step when in a berth/pen.

Ann

[Phyrcooler]

I like the idea of a small, lightweight outboard as suggested here. I previously had a 3.5 on my AquaPro 8.5. However as we transition from power back to sail (yeah... I know ) I am torn about other recommendations I’ve read to get an 8 or 9.9 as a minimum. This is both for performance of a 9.5’ RIB, but also the recommendation to be able to side tie and move our sailboat a short distance to a mooring or slip in event of failure of the vessel’s primary Diesel engine. Also, some of the 6’s are pretty light... but could they side tie and move a 38’ - 40’ boat? If this is too much of a thread drift, maybe a moderator could move it to a new thread.

[Minggat]

My stern arch covers a multitude of sins. One of them is lifting my 15hp 2 stroke off of the dink and onto it's storage bracket. 10 and 15hp 2 strokes are very commonly the same weight.

[Minggat]

Originally Posted by stormalong

Go small. I don't get this need for big dinghies and big engines. I use a rollup eight foot Caribe dinghy and a Tohatsu 3.5 HP outboard. The dinghy fits on the cabin top under the boom. It is lifted with the main halyard. The 2 cycle outboard is only 30 pounds which is easily handled. For multi day ocean passages the dinghy gets rolled up so it is out of the way if conditions get rough.

An additional advantage is an integral fuel tank so no extra tank to mess with. The integral tank is good for most hops and I can carry a 2 gallon fuel jug for extended trips. Small engines don't use much gas so I only carry four gallons which lasts a long time.

There is no one prefect dink for all scenarios.
In Mexico, other boats dragging anchor were not all that uncommon during the northern blows. Of course the bigger dinks with bigger motors were always coming to the rescue. You can also be your own tug, which worked for me when I crossed the Pacific and arrived in Hilo.

At the same time, I also love my little 2.5 Merc for the same reasons you do.

[wingssail]

We have a 12 foot inflatable with a 15hp 2-stroke motor. The dingy is never towed. We keep it on the foredeck inflated or deflated and stowed below. The motor can be on the dingy on deck or also itself stowed on a bracket below.

We have zero interest in davits on the stern of a seagoing sailboat. The weight, windage, and pitching is bad. In a storm situation it is a potential disaster. These are the reasons we keep the dingy on deck not on davits. Nor do we want the outboard motor on a stern railing for similar reasons.

We've often watched people do the whole back breaking motor-crane stern-railing bracket thing and then raise up the dinghy on davits on the stern. It takes a half an hour or more and is fraught with danger and stress. That is avoided with a midships, halyard lifting, technique.

With the dingy pulled alongside and the lifting bridle attached the whole shebang comes up quickly and easily with a spinnaker halyard and a primary winch. The dingy can be on the foredeck within 3 minutes of arrival alongside. One person climbs aboard and handles the halyard. The other person connects the bridle and scrambles up to guide the dingy as it is swung aboard (or left hanging if we are just putting it up for the night).

Yes, this is a two person job. A single hander might employ an electric winch with a remote control.

From midships there is less motion than at the stern so midships is easier in a wavy anchorage.

There is NO back strain with this method.

Often however, if we are going to sea we will remove the motor with our home made harness, and swing that up first and stow it. Then bring up the dingy itself.

We used to have a 4hp and a 25hp (his' and her's motors). Now we just have a 15hp and we love it. On a non-RIB inflatable it is fast and light, pulling it up the beach is also doable.

Keep it simple.

[Tillsbury]

Sold my old outboard and bought an Epropulsion Spirit. Light as a feather, each half easily passed up in one hand, and stored down below for security. And silent. And can throw the petrol can away too removing that danger source. I plug it in when motoring but it lasts a ridiculous length of time on a charge.

[Sojourner]

We carry our rather large solid dink on foredeck upside down, motor off first with either mizzen boom or now with a dedicated outboard lift. There are three of us, and from start to finish we can deploy dink with spin halyard attached to one side and lift up on its side, over the edge and flop it into the water. Then attach engine, all together in under 6 minutes. Reverse is about the same. Towing daytime only. You'll have to play with your boat and dink characteristics, they are all different. Most dinks like bridle towing, ours hates it. So two painters off each stern cleat meeting at the bow of dink, quite long 15 meter floating polyprop to not tangle in prop while anchoring. We only tow in daytime, less than 2 m swell or so. Anything more and she goes on deck.

[malbert73]

I would never tow offshore. Of course I will note in chartering in Caribbean anywhere you are towing a RIB with motor behind you. So for nearshore day passage conditions I’d extrapolate generally fine to do so. Offshore and overnight a different beast altogether.
But even for day trips I hate towing the dink as it slows us down. The RIB especially. Our secondary Trinka 10 barely drags except at high speeds

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by Tillsbury

Sold my old outboard and bought an Epropulsion Spirit. Light as a feather, each half easily passed up in one hand, and stored down below for security. And silent. And can throw the petrol can away too removing that danger source. I plug it in when motoring but it lasts a ridiculous length of time on a charge.

It is interesting that their web page states that the spirit 1.0 is 500 watts but they say it is equal to 3.0 hp. Normally 3.0 hp would be over 2000 watts.

Additionally to fully recharge the 1018Wh lithium battery will take about 84 amp hours with a 12 volt system. That seems like a lot of power to supply from my battery charging system.

The length of time it lasts on a charge will depend on how much you use it. Where we often anchor a couple of round trips to the beach each day and a visit or two to other boats would probably exhaust the battery every other day. We don't motor that often to recharge it.

I think for the time being I'll stick with my 15hp Merc. It can push our 12ft inflatable at 15 knots with four people and we use it for a month on a 6 gallon tank of gas.

[Mauruuru]

Get a harness for the motor then use the main halyard for both> It helps to have two people but I often do it with just myself and two hands....make sure the harness is fastened well and tie the ends don't just rely on the plastic snap locks.

[Haddock1]

Originally Posted by Cthoops

We use the main halyard to put the dinghy on the foredeck, but 99% of the time we tow it using a bridle with two attachment points. We’ve towed it in some pretty sporty conditions and it’s been fine, but we never tow it with the outboard on.

I use the exactly the same method. I use the anchor bridle for the job. However, on long passages I remove the motor (but do have an outboard crane) and also I have a highfield dinghy which is heavier than the motor (aluminium rib). I would not like to tow a light dinghy especially in rough conditions or when the wind gets up.

[Jim Cate]

For those who report using the main halyard to put a dink on the foredeck... sounds kinda odd to me. We use the spinnaker halyard to lift things forward of the mast...

Jim

[Group9]

Picture of our 11' Whaler up on our foredeck for reference.

[Shaneesprit]

I solved this one
I had a Honwave tender with outboard, now carrying it up the beach, wow that thing was heavy. Great boat boat though
Anyway sold the Honwave sold the Outbound, removed the Davits.
Now I have an old 8ft Avon it’s over 30 years old I would guess in great condition still and store it on deck also I just row it, now you may think that’s slow. However by the time you unloaded the dingy to the water and fitted the outboard. I will be at least halfway there.
and while your messing with the davits I just pull it straight out of the water. Bounce it on the guide rope and land it on the deck and tie it down. Never gets in the way of the Jib either.