Hi, new here, and a dinghy davit question

[Muaddib1116]

Hi guys, I'm new here and I'll have plenty of questions over the near future, but figured I'd start with a hello and a question about dinghys in davits.

I grew up sailing in Long Island Sound on an Allied Seabreeze that's been in my family since forever. It was a 1969 that was used by Allied as a demo boat for a couple years and then bought by my grandfather in 1971 and then bought by my dad and uncle in 1988. In recent years I have only done weekend sails on it with friends, but recently I have committed myself to take action on a longtime dream of getting my own boat to eventually cruise full time on. Anyways, enough about me.

I thought I'd start out with a question that I've been unable to find an answer to, despite considerable googling. It seems to be pretty much a consensus online that for long passages or in heavy weather for a dinghy to be lashed on deck rather than stored in the davits to prevent it from being swamped and ripping the davits/transom apart. This seems very prudent.

Also, I would imagine that having davits built into an arch that lift the dinghy above the stern rail reduces the risk over deck mounted davits that lift the dinghy to deck height. What I've been wondering is, can that risk be reduced in any way by having a sturdy dinghy cover on it while it is in the davits?

As a side note, I watch a bunch of youtube sailing channels and I've seen a lot of people on monohulls do this, but on cats the dinghy is always in the davits.

Thanks, I appreciate any feedback.

[capn_billl]

If i get swamped by a large following wave breaking over the stern, I have more problems than just the dinghy, but excellent point.

Even just sailing around in a heavy rain can fill up a dinghy fast.

I'm thinking of deflating, and storing below during passage, or wrapping in a tarp, and lashing so it sits sideways, instead of flat.

[Reefmagnet]

A dinghy lifted high must do horrible things to the centre of gravity. My boat isn't that big so it has both davits and tie downs on the deck. The dinghy is currently lower than deck level when on the davits yet this hasn't been a problem when sailing in mild conditions (up to 20 knots) with a decent heel happening. For any significant passage or brisker conditions, I'd plan to carry it on deck. I guess the main issue is if the dinghy is carried on davits and the weather pipes up it's most likely going to be impractical to transfer it off the davits to the deck.

[Sojourner]

Yup, what Reefmagnet said re the wind coming up... Once the wind is up, you're gonna be stuck with what you are stuck with. Transferring a dinghy (esp if you left the outboard on) from davits to upside down on the foredeck in anything but benign conditions is not possible without serious risk and trouble. Even 10-15 knots of wind catches it and slams it around on deck; a half meter or meter swell is an exercise in reflexes as well.

Also, what are 'deck mounted davits'? You talking about something pulling the dink up the side? Often we pull ours up the side overnight for security or to dry off the bottom (prevents growth), but that's about it. Spinny halyard does that job fine, same one we use to haul it up on its side to lash upside down on the foredeck for any significant or overnight passage. Anything else during the day the dinghy is towed at a very long distance (but it is a beefy dinghy, so we tow it like big boats tow theirs, 20m lines work best).

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Muaddib.

[AJ_n_Audrey]

Dinghy on foredeck on passages, or stored below if possible. If on foredeck, securely lashed. An arch on the stern is good in many ways, but I would not keep a dinghy there on passage. I once did a Gulf Stream crossing for which predicted winds were 10-15 kts, and halfway across I observed 43 knots. Stuff happens, and when it does you don't want the dinghy hanging up there in the breeze.

[Brewgyver]

Originally Posted by Sojourner

(snip)
Also, what are 'deck mounted davits'?

One example would be Weaver Snap Davits:


Though much more popular on power boats, they can be used on sailboats, as well. Really only practical with a relatively lightweight dink that is shorter than the stern is wide. The pic above is from a CF thread in 2011:http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...aus-52329.html

[stormalong]

What reefmagnet said is right and also you have to consider what hanging that weight behind the transom does to the boat trim. Smaller boats will will be pulled down by that weight hanging out there.

I store my dinghy on the cabin top, under the boom. It is easily lifted on the main halyard. On ocean passages it gets deflated, rolled up and lashed to the cabin top. I do not believe in towing a dinghy. Too many get loose or get swamped.

A small outboard (3.5) and a rollup dinghy are, IMO the way to go. Big engines and big dinghys are an unnecessary PITA. And they are theft magnets in places like the Caribbean.

[Discovery 15797]

When outfitting my boat for cruising the Pacific and SE Asia I had a Tanner Arch built with their single bar davit system. (See https://www.tannermfg.com/gallery-1 for examples).

However, on long passages offshore the dinghy is always lashed to the foredeck.

Also...it is not just about taking breaking waves over the stern. You could be in mixed seas where a wave rises on your stern and pushes upwards on the dinghy, and even perhaps more dangerous is a rogue breaking wave that sudden come from an angle contrary to the prevailing swells and forces the dinghy sideways (resulting in structural damage).

WRT cats, they sometimes keep their dinks in davits because of the way they ride in the water, and the dink is tucked between the 2 hulls. However, even in mixed seas a cat can get slammed around pretty good and the potential for unforeseen things is there.

Prep'ing for offshore & multi-overnight coastal passages I keep in mind 2 rules-of-thumb....

1.) The key to successful offshore passages is to mitigate potential problems prior to departure rather than trying to deal with them once underway. (Murphy's Law)

2.) Problems offshore tend to occur in horrible conditions and trying to get control of things when they go sideways often results in greater damage to the vessel and endangers the crew and sometimes results in injury.

Oh...and the davit system is used when inland, near coastal, island hopping (within site) and for pulling the dink out of the water at night for security reasons.

[Mike Banks]

The trick is to hoist dinghy in the davits then secure it against the davit stems using chocks and lashings--where it can not fill with water and provides a useful wind break as it is bottom-into the wind from abaft.

No one who sails likes excessive wear or excessive noise or things swinging about--they always lash them down. It does not matter what kind of craft--it is just better practice.

[joelhemington]

Originally Posted by Muaddib1116

Hi guys, I'm new here and I'll have plenty of questions over the near future, but figured I'd start with a hello and a question about dinghys in davits.

I grew up sailing in Long Island Sound on an Allied Seabreeze that's been in my family since forever. It was a 1969 that was used by Allied as a demo boat for a couple years and then bought by my grandfather in 1971 and then bought by my dad and uncle in 1988. In recent years I have only done weekend sails on it with friends, but recently I have committed myself to take action on a longtime dream of getting my own boat to eventually cruise full time on. Anyways, enough about me.

I thought I'd start out with a question that I've been unable to find an answer to, despite considerable googling. It seems to be pretty much a consensus online that for long passages or in heavy weather for a dinghy to be lashed on deck rather than stored in the davits to prevent it from being swamped and ripping the davits/transom apart. This seems very prudent.

Also, I would imagine that having davits built into an arch that lift the dinghy above the stern rail reduces the risk over deck mounted davits that lift the dinghy to deck height. What I've been wondering is, can that risk be reduced in any way by having a sturdy dinghy cover on it while it is in the davits?

As a side note, I watch a bunch of youtube sailing channels and I've seen a lot of people on monohulls do this, but on cats the dinghy is always in the davits.

Thanks, I appreciate any feedback.

I think it all depends on what type of dingy you buy. If you want something that will tow your boat in a pinch (you really need two people on board to do this), you'll need a larger dingy that can support the weight and thrust of a 15 hp outboard motor. In that case, storing the dingy on the foredeck makes the most sense (safer during passages and reduces the possibility of theft ( a big dingy and outboard can run up to 10k so you don't want it to disappear some night).

On the other hand, if you just want something light weight (less chance of theft) davits may work just fine during short hauls as they're clearly more convenient than hauling your dingy up onto the fore deck each time.

For me, I think I'll pass on the davits when get my boat (hopefully in the next two years) as any dingy I'd be interested will need to be stored on the foredeck when not tied to the back of the boat when I'm "on the hook". Davits tend to eat up a lot of space at the back of the boat where I'd like to mount a hydrovane and catch some dinner (if I'm really lucky)

[skipper53]

CRosser the Gulf Stream with a dinghy on davits. Waves were trapped between the dinghy and the transom forcing water up and into the fuel tank vent. Water in the fuel didn't run the motor on that Ericson 35 very well at all.

Ended up getting towed into Freeport Harbor....

[PuttingDoctor]

Interesting and informative posts so far.
My situation may differ from those who have posted so far. I have a 30 hp outboard on my side console RIB. I am looking for a smaller 4 stroke for noise reduction vs. weight.
My davits are constructed from heavy boom material and I'm presently working through a rebuild and beefing them up structurally. These davits are factory 1981 and are built into the hull via tubes in the lazarette and further supported by the arch that has both deck and transom shear points.
The rebuild I'm doing at present will have the below deck vertical tubes through bolted to outer plates and a crisscross set of wires added to the arch.
I have a cover but seldom use it as it's a bit of a PITA to remove. If I was to go open crossing or long haul I would reduce the chance of collecting water weight in the dinghy by removing the transom plug.
The question is... will your davits support the dinghy and you without issue while you plug the transom and or remove the cover?

[peter loveridge]

bear in mind that the entire weight of the dinghy acts at the top of the hoist, now matter how low or high the dinghy is hoisted. This is very much a consideration when you put davits on a smaller boat

[Paul Howard]

Catamarans carry the dinghy in davits because it hangs between the hulls, with the hulls extending beyond the davits, so there is more buoyancy to hold up the transoms.
On a monohull the dinghy and davits are mounted aft of the end of the hull and tends to sink the aft end of the waterline lower, increasing the risk of swamping and the stern slower to lift to a following wave.

This is even more noticeable on traditional designs with long overhangs aft.
On my catamarans that I have owned, when sailing in and area where I might encounter rough weather I remove the outboard engine and hang the dinghy vertical from the davits, bringing the weight more forward and not giving water a place to collect.