Happy with your Achilles Hypalon dink?

[Scout 30]

More "outside the box".

https://newatlas.com/hovercraft-infl...rm=Read%20more

[Joe Okros]

I live in NZ and USED TO BE a great proponent of Hypalon, we arrived here 13 years ago with a Caribe Hypalon dink, within a very short time the Hypalon was burnt to ****, with little bubbles that I peeled off like suntanned skin. NZ has a hole in the ozone layer right above the country and people die like flies here from skin cancer so I think it compares well with Florida in the Sunburn stakes. The Hypalon dink didn't completely die but looked crap and needed a few strong men to lift a 9ft boat. I retubed cheaply with THERMALLY WELDED VALMEX PVC an old what I thought would be a cheap second-hand Aluminium hull dink that I left on an old Toyota RAV's roof rack as my "going to the boat car", my thinking was I would get 5 years out of it and it was cheap enough. It sat out in the South Pacific sun day in and out for 4 years before I eventually moved it into a dinghy locker at the boat club where it has been for 3 years in what I would describe as a Winter Icebox and Summer Oven. It still looks new apart from where I have spilt antifoul and other paints on it. SO QUITE BY ACCIDENT I DISCOVERED that the biggest problem with dinks IRRESPECTIVE of material is the seams, and the GLUE on even Hypalon wont last as long as the material,----THERMAL WELDING outlasts the glue by far and Valmex is on par with Hypalon in the longevity stakes.

Puffin RIB – Southern Pacific Inflatables did the job for me and I would recommend this dink over any Hypalon dink,----weighs approximately 55lbs and even my antiquated broken-backed body moves it around easily. I buy the Mercury/Tohatsu/Nissan/Johnson 2.5/3.3HP 2 stroke motors (all built by Tohatsu) whenever I find them cheap at garage sales etc and rebuild them for a few dollars. I have 3 of them I cycle and they just keep going.

To summarise Pressed hull strakes on quality aluminium hull and THERMALLY WELDED VALMEX® PVC tubes is the best dink I have owned, and I have owned both Avon and Caribe Hypalon dinks.

[exMaggieDrum]

I certainly can see how much better life would be with a small, easy to lift, outboard. Provided you use it in protected harbors or calm conditions. There were times offshore in the S. Pacific where anchorages were often choppy with high winds. A bigger engine made it much easier in those conditions. We saw many a crew struggle with small engines in bad conditions. Many times it was easy to get in or out to shore but the roundabout a disaster.

But I wouldn't argue with any one about it if it works for them. I did struggle with the 9.9 4 stroke getting it off the boat and on the dink and v.v. but had a lift which helped enormously. It often was a two person job unless in very calm conditions, with practice, and a good setup for tender lines to get the transom in the right spot. Then I could do it by myself. The Admiral could not however. I always had a safety line of course in case the OB wanted to go for a swim.

[sowwaninii]

I purchased a zodiac fast roller a number years ago, thinking it would be relatively easy to store onboard. Turns out, not so easy to roll-up and I think you have to be a magician to get it into its carrying case. Consequently, the only times I’ve rolled it up is at the end of the season when I store it in my garage. And while it will plane with 2 people and my 6 hp outboard,it does not perform nearly as well as a RIB. Definitely going with a rigid bottom next round.

[breeeznalong]

I have had that Achilles 8’6”!hypo with a small 2.3 hp Honda for over 10 years purchased from Defender. Obviously this tender is used for short trips from boat to shore/dock nearby. LOVE the Honda - starts first time/every time!! The dinghy — ugh! I live in the NE so limited usage time. Has held up fine. Still in excellent condition. I just hate the air floor. I bought it for weight considerations but would love for someone to take it off my hands. I would run to get an aluminum hull RIB in a heartbeat. The UltraLites from AB weigh in the mid 80’s lbs. Sturdy but still light. Take a look.....

[kvstein]

I recently replaced the old dink with an AB with an aluminum bottom. Very pleased! Only weighs 75 pounds and excellent quality. Also I agree with Boatguy30 that you should get a Yamaha 2 stroke outboard in the Bahamas. Yamahas are the only product that I know of that is cheaper in the Bahamas than the USA where 2 strokes are not available anyway.

[CSY Man]

Thx for all the comments.
No changes now, everything is bought and paid for.
Got the Mercury 3.5hp, probably a rebranded Tohatsu, but so what..6 years warranty should take care of any problems.
Got the dink already, will get the motor tomorrow.

[Icarus]

I am in Australia, north Queensland and we get a lot of sunshine all year round. I bought a an Achilles 2.4m about 12 years ago and its still in good shape,we never coverd it up and it has been exposed to the sun most of its life.
Hypallon is definitely the go.
By the way our inflatable is white so it does stay a lot cooler.

Happy days

[Lance]

Personally I cannot justifying buying something that is guaranteed to fail ie a deflatable, oh the salesman said just spend another 50% of the cost on a cover .
What sort of admission is that ?
The sea eagle 16 skiff could make me a convert though .
Only mistake they made was using an obsolete unit of measurement fitted to the side ,c'mon using one twealth the length of a mythical rock in an olde London fish market is hardly scientific.


Speed can be your friend, coming ashore through surf underpowered can be treacherous.

I like indestructable poly boats my last one was Finn Spindrift an excellant Tender .

Tohatsu 9.8 2st is my pick of motor , mbe the six is just as good but I think weighs the same ?

In a moment of necessity a couple of years ago I bought a Mercury 8 , what a heap of junk .
That motor costs me so much in time and taxi fares going to an agent so many times they eventually replaced it to their credit .

[KD8NPB]

I'm starting to see many cases of Achilles T10 CSM/CR delaminating after 3 to 5 years of use. One 12 ft RIB recently, I was able to peel the coating off in sheets.

Be warned.

Also, keep in mind, other brands use Achilles material too. It's the popular "go to" CSM/CR in China.

I prefer Pennel & Flipo ORCA material whenever possible for CSM/CR.

Or welded Zodiac Strongan 1200 for PVC. Mehler Valmex is the best generic PVC on the market, but Zodiac's Strongan is significantly better.

[CSY Man]

Originally Posted by KD8NPB

I'm starting to see many cases of Achilles T10 CSM/CR delaminating after 3 to 5 years of use. One 12 ft RIB recently, I was able to peel the coating off in sheets.

Be warned.

Also, keep in mind, other brands use Achilles material too. It's the popular "go to" CSM/CR in China.

I prefer Pennel & Flipo ORCA material whenever possible for CSM/CR.

Or welded Zodiac Strongan 1200 for PVC. Mehler Valmex is the best generic PVC on the market, but Zodiac's Strongan is significantly better.

Not sure what you were talking about so I googled T10 CSM/CR and got this:

https://www.boatstogo.com/index.php?...tachment_id=19

Same as what we call Hypalon fabric?

If anything bad happens in 3-5 years, the boats are covered by warranty and I live within 10 mins of an Achilles Dealer with a repair shop, should be ok..

The delaminating boats you mentioned, were they in any way abused, or did they appear to have had a “normal” life?
If so, perhaps Achilles made a bad batch and have corrected the problem, hope so.

My boat is made in Japan and they have a reputation for high quality, durability and sophistication of the products they make.
Hope that has not changed.

[Lance]

Once again why does the abuse question come in when talking about a material inheritenly designed to fail.
My Poly Dinghys "Garage Sale 1and 2" were abused from launch dry ride, easy planning and tough for rocky beach landings and never had any leaks .
Water ingress or air out put .
I saw a brand new Zodiac lost with motor after getting crushed under an oyster encrusted jetty as the tide rose very sad.

Rigid Poly way to go and btw cheaper from the outset .
Our oyster scars are worn proudly evidence of many duals won .
Crocodiles dont differentiate which hyperlon material they chose for their teething ring .

[CSY Man]

Originally Posted by Lance

Once again why does the abuse question come in when talking about a material inheritenly designed to fail.
My Poly Dinghys "Garage Sale 1and 2" were abused from launch dry ride, easy planning and tough for rocky beach landings and never had any leaks .
Water ingress or air out put .
I saw a brand new Zodiac lost with motor after getting crushed under an oyster encrusted jetty as the tide rose very sad.

Rigid Poly way to go and btw cheaper from the outset .
Our oyster scars are worn proudly evidence of many duals won .
Crocodiles dont differentiate which hyperlon material they chose for their teething ring .

Looks like inflatables have an easier life in Florida: Can’t remember the last time I was exposed to rocky beach landings, attacked by oyster encrusted jetties or by hungry crocodiles.
In fact my previous inflatables lasted quite a good long time..

[fstbttms]

My mid-90's Hypalon Achilles is the best inflatable boat I have ever owned. I use it in my work every day and it is still going strong.

[KD8NPB]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

Not sure what you were talking about so I googled T10 CSM/CR and got this:

https://www.boatstogo.com/index.php?...tachment_id=19

Same as what we call Hypalon fabric?

If anything bad happens in 3-5 years, the boats are covered by warranty and I live within 10 mins of an Achilles Dealer with a repair shop, should be ok..

The delaminating boats you mentioned, were they in any way abused, or did they appear to have had a “normal” life?
If so, perhaps Achilles made a bad batch and have corrected the problem, hope so.

My boat is made in Japan and they have a reputation for high quality, durability and sophistication of the products they make.
Hope that has not changed.

Hypalon is a DuPont trademark and is no longer manufactured by DuPont for marine use.

Some are normal, some are abused. The delaminations span a few years of production runs. It seems to be though that their quality control simply sucks, at least for the material they supply to third parties. I pressed the matter to Achilles JP, and they did what all manufacturers do...blame the customer's usage / cleaning practices.

I strongly lean towards Pennel & Flipo ORCA as my material preference.