Your Opinion - Best Dinghy?

[u4ea32]

Nobody has a Walker Bay dinghy (not the RIB)?

Everyone uses an outboard? Nobody else rows and sails?

[northwestsailor]

Unless there is a good reason to do otherwise ie large shopping spree, need for a outboard etc we use the inflatable kayak the most. It is easy to deploy and fold up to pack away. We get good exercise paddling around, moves around relatively fast and handles waves well. Also easy to deflate enough to drop in the back of a pickup or trunk during land travel.
The Portland Pudgy is also our survival vessel. We don't have a liferaft. The WM roll up inflatable we usually only use when we have groups on board who want to do different things for the day.

[Vasco]

Have heard of problems with the Walker Bay Genesis and poor warranty service. A buddy finally put his in a dumpster. If contemplating one of these it would be wise to do a search.

[zeehag]

i row a wb10.
it works and doesnt have a high theft potential. i dont lose mine and i do not neeeed triple locks to inhibit my response time should someone need halp.

my ideal dinghy is a HYPALON roll up with a small outboard preferably yamaha or nissan/tohatsu 3 1/2 hp. handle able by my self without assistance.

[skipmac]

I also thought Zodiac was only PVC but checked the Defender website and they do make both PVC and Hypalon.

That being said, Zodiac even in Hypalon is not the quality it used to be. I would probably go with Achilles for my next inflatable.

[s/v Beth]

What if the OP found someone that could make a light weight wood dingy out of local materials- like the Dyer and sell them as a complete package with oars. If the quality was good enough people would come to him for the dingies, and stay in the marina as a side note.
I built a dingy out of quarter inch ply and some 2X2's. Epoxied then painted. It is still being used by the second owners for fishing. Light weight- I could haul it up on the deck myself, and could row with 3 adults.
Just saying... think local.

[onestepcsy37]

Originally Posted by u4ea32

Nobody has a Walker Bay dinghy (not the RIB)?

Everyone uses an outboard? Nobody else rows and sails?

i know zeehag likes her walker bay 10. i had to borrow a walker bay 8 the other day and definitely do NOT like it. very unstable. with my nissan 2.5 2 stroke it scooted right along but i always felt i was on the ragged edge of flipping it over. i eventually did flip it over at the dock because i wasn't especially careful when boarding it. engine submerged - but i got it running again the next day.

much prefer my watertender 9.4.

[Dulls]

have had a new zodiac and now have a 20 year old avon. Looking forward to at least another 8-10 years with the avon.

[Pete the Cat]

I have had three zodiacs and never again. Now with Achilles. Much better built.



Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[sww914]

We traded our 2nd delaminated PVC Zodiac (that we bought new) and some labor for a Hypalon Zodiac RIB. Seemed like a good idea at the time. We're doing our 3rd round of re-gluing now. I'm really unimpressed with Zodiac inflatables.

[Neptune's Gear]

Well, I'm going to contradict some of the previous stuff about PVC. PVC CAN be good. But like most things, there are good and poor versions.
We have a 2.9m Aquapro RIB, Alloy hull. It is one of the old NZ made ones. it is PVC. Now 14 years old. Supposed to be max 9.8 HP, we've had a 15 on it the whole time. It's had a trashing, and is still going strong. Been all over the world and spent several years in the tropics. Did have to re-glue all the handles onto it in the last couple of years. Has 2 small cracks in the alloy hull. It's been a fantastic dingy, and weighs 34KG (75lbs). Unfortunately the later models are not supposed to be so good...
I'm just saying good PVC CAN be made into a good dingy. Just hard to tell the difference!

[hubertstephen]

I tend to avoid inflatables and motors. A 12' pea-pod is the best dingy for me.

[u4ea32]

I sailed a Walker Bay 8 with the flotation collar. Seemed like all the advantages of an inflatable (very stable once the collar hit the water), but it still sailed well, and I think it would row better than any inflatable.

[Terra Nova]

Good brands include AB, Achilles, Aquapro, Avon, Nouvarania. Hypalon only. Avoid off brands.

[bstreep]

As a current Mercury owner, I can tell you that they are certainly at the lower end of the spectrum.

We went to the boat show">Miami Boat show, and looked at dinghies. Mamma LOVED the ABs. There's a reason why they are so expensive - they are just so well built. We had an opportunity to see them all together. It's no contest. AB is the best, by far.