Saona 47: Mangeable tender weight

[Chrishorseman]

I'm in process of purchasing a used Saona and have had a quote for a Highfield 360 with a 20hp electric start Honda engine and centre console. Our previous dinghy was a Seago 320 inflatable floor plus 8hp Yamaha 2 stroke - total weight 70kg plus fuel. The new setup will weigh (guessing) 150kg. With the Seago we could use a squirt of power to run it onto a beach and then drag it clear of the surf line. It took effort but was doable. Has anyone got experience with a similar weight setup to the Highfield and can one person get it up the beach? Would dinghy wheels (The kind you fit to the transom and flip down) help? Our cruising plans involve between two and six people on board plus two Cocker spaniels. The electric start and centre console are to make it a less intimidating and more car-like experience for a very important crew member (that I am married to) who seldom attempted driving the previous dinghy. Any measures to make driving it easy would be completely defeated if it can't be used to run up a beach to walk the dogs. I am open to other ideas for the "car".

[Boatguy30]

How could one person move it except with a really well balanced set of wheels?

[clockwork orange]

Seems way to heavy to me , I don't see how wheels at the transom would get the job done as all they are really doing is supporting the outboard, you are still going to need to lift everything forward of the wheels. Now a set of wheels at the balance point would be a different story, something similar to the ones that are used to wheel beach cats of similar weight around the beach. Never seen anything like that for dinghies though but should be doable.


Steve.

[GRIT]

We bought "beachmaster" wheels from NZ for our dinghy, and we love them. Our dinghy is a Caribe 12x with a 20hp suzuki, also with electric start.

My wife can't pull it up the beach alone, but I can. I'm not a big person, and it's not particularly easy to do; but it was impossible, even with the two of us pulling, without the wheels.

We can pull it quite a ways, with the two of us lifting/pulling.

Our dinghy is 150kg all up. I'd get the proper mass from Highfield before committing to purchasing your "car". But YES the wheels make things much easier.

Cheers.
Paul.

[GRIT]

The internet says the Highfield 360 Deluxe, with console is 178 kg, bare hull.
Add another 50kg for the engine, and 20 kg for fuel and safety gear, and you're pushing 250kg. You'll not get that up a beach on your own, unless your quite strong.

Incredibly: the highfield 360 standard, has a mass of 75kg. 100 kg in the difference. I'd suggest you lose the console.

You may consider other steering options, that weigh quite a bit less. Just a frame with a wheel on it, and a small stainless framed seat. I've seen them, a few years ago, weigh less than 30kg.

Perhaps an electric start, and a calm afternoon with your wife learning, to steer the outboard, from someone else's wife (NOT YOU) would help give her some confidence. Not having the console will lower the weight substantially.

It's often that a spouse will learn skills more easily from someone outside of the family. At least that's what my wife says...

Good luck.
Paul.

[Palarran]

If we are going in to the beach as a group, we will pull ours up. But if its just two, we throw and anchor - or two. But I'd get the tender you described. I have a 13' with a jockey console and 30hp and am really close to pulling the trigger on a new 13' with a super deluxe jockey console and a 50hp. My wife and I enjoy tender rides as much as anything with boating and bringing along another couple or two adds to the experience.
Gala

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...ature=emb_logo

This is my current tender

[RaymondR]

The first thing you need is big, fat, low pressure wheels like these (the big ones are up to 19" on diameter) and the next thing is a tricycle arrangement with a fold down steerable wheel on the front. Those little plastic fold down transom wheels are useless on anything but a real hard surface.

Even so you will probably find that with that much weight and a highly sloping beach you will still have problems.

I have found that life gets a lot simpler dingy wise if you can get yourself to just puttering about at civilized speeds.

[Palarran]

Well, to quote Ricky Bobby, I like to go FAST. Anyway, if you do need to roll the tender up the beach you can always use the old trick of putting fenders under it and roll it across them.

[slug]

Originally Posted by Chrishorseman

I'm in process of purchasing a used Saona and have had a quote for a Highfield 360 with a 20hp electric start Honda engine and centre console. Our previous dinghy was a Seago 320 inflatable floor plus 8hp Yamaha 2 stroke - total weight 70kg plus fuel. The new setup will weigh (guessing) 150kg. With the Seago we could use a squirt of power to run it onto a beach and then drag it clear of the surf line. It took effort but was doable. Has anyone got experience with a similar weight setup to the Highfield and can one person get it up the beach? Would dinghy wheels (The kind you fit to the transom and flip down) help? Our cruising plans involve between two and six people on board plus two Cocker spaniels. The electric start and centre console are to make it a less intimidating and more car-like experience for a very important crew member (that I am married to) who seldom attempted driving the previous dinghy. Any measures to make driving it easy would be completely defeated if it can't be used to run up a beach to walk the dogs. I am open to other ideas for the "car".

A person must be able to singlehandedly man handle the tender up the beach into the safe zone

A 20 hp ? No way

That is no longer a tender , it’s a speed. Boat

[Palarran]

Originally Posted by slug

A person must be able to singlehandedly man handle the tender up the beach into the safe zone

Must they? I hadn't heard of that law in the past. Is a regional law or international. Do all boats have to comply with that rule or just some of them? What if the person is a woman? Is she exempt from the man handling rule? What if there is no beach but solid rocks, do you still have to single-hand it up the the safe zone? How is the safe zone established? Do they put a line on the beach?

Dang, I sure have been lucky to avoid getting caught. Here, I thought that basically everyone wished they had a bigger tender and those that complained about bigger tenders or fast ones where simply envious but no matter what would never - ever - admit it.

[boom23]

I had a dinghy equivalent to the Highfield 3.40 with center console, 20hp Honda and fat wheels. I used it in the S Pacific for a season and sold it as fast as I could.

It was WAY too heavy to drag on the beach, and I'm strong, young and healthy. Yes, it was possible to handle if the sand was hard packed, level and there were no waves. The rest of the time the dinghy was a problem and/or hazard for everyone. Of course, you can plan to drop people off and then anchor the dinghy off the beach, if there are no waves and you don't mind getting wet.

I replaced it with a 3.10 aluminum Highfield with similar motor and no console. It was still on the heavy side but much more manageable. The fatter the wheels the better. They make a huge difference.

It all depends on where and how you plan to use the dinghy. If you're not sure, go for the lighter setup. It will give you much more flexibility, which means less problems.

[slug]

The other detail that is needed on a small craft tender is the ability to self bail

A heavy motor on the transom ruins is ribs self bailing ability

No self bailing. And For the rest of your life you live with wet shoes wet groceries .....

The best tender is the biggest lightest tender that your boat can handle and the smallest engine that gets the job done

For years the gold standard for engines was the 8 hp two stroke Yamaha

3.10 rib with an 8 hp two stroke is self bailing and plenty fast one person light load

[Cheechako]

Personally, I would limit to ~10 ft, 15 hp. Single floor weighs less too.
many beaches if you try to power run onto the beach you end up with a spun or bent prop.

[GRIT]

Any dinghy self bails, whilst under way. Just pull the plug, let it empty, then plug her back up. I thought this was standard fare. Are there really dinghies out there than can self bail without moving?

With many countries insisting on 4 stroke engines, the difference between 8 hp and 20hp is practically nil. Our electric start suzuki 20hp weighs 48kg, or 106lbs. The non electric advertises at 44kg 97lbs. A yamaha 8hp weighs just under 40kg, or 87 lbs. That's really not a lot of difference, about 5kg. The Yamaha 15hp weighs 55kg, 111 lbs! More than my 20hp. https://www.suzuki.ca/en/df20a

Anyway, different strokes for different folks. I've had small dinghies, small outboards, and even rowed a hard dinghy for 6 years, while cruising full time. I'll take my 20hp over the old rowboat. Though I was much more fit, from rowing every day, I was also in my 20's.


Cheers.
Paul.

[RaymondR]

If you only ever intend to go between marinas and well developed shore facitities with floating pontoons then your big RIB with big motor is the way to go.

However if one wants to frequent a broad range of landing places such as beaches subject to tides then your small light dingy with wheels is the only way to go.

There are places in Australia with 30' tides where the water advances half a mile or so with marine life partial to the odd human snack. Unless you are happy to time all your movements of the tides a small, light dingy with wheels is a must.