[B]Dingy & Motor What's Best for Cruising?[/B]

[ausaviator]

The biggest engine you can practially handle is great. At least you can head up rivers and the like at a decent speed and explore larger areas in safety. Anything less than 8hp for two people isn't going to get you results. The last thing you want is to get pounded on your way out to the mothership in a 2.5 metre with a 3hp on the back.

My 3 metre hypalon with 8hp will only just plane with 2 adults on it. Any more and there's no way she will plane.

Used to have a 3.5 metre Zodiac Mark I Futura with 25 hp Yamaha 2-stroke. Very powerful, go anywhere machine, surf etc and will easily plane with 4 adults. But the downside is that it's not particularly easy to pack away and it's too heavy to drag up the beach unless you have some serious dinghy wheels. We did a lot of miles in that Zodiac, it was very stable and robust.

[mikereed100]

Here in Santa Barbara, where we are anchored out 1.5 miles from the marina and have to commute in to work every day, we have a 14' tinny with a 15hp.

However, when cruising we tone it down a bit and use a 12' rowing/sailing skiff with a 2hp motor we can put on for longer trips. We've added a 4" x 6" strip of polyethylene foam around the gunwhales for flotation and padding.

[Double-Wide]

We cruised the US East Coast and the Bahamas for 4 years and saw many many dinghys. It seemed to me the 40-50% of cruisers had a caribe with the 10.5 being the favorite. All of the other s made up the other half. As far as motors go the Yamaha 15 2 stroke is by far the most popular. Ours was great. It started easily and would push our caribe on a plane with 4 adults is they were not too heavy. Always planed with 3 people. It helps to add the wings to the motor. I would highly recommend staying with the 2 stroke motor. The 4 strokes are much more temperamental and heavier per HP.

[sww914]

I agree with the biggest & fastest that you want to afford crowd. The owner of Defender made a couple of really informative posts about inflatable construction & quality yesterday on the Defender Dinghy thread. IMO a PVC dinghy was our biggest waste of money on this boat.

[mikereed100]

Expanding on my previous post, I have gone the "big and fast" route and understand the attraction. I do sometimes miss tearing around at 20 knots with a ****-eating grin on my face. However, we chose the "slow and easy" approach for several reasons.

1. Money. Our boat and rig cost about $300 to put together. The recent addition of a Honda 2.3 OB added another $1000. The OB weighs 30 lbs so does not require an expensive hoist to mount.
2. Health. This was probably the main reason we chose a rowing dink. Cruisers complain constantly about not getting enough exercise. What better exercise than rowing?
3. Theft. We don't have to stress out too much when we leave our plywood dink and bamboo oars tied to dock while we explore ashore. Especially if we can find a RIB with 15 horses to tie next to.
4 Simplicity. We don't worry about the outboard crapping out when we are exploring. If there's wind we sail. If there's not we row. If we are using the OB to explore further afield and it dies, we can row home. The boat rows as fast as it motors so this is not a great inconvenience.
5. Durability. We fear no coral.
6. The cool factor. We get a lot of thumbs up and grins from the locals when we sail by with our bamboo rig and poly-tarp sail.
7. The fun factor. It's a blast to have a small sailboat to fart around in at anchor.

Of course, it all comes down to personal preference and cruising style. We are definitely in the minority but I thought the other end of the spectrum should get some bandwidth so the OP doesn't get the impression that "bigger is better" is the only way to go.

[Cotemar]

mikereed100,
I agree with you on having a hard dinghy. They row so much nicer than and inflatable and they take much more abuse.

[ShaktisBoy]

10' Porta Bote. 3.5HP Nissan 2 stroke. All up weight less than 100 pounds. Added a drain plug so it can hang in the davits. For more than coastal cruising safety we can pull 6 retainer pins from the seats and un fasten 4 wing nuts from the transom then fold it up to the size of a large surfboard and stow it on the backside of the davits. It will plane with my wife and I and carries double what our 10' Avon RIB was capable of holding. Rows very well. Is damn near indestructible. Dislikes, the seats don't last and they get extremely hot in the sun. With a heavier motor it is possible for the stern to sink and swamp the engine. To address those issues when leaving the boat in the water i put a fender between the outboard and boat for extra buoyancy. I have replaced the seats with marine ply and a layer of light colored foam. No more fanny burns! I have also built a simple roll up floor and Bimini top if we want to get out on the flats or explore small canals or mangroves. The boat feels less stable than our RIB but it isn't. The feel comes from the flexible material the boat is made from. I weigh in at 220 pounds and can stand with my toes against the side and wont be close to shipping water.

[tomfl]

Maybe a little OT but I have seen lots of posts about two stroke outboards from Yamaha and Mercury just to name two. I have done some web searches but have not found any vendors to speak of. One used one was on ebay.

Anyone have ideas about how well they work and if they are sold in the US>

[Vasco]

2 strokes are extinct in US and Canada. Alive and well in the Bahamas. $2100 Yamaha 15 hp 2 stroke.

[downunder]

Originally Posted by Vasco

2 strokes are extinct in US and Canada. Alive and well in the Bahamas. $2100 Yamaha 15 hp 2 stroke.

E- tecs are 2 strokes that meet the emission regulations. Thought they would be available in USA and Canada.

Certainly are available in Aus. Great motors.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by downunder

E- tecs are 2 strokes that meet the emission regulations. Thought they would be available in USA and Canada.

Certainly are available in Aus. Great motors.

Sorry, you're correct. I was talking about small motors and they do make a 15 hp etec now. However, 177 pounds vs about 80 pounds for the Yamaha and about $4000! Wow.

[MarkJ]

Go big, go fast. I use minemultiple times per day, its like a car at home, but the bigger and faster the dink the drier you are and the further you can take it.

15 hp is good on a 9 foot dinghy, but if you can fit a 10 footer go for it.

Mark

[Double-Wide]

Originally Posted by tomfl

Maybe a little OT but I have seen lots of posts about two stroke outboards from Yamaha and Mercury just to name two. I have done some web searches but have not found any vendors to speak of. One used one was on ebay.

Anyone have ideas about how well they work and if they are sold in the US>

I think 2 strokes are very hard to find in the US due to EPA rules. We bought ours in the Bahamas where they are everywhere.

[goat]

Originally Posted by Vasco

2 strokes are extinct in US and Canada. Alive and well in the Bahamas. $2100 Yamaha 15 hp 2 stroke.

I bought an 8hp yammie 2 stroke a year ago. Another guy at my marina also thought they were extinct and, after seeing mine, bought one from the same dealer. That was about six months ago. Most Yamaha dealers will get one for you until all the old stock is gone.

[ausaviator]

The stock is still there as they sell them in other countries, it's just that you guys can't get them because of your emission standards.