I store a hard dinghy on the foredeck because it doesn't fit between the
mast and the
dodger; my preference would be fore a clean
deck. But for me having a hard dinghy that rows well in a breeze is important. I have installed through bolted pad-eyes on the deck custom to the dinghy and tie it down with a couple of lashing using truckers hitches to get it cinched up tight.
I have used medium to large inflatables (up to 4m with 25HP motors) on some of the
charter boats I have worked on. I could
lift these and plant them on the foredeck alone.
The trick (when your alone) is to have the
tender laying alongside the wrong way around i.e. the tenders bow faces the yacht's stern.
Haul the
tender aloft until it can clear the guardwires; at this point it will be resting against the shrouds.
You can now pivot the tender around the shrouds swinging the stern in and pulling the bow forward. Takes practice but once you have the technique down it takes seconds.
Lower the tender into its resting place, throw your lashings over, tighten and your done.
I wouldn't fancy having a large
inflatable on the foredeck in any conditions where greenies are going to cross the deck.
I don't like davits for ocean
passage making; I've seen a few ripped off or bent with varying amounts of damage to the dinghies. Many folk remove the dinghy from davits for ocean passage making, deflate it and tie it to the coach roof.
My
experience and my opinions