C-Dory 22 Dinghy

Bill3558

New member
I may be getting a little ahead of myself because I dont even have the boat yet, but so what.

What is a good dinghy for throwing on the roof? Is anyone using the Walker Bay? You could even put the sail kit on it for your sailing fix.
 
Most folks have inflatables or kayaks on the C Dories. A Walker Bay is 71 lbs and a bit awkward to put on top--but you could make a rack over the cockpit/back of the cabin if that is what you desire.

There are better sailing boats than the Walker Bay--but most of these are heavier. (For example the Fatty Knees by Lyle Hess)

Another option in a "hard" dinghy is the Porta bote. This is a folding boat, which is 4" flat and 48 lbs in the 8' version. It even has a sailing rig (tain't going to win any races). I don't personally like them, because they are hard to put together on the water in a small boat--but some folks love them.
 
I have a walker bay 8 footer, that I use at my cabin. I got it so my kids could sail around our beach( ok for me too :wink: ) And to take it up a river to fish. Great little boats but getting that sucker on the roof would be tough, and I'm only 29 and in good shape. Throw some wind in the mix, or sloppy sea's and it would probably be dangerous or impossible. I am looking at dighy's too. And I am going for something light, like a rollup 7-8 footer, there are a couple different brands. Another important decision is to go with air , plywood or roll up floors, the plywood floor looks a little bulky and I've heard it's a pain, the air floors are sweet but pricey, and I believe maybe a little haevier, and then you have the roll up floor, which so far looks like the best combination of light weight, economical to buy, and easy to store. Those alaskan boats everybody bought at the SBS looked really sweet. So lots of choices. Have fun deciding what will suit your needs best.

Sark
 
I think the last time this topic came up, I mentioned that I collect dinghys. Here's my next one: http://www.outcastboats.com/outcastboat ... alty.shtml

It's the Power Drifter. Without the rowing frame, it is a little less than 50 lbs and more or less self bailing. You can mount a motor on it and it supposedly paddles well. As soon as the water gets a little softer up here, I will give it a sea trial and follow up report. It is cheaper than the Aire Traveler and lighter but more expensive than the Tomcat tandem with more load capacity.
 
Glad this subject came up. A year or so ago at the MD spring gathering some owner had a really little blue dink on top of his dory. I saw him getting into it to come to shore but I was called away and did not get to speak with him.

I have since seen these boats in the West Marine Catalog. They are really cheap and very light and would be for two small people. We don,t have a dink for our 22 because of the hassel of loading it on the top, but, one this small would be easy even for an old geezer like me. It would be fun to be able to go a very short distance to shore or a dock.

If any one has experience with this little thing let us know.

Thanks Fred and Pat Messerly
Red Lion, Pa.--C-TREK
 
Robbi has(or had) one. Maybe she'll chime in.
mini_dinghy_008.sized.jpg
 
We bought the two man kayak from west marine and really love it. very stable and easy to paddle. it rolls up into a bag the size of a suit case and is easy to store when not of the water. I also use it on lake for trout and other small waters. the base of the seats inflate so you are sitting up off the bottom of the floor which keeps you drier. I do wish that the paddles were a tad longer.
 
We have used both the Westmarine 2 person kayak and the 6 foot dinghy. We are currnetly using the little dinghy. I fabricated a rack on top pretty much exactly as shown on the 25' Sea Ranger at the Seattle Boat Show with one minor difference. I used PVC pipe instead of Stainless! It was an experiment to see if it would hold the little dinghy. If I can find those split tees they used, I'll make it in stainless. The little boat is easy to haul up and down in a few seconds, so we like it. By the way I'm 6'3" and still fit in the thing.
 
Thanks for the info on the small dink. Looks very nice. I am only 5'7" so it should fit me OK. I don't think we would need a rack-just a hitch from handrail to handrail.
 
Hi Folks,

I have two dinks. A fiberglass 8' that I leave on the beach in Nantucket, locked up, to go back and forth from beach to shore.

The second, which I have yet to use is a 7'6" West Marine Inflatable. It comes with a bag so it can be stored on the boat when not in use, and it weighs about 40# so I can pull it on top of my boat and cockpit canvas frame when I am cruising and want to use it in the near future. I hope to get a small 3 HP outboard for it in the future.

I purchased this dingy at a great savings. It is much more solid than the cheaper ones. It is registrated with the state.

Fred
 
We're also looking for a dinghy. Can you row the West Marine 7'6" dinghy if there's a bit of a breeze? Or is there too much windage?
 
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