Hard options
With guests on board, the chandleries closed for the holidays, and an over abundance of wind and waves, we have been gradually acquiring a bit of a repair to-do list. On the list at present we have the following:
- replace windlass solenoid (it is working but has been acting temperamental)
- replace masthead anchor light bulb (hopefully a blown bulb is all that is preventing it from working)
- remove wind generator to replace bearings
- purchase and install a new pre-filter assembly for the watermaker
- patch a couple of small leaks in the dinghy
Speaking of dinghies, I’ve recently started looking at the Porta Bote. Our friends on Beagle Knot have one and seem to love it. There are also several cruisers here in Grenada who use them. Anyone reading this have experience with a Porta Bote?
Hi – we had (and I still have) a swifgig which is probably too slow for you but great fun. Craw claw sail, great to row etc. Other friends had another make quite like the Portabote in being both hard chine and collapsible. (My swifgig comes apart at the bow and stacks.) I think wanting it to plane is a category error. The point of a hard chine dinghy is toughness (no punctures) a secondary (or even primary) lifeboat system and potentially saleability so you’re not relying on an outboard.
If I was looking at a hard chine dinghy now I’d want one I could sail, one I could use in a rescue situation and then I’d just have a small outboard. Currently I have a 2.5hp outboard but would look at an electric one in future with solar panels fixed on to the dinghy. Saw this set up in the Med and in worked great.
I hate going slow!
Hmmm… 2.5 hp = 2.5*747 = 1867 Watts, 1.87 kW. Your dinghy is going to need nine 200 Watt panels, or eighteen 100 Watt panels if you want to power the motor directly from the panels. If you only want to carry one panel, then we’re talking about storage and duty cycle. How many killowatt hours do you want to store, at about one kWh per group 31 battery? How many hours do you want to wait to use the dinghy at about 1 day of charging per group 31 battery?
When we were back in Kingston I saw a cat that had solar panels on their davits, supposedly hooked up to charge their electric outboard. I can’t say how well it worked for them. They were only passing through.
http://www.portlandpudgy.com/yacht-tender/
Hard, and likely more stable. It is also much heavier, doesn’t store as easily and won’t plane. And they didn’t get back to me when I sent them an email, or when my friend told them in person at the boat show that I was interested in their product. I guess they’re too busy. 🙁
The Pudgy is a solid boat. Heavy, but it rows and sails reasonably well. It’s not lightning fast under sail but it will get you there. We have little trouble handling ours, we store it on the bow ahead of the mast. It is quite rugged for beaching, and very stable.
The company is a very small operation, only a couple of people. In general if you inquire, the owner of the company and designer of the boat is the guy that answers you (David Hulbert). If he’s swamped or on vacation he might take a couple of days to get back but he tends to handle almost all of the communication.
I contacted them between the holidays with a question about a possible outboard for ours. They got back to me the next day.
In the years we’ve had the boat I’ve never had an communication problems with them; I’m guessing you caught them at a bad time.
Seems so. Or they don’t like us. :p
Mike, I’ve been considering the same thing, and received these comments:
http://www.samsmarine.com/forums/showthread.php?27099-Opinions-experience-re-Porta-Bote
Everything has pros and cons.
We just looked at them while at the St. Pete Boat Show. The representative gave some impressive stats on how it will get on plane with a fairly small engine and keep you much drier in choppy anchorages. I like the storage options. One common complaint I have heard is that the black foam degrades quickly in the tropics and the black seats will fry your bum, but this is easily fixed with some white paint for the seats and gluing some white vinyl to the foam. This couple did a nice review http://roadslesstraveled.us/porta-bote-review/
Funny that you say that the black foam will degrade in the sun, as if another color would be better. I have always used black zip ties outside (for mousing shackles) as I had heard that black was more UV resistant.
I’ve also found that the black zip ties last a lot longer in UV exposure. I assume it is because of the pigment blocking the UV – kind of like why paint lasts longer than varnish. But for zip ties, that’s black vs clear, not white.
As far as black vs white, where the white is also due to a pigment addition (presumably titanium dioxide)? I’d guess that the white might last longer because the black absorbs so much energy and gets so hot.
bob
s/v Eolian
A subject for Drew to test. 🙂
These guys have one and love it. http://sundownersailsagain.com/. Give them a shout, I bet they’d be glad to share the pros and cons
Dave
I seem to be getting plenty of feedback here and on our Facebook page. I’m actually surprised at the number of people who have said that they have one.
Due to the environment they are in, windlass solenoids seem to be a wear item. The last time ours failed, I vowed I’d only replace it one more time. So, I have waiting for that replacement an 80 amp solid state relay – no moving parts or contacts to rust. Surprisingly, I think it actually cost less than its mechanical cousin. I have a 75 amp breaker in the circuit, so a relay rated for 80 amps continuous should be adequate for the service. It’ll get fastened to the inside of the aluminum windlass case as a heat sink, just like how I heat-sinked the solid state relays in our autopilot drive.
I’m guessing you have a vertical windlass, with the motor below deck?
No, the whole works is mounted on top of the bowsprit. Its an old Simpson Lawrence and it works beautifully. It even has a mechanical footage counter that tells us how much rode is out.
I’d love to see a pic. 🙂
Here you go Mike:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_JLeMz4WY6MM/SgY7c7KxrKI/AAAAAAAAAZM/v0AvQ5L0vfE/s320/IMG_2473.JPG
Thanks!
Mike,
Check out the OCTender from NZ – http://octenders.com/ – Light, fast and stable
Others that are not inflatable – http://www.adventuresonboats.com/dinghies.html
johnny
I contacted the OC Tender guys. As of last September they were not yet available in this part of the world.
They are getting quite popular here in New Zealand. We’ve seen several of them on boats here where they’re made.
I think we are going to try the Porta Bote as our next tender. It seems the majority of those that have used them as a tender swear by them and would own no other.
The advantages that I see are:
Very rugged
Light
Planes easily with a low powered outboard which keeps it light
Folds for convenient storage when needed
Really low resale value if looking for a used one.
Butt ugly ( no one in there right mind would steal it!)
The disadvantages:
Really low resale if you buy new
Butt ugly
Harder to configure to davits
Maybe harder to get back into from the water
Reasonable list of pros and cons.
I was just camped with an old couple who had one on their roof yesterday! I was wondering what it was when the lady came over and demonstrated it to me. I was simply amazed. They said they had had it for years and they had a 6hp outboard for it. The stories of where it had been went on and on. I could certainly say they recommend them. In their case it meant they could have a caravan and boat too during big trips around australia.
They do seem to travel well on top of a truck or camper.
I have a porta bote. It is cleverly designed, well constructed. Easy to unfold and fold up. Rows really nicely with a good set of wooden oars. Expect it to move nicely with 2+ hp outboard, but never bothered. Stores nicely along lifeline stanchions. Lightweight. Downside is not as stable as an inflatable, but stable enough and unsinkable. Definitely worth considering. I would sell mine if I could get to it, but we’re cruising and left it at home since we can afford to carry a fast RIB on our cat.
Enjoy your fast RIB. 🙂
I’ve considered both the Portaboat and the Portland Pudgy, but I’m still using my cheap inflatable. It’s been to Canada and back a couple of times. It’s not fast, nor sturdy, but it’s light and tows well if you don’t count that it flips over and tows upside down.
You should try to avoid the flipping thing! 😉
I met a Portuguese couple 12 years ago when I arrived in Peniche who had a Portabote (the larger size) which came with their second-hand ketch. It was already looking old 12 years ago…but today it still looks almost the same – old. They use it quiet a bit.
They love it. I went for a few rides in it and it’s very stable getting in and out.
The transom seems to be the “weak point” in this otherwise indestructible dinghy. He fixed his transom but now can’t fold it because of that.
I thought I saw some reference to a new transom. Perhaps it has been improved since then.
I’ve had a porta bote for years. Here’s what I like and what I don’t like about it.
LIKE:
Very light and lots of room. So light that sometimes I tow it without the motor tied up with the front out of the water. Don’t even know its there. Long passages folded and lashed to the lifelines. Looks like a paddle board.
Fast with a small outboard. I have a 6hp 2 stroke. Planes fine.
Doesn’t deflate
Durable. I’ve had mine for over 7 years and no leaks. It stays setup 9 months of the year. I live on the water so i use it as a runaround boat and use it a lot. It looks a little beat up because, well, I beat it up.
Over the years mine has been “sunk” from storms a number of times. The boat was awash but the flotation ring kept the motor above water. Pulled it up a little, pumped it out and good to go.
DISLIKES
I will have to replace the foam flotation this year and I plan on a sunbrella cover when I do.
The seats are very hot! I just use a throw float to sit on.
I planes weird. It runs very flat so it tends to skate around at high speed but I usually don’t push it to the max. I have seen some mods that stiffen the transom to make this better.
Harder to get back in from the water. They make a bow boarding ladder. Still thinking about this one.
No drain plug. You can add one though on the side of the stern. A must if its kept on davits.
I understand the new model has a fixed folding transom which is a major improvement and the seats are better and cooler. I will buy another when I wear this one out.
Cool. Thank you Richard.
Sorry, totally missed your comminication. You sent to my personal e-mail, which I have basically abandoned, because of the hundreds of daily junk mails. Send e-mails to info@portlandpudgy.com.
We would be happy to talk to you! Don’t forget the Portland Pudgy is always a lifeboat, solid, unsinkable, self-draining, stable, safe, and fun to sail particulaarly with the new square top Marconi rig. Hope to talk to you soon,
David Hulbert, Pres.
Portland Pudgy, Inc.
207-761-2428
http://www.portlandpudgy.com
Hi David. Thanks for the response. For the record, that is the email address I used. I got it off the contact page on your website. Our message may very well have ended up in your spam box though. We all know that things like that happen.