So I left you with a picture of an outboard motor in a box. Well there is quite a bit more to the story. Obviously you don't buy a motor without some kind of boat. Jan and I have run the gamut, through two different canoes, two kayaks, and have been disappointed each time, too heavy, too much work, hassle factor too high, etc. So we are now on our "last" choice, an inflatable boat that is big enough for 2, and occasionally 4, easy to set up, rolls up small enough, and has the hassle factor at a manageable level. Our goal was to make this as easy as possible so we would enjoy setting it up and using it. And we think we have accomplished our goals. First the dinghy, it's an Achilles, 9.5' long with an inflatable floor, made of Hypalon, an incredibly stout fabric, that rolls up to a package about 4' x 2' x 1', and only weighs 75 pounds.
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| Our new yacht |
We wanted this endeavor to be as easy as we could make it, and we had to figure out how to store it in the bed of the truck, one goal, and two, we needed to be able to get it in and out of the water with the motor as easily as possible. We think we accomplished that.
First, now that we had the motor box built, we needed to figure out how to carry it and the dinghy folded up in the truck. We installed a shelf that the motor slides under and the dinghy sits on top of.
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| The motor in its box slid under the shelf |
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The dinghy sitting on the shelf.
It is difficult to see in this photo, but the tonneau cover
goes right over the dinghy |
This was really the easy part. The challenge was access to the water with the engine, gas tank, etc. So I did extensive research on the internet to find wheels to fit on the dinghy's transom. They needed to be strong enough for uneven terrain, large enough to carry the weight and go over soft sand, retractable, and could not impact the integrity of the dinghy, and they had to be removable to allow us to roll up the boat for storage in the truck. Well, as I looked I kept coming back to a set of wheels made in New Zealand of all places. All the reviews were glowing, no complaints at all, unlike every other wheel I could find, and it looked as if it met all of our requirements, but New Zealand???? We could just imagine the 2-3 weeks for shipping. So Jan and I discussed it and said the only way this whole endeavor would be successful would be for us to make it as easy as possible, so even if we had to wait weeks for the wheels it would be worth it. Well, did we ever get a surprise! We ended up ordering the wheels on a Monday afternoon, and they were delivered on Thursday at 1pm!?!?!?! Unbelievable! Heads up UPS and FedEx. And they were all we were hoping for, quality made, easy to install, completely removable in about 30 seconds, folded up out of the way, and strong with wide air filled tires to go through the softest sand and over uneven terrain. Our friend Harold came over and helped me get the holes drilled, yeah in the new dinghy, and get them all mounted.
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| Harold and I fastening the mounting studs |
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| Wheels all mounted |
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This shows one off and you can see the clips that
fasten them on |
Then for the initial test.
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| Rolls right along!! |
So all that was left then was the maiden voyage. Harold and Debbie biked down to the boat launch we decided to use and were able to take a several pics of the big day.
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| Loading up |
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| Launching |
You can see that we were able to mount the motor, hook up the gas, put whatever we needed in the dinghy and easily roll it right down to the water.
Then of course the piéce de resistance, off we go.
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| Bye bye |
Jan and I rode around for an hour or so up and down the intercostal waterway. It was an absolute success. We got back and rolled the dinghy over to the truck, loaded everything up and headed back to get all the salt water off. From here on out we are anticipating fresh water only, and hope to explore a lot of lakes and maybe catch some fish.
We've also been busy with friends, dinners, lunches, and farewells til next year as April 1st is the end of the season for many. We were able to finally see and catch up with two old friends that we hadn't seen in quite awhile, Dick and Ann. It was great seeing and visiting with them.
Also we had a great group together and had to say good bye to several at our tiki bar night.
We will still be here for about a month, we have already moved up our departure by a week, so who knows?
7 comments:
The official term is, Ridgid Inflatable Boat, or as the Coast Guard calls them RIBS.
Excellent choice although the Zodiac brand is the choice of the USCG.
You should hang a 40 hp Yamaha Max on the back of it, have some fun then.
Tip from an old boat guy. Unless that engine is a Saltwater Edition, and it will usually say so on the outside, if it isn't, make sure you flush out the cooling water jacket, EVERY TIME you run it in sea water. EVERY TIME. The alloys in those are sensitive to the salts.
What is that in the picture behind Jan, A FOOT PUMP?!?
Get a tap put on and a hose for the coaches air brake system to inflate that boat.
Or at least a 12v inflator...
Not to be contrary, but our inflatable is not an RIB. They have a polyester or fiberglass hull with the inflatable pontoons formed around the hull. It is true that most of the inflatable industry has gone to those including many sail and cruiser types for their dinghies. This is a true inflatable boat, inflatable tubes for the sides and hull, and inflatable floor which becomes quite stiff with approximately double the pressure of the tubes, and an inflatable keel, hence it rolls up into a very tidy package. We used to have an Avon with our sailboat years ago, but I agree Zodiac, Achilles, and Avon are the leaders in hypalon (quality) boats. If I thought I could lift a 40 hp on and off, it truly would be a kick!!
And yes, we did flush the engine after our saltwater test run, as well as completely wash the entire dinghy, motor, and us, causing us to question if we will ever put it in salt water again :-)
We originally got a 120v air pump we thought we'd be able to plug into the inverter plug in the truck, turned out it pulls too much amperage, so we now have a 12v air pump, there is no way either of us would want to pump it up with the foot pump entirely. But it is necessary to use it to get the floor hard as the electric has a limit of around 2psi.
So it is completely inflatable? Quite a stiff hull.
M/V Viagra, Cialis???
Big Blue........
Miss you guys already!!
Miss you too. The "dog" isn't as much fun:-(
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