I have gotten some good use out of my home builtTwo-Paw-9 nesting
dinghy and thought I'd pass on some perspective on it. She rows well
although not quite as well as the old Nautilus 8. She is easy to
assemble and light enough to handle. I can pick up one half, drop it
in the water (rope attached) and then drop other half in water, get
into back half and insert bolts and oars and seats and away I go. She
has plenty of capacity. She is easy to hoist back on deck using only
muscle power (no hoisting with the halyard)and disassembles easily to
store nested on the foredeck of my 28' S2 sailboat.
The only problem is that like the old Nautilus, she is hard to see over
so that I have to stand to see directly ahead. This means that often I
just yaw the boat from side to side instead of standing. This is
similar to having a deck sweeping genoa blocking your view.
Not a perfect dinghy solution, but better than the Nautilus 8.

wrote:

I have gotten some good use out of my home builtTwo-Paw-9 nesting
dinghy and thought I'd pass on some perspective on it. She rows well
although not quite as well as the old Nautilus 8. She is easy to
assemble and light enough to handle. I can pick up one half, drop it
in the water (rope attached) and then drop other half in water, get
into back half and insert bolts and oars and seats and away I go. She
has plenty of capacity. She is easy to hoist back on deck using only
muscle power (no hoisting with the halyard)and disassembles easily to
store nested on the foredeck of my 28' S2 sailboat.
The only problem is that like the old Nautilus, she is hard to see over
so that I have to stand to see directly ahead. This means that often I
just yaw the boat from side to side instead of standing.

Could you sit on something that was higher up, or would the boom be in
the way of your head? I know someone who sits on the cabin top and
steers with her feet, but she has a bigger boat than you do.

Could you stow the dinghy somewhere else? Like on a swim platform, or
could you break it down farther and put it along the lifelines (if
any)?

This is
similar to having a deck sweeping genoa blocking your view.
Not a perfect dinghy solution, but better than the Nautilus 8.

grandma Rosalie

Rosalie B. wrote:
wrote:

I have gotten some good use out of my home builtTwo-Paw-9 nesting
dinghy and thought I'd pass on some perspective on it. She rows
well
although not quite as well as the old Nautilus 8. She is easy to
assemble and light enough to handle. I can pick up one half, drop
it
in the water (rope attached) and then drop other half in water, get
into back half and insert bolts and oars and seats and away I go.
She
has plenty of capacity. She is easy to hoist back on deck using
only
muscle power (no hoisting with the halyard)and disassembles easily
to
store nested on the foredeck of my 28' S2 sailboat.
The only problem is that like the old Nautilus, she is hard to see
over
so that I have to stand to see directly ahead. This means that
often I
just yaw the boat from side to side instead of standing.

Could you sit on something that was higher up, or would the boom be
in
the way of your head? I know someone who sits on the cabin top and
steers with her feet, but she has a bigger boat than you do.

Could you stow the dinghy somewhere else? Like on a swim platform,
or
could you break it down farther and put it along the lifelines (if
any)?

This is
similar to having a deck sweeping genoa blocking your view.
Not a perfect dinghy solution, but better than the Nautilus 8.

grandma Rosalie

I am tall and even sitting on the cockpit coaming steering with eh
tiller extension I cannot see over the dinghy. I have no swim platform
and she doesnt break down any smaller. I'll make do for now. It has
been an intersting experiment. Maybe I'll try an inflateable with
motor next.

wrote:
Rosalie B. wrote:

wrote:


I have gotten some good use out of my home builtTwo-Paw-9 nesting
dinghy and thought I'd pass on some perspective on it. She rows

well

although not quite as well as the old Nautilus 8. She is easy to
assemble and light enough to handle. I can pick up one half, drop

it

in the water (rope attached) and then drop other half in water, get
into back half and insert bolts and oars and seats and away I go.

She

has plenty of capacity. She is easy to hoist back on deck using

only

muscle power (no hoisting with the halyard)and disassembles easily

to

store nested on the foredeck of my 28' S2 sailboat.
The only problem is that like the old Nautilus, she is hard to see

over

so that I have to stand to see directly ahead. This means that

often I

just yaw the boat from side to side instead of standing.

Could you sit on something that was higher up, or would the boom be

in

the way of your head? I know someone who sits on the cabin top and
steers with her feet, but she has a bigger boat than you do.

Could you stow the dinghy somewhere else? Like on a swim platform,

or

could you break it down farther and put it along the lifelines (if
any)?


This is
similar to having a deck sweeping genoa blocking your view.
Not a perfect dinghy solution, but better than the Nautilus 8.

grandma Rosalie


I am tall and even sitting on the cockpit coaming steering with eh
tiller extension I cannot see over the dinghy. I have no swim platform
and she doesnt break down any smaller. I'll make do for now. It has
been an intersting experiment. Maybe I'll try an inflateable with
motor next.


Makes me wonder if a nestable dinghy could be used as a helmsman's
shelter, like a guard box, telephone booth, or hard pushpit dodger /
bimini. Fitted outside the winter shelter, of course. An
aftercastle, if you like. I would want a plexiglass window in the
bottom, so I could see behind the boat.

I wonder how bad would the windage be? Might add to the weather helm
upwind, while adding lee helm on a run.

Would a real sailor care how it looks? It might look sort of, Amish,
somehow.

The foreward part might need to drop over the after part, which
would stand on it's transom on the lazarette seat locker. so the
assembled ding would have a sort of hydroplane step in the side,
foreward. I don't know if you could make one that would work,
considering the flare in the hulls.

If you made the after part stand on it's foreward bulkhead where you
might sit to steer at a wheel, it would be wider at the top so
perhaps the foreward part would fit inside the stern of the after part.

Might want a see through panel in both halves.

Terry K