On Feb 21, 1:19 pm, cavalamb himself wrote:
What qualities make for a good crusing dink?

Where and what and how many of you are cruising? I've got a 10'
aluminum RIB with an 8hp two stroke, dingy wheels and decent
oarlocks. It's a workable compromise for two folks who occasionally
need to transport laundry or groceries over a bit and makes an
adequate dive boat and holds its own in the rough and tumble of the
dingy dock... I've lived with an 8' high pressure floor dingy with a
2.5 hp engine, but was cold wet and slow in open water.

-- Tom.

On Thu, 21 Feb 2008 19:13:36 -0800 (PST), "
wrote:

Where and what and how many of you are cruising? I've got a 10'
aluminum RIB with an 8hp two stroke, dingy wheels and decent
oarlocks. It's a workable compromise for two folks who occasionally
need to transport laundry or groceries over a bit and makes an
adequate dive boat and holds its own in the rough and tumble of the
dingy dock... I've lived with an 8' high pressure floor dingy with a
2.5 hp engine, but was cold wet and slow in open water.

We've had good experiences with both a 12 ft Avon roll up with
aluminum floor and inflatable keel, and also an 11 ft Caribe RIB. We
have used a 15 hp Merc in the past but presently have a 20 hp Honda.
They will plane off at 15+ kts with 3 people on board but struggle
with 4. They both require a hoist and a fair amount of deck space for
storage.

On 2008-02-21 23:55:55 -0500, Wayne.B said:

We've had good experiences with both a 12 ft Avon roll up with
aluminum floor and inflatable keel, and also an 11 ft Caribe RIB. We
have used a 15 hp Merc in the past but presently have a 20 hp Honda.
They will plane off at 15+ kts with 3 people on board but struggle with
4. They both require a hoist and a fair amount of deck space for
storage.

On the other hand, our 12.5' PortaBote delivers 10+ knots with 300+
pounds of people onboard with 4 HP, and planed at about the same speed
with 5 adults powered by a 7.5 Honda high-thrust sailboat kicker.

I'd be afraid to throw 15 hp into our PortaBote with any number aboard,
as the likely speeds would be truly beyond my comfort level. 20 hp? No
chance I'd open the throttle to full.

--
Jere Lull
Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD
Xan's pages: http://web.mac.com/jerelull/iWeb/Xan/
Our BVI trips & tips: http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/