towing a dinghy....

CliffA · Sep 14, 2016

please forgive my complete ignorance of this subject....advise and opinions are welcome...

we have been considering getting a small dinghy to gain access to waterfront restaurants and to use when going to shore when we are camping on the hook....I am looking at dinghy options and have a couple basic questions before I get too deep into this.....we are wanting to pull the dinghy behind the boat which is a 340DA....we don't want to use davits or any other method to haul the dinghy on the swim platform.....most likely we will use a trolling motor for propulsion since we will not be traveling any significant distances in the dinghy.....

1. if I tied the dinghy to one of the stern eyes with a rope will it track in a straight line behind the boat?....we are on an inland lake so weather conditions are usually not a concern.....we will be traveling at 'cocktail speed' around 9 - 10 mph...

2. does it mater if the dinghy has a sharp pointed bow with a V shape or a shallow hull with a rounded bow in the way it would track behind the boat while being pulled?

3. does length/weight of a dinghy matter as to how well it tracks behind a boat?

4. does a hard shell dinghy track differently than an inflatable dinghy?

5. does having a hard floor in an inflatable dinghy make a difference in how it tracks?

6. what would be a good distance to pull the dinghy behind the boat?.....could I use a very short rope say 5 ft?

thanks in advance for any replies or suggestions....

cliff

rcknecht · Sep 14, 2016

Bad idea, very bad... Only tow a dinghy if you are sail boat... You will regret it... just pull in on you platform, tip it up and strap it down.. put in engine under the helm passenger seat...

When towing on plane you will experience multiple problems...

Alex F · Sep 14, 2016

CliffA said:
please forgive my complete ignorance of this subject....advise and opinions are welcome...

we have been considering getting a small dinghy to gain access to waterfront restaurants and to use when going to shore when we are camping on the hook....I am looking at dinghy options and have a couple basic questions before I get too deep into this.....we are wanting to pull the dinghy behind the boat which is a 340DA....we don't want to use davits or any other method to haul the dinghy on the swim platform.....most likely we will use a trolling motor for propulsion since we will not be traveling any significant distances in the dinghy.....

1. if I tied the dinghy to one of the stern eyes with a rope will it track in a straight line behind the boat?....we are on an inland lake so weather conditions are usually not a concern.....we will be traveling at 'cocktail speed' around 9 - 10 mph...
Alex: YES

2. does it mater if the dinghy has a sharp pointed bow with a V shape or a shallow hull with a rounded bow in the way it would track behind the boat while being pulled?
Alex: Can't say for sure about shallow hulls, but V shape is not an issue.

3. does length/weight of a dinghy matter as to how well it tracks behind a boat?
Alex: IMO, it shouldn't matter much whether you're towing 10'er or 14'er tender.

4. does a hard shell dinghy track differently than an inflatable dinghy?
Alex: I only have experience with hard shell, but I would feel more comfortable towing the hard bottom, especially at high speed.

5. does having a hard floor in an inflatable dinghy make a difference in how it tracks?
Alex: see #4.

6. what would be a good distance to pull the dinghy behind the boat?.....could I use a very short rope say 5 ft?
Alex: 75' to 100'. See my opinion below.

thanks in advance for any replies or suggestions....

cliff

See my quick answers in red.

In general, it's relatively common practice for yachts to tow their tenders. I've done it myself for a while and have seen others do it successfully as well. Whatever your reasons are not to have a tender carried aboard a mothership, you have to realize that it'll require extra prep work and time to get things rolling. Basic things to understand is close quarter maneuvering and then open water cruising. If you have someone to drive the tender in close quarters and meet you in an open area where you can deploy the long line for extensive cruising, then obviously it's the easiest way to handle it.

When I decide that it's easier to tow my tender, my approach is to have it tied (rafted) to the mothership during close quarter maneuvering and as soon as I get to open area I deploy the long line. The procedure is reversed once I get back to close quarters (mooring field, anchorage or docking).

In regards to the line, the longer the better. I use 75-80' line, but in some applications 90-100' could be even better. You'll need to experiment and see how your tender stays in your wake. It obviously doesn't matter much at slow speed, but when you get on plane the tender should be nicely in the wake of the mothership. Make sure the line you're using floats. The last thing you want is the line sinking and getting caught in your running gear. Nylon is one of your choices.

Attaching the line between the boats is just as important. Spreading the load with a bridle utilizing cleats on both side is the best way.

I've towed my tender at slow speed and on plane with no issues. A friend with a 35'er was towing his 13' whaler in 4-6'ers and had no issues. With proper rig it's very doable.

Hope this helps.

Gofirstclass · Sep 15, 2016

CliffA said:
1. if I tied the dinghy to one of the stern eyes with a rope will it track in a straight line behind the boat?....we are on an inland lake so weather conditions are usually not a concern.....we will be traveling at 'cocktail speed' around 9 - 10 mph...I would suggest you use a bridle on the 340 and fasten it to both your stern cleats. We have towed our 13' Whaler and have a bridle on the tow boat and the Whaler. At ~10kts with a 50' tow line it rides perfectly on the back side of our 2nd trailing wake and stays right behind the tow boat.

2. does it mater if the dinghy has a sharp pointed bow with a V shape or a shallow hull with a rounded bow in the way it would track behind the boat while being pulled? If there was a difference I think it would be small. The tow line setup you use is what is going to make or break your towing ease.

3. does length/weight of a dinghy matter as to how well it tracks behind a boat?In the size dinghy you're going to get it probably won't make a difference. Our Whaler with 40hp Merc weighs about 900 lbs. The dinghy won't know what is towing it (big boat vs small boat), it just follows you along.

4. does a hard shell dinghy track differently than an inflatable dinghy? It might. I'd probably opt for a dinghy with a rigid fiberglass bottom over an inflatable. I've never seen an inflatable I liked much. They're tippy and unsteady when you're trying to move around in them.

5. does having a hard floor in an inflatable dinghy make a difference in how it tracks? See above answer. I think a hard fiberglass bottom would tow better. They're also better if you plan to beach your dinghy to go exploring.

6. what would be a good distance to pull the dinghy behind the boat?.....could I use ,very short rope say 5 ft?No because you need to give the dinghy time to come to a stop when you stop the tow boat. We use a 50' line and are very happy with it at low speeds like you're going to be towing. The dinghy should ride on the backside of you trailing wake, not the front side. You want it 'climbing the hill', not sliding down the front side of that wake.

thanks in advance for any replies or suggestions....

cliff

We've found that towing is easy. There are a few more logistical things that have to be done to get them hooked together and/or tied to the hip of the tow boat, but that only takes a couple of minutes.

Here's the company we bought out tow lines from. http://www.mooringlines.com/tow_lines.htm Good people to work with. They know what they're doing and can answer any of your questions.

CliffA · Sep 15, 2016

thanks for the input gentlemen.....

cliff

Jaybeaux · Sep 21, 2016

There is a good article in the October/November 2016 issue of BoatUS Magazine on this very issue. It is in the Practical Boater section on page 70.

jake88 · Sep 26, 2019

Has anyone see n these solid poles that some are using to tow dinghy's with? Does anyone know how to make them or where to buy them?

Thanks

TNT8808 · Sep 26, 2019

I think this may be it..https://www.towdster.com/Towdster-S_p_56.html

Gofirstclass · Sep 26, 2019

CliffA said:
1. if I tied the dinghy to one of the stern eyes with a rope will it track in a straight line behind the boat?....we are on an inland lake so weather conditions are usually not a concern.....we will be traveling at 'cocktail speed' around 9 - 10 mph..
Cliff, I would suggest you make or buy a bridle that fastens to both of your stern cleats and has a loop or hardware at the center point to fasten the dinghy line to.

2. does it mater if the dinghy has a sharp pointed bow with a V shape or a shallow hull with a rounded bow in the way it would track behind the boat while being pulled?
I don't have a definitive answer to this. I've towed my Whaler and also a RIB. Both tracked well but I was using a bridle with both.

3. does length/weight of a dinghy matter as to how well it tracks behind a boat?
I don't think so. If the dinghy doesn't track well, put a small fender on a 20' line and tow it behind the dinghy. That will help keep it in line. Also lower the motor a bit to put the skeg in the water and keep it straight, not turned.

4. does a hard shell dinghy track differently than an inflatable dinghy? See #2 above.

5. does having a hard floor in an inflatable dinghy make a difference in how it tracks?
I've never owned a dinghy with an inflatable floor because we beach our dinghy and that doesn't work well with inflatable bottom dinghies.

6. what would be a good distance to pull the dinghy behind the boat?.....could I use a very short rope say 5 ft?
I wouldn't. If you had to stop in a hurry your dinghy would probably run into the swim platform.

thanks in advance for any replies or suggestions....
I'll send you a bill at the end of the month!

cliff

Creekwood · Sep 29, 2019

Most that tow dinghies make a bridle that ties to both sides of the boat with a center ring that the line to the dinghy goes to. Same setup on the dinghy if you have towing eyes. They will be under each of the tubes in front. The tow line should NOT be nylon. It sinks. Polypropylene floats. A marine supply store will have what you need. Longer line is better. You want it far enough back that it won’t stray outside your primary wake.

don’t leave the motor on. The bouncing can loosen it and it can fall off or damage the transom. If you are only going cocktail speed you can leave it on if it is secure.

towing a dinghy....

CliffA

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rcknecht

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Alex F

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Gofirstclass

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CliffA

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Jaybeaux

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jake88

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TNT8808

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Gofirstclass

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Creekwood

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