Hard dinks, nesting dinks, and why we like them

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

Is that thing still  in your living room? 

Nope.  That pic is from like 3 years ago.  (Best/only pic I have, for reference, showing its whole length.) 

It’s in my Kayak Shack, waiting for winter kayaking adventures.  Too hot in the summer for that sort of thing.

 

[ProaSailor]

The alternative would be to build a simple Tamanu or Tim Weston’s Geelong.

I was about to mention Gary Dierking in this context but I see by the reference to Tamanu that you know about him.  I just realized his old blog site is gone, replaced by this, I guess, which is barely recognizable and by comparison, looks a little rough around the edges.

http://outriggersailingcanoes.blogspot.com/

And this forTamanu:

https://tamanuoutrigger.blogspot.com/

I know a guy on Kauai who built a strip planked Ulua, stretched as I recall.

 

[Ajax]

Nope.  That pic is from like 3 years ago.  (Best/only pic I have, for reference, showing its whole length.) 

It’s in my Kayak Shack, waiting for winter kayaking adventures.  Too hot in the summer for that sort of thing.

How do you get into that kayak without accidentally punching through the skin?

 

[IStream]

Very carefully?

Sorry. Someone had to go there.

 

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

How do you get into that kayak without accidentally punching through the skin?

It’s got a “floor”.  So to speak (the ribs; the flat pieces visible are the seat).

Skin is covered outside with two coats of a 2-part polyurethane: very strong!  String - but, ya know, don’t drag it on rocks, oysters, stupid shit like that.  Greenlanders amd Aleuts paddled skin boats for a very long time (but skin is probably much stronger?)

Have you ever seen a  Stasha dinghy?  Nesting “non-hard” dinghy  https://www.woodenwidget.com/stasha2.htm

 

[Ajax]

Ah, ok. I'll bet you're careful not to let your keys poke out of your pocket, though.

 

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

Ah, ok. I'll bet you're careful not to let your keys poke out of your pocket, though.

Well, I wear a drysuit - nowhere to stash keys in it!

 

[t.rex]

Chesapeake Light Craft's John C. Harris, longtime designer and builder of CNC dinghies, does an enlightened interview about cruising tenders at this years Annapolis Boat Show for Acorn to Arabella.

It's a bit long, but he really stands out as being knowledgeable as well as humble about his achievements.

 

[Kris Cringle]

The utility of two rowing stations is not well understood, I think. But the boat design has to take everything into account to have two stations (you can't just add oarlocks to an inadequate design).

This Shellback dinghy looks like  the forward station should be farther forward. But maybe their was a large weight difference?  



This is our 9'6" Nutshell with a moderate (200#?) load last week. We will often double this load for a few week cruise. I took this photo from the front rowing station. Plenty of leg room or stowage space left. 



The disadvantages; losing a little leg room (for me), and you have to overlap the oar ends as you pull past the middle, results in a little less power.

The benefits are great stability with a load, even as a big wake drags through. And it's handy for both passengers to load the deck with the contents that are right in the center. 



Happiness in a rowing dinghy is balance, or as we call it 'trim'. 

 

[Elegua]

Keeping the ass-end from dragging by using the forward station is a must for rowing longer distances. I also believe that narrow spoons are a lot easier to use if it's choppy without losing a lot of power. Having good foot blocks is another. I put the foot blocks too far forward and got gently scolded by Russel.  He also kindly gave me some more foot blocks to fix it. 

This is around than 350lbs not including cargo.  

 

[Kris Cringle]

Nice dinghy. Is that a Susan Skiff? 

I'm familiar with the term but I'm trying to imagine a scenario where a child would bestow that on her father.  

Thinking I missed something in contemporary culture, I looked up the meaning, first in the Urbandictionary: 


Dickweed - Urban Dictionary


https://www.urbandictionary.com › define › term=Dick...

 
1) A completely self-absorbed, useless asshole with shit for brains; 2) A person so irredeemably stupid that their idiotic behavior causes pain to everyone ...
 





 
Pretty harsh! So I went for a more mainstream read on the word @ Dictionary.com: 
 
 

What Does Dickweed Mean? | Slang by Dictionary.com



https://www.dictionary.com › Home › Words › Slang

 
Aug 9, 2020 — Dickweed is an insult for people who are rude, selfish, stupid, inconsiderate jerks no one wants to spend time with—just under an asshole in the ...
 
 
I think it's one of those slang words that just becomes commonplace. Who looks up words in dictionary's these days, anyway.  
 
 
 

 

[Cruisin Loser]

Nice dinghy. Is that a Susan Skiff? 

I'm familiar with the term but I'm trying to imagine a scenario where a child would bestow that on her father.  

Thinking I missed something in contemporary culture, I looked up the meaning, first in the Urbandictionary: 


Dickweed - Urban Dictionary


https://www.urbandictionary.com › define › term=Dick...

 
1) A completely self-absorbed, useless asshole with shit for brains; 2) A person so irredeemably stupid that their idiotic behavior causes pain to everyone ...
 





 
Pretty harsh! So I went for a more mainstream read on the word @ Dictionary.com: 
 
 

What Does Dickweed Mean? | Slang by Dictionary.com



https://www.dictionary.com › Home › Words › Slang

 
Aug 9, 2020 — Dickweed is an insult for people who are rude, selfish, stupid, inconsiderate jerks no one wants to spend time with—just under an asshole in the ...
 
 
I think it's one of those slang words that just becomes commonplace. Who looks up words in dictionary's these days, anyway.  
 
 
 

I have never seen those definitions, never occured to me, I assumed it was an expression of affection. Ah well. We had the Hinckley then, I guess she was probably 15 and her little brother 4-5. She wanted to do something and I said no. She called me a dickweed, hell I thought she made up the word on the spot, she has a talent. All of the writing on the label is hers. Clarity and Focus.

I told her I preferred the Honorific, Cap'n Dickweed. It stuck.

Seeing those definitions makes me think, if the shoe fits......

I think the yard had a lot of fun with that, and I like that they know they can screw with me and I'll enjoy it. 

Their empty bottle stands in the window of the machine shop, where everyone who walks down the dock has to go past it. I've noticed several people taking photos. 

 

[Sail4beer]

So it wasn’t a good name for a boat?!

 

[Ishmael]

So it wasn’t a good name for a boat?!

View attachment 468622

Did you get the T-shirt too?

 

[olaf hart]

Did you get the T-shirt too?

At least It’s better than the local politician whose name was Richard Head…

 

[Sail4beer]

Did you get the T-shirt too?

Yep. And the baseball cap.

 

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

The utility of two rowing stations is not well understood, I think. But the boat design has to take everything into account to have two stations (you can't just add oarlocks to an inadequate design).

View attachment 468446

This is our 9'6" Nutshell with a moderate (200#?) load last week. We will often double this load for a few week cruise. I took this photo from the front rowing station. Plenty of leg room or stowage space left. 

View attachment 468448

Happiness in a rowing dinghy is balance, or as we call it 'trim'. 

The Two-Paw 8 nester I built last year has two rowing “stations”.  It was designed with a sliding rowing seat - the seat slides (over the centreboard trunk) to a forward or aft position for either amidship rowing (solo) or more forward (for carrying passengers/loads).   (In practice I didn’t bother installing the sliding part as it just means one more thing to store aboard- I just scoot my butt fore not aft over the flat surface/top of the trunk, depending on the  rowing situation.)

I’m impressed with how well it carries two adults (as passengers, in addition to the rower) for such a relatively small dinghy.  One thing I’m wondering is if, when rowing from the forewarned position, that puts any more force on the oarlocks and gunwhales.  My teenage daughter was once rowing us - my wife and I - against fairly strong wind and tidal current through “The Cut” - struggling to make headway, and likely digging the oars in a bit too much, as it was hard work.  And the gunwhale delaminated a bit where the oarlock is.

I’m wondering whether rowing from that forward position (with oarlocks moved to different sockets, which I installed in more forward locations, per the plans) creates more load at the gunwhale/oarlock atea, or if I simply didn’t fasten the gunwhale well enough there.  Or if it’s just a one-off situation of the oars being dug in too far, and pulled hard, given the payload the boat was carrying, and that we were struggling against wind and strong current.

Anyway - gunwhales slated for epoxy and screw reinforcement soon.  Really like this little dinghy and it’s two-rowing-station versatility.

 

[Ishmael]

The Two-Paw 8 nester I built last year has two rowing “stations”.  It was designed with a sliding rowing seat - the seat slides (over the centreboard trunk) to a forward or aft position for either amidship rowing (solo) or more forward (for carrying passengers/loads).   (In practice I didn’t bother installing the sliding part as it just means one more thing to store aboard- I just scoot my butt fore not aft over the flat surface/top of the trunk, depending on the  rowing situation.)

I’m impressed with how well it carries two adults (as passengers, in addition to the rower) for such a relatively small dinghy.  One thing I’m wondering is if, when rowing from the forewarned position, that puts any more force on the oarlocks and gunwhales.  My teenage daughter was once rowing us - my wife and I - against fairly strong wind and tidal current through “The Cut” - struggling to make headway, and likely digging the oars in a bit too much, as it was hard work.  And the gunwhale delaminated a bit where the oarlock is.

I’m wondering whether rowing from that forward position (with oarlocks moved to different sockets, which I installed in more forward locations, per the plans) creates more load at the gunwhale/oarlock atea, or if I simply didn’t fasten the gunwhale well enough there.  Or if it’s just a one-off situation of the oars being dug in too far, and pulled hard, given the payload the boat was carrying, and that we were struggling against wind and strong current.

Anyway - gunwhales slated for epoxy and screw reinforcement soon.  Really like this little dinghy and it’s two-rowing-station versatility.

View attachment 468666

See where that fish farm symbol is? Don't anchor there. There's no farm there any more, but there is still heavy steel cable on the bottom, like 3/4". You can trust me on that one. 

 

[Kris Cringle]

The Two-Paw 8 nester I built last year has two rowing “stations”.  It was designed with a sliding rowing seat - the seat slides (over the centreboard trunk) to a forward or aft position for either amidship rowing (solo) or more forward (for carrying passengers/loads).   (In practice I didn’t bother installing the sliding part as it just means one more thing to store aboard- I just scoot my butt fore not aft over the flat surface/top of the trunk, depending on the  rowing situation.)

I’m impressed with how well it carries two adults (as passengers, in addition to the rower) for such a relatively small dinghy.  One thing I’m wondering is if, when rowing from the forewarned position, that puts any more force on the oarlocks and gunwhales.  My teenage daughter was once rowing us - my wife and I - against fairly strong wind and tidal current through “The Cut” - struggling to make headway, and likely digging the oars in a bit too much, as it was hard work.  And the gunwhale delaminated a bit where the oarlock is.

I’m wondering whether rowing from that forward position (with oarlocks moved to different sockets, which I installed in more forward locations, per the plans) creates more load at the gunwhale/oarlock atea, or if I simply didn’t fasten the gunwhale well enough there.  Or if it’s just a one-off situation of the oars being dug in too far, and pulled hard, given the payload the boat was carrying, and that we were struggling against wind and strong current.

Anyway - gunwhales slated for epoxy and screw reinforcement soon.  Really like this little dinghy and it’s two-rowing-station versatility.

View attachment 468666

Could be, I seem to reset the forward oarlocks as often as the aft and I use the latter at least twice as much. I've gone through longer screws, epoxy, bigger screws. I'll probably end up with bolts and some sort of backing. But that's 25 years of rowing hundreds of miles, countless oars and locks. 

 

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

See where that fish farm symbol is? Don't anchor there. There's no farm there any more, but there is still heavy steel cable on the bottom, like 3/4". You can trust me on that one. 

Ha!  I would never anchor there

Once motoring the old Cal 20 (with a too short outboard shaft...) North up Trincomalee in a 20 kt N’ly bashed, tired and very wet —I was under a real schedule crunch and I also had to meet slack then next day at Gabriola Pass to get across the Strait the next day before the 20-25 kts built more, I made it into Clam Bay absolutely exhausted and almost out of food.  Granola bars for dinner.  Long story.  Dropped the hook wherever I could, I didn’t care I was so tired and wet.  Away from the fish farm symbol