Hi All, I'm sure this subject has been beaten to death, but I am mulling over having a Stainless Steel tube hardtop extension made for an 84 Cheerman that in essence is a storage platform for a 11' Boston Whaler. The existing hardtop is about 4' short. Seems like a tube platform could easily have canvas that provided shelter as well as a platform for the Whaler. I am looking at crane options. We have a local wakeboard tower manufacturer that could fab up the SS rack. Currently the Whaler is on Weaver snap davits. Obviously for daily on the hook use, those make sense. But moorage storage is a bitch. The boat is too long for the available slips with the Whaler on the swim platform. In a perfect world, the hardtop would extend the to the transom and the whole project would be simpler. Stupid idea? Thanks in advance. You can see in the side view that there is a canvas extension that would be replaced by tube.
Fly bridge Dingy Storage
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rsn48
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First for our coastal rainy weather and assuming you like to use your boat other than the three months of summer. A hard or soft bimini to the transom is a great idea, dinghy or no dinghy. Hell, lets throw in fold down soft walls and you have a great rainy day boat. And even if you don't add a dinghy up top, the area is perfect for solar panels. What I can't figure out is why more people don't do it.
I can't tell if you have a swim platform or not, but why not add Seawise Davits, great for old farts like me, no struggles with the engine, adding this to your swim platform. If it were me and even though I'd put the dinghy on my swim platform, I'd still add the hard bimini and soft walls. And I'd throw solar panels on the hard bimini.
I can't tell if you have a swim platform or not, but why not add Seawise Davits, great for old farts like me, no struggles with the engine, adding this to your swim platform. If it were me and even though I'd put the dinghy on my swim platform, I'd still add the hard bimini and soft walls. And I'd throw solar panels on the hard bimini.
jungpeter
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Hi rsn48,
A covered cockpit (soft or hard) is SOP here in the PNW. And you're right-transom stowage for a dinghy is a PIA in many ways, including moorage limitations and access to your transom.
But the engineering of the cockpit cover to both provide sun (and rain) shade, AND hold the weight of an 11' Whaler (and motor?) is not trivial. Nor are the crane options child's play.
Sure, any old weld shop can fabricate most anything you ask them to. Can they (or you) do the engineering to make it work, and work safely? That's a lot of weight overhead, and particularly when launching the Whaler in any kind of seaway. Like in an anchorage when you're mid-launch, and you're waked by some dumbsh^&.
There's a reason dinghy hoists (and cockpit hardtops) cost lots of $$.
Regards,
Pete
A covered cockpit (soft or hard) is SOP here in the PNW. And you're right-transom stowage for a dinghy is a PIA in many ways, including moorage limitations and access to your transom.
But the engineering of the cockpit cover to both provide sun (and rain) shade, AND hold the weight of an 11' Whaler (and motor?) is not trivial. Nor are the crane options child's play.
Sure, any old weld shop can fabricate most anything you ask them to. Can they (or you) do the engineering to make it work, and work safely? That's a lot of weight overhead, and particularly when launching the Whaler in any kind of seaway. Like in an anchorage when you're mid-launch, and you're waked by some dumbsh^&.
There's a reason dinghy hoists (and cockpit hardtops) cost lots of $$.
Regards,
Pete
rsn48
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Some guys end up not liking using a crane. In your minds eye, you see your dinghy coming up on a cloudless blue sky with calm waters. Now lets switch that sky to stormy and the winds at 20 knots. Now lets watch the dinghy, weighing many hundreds of pounds swing around gaily in the breeze, maybe banging into the side of your saloon area.
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I don’t think it is a bad idea, with a caveat about the stability of your boat. Maybe do a test and approximate the amount of weight up there and do some trial runs to see what, if any, effect the added weight had on stability. Take some cement bags up or something like that.
If I were to do it, after the S/S work was done, I would layup some fiberglass for the top so that you could stand on it and also you wouldn’t have the maintenance of a canvas top. The fiberglass work would be pretty easy to do. Since it would only have a curve from side to side.
If I were to do it, after the S/S work was done, I would layup some fiberglass for the top so that you could stand on it and also you wouldn’t have the maintenance of a canvas top. The fiberglass work would be pretty easy to do. Since it would only have a curve from side to side.
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Great responses and thoughts all. I agree in the PNW cover is mandatory in one way or another. Extending the hardtop would be ideal. Obviously custom since these were never like a Bayliner 3888 in popularity that generated molds etc. I love the vision of the thing flailing around in a 30 knot breeze. That is a chilling thought.
I have a line on a 800 lb crane that would facilitate the crane issue. It would obviously need to be properly installed. As with most daydreams, the devil is in the details. Thanks again for all the well thought out input.
I have a line on a 800 lb crane that would facilitate the crane issue. It would obviously need to be properly installed. As with most daydreams, the devil is in the details. Thanks again for all the well thought out input.
Sealife
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Ours is lowered from fly bridge. The trick is to have 2 rails (I used pvc pipe) that clip on the side. When lowering, have the center of the lift inboard. This keeps the boat snug on the rails as you lower it, regardless of mother ship pitch and roll. More roll, move center more inboard.
Juliet 15
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Sea life, I'd like to understand your system better - could you explain a little more, and/or include drawings or a picture?
firehoser75
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Why not do the cockpit cover, stay with the Weaver davits (or switch to Seawise if you like them better) and just take the dinghy home for winter storage (or rent temp storage)?
Like others have said, this system will be a "one off". It will have to be "professionally designed" and fabricated by "pros" as well. If you just go with a regular canvas extension, most good canvas shops can handle that easily.
If the dinghy will be put "on top" of the "supported" canvas cover, you will have to plan for securing the aft end for passages, unsecuring when launching, etc. You may not be able to totally understand any negative stability issues prior to the install, although I don't suspect they would be significant??
The cost to implement the solution you are contemplating would fund many years of storage rental for the dinghy. It sounds like the biggest issue for you is the extra overall boat length for "home" moorage, and the cockpit cover could easily be fixed with a much less robust project.
By the way, I have never had "top deck" storage. Several friends have, and they find it a pain, and often use the dinghy less than before as a result. Each to their own!!
Just a different look at it.
Like others have said, this system will be a "one off". It will have to be "professionally designed" and fabricated by "pros" as well. If you just go with a regular canvas extension, most good canvas shops can handle that easily.
If the dinghy will be put "on top" of the "supported" canvas cover, you will have to plan for securing the aft end for passages, unsecuring when launching, etc. You may not be able to totally understand any negative stability issues prior to the install, although I don't suspect they would be significant??
The cost to implement the solution you are contemplating would fund many years of storage rental for the dinghy. It sounds like the biggest issue for you is the extra overall boat length for "home" moorage, and the cockpit cover could easily be fixed with a much less robust project.
By the way, I have never had "top deck" storage. Several friends have, and they find it a pain, and often use the dinghy less than before as a result. Each to their own!!
Just a different look at it.
rsn48
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You may not be able to totally understand any negative stability issues prior to the install, although I don't suspect they would be significant??
You will have a higher center of gravity so the boat will be subject to a bit/some/lots more roll.
You will have a higher center of gravity so the boat will be subject to a bit/some/lots more roll.
