420DA Max Tender Length

Sprint27c

Sprint27c

Member
Jan 26, 2008
42
Clyde, Ohio
Boat Info
55 Sundancer 2009
470 Sundancer 2013 (For Sale!)
Engines
Man 1100's w/ V-Drives (55 DA)
Cummins 480 w/ Zeus Pod's (470 DA)
I've got my eye on an Avon 360DL for a Dinghy on our 420DA. I want to mount it on the soon-to-be-installed Sealift Hydraulic Platform. Weight won't be an issue (~600 lbs. on an 800 lb. capacity lift). But the LOA is 11' 9".

For those of you with similar sized boats...will the 420 be comfortable with that long of a tender?
 
JC3 said:
What is the lenght and how wide is your new platform? JC3
Click to expand...

Well - that's what I'm not sure about. Its up on freezing blocks in a barn about 45 minutes away. The beam is 14' as listed in the specs...but I'm sure it tapers down at the stern...then the sealift is a few inches less than that. I believe the rule of thumb is to have a tender at least 1' less than the width at the stern...but I don't know what that dimension is right now. A little real-world knowledge would help here.

I'm not worried about the beam of the dinghy clearing - the Sealift has moving chocks and will handle a 6' beam on the tender - the Avon has less than that.
 
May be too big. From a different era, but my 390 has a 14' beam and the platform is 11' long.
Also, remember that the dinghy has an outboard that's going to be tilted up- adding a lot more length. You don't want that outboard hanging out there...
 
I have the Zodiak 340 DL and it completely fits over the existing swim platform of our 480. I still see some potential issues for you blue water boaters (we are in fresh water and sixty miles toSF Bay). It will also be necessary to be careful when sterning into the dock. However, we have the racks not the swim platform version.

Bill
 
I had west marines hp-5 mounted on hurley davits. the dingy was 10'8 long with a 5.5 beam. I thought this dingy was too bif for the boat. I droped down to a CR4 which was 9.8 long with a 5.3 beam. This size sits nicely on the swim platform. From memory the swim platform is around 11' wide at the end to 12' wide at the transome.

hope this helps
 
OK - much research done today.

I had a good discussion with a Brig dealer today. It very appears very clearly that the manufacturer's have started to tailor their offerings to our boats as lifts become more prevalent.

I say this because our beam on the 420DA (now called the '44') is exactly 11' 9" at the back of the swim platform. By no apparent coincidence...it appears as though the "340" series (340 meaning 3.4 meters) of RIB's are approximately 11' 2" give or take a few inches based on design.

In any event, the various manufacturers (Zodiac, Avon, Brig...) have found a way to pack a console, fuel tank, multiple storage areas, gauge packages, lighting, rigid transom and "seating" for 4 into this very small package. Weight for these vessels is about 400 lbs. + the motor. 4-Stroke motors in the 30 to 40 hp range weigh about 200 lbs...actually a little less, but add fuel and safety equipment and we might as well call it 250 lbs.

So a total of 650 lbs. easily fits under the Sealift capacity of 900. That being said...with the weight of the lift itself - we're looking at 1,000 lbs centered just aft of the original swim platform. I consider this manageable on my 420/diesel setup...but given the 36" more surface area added to the backend...there could be some digging in during high seas...so operations in those conditions will have to be adjusted accordingly; depending on how it all works out....we'll try it in smooth conditions and figure it out from there.

My primary consideration though was distance across the beam. 11' 9" beam and 11' 2" dinghy length is certainly the maximum. The SeaLift guy mentioned that the only constraint here is that you don't want anything hanging out the sides that will collect water off the slipstream of the boat. Nothing worse than seeing your dinghy get beat up as you cruise along. The Brig salesman suggested that in the past few years the 340 series has proven to be the correct size for these boats with the 380 series even doing well on the mid-50's boats.

I've pretty much decided to go the 340 route as anything less (ie: 320's) really becomes cramped in the "deluxe" catagory of RIBs. My wife and I got a first hand look and both of our wheels were spinning with all the neat ideas for this little craft. There are multiple offerings. There is an Avon 340 on the web for sale that really has a lot of bells and whistles..cup holders, stereo/speakers, some really neat stuff. I liked the Brig from the local dealer because it is new and they will set it up with trim tabs, & a cover at no extra cost. Then there is the Zodiac Yachtline which is arguably the most popular...I'll be looking at all over the next few weeks. Motors are pretty much all the same...though I do like the idea of the Evinrude E-Tecs...kindof a blend between 2 stroke power and 4 stroke efficiency. So many things to consider....!

Rob: You owe me for being the guinea pig here. :grin: I've actually got good news on the SeaLift front. Turns out they are working with my marina (a Skipper Buds) to train some of their people to be a certified dealer. In turn, they're moving 7 boats out of the way, hauling mine out of the barn, and moving it to a heated shop area to do the work in about 3 weeks. That means I (well ok, my crew that I supervise) gets to do the hull waxing indoors this year!

I'll post pics when available...can't wait to get her wet this year!
 
Last edited:
vanburen said:
Great info on the Dinghy - am looking at something for a 420DB. What kind of prices are you seeing for the 340 type dinghies?
Click to expand...

$15k out the door for a new Brig w/ 30 HP Mercury. The Avon is very expensive at $22k...no way I'm going there. I didn't like the layout of the Zodiac so I haven't looked into those.

Its a heckuva a lot of money considering what other types of "real" boats you could buy for the same amount of money...then we all know how ridiculous it is to do any sort of financial analysis/comparison/ROI on boats...pure recreation.
 
Has anyone looked at the Walker Bay Genesis 340 console? It has an injected molded composite bottom and is very lightweight. A 20hp Yamaha lightweight 4 stroke, fully rigged and you have about $8500 into it. Choice of hypalon or PVC. It seems that it should have similar performance to a heavier RIB & motor combination. I'm considering one.

I just like the idea of minimizing the weight cantilevered off the transom. Any thoughts?
 
A friend of mine saw the new Zodiac ProJet350 at the Miami show for $39k. :smt009 Evidently, the boating industry has decided that we are MADE of $$.
 
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