[C320-list] Dinghy Outboards - Electic or Gas ?

[P.F. Ross]

Roger, thanks for asking since I am beginning my dinghy/motor search now.

Greg, you have mentioned how happy you are with your Torqeedo but
intuitively seems like your dinghy type would also impact how well the
motor performs in the wild.

Is your dinghy a RIB? How heavy? How long?

Thanks and regards,

Frank Ross
Beta Wave #206
Naples, FL

On Sat, Sep 5, 2020 at 8:58 PM Greg Flanagan <greg.flanagan at shaw.ca> wrote:

> Hi Roger,
>
> Sounds the same as my dinghy. I had a 6HP Yamaha and a davit to manage it.
> But it still just got too much and I hated having to have gasoline on
> board. I bought a Torqeedo 2 years ago and have never looked back. The
> whole thing weighs 34 lbs, however the motor only weighs about 15 lbs, the
> battery 16-17 lbs and the tiller a few more. So now I move the motor from
> our mount into the dinghy with one hand, and then the battery. No gasoline!
> Instant start!  We can go over 4 knots if we are in a hurry but at a couple
> of knots the battery will last for 20 hours. We have been able to use our
> dinghy much more and it is quieter than a kayak at very low speed so we
> have been able observe much more wildlife cruising the shoreline.
> I initially had a 50 watt solar panel to charge it. Then as I increased my
> main solar system I found I had free energy at the end of the day and could
> just charge it from my house system without diminishing the house
> batteries. However, given the range it doesn’t need much charge to bring it
> up to 100%.
> I strongly recommend it.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Greg
> Hoop Dancer #1076
> Sidney, BC
>
> > On Sep 5, 2020, at 5:57 PM, Roger Nitkin <rnitkin at aol.com> wrote:
> >
> > We have a 10’ inflatable dinghy we use when cruising, mostly short
> weekend excursions.
> >
> > I’m tired of lugging around and setting up the 4 HP Yamaha outboard.
> >
> > Has anyone had any experience with electric outboards ?
> >
> > Aside from the higher initial cost and shorter range, are there any
> other issues with electrics ?
> > I figure that since most of our cruising is one or two nights, the
> shorter range of the electric battery
> > won’t be too much of a handicap.
> >
> > Thanks !
> >
> > Roger
> > Summer Time, 1997
> > Westport, CT
>