[C320-list] Newport Inflatable Boats

[Troy Dunn]

If you sail year round in or near the tropics, you probably should spring
for Hypalon.   If you are up north I guess I'm skeptical that a well made
and thoughtfully constructed PVC dink wouldn’t hold up pretty well
considering the price difference.

We bought a WM fiberglass bottomed PVC RIB about 4 summers ago and so far
I'd give it a B-    My issue isn't the PVC, it's the poorly sealed transom
board that the paint is already blistering on and I assume taking on water.
  Sigh.  Fortunately we paid about 2/3 their normal price during a 4th of
July sale.

The Chinese dinks seem to be ok.  I know a lot of folks are buying the
Costco highfeilds and seem to be doing ok with them.   If I was using it
for an offshore safety boat I’d probably think twice about these soft
bottomed knock off dinks.

I guess those really cheap ones are otherwise fine if you don’t mind buying
a new dink every five years or so...they are pretty darn cheap.

FWIW

Troy Dunn
Hull #514