Davits - Our Hang Ups Exposed

One of the decisional cul-de-sacs that had repeatedly made us dizzy involved what to do with dinghy storage on Harmony.  While on Poetry, we always towed our dinghy behind the boat whenever we left the mooring for an overnight trip.  However, towing the dinghy was never really optimal, either for sailing or for the nerves.

Poetry, a 1965 Pearson Vanguard, on her mooring with inflatable dinghy tied astern

On Harmony, we had more deck space and the original drawings of the boat always showed a dinghy neatly stored upside down on the aft cabin.  That would be nice, but the dinghy needed to be really small.  We had seen some dinghies stored on the foredeck under the staysail boom, but that could significantly limited on-deck mobility.

So, this conundrum considered both how to store the dingy and what type of dinghy to have!  We have always used an inflatable dinghy.  Why?  Well, it was easier to transport to and from the boat when we needed bring it home, and it deflated and rolled up for potential on-deck storage.  However, these  "boats" were essentially inflated donuts and they rowed like what was in our holding tanks!

Enter the hard dinghy.  Oh, some of them look so traditionally nautical and they row nicely"  Dyer Dink, Fatty Knees, and the nesting home-built ones to name a few.  However, we'd need a trailer because I couldn't lift any of them on top of the car.  I didn't have time to build a nesting dinghy.  And, the goodness of their rigidity made on-deck storage more challenging:  not impossible, but challenging.

After much thought, our choice was facilitated by our decision to mount solar panels on a pair of davits on the stern.  So, we chose a rigid inflatable for perhaps the best of both worlds.  For off-shore voyages, the boat will deflate and store easily on deck.  For coastal cruises, we secure it on the davits.  So, now we needed to pick a davit system.

After much pondering and some inquiries, we chose Kato Marine davits.  First of all we needed a custom application because of the Westsail 42's canoe stern.  Secondly, we did not want to add an arch, but instead keep the existing stern pulpit.  We narrowed our selection to 2 companies, and Kato Marine was chosen for 2 main reasons.  Number 1, their fabrication design, quality and strength were impressive.  Number 2, they wanted our business and they were more than helpful in designing our rig.

After making careful measurements and taking photos from several attitudes, I sent all the info to Kato Marine.  In a few weeks time, we got our delivery of the system.  The components were beautifully made and finished.  With very clear instructions, I was able to install them in an afternoon.

Kato Marine Davits installed under the Winter Canvas Cover

Final adjustments and tweaks will have to wait until the Spring.  We will need to install a stabilizer bar and make sure the blocking and alignment are an exact fit to our inflatable.  Oh, that's right we'll need to buy that by then, as well!  Yep, just a few more boat dollars!  At that point, we'll be ready to install the solar panels, too.

We were very satisfied with our decision on all accounts:  davits and dinghy type.  We'll discuss our which dinghy we go with in a later post.  Kato Marine was absolutely wonderful to deal with, and we highly recommend them.

Fair Winds and Following Seas!