tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59716055139160620892024-03-13T07:48:20.621-07:00Dinghy Dogs - From Tippy to StableAsk questions, make suggestions, share insights.Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-80840717815664881272014-06-10T15:13:00.000-07:002014-06-10T15:13:14.303-07:00Sailing with DinghyDogsMany of you ask about sailing with DinghyDogs. I just got this from a DinghyDogs user and thought I'd share it with you.<div>
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"You have a great product, I love sailing my fatty knees in about 15 to 20 knots of wind with the Dinghy Dogs! When the the dinghy heals over and the dog hits the water it feels so stable , like I got a bigger boat!," Marc Roman, Palm Beach Garden, FL</div>
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Thanks Marc.</div>
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Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-10292485723033537812014-06-05T05:48:00.000-07:002014-06-05T05:48:08.160-07:00Design ChangesWe've made some change in the design of DinghyDogs tubes. The valves are now sealed to the covers which will help to prevent debris from getting into the tubes and keeps the valve where it belongs when deflated/inflated.<br />
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Any suggestions are always welcome and appreciated.<br />
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Enjoy the summer. <br />
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<br />Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-91127335456427017962013-07-20T14:10:00.000-07:002013-09-07T03:08:24.734-07:00Improved rowing for DinghyDogsThanks to the problems one owner had rowing with DinghyDogs I've made some modifications to the installation of DinghyDogs.<br />
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The aft cleats should be installed on the <u>outside</u> edges of the transom 2" below the rail. The forward cleat should be placed as before, 84" forward.</div>
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When installed in this manner, the tubes will be approximately 2" lower than the rail near the oarlock and give significantly more room for the oars when rowing.<br />
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The track should be located 10" from the rail midway between the cleats.</div>
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You can try to modify your present installation: must remove the old tracks and either reposition them or get new ones. Also you will need to move two aft cleats or add new ones. The length of the tie downs might also need to be longer.</div>
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Be sure to reseal any screw holes.</div>
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Contact me with any questions. .</div>
Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-12802114526077825972013-05-02T12:09:00.000-07:002013-05-02T12:09:41.901-07:00An idea for you to try.Pumping up DinghyDogs takes time with a foot pump and it isn't exactly easy. You might try this.<br />
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Press the yellow button in and turn clockwise to keep the valve open. It will be much faster and easier to pump up the tubes. When they're pumped up, remove the pump from the valve and QUICKLY shut the valve - turn counter clockwise so it pops up. You'll lose a little air but not much. Now you can finish the pumping the regular way but with much less overall effort. Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-8319086165366606562013-03-18T05:43:00.002-07:002013-03-18T05:48:31.752-07:00I lied<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well not exactly lied but I might have exaggerated a bit. On our website we say Dinghy Dogs make "it as stable as an inflatable". The fact is that an inflatable has its tubes in the water all the time. That's what keeps inflatables afloat and give them stability, but that's what makes them such poor rowing boats and such poor tow behinds.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Dinghy Dogs tubes ride out of the water in an empty boat as seen in this side by side comparison. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgGozk0nysBfMXy6h818AbTMER-Niwg6GBgk1hee0VEcpEl64ZpiLazHs8r8bHIqGjK4Ivh1_EEnJe4RDwWxehwYm6Z_SkYrpaKTu3os3LpTMSfrq12x7MbPqYl8MTHlQSB9XG-EVchS4/s1600/compare2gr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgGozk0nysBfMXy6h818AbTMER-Niwg6GBgk1hee0VEcpEl64ZpiLazHs8r8bHIqGjK4Ivh1_EEnJe4RDwWxehwYm6Z_SkYrpaKTu3os3LpTMSfrq12x7MbPqYl8MTHlQSB9XG-EVchS4/s200/compare2gr.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dinghy Dogs v Inflatable</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As passengers enter the dinghy, the tubes will drop but should still be out of the water. That's how </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">boats with </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dinghy Dogs can perform like a hard dinghy. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Only if and when the boat tips too much, the tubes become active providing the buoyancy needed to prevent serious problems or even a capsize. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I guess they're not quite as stable as an inflatable but we believe the tradeoff is more than justified.</span>Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-25707119566855352042013-01-09T12:09:00.002-08:002013-01-15T08:30:29.246-08:00An ounce of preventionI recently received a note from a customer telling me that a bladder in one tube apparently burst. When I received the culprit I found that the bladder had indeed burst and had a huge hole adjacent to the valve. The bladder material had clearly been subjected high heat since the material surrounding the valve was very thin and transparent.<br />
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Apparently the collar was not centered in the opening and the bladder material found its way out around the collar. I suspect the hot sun increased the pressure on the tubes but since the bladder was not contained by the cover, it kept expanding until it burst.<br />
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I urge you to be sure the valve is centered whenever you inflate but especially if the dinghy will be unattended for any time and you might not notice a problem. Since this is the first time we have encountered this it's probably an outlier but an ounce of prevention....<br />
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Our new Dinghy Dogs design has an improved valve arrangement making this problem nearly impossible as seen here:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix66EI_5D8ZNTh7AU-SnqoQVPGiQuUMMVQKsxFWrzdQfCPAJE7caETzk3MU1IJOpJhKpuOZuL2zCdfdwNoRwpFw07NEG7U8JvCOSJWnb9LQMKxUAfHthpihFMheTcQil3AjYPZuwkmSiU/s1600/IMG_0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix66EI_5D8ZNTh7AU-SnqoQVPGiQuUMMVQKsxFWrzdQfCPAJE7caETzk3MU1IJOpJhKpuOZuL2zCdfdwNoRwpFw07NEG7U8JvCOSJWnb9LQMKxUAfHthpihFMheTcQil3AjYPZuwkmSiU/s1600/IMG_0002.JPG" /></a></div>
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Wishing us all a great New Year and sailing season.</div>
Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-33786976417301698092012-08-25T12:07:00.001-07:002012-11-25T06:29:58.867-08:00Protect your Dinghy Dogs<div id="fb-root">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;">There is an excellent article "</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #33b3ff;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.goodoldboat.com/promo_pdfs/Sept12_Promo.pdf" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #33b3ff;">RIB wrap</span></a></span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;">", in the September/October issue of </span><a href="http://www.goodoldboat.com/promo_pdfs/Sept12_Promo.pdf" style="color: #333333;" target="_blank"><b><i>Good Old Boat</i></b></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"> that tells how someone made an inflatable boat cover for under $100. (A pdf will open and you need to scroll about half way down.) It should be easy to adapt to Dinghy Dogs, especially that spend lots of time under the tropical sun.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">And won't you please "Like" us on Facebook? It will really help us. Click the "Like" button below. </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">Thanks.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-82035707517159556962012-06-21T10:14:00.001-07:002012-06-21T10:14:13.721-07:00Two styles of Dinghy DogsWe've decided to offer Dinghy Dogs in both the new, tapered design as well as the original tried and true "hot dog" design. The price remains the same for both. Take a look. <a href="http://dinghydogs.com/">http://dinghydogs.com</a> and let us know what you think.Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-27777018940678649832012-06-13T09:50:00.000-07:002012-07-14T14:58:05.647-07:00Rowing Tip UpdateAs you know, Dinghy Dogs add width to your dinghy and oars can rub their surface. Here's a suggestion: pvc tubing.<br />
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1. Get a length of pvc tubing whose inside diameter approximates your oars' diameter. I found <b>thin wall</b> tubing at Home Depot used for sink drains not water lines. The 1.5" tubing is perfect since it is easy to cut and flexible and will fit most any diameter oar.<br />
2. Cut two pieces each 12 - 18" long.<br />
3. Slit the tubing along it's length to provide two identical halves<br />
4. Put the oars in the oarlocks and note where they meet the Dinghy Dogs.<br />
5. Place the pvc pieces on top and bottom of the shaft with the oar blade vertical in the rowing position, and wrap tape around the ends.<br />
5. The slits should not touch the Dinghy Dogs tubes.<br />
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This will dramatically reduce any abrasion or friction.<br />
<br />Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-69641826043714935612012-05-19T10:33:00.001-07:002012-05-19T17:45:45.883-07:00Good Source of InformationCame across a good source of information for those who like to putter around for boat equipment and stuff: <a href="http://www.billdietrich.me/BoatEquipment.html">http://www.billdietrich.me/BoatEquipment.html</a>Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-39585965100923637232012-05-18T12:25:00.001-07:002013-02-12T05:52:59.037-08:00Track Installation QuestionsI've been asked some questions about installing the track and would like to clarify some issues.<br />
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The track his held in place by a double sided 3M industrial strength tape on the back. After a day against a clean non-porous surface such as fiberglass, plastic, polyethylene etc. it is extremely tough to remove. In addition to this we have drilled two small holes in each end and supply 1/2" #8 s.s. screws to add extra retention.<br />
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Some of you have worried about the screws penetrating the inside of the boat. This a legitimate concern because it would obviously be dangerous for any sharp object to protrude into the boat.<br />
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Most boats today are double hulled. The inside is molded to provide seating and then is bonded to the outside of the hull. The two hulls might appear to be just one layer at the sides but careful inspection will usually reveal otherwise. If there is a drain plug at the outside bottom of the transom center you can be sure it is a double hull, in which case penetration is nearly impossible.<br />
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Still, if the screw does protrude into the boat you should snip the end, file it as smooth as you can, cover it with a sealant and let it harden fully before use.<br />
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<br />Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5971605513916062089.post-62113135252869468402012-05-17T02:40:00.000-07:002012-06-14T12:03:32.019-07:00Dinghy Dogs BlogWe're glad you found us. Our job here is to talk about what you can do to make your hard dinghy more stable and most importantly, to answer your questions and to help make being on the water safer and more fun.<br />
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Most of us who have hard dinghies in the 7-10 foot range, know the problems - they can tip, you have to watch weight distribution carefully as guests enter or leave the dinghy on the water, you have to be sure to keep weight distributed so the dinghy wont tip over.<br />
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On the other hand, a hard dinghy is secure, sturdy, it tows well, it has room, and it's tough; no need to worry about a puncture.<br />
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Until recently you had to get an inflatable boat if you wanted stability. And they are stable. But they also have limited internal room, fly around when being towed, and they're not easy to row. And a puncture can ruin your day.<br />
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One option is a rigid inflatable boat or RIB. RIBs have all the stability of an inflatable and the security and reliability of a rigid boat. On the other hand they are expensive and they are big and heavy. Stowing a RIB on a smaller sailboat deck is a major consideration as well.<br />
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While not for everyone, <b><a href="http://dinghydogs.com/" target="_blank">Dinghy Dogs</a> </b>let<b> </b>you<b> </b>keep your hard dinghy AND give it the stability of an inflatable. So, if you have any questions, fire away.<br />
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Harvey<br />
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<br />Harveyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12607255278028046166noreply@blogger.com0