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Hi all
looking at a Walker Bay 10 dinghy to use as a tender
Any experiences or thoughts would be appreciated
Regards Don
I have a Walkerbay 8 with the inflatable fender. It is a good light tough little dingy. With the fender it is very stable but with out the fender it is very unstable which is typical of most lightweight dingys. I don't know what the 10' dingy's stability is like, but I think it should be better then the 8'. The fender round the edge is worth its weight in gold. It makes the dingy more stable with the advantages of an inflatable. A 10' dingy is a big tender for a small boat, too big to put on the foredeck if need be in rough conditions. You don't really want to tow a light 10' dingy in bad conditions.
Hi Jode
Thanks for your thoughts
I have a 8 ft Savage Tern at the moment which is good for 2 people but a bit marginal and cramped for 3
There is one for sale for $400 and I thout it might be worthwhile going a bit bigger (but keeping the Tern) as the price seems reasonable
Regards Don
I love my Walker Bay 8 and I can just haul it up onto my foredeck but it is really only a one person dinghy. I think the fender collar could be an improvement.
I think the 10 would be too big for your Sailmaster.
well you can dream
Hi all
Thanks for the information
If i bought the Walker Bay i would just use it here at Port Huon as a tender and a mess about boat with the 3hp Yamaha
I had a bit of a look the other day and although the Tern would fit on the foredeck ok i think that i might be a bit of a battle for myself and my wife to get it up there
I have a Hobie Kona kayak www.hobie.com/kayaks/kona/ as well that i toyed with the idea of trying to stick on the boat but i think it might be a bit long to fit without getting in the way
I didn't actually intend to buy another dinghy but the Walker Bay seems to be pretty reasonably priced for the size and would allow us to cart a extra person around
I actually thought about getting something like this inflatable kayak www.sevylor.com/Clear-Creek-2-Person-Kayak-P2209C41.aspx or this inflatable boat www.sevylor.com/Colossustrade-3-Person-Boat-P2019C40.aspx and leaving it permanently on the boat deflated and when we go away just leave the Tern on the mooring and use the inflatable to go ashore wherever we end up
Regards Don
Just about carrying the kayak, saw a photo of a yacht somewhere where they had made up a couple of very simple SS brackets, mounted them on the outside of the stanchions(not unlike those brackets that bolt to pushbikes for surfboards), freed up the side deck again.
I have had the one person Walker Bay kayak for four years and love it as my tender. It weighs 8.5 kilos which means I can carry it and my boat gear in one trip. It also fits in my Mazda 3 fully inflated although infllating it is only a five minute job. The two man version would work well as a tender also. Only one puncture in four years and all the gear for that supplied. I am a big fan.
I love my Walker Bay 10. I don't use it as a tender though, but for sailing. It is very stable on the water and easy to handle. I taught my kids to sail on it
Hi Donk,
I have a WB8, and if your by yourself mainly, I'd choose the 8 instead of 10.
Lighter and easier to handle.
We carry 2 adults, or 1 adult 2 kids plus gear and the outboard (Honda 2.5 4 stroke).
I usually row it instead of the outboard if by myself, they row ok although the ridges on centre seat can get sore on your a*se.
The rear wheel is probably too small, and I've replaced it with one from harder material after the first one wore away.
I've heard the WB sailing kit isn't worth it, but I have an old windsurfer rig I've always wanted to play with on the dingy.
In all, a tough dingy that suits what we need currently, I'd buy another tomorrow.
I also have a Walker Bay 8 and think it is great. I started out looking for a WB 10 but couldn't find one for a good price and bought the WB 8 thinking I would just give it a go and then upgrade later. But for all the reasons stated above, I now prefer the WB 8 - lighter, easier to manhandle and a good size for my 34' Jeanneau.
It is perfect for kids and can take 3 adults on a calm day. With two adults aboard, I sit one in the bow and row while seated on the stern seat. I find it rows very well with 7' oars and I have been for 2-3 km outings around Pittwater. The sail kit and inflatable collar would be nice to have but as a simple tender, it is fine.
The WB 10 is certainly a lot roomier and better if you have exposed water to cross or regular passengers. At $400 it would be a steal if it's in fair to good condition. The 'wheel in the keel' in the WB 10 is bigger and better engineered than the WB 8 wheel but the spare parts are available and they are both easily rebuilt.
A Walker Bay 10 for $400 is a good buy. I should add here that they are the most common boat stolen on this planet! Try to ascertain this boats history.
This is a timely topic for me. I have a WB8 which I haven't used apart from a quick test run when I got it a year ago. However, I will be using it when cruising Bass Strait next month.
I'm currently looking at how I can utilise my whisker pole (on the mast track) to deploy/retrieve the WB8 from the foredeck.
How do other people deploy/retrieve their dingy?
Any thoughts, advice, etc gratefully received.
regards,
Allan
I have a walker 8 great dinghy very rugged I can pull it up on rocks if needed handles all my tools and gear and it tows well behind the boat to . the only but is its a pain to get up on deck and it takes up a lot of space so I will be buying roll up inflatable for cruising soon
Kurt 
This is how I store my home made (unsinkable) dinghy. Doesn't restrict the view aft too much, the painter on the dinghy bow is used to lower and raise it. Have to be careful when choppy because stern of boat can slam up and down a bit. It's also the ship's life raft.
hg how do you find the hard ply floor have u dismantled/assembled it on the fore deck or think its possible. Im not fitting davits to my h28 for now so im thinking a roll up with slat floors would work well
very sad to here about Eeros
Ive far to many other things on the go 
I found this photo last night of Eero's H28 but it was before he fitted davits Kurt
By the look of it Eero's made a single post davit maybe out of heaver wall tube not much bigger in diameter than the stern rails and braced it off them also. And tucked the inflatable in close to the stern
they look good hg maybe if funds allow in the future ill get something similar. I had a quote for a stainless bow sprit last year and it shocked me 
I was just curious about the hard floor inflatables because I've been considering them but I think I would struggle setting it up on the deck
The club has Walker Bay dinghies as tenders and I use them often. Good for one person and can take 2. Any more and you will quickly sink. Better load carrying and cheaper options available if you need to ferry more than yourself and one other. Even then rowing can be slow going if the passenger sitting at the back is a bit on the heavy side. My cheaper punt nosed dinghy can easily handle myself, two passengers and gear and the outboard on the back.
Try that whisker pole when your 85+ Cisco .
I'm building a boat to see me through as far as I can make it with the direct aim of user friendly .I don't need any body parts stuffed and to be hospitalized when I'm old later on mate.
And I'm hoping the boat will be used every day not weekends. its each to his or hers own needs and what the requirements are . Also when I'm gone females with be sailing on there own so it has to take that into account also not just me .
Much the same when I do a build up on a new Earth moving machine to the customers requirements and they can get very complicated.
Hi Donk107,
I have a 8ft Walker bay and as a lightweight tender it is hard to beat. The 10 ft would be better option as it would handle small outboard, one plus for mine is I can carry it to the water over the rocks.
The inflatable tube would be good as they are a bit skittish, easy to row mine has a sail kit but only used it once and didn't like it.
Cheers.
Hinton Bay
