How Small Boats Are Made

We’ve explored big catamaran factories and boutique yacht builders but today we’re getting an in-depth look at our first small boat workshop. Specifically, a fiberglass/carbon fiber cruising tender made to last a lifetime.

Nikki Wynn

Oct 9, 2022 — 2 min read

We’ve toured a big production catamaran factory and a couple of boutique yacht builders but today we’re getting an in-depth look at our first small boat workshop. Specifically, a fiberglass/carbon fiber cruising tender made to last a lifetime. Why? Because we’re curious people and love learning how things we use are made!

As you may have guessed, we’re pretty impressed with this little dinghy. There are some other really neat rigid tenders out there, but as far as size and weight go, the OC Tender is the only one we’ve found (so far) that ticks all our boxes. But, we haven’t tried them all! If you have a fave dinghy you think fits our criteria, we would love to hear about it.

OUR TENDER NEEDS & WANTS

Our new home is all about being self-reliant: rainwater capture, renewable energy, wind, and electric propulsion powered. We want our dinghy to be more of the same.

Tender Size: On Curiosity², HH has built-in some super-strong carbon fiber dinghy davits than can hold up to an 11-foot tender with a max weight of 440lbs.
Desired Cruising Speed: 10-15 knots. I say cruising speed because with electric motors we don’t want to be at top speed all the time, that would tap our batteries out quickly. Going at 50-75% will give us a lot more range. But, knowing we have that burst of power for running against a strong current or getting out of the way of a larger vessel, is priceless.
Desired Range: 20 miles. A normal day of dingy-ing around for us is anywhere between 10-20 miles (exploring, diving, grocery run).