I just noticed a yachtworld ad listing the FC Elise and that the price includes a 7 foot fatty knees dinghy that “fits on the cabin house”… I always wondered if a hard dinghy would actually fit on an FC… Anyone try it? It looks like it works for the Elise.
KD
KD,
I was the former owner of Angelsea, aka Elise. Boy, I wish I could have figured out a satisfactory way to do it. would like to see what they did. If I remeber right, it was to high for the boom.
Gary
“Jolly Dolphin” homeports in the marina next door and Russ has a Fatty Knees 7’ which “fits” on the foredeck. Convenient, yes, but I don’t know how it would tiedown securely enough for offshore passages.
I have sailed with the fatty knees up on the foredeck but getting forward ahead of the dinghy is near impossible with any motion of the boat. Having roller furling on both headsails eliminates the issue of going forward aside from anchoring but in really bad weather I would not want to think of having to deal with the dinghy forward if any issues developed.
Although the dorades have to come off (if you have them) and there’s a slight overhang above the hatch, the 7’ fits fine on the coach roof. I’ve done many off-shore miles this way. Clearance for the boom is no problem. Much better place than the foredeck in my opinion if you’re anyplace where you can’t take the chance of towing her. With mast winches, getting the dink aboard isn’t too bad; I’ve managed it solo just fine. Takes about 10 minutes. Elise is a factory spec, factory finish Sam Morse FC though; I can’t necessarily speak for all FCs.
Is the dinghy facing forward or aft when you fit the fatty knees under the boom?
And is it simply lying on the roof or have you made chocks to keep the boat in place?
The dinghy is facing bow forward and I do not use chocks to keep it in place. I do use a few small pieces of industrial grade felt to prevent any friction between the dinghy and the cabin top. The dinghy is kept in place by a firm lashing to the handrails. It’s a very simple and effective set-up.