No, we're not replacing the C-Dory. I do miss Wild Blue, though. You may remember that our previous inflatable dinghy came apart at the seams (literally) while I was power washing Wild Blue's bottom over at Herb's house, using his boat lift.
I was told that it is nearly impossible to re-glue those seams so they'll hold. I used an entire container of the glue made for inflatables on one half of the dinghy. It was a three day process. I didn't get around to getting the other side done before we left for the summer. We left the dinghy home... and having a dinghy in the PNW is very handy, especially when you anchor out.
Well, I checked out the glued seam on the dinghy when we got back... there were a couple places where it wasn't holding. We decided to scrap it instead of putting more time and money into it.
West Marine had a "Sale Before Black Friday Sale" and we ordered another dinghy. It was supposed to be the updated version of the one we had. When it arrived, it didn't "feel" like an update. You know how that goes: manufacturers seem to look for ways to keep costs down, and this material feels less substantial. Some say the new material is better because it is lighter weight.
The big problem was keeping the air inside the boat... there was no documentation in the way too generic owners manual (apparently written by someone for whom English is not their first or second language) regarding the valves. Pump in the air, and before you can get the cap on the valve, the air rushes out. I tried it. Joan tried it. Looking on West Marine's site and other boating forums, many people have tried it, without much success. I called and e-mailed West Marine's customer service. They don't call back, but do send out an e-mail after hours (making an quick exchange of e-mails impossible) saying, "Sorry you aren't happy with your product. We will arrange for a pickup and will refund your purchase when we receive the product back."
Sounds like they would rather refund the money than try to resolve any problems. I called the valve manufacturer today, and after getting transferred to tech support, had the issue resolved in very short order. He was quick to point out that their valves are used on all the high-end inflatable dinghies when I told him about all the bad reviews on West Marine's site.
So, the dinghy now holds air. I'll leave it fully inflated overnight to make sure the seams are all good before we decide whether to take West Marine up on their offer to take it back.
It's no Wild Blue, but it should be fun to putter around on until we head out of here. And then it will go with us to the Pacific Northwest.
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