Hi Ben,
I've got a Riptide 55 that's currently being used as auxiliary power on a West Wight Potter 15 sailboat. It does about 3 to 3.5 kt and draws 30 amps or so (12V) at full power. I used it on an 11 ft hard dinghy and the speed was about the same. I suspect your results would be similar.
It is nicely made unit, and they did a good job on the corrosion proofing. The shaft is non-metallic (I think it's carbon-fiber), and the motor unit has a heavy powder-coat finish. It even has a zinc anode on the prop hub. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend one if it has enough thrust for what you need. It probably does.
Jim
--- In electricboats@yahoogroups.com, Ben Okopnik <ben@...> wrote:
>
> Hello, all:
>
> I'm about to go all electric for my 10' Walker Bay Genesis inflatable
> dinghy, and the two reasonable choices at this point look like 1) the
> Torqeedo 1003 or 2) the MinnKota RipTide 55 (from their saltwater
> series.) There's a fairly large difference in price between the two -
> the former is $2k, while the latter is about 1/4 of that; in addition,
> the cost for the Torqeedo accessories is quite high (e.g., $700 for a
> spare battery) whereas the MinnKota uses relatively cheap, off-the-shelf
> components. The Torqeedo's battery is integral; however, that's not
> necessarily a benefit, since I can power a bilge pump and a navigation
> light (conveniences that I've become quite used to with my gasoline
> engine) from the external battery used to run the MinnKota. For another
> $50, I can add a high-end power analyzer to the MinnKota if I feel like
> it, although the RipTide has a voltage-based "SOC indicator" built it.
>
> So, money-wise and convenience-wise (i.e., I can have the RipTide today,
> from one of several local stores, but would have to order and wait up to
> a week for the Torqeedo), the MinnKota looks like a better bet. If I
> really wanted more thrust, I could go to 24v and get a RipTide 80 for an
> additional $125 or so. Is there some key factor I'm missing here that
> would make the Torqeedo a better choice?
>
>
> --
> Ben Okopnik
> -=-=-=-=-=-
>
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