# Sandpiper 8 Dinghy



## kwaltersmi (Aug 14, 2006)

I just picked up a little Sandpiper 8 dinghy for $150. I couldn't pass it up for that price.

Does anyone else have one of these? Are they miserable to row? I'm hoping it's at least easier to row than my 8' Quicksilver PVC inflatable.


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## RandyonR3 (Oct 2, 2005)

I bought on of those a few years ago at the boat show. What I was supprised about was its life.. When not un use, I kept it bottom-side-up on the dock... The material borke down in just a few mounths and it fell apart.. I ended up sending it off in the trash can...
The cost wasnt that much but I though it should last more than one season... If you keep it outside, keep it covered.......


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## AjariBonten (Sep 7, 2007)

What is it made of that would deteriorate that quickly? Cardboard? Your dock isn't close to any leaky nuke plants, is it Randy?

That's just seems bizarre to me. 

Fred


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## kwaltersmi (Aug 14, 2006)

They are made of "ABS Plastic" with a foam core. I'm surprised too, because during the bit of research I did, most sources seemed to list "durable" as an attribute.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

It probably rows better than an inflatable, since it is a rigid dinghy and less energy is lost to the flexing of the boat. The material may not be well UV-stabilized, so covering the dinghy is probably a good and cheap precaution to take.


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## rperret (Apr 11, 2003)

sailingdog said:


> It probably rows better than an inflatable, since it is a rigid dinghy and less energy is lost to the flexing of the boat. The material may not be well UV-stabilized, so covering the dinghy is probably a good and cheap precaution to take.


Yes, I researched these boats a while back and someone had also mentioned that it lacked good UV stabilization - in fact I recall speaking to someone at the company and they recommended keeping it covered when not in use....


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

Well im glad i spend my money on a used Avon. I was going to buy one of these and was still considering it, but not now. 

Ive been thinking of picking up a little fibrelgass dingy thats like the Sandpiper and building a mold from it to make me a damn good dingy. Think i could sell them?


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## kwaltersmi (Aug 14, 2006)

Well, if nothing else, my two daughters love the little Sandpiper. They're gonna have a blast on it next summer. We'll walk it down to the river this weekend for a "sea trial".


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

You might run into some legal problems doing that. The hull may be copyrighted, and making copies of it are going to be copyright infringement. I know of at least one case involving a sailboat where this was the case.



SVDistantStar said:


> Well im glad i spend my money on a used Avon. I was going to buy one of these and was still considering it, but not now.
> 
> Ive been thinking of picking up a little fibrelgass dingy thats like the Sandpiper and building a mold from it to make me a damn good dingy. Think i could sell them?


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

SailingDog,
Yea ive thought about that. I was thinking if i did it, i would change a few things on the hull to make it not 100% like the older one. Eh, its just been a dream of mine for some years to do that.


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## tomaz_423 (Feb 5, 2006)

Wild guess:
Dinghy cost: 150$
Protective paint cost: 200$


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## RandyonR3 (Oct 2, 2005)

I did build one of glass.. was looking at the fatty knees but the price was so high, I decided to build one myself.. I started with what you might call a nutshell, and built a mold off the boat, then laid up the ding.. I built it a little heaver than I had to and I'm still modifying the little boat after a few years of service..
The only time you get into "copyright" problems is when you go into business selling boat you made... If you keep it for yourself, theres no problem... I will admit, I sold the mold to another guy who made his own ding.. and I think he then sold the mold to someone else.. What I made off the mold, paid for the material I built the ding out of...


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Actually, copyright infringment doesn't require the sale of the infringing material, at least in the United States. If this were no the case, then you could borrow a DVD from the library and legally copy it for your own use... which is illegal.



RandyonR3 said:


> I did build one of glass.. was looking at the fatty knees but the price was so high, I decided to build one myself.. I started with what you might call a nutshell, and built a mold off the boat, then laid up the ding.. I built it a little heaver than I had to and I'm still modifying the little boat after a few years of service..
> The only time you get into "copyright" problems is when you go into business selling boat you made... If you keep it for yourself, theres no problem... I will admit, I sold the mold to another guy who made his own ding.. and I think he then sold the mold to someone else.. What I made off the mold, paid for the material I built the ding out of...


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## kwaltersmi (Aug 14, 2006)

Well, at the moment the little Sandpiper will rest through the winter in my garage. Hopefully next spring she'll stay tied up in the water beneath my dock in the shade. If I have bottom paint left over after doing my sailboat in the spring, I'll use it up on the dink.


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## sailoredon (Sep 5, 2006)

I have a Sandpiper and they need a keel of some kind to give them some directional control when rowing. You could add a small keel or skeg and that would defeat the patent.

Sailson


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## mbetter (Jun 13, 2010)

sailingdog said:


> Actually, copyright infringment doesn't require the sale of the infringing material, at least in the United States. If this were no the case, then you could borrow a DVD from the library and legally copy it for your own use... which is illegal.


I am not a lawyer but I did stay in an unlicensed copy of a Holiday Inn Express hotel last night, so here's my take: a boat hull would be covered under Title 17, Circular 92, Chapter 13 of the United States Code.

Per § 1309:



> (a) Acts of Infringement. - Except as provided in subsection (b), it shall be infringement of the exclusive rights in a design protected under this chapter for any person, without the consent of the owner of the design, within the United States and during the term of such protection, to -
> 
> (1) make, have made, or import, for sale or for use in trade, any infringing article as defined in subsection (e); or
> 
> ...


So if you don't produce it for sale or "for use in trade," and you don't sell it, it's not infringement.

Regarding "use in trade," per The People's Law Dictionary by Gerald and Kathleen Hill:



> trade
> 1) n. a business or occupation for profit, particularly in retail or wholesale sales or requiring special mechanical skill. 2) v. to exchange one thing for another, which includes money for goods, goods for goods and favors for goods or money.
> 
> law.com Law Dictionary


So, again, I'm not a lawyer, certainly not anyone here's lawyer and I shouldn't be trusted with heavy machinery, sharp knives or non-safety scissors but it seems like you'd probably be in the clear to copy the design of a boat hull for purely personal use.

Edit: "in the clear" as far as copyright infringement goes. A boat hull could possibly be covered by a design patent or a regular patent as well. It would probably be a good idea to consult a lawyer if anyone is worried about any of this.


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## SVCallisto (Mar 29, 2013)

I am on my second one. The ABS doese break fown. 1 or 2 seasons. I am looking for a repair material. So far nothing permanent. 
I like mine. Tows and rows great
The light in your profile pic looks like Detour Reef?


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## GansettSailor (Aug 21, 2015)

I have had a SandPiper 8 as a dingy for the past 5 seasons. I store it outdoors during the winter either on deck or in my backyard. Snow, rain and sun no issue. Great little boat. Very easy to row. No longer made by Bass Hunter but modified and still sold.


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## paulinnanaimo (Dec 3, 2016)

That's a nice boat. Where do you sit to row it?


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## GansettSailor (Aug 21, 2015)

Hardwood seat sits across on the lip inside. It was out during the photos for refinishing.


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