Ducky Boat

Ducky boat buyer checklist

Two product lines share every dimension

The compact inflatables sold under names like ducky boat, tender or dinghy come from two programmes that publish the same lengths, the same floor options and the same power ratings. RSM-AM270 and RSD-AM270 are both 270 cm with an airmat floor and both rated 10 hp for 3 persons. The difference is the fabric: the RSM line is 0.7/0.9 mm PVC, the RSD line 0.9 mm and above.

That is the whole of it, and it is invisible in a listing photograph. RSM is the lighter, cheaper build for occasional leisure use; RSD is the heavier one for repeated launches, rental fleets and anything that will live on a beach. If a quote does not name the line, the fabric thickness is the question that resolves it — and it should be answered for the tube and the floor separately.

The floor letters mean three different boats

Both programmes encode the floor in the model code: AM is an airmat, SL is a slatted floor, AL is aluminium. At 210 cm and 245 cm only the light floors are offered, because there is not enough hull to justify the weight of aluminium. From 270 cm the aluminium option appears, and from there the choice is real.

A slatted floor rolls up smallest and is the one that fits in a car boot with room left; an airmat is stiffer underfoot and quicker to deploy; aluminium is the only one you can properly stand and work on, at roughly the pack-down penalty you would expect. Decide this before length, because it is the choice that determines whether the boat gets used.

Read the capacity line, not the capacity number

RSM-SL245 is rated 3 persons. RSM-AM245 is the same 245 cm and is rated "2 adults + 1 child". Both are correct; they are describing the same hull with different assumptions about who is aboard. A boat sold on "3 persons" that turns out to mean two adults and a child is a common source of disappointment, and it is avoidable by asking for the assumption rather than the number.

The rated figures also assume people without equipment. Two anglers with tackle, or a family with a cool box and a dog, load a small hull far closer to its limit than the count suggests. For anything beyond flat water and short crossings, specify one size up from the headcount.

What to settle before a small-boat order

Confirm what is in the carton. Oars, a pump, a repair kit, a seat board and a carry bag are sometimes included and sometimes each a line item, and on boats at this price they are a meaningful share of it. Ask for the packed dimensions and the boat weight, because on a compact dinghy those two figures decide both the freight cost and whether one person can handle it alone.

If a motor is intended, confirm the transom is rated for it — the 210 cm hulls cap at 2.5 hp and the 245 cm hulls at 6 hp, and those are ceilings rather than suggestions. For OEM or wholesale runs, settle artwork, colourway and minimum order quantity in the same enquiry, because they change the per-unit price more than the specification does.

FAQ