Fender mounts

[sagablu]

[QUOTE=ranger58sb;3898396]OP, my apologies for probably seeming to unnecessarily bust your chops on the topic. Didn't mean to sound that way...

It IS true that we never seem to place or adjust fenders the same way twice, though, and that's one reason we just tie the thing... instead of futzing with additional attachment doo-dads.

It also IS true that I routinely instruct crew and guests "You break it, you fix it." Most often, comments about the heads: "You clog it, you fix it." Or in this case, I guess it'd be "You lose it, you retrieve it."

All that said, I'm not without fault. Lost a buoy fender a few weeks ago in storm conditions while stopping at a marina down near Belhaven. That was with a cow hitch, and one follow-on half-hitch, using a double-braid fender whip. The line is a bit slippery -- which makes for easier/faster height adjustments, compared to 3-strand -- and I guess the 36 hours of constant 25-30-40 kt winds and the weight of the buoy itself eventually just caused the hitches to eventually slide open.

IOW, even my suggestion to just use common hitches is not without some potential risk.

(Note to self: Use at least two locking hitches after a cow or clove hitch. And then check the whips more often -- or at least occasionally.)

-Chris[/QUOTE

Well thank you for saying so, but trust me you're not going to hurt my feelings. 35 years of insurance sales has pretty much killed any feelings I may have had.

Anyway, I cannot rely on most people I would have as passengers to tie an acceptable knot. Been there, there's only so many times I'm going to make the same mistake. Having something simple is worth It for me to avoid damage to the boat, and stress for myself and my passengers. Win-Win as I see it. I totally understand that I'm coming off inexperienced, but I have to deal with the crew I have, and I like the crew I have, but with one exception, none of them are experienced. . My skills are intermediate at best, so taking the easy way out.
My girlfriend is a slightly different story, absolutely brilliant, but slightly dyslexic and with arthritis in her hands. Just not happening

[sagablu]

Originally Posted by GordMay

Tupaia directed [#6] us to the ‘Plastimo Fender Cleat’
➥ https://www.amazon.ca/Fenderclaet-CL...D/dp/B0093LZKH

https://www.thechandleryonline.com/shopping_cart.php
And, there are many more options, for Fender Line Adjusters:
➥ https://www.thechandleryonline.com/i...ct=90&mode=row

Thank you Gord. The page you linked has a couple I've not seen before, going with these

https://www.thechandleryonline.com/shopping_cart.php

[TrentePieds]

Saga:

Both the clove hitch and the lark's head ("cow hitch") are dead easy to tie. If this former instructor, long retired, were near you, he would gladly take the fifteen minutes it takes to teach the clove hitch so the student can tie it infallibly every time, In the dark! Under water! :-)

In my book it is VERY important, as others have also said, that the fender tails should be infinitely adjustable. It is also important that there should be no metal objects at their ends that, when the devil rides, could swing around and smack you in the eye. Having been monocular all my life, I'm a fanatic about that!

But far too many sailors think that coming alongside can be done without some serious preparation before, and some "tidy up" after they are alongside and made fast. The initial making fast is just to hold the boat while skipper goes rounds to ensure that everything is tickety-boo and (if the crew is not proficient) quietly corrects what needs correcting.

Similarly, I for one, lie ahull at some convenient place just off my intended mooring spot, and get everything in readiness. Whether it's my own boat or someone else's, and regardless of the boats size, I do that. For the few minutes it takes to do it, the boat isn't going to go anywhere. and if drift and set may be anticipated to move the boat significantly, you pick your spot to lie ahull so that while being drifted and set, the boat stays in safe water. Knowling how to do that is what earns the skipper his evening ale :-)

All the best!

TrentePieds

[jamhass]

"Personally, I'd prefer if she drove and I was deck crew. We'll work on that later this year....."

Actually, my wife was generally a better driver than me, so this indeed was the preferred option. She would drive while I attached fenders, then I drove into the dock.

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by mvweebles

Personally, I'd prefer if she drove and I was deck crew. We'll work on that later this year.....

Been working on that, too. For about 30 years. Little joy, so far... although she could dock the previous boat in a 4-way slip if she wanted to. Different controls on this one, electronic single-lever per engine, haven't gotten her to experiment yet...

But it would be much easier if she'd take the helm...

-Chris

[wholybee]

As far as I am concerned, there is only one way to attach fenders, a "round turn and 2 half hitches"

A round turn and 2 half hitches can be tied quickly, it is easy to adjust length to adjust the fender height for different pontoons, and can be tied and untied easily while under load. It also won't shake loose like a clove hitch or rolling hitch can.

And *NEVER* to the lifelines. Always a stanchion base or hard point like a cleat or chainplate. When I was learning to sail, I tied a fender to a lifeline on my schools boat, and watched the stanchion get ripped of when the boat came in a bit off and the fender caught the end of the dock. I then got that lesson from the instructor, never, ever to a lifeline.

The expensive clips, while they might seem appealing to the inexperienced, are both not adjustable, and clip to the lifeline, which is a hard NO!

[Weatherbird]

Originally Posted by sagablu

Anyway, I cannot rely on most people I would have as passengers to tie an acceptable knot. Been there, there's only so many times I'm going to make the same mistake. Having something simple is worth It for me to avoid damage to the boat, and stress for myself and my passengers. Win-Win as I see it. I totally understand that I'm coming off inexperienced, but I have to deal with the crew I have, and I like the crew I have, but with one exception, none of them are experienced. . My skills are intermediate at best, so taking the easy way out.
My girlfriend is a slightly different story, absolutely brilliant, but slightly dyslexic and with arthritis in her hands. Just not happening

The last time I had to rely on inexperienced crew, I showed them how to do it the right way but then told them that if they weren't confident in the moment to stand there and hold it and I would come tie it for them when I was able.

That worked okay but I found that the people I couldn't trust to tie the knot, I also couldn't trust to put the fender in the right spot.

[Noahr]

https://unitedyachting.com/product/fender-adjuster-for-life-lines/

[sinnerman]

How about these:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...0?ie=UTF8&th=1

What may be better is to have a carabiner hook on the fender line set at the correct height, and a line loop permanently attached to the base of the stanchion.

Then she can just clip the line onto the hoop

You would need to identify which fender goes where (numbers...?)

Do not do as some others do and hang fenders on the lifelines. It stretches them and can cause the stanc hions to become bent.

My two cents.

cheers.

[Nic Homan]

Somewhat trite but teach your GF to tie a round turn and two half hitches or a clove hitch. Both are easy knots and by tying repeatedly for fenders will
become rapidly learnt.
Then move onto slightly harder knot. The bow line. Crew knot training complete.

Alternatively, get a new GF who can tie knots!!!!!

[Noahr]

https://unitedyachting.com/product/fender-adjuster-for-life-lines/

[SpringHollow]

adjustable for length (I wish the link URL was!!!):

https://www.amazon.com/JYINCPED-Stai...99&sr=8-3&th=1

[Foswick]

I guess I don't understand the problem. We have fenders that all have whips with pre-tied loops that are exactly the length they need to be to throw onto specific cleats and hang the fenders right where they need to be. 90% of the time, it doesn't matter where we're docking - the positions of the fenders doesn't change.

Granted, we have relatively low freeboard, so the height of the dock doesn't matter much, unless it was extremely high. And, occasionally there is something like a piling that we need to work around, but those are the exception. Having to adjust fenders is not something I find to be routine.