Tying off the TomCat

[Mike...]

As we approach putting the Accelerando in its slip, I am beginning to ponder lines, fenders and docking aids. And so I have a some questions:

For the midships (well roughly) fender, I assume you tie it to the vertical handrail, yes? If so, I assume you use a chafe guard on that line, yes? And for a breast line, would you also tie it to that handrail?

How do you deal with that forward cleat while docking? The Admiral is not keen on shimmying along that narrow gangway (or crawling through the hatch) to set a line there. In order to make this a little easier, my plan was to do something like Dr. Bob did, and mount a pad eye for a temporary spring line on the step below each window (or perhaps above the step, a little closer to the window for ease of reach). Then, we'd run those lines (port and starboard) back to the cockpit and store them there until we are ready to dock.

Next, one of the Admiral's requirements is that no one is making a jump for the dock. As she said this, I pondered calling her a wimp, but then reason (i.e. survival instinct) set in. Instead, I simply replied with "Yes mam; I'll find another solution."

So for those times there isn’t a dockhand, I have been looking at various docking aids like the Bosco 1000 or the Wrino boathooks. Have any of you ever used these? They look like they would be especially handy when singlehanding. There was also a product called the E-Z Docker (A hook on a rope that you throw on the dock). But this really only seems to work if the dock has a toe rail (or whatever that is called). Though I suppose you could toss it across the dock and hook the other side. Anyway, I can't find the manufacturer. They may have gone out of business.

Speaking of lines, are there some sort of nice line hangers or hooks that folks here use to hang your coiled lines to keep them handy?

Are there any other fender or line management/storage gadgets and gizmos I should know about?

I love useful gadgets and gizmos.
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mike

 

[starcrafttom]

my folks have the throw-able boat hook and love it.
they use is on their 44 ft atlantic. The deck is 4 ft higher then the docks so having a hook mom can throw and grab a cleat or the rail on the dock is great. always her to toss the hook from the bow and pull the bow in or just tie it off and let dad use the line as a spring and power in the stern.

 

[Sea Wolf]

Mike-

I don't know how what Tomcat's gunnels look like, but on my 22 there's a nice raised area just forward of the cabin where the gunnel is raised to divert splash water flow overboard to keep it out of the cockpit.

It makes a great spot to mount an extra docking cleat on.

You could mount a cleat there with or w/o this raised space.

It eliminates the use of the hand rails (either the one on the back of the bulkhead or cabin top) for this use, and is only logical since the first one is only about 25% aft, and the other one about 90%.

Adding a cleat somewhere along the gunnel in a middle position is a must, IMHO.

The ones shown are small (4-1/2") to fit the space nicely and work great on fenders, etc., , but a larger one (6") would be more useful for the larger dock lines sometimes encountered at fuel docks, multiple raft ups, etc.


Joe. :teeth :thup

 

[Captains Cat]

Mike, I have lines coming off that midship cleat that are left on there permanently. They are about 25' long and lead back into the cockpit for storage, tied off by cam cleats on the cabin sides just forward of the cockpit. I also plan to mount cleats, probably 6" ones on each side of the bow at the extreme P/S corners for an additional line. That line will lead outside the bow pulpit also back to the cockpit to another cam cleat. Both of those can be handed/thrown to someone on the pier or put into someones hands with a boat hook or one of those hook thingies.

Little fender cleats can be mounted almost anywhere on the cabin sides. The side deck isn't as treacherous as it looks. The cabin top hand rail provides good hand holds and the rail at the front of the cabin top is good as you get to the bow. We just spent two nights at a Cobb island marina (Potomac River) and had 6 lines securing the boat. Finger piers and pilings so no fenders required.

Velcro loops make a good way to coil up and secure excess lines. They can be mounted by ss screws and washers or a good adhesive if you con't want to drill holes. If you mount them with screws, use some tape to drill through so you don't crack the gel coat.

Charlie

 

[Mike...]

The deck is 4 ft higher then the docks so having a hook mom can throw and grab a cleat or the rail on the dock is great.

Wow - she can hook a cleat? She must have good aim.

I don't know how what Tomcat's gunnels look like, but on my 22 there's a nice raised area just forward of the cabin where the gunnel is raised to divert splash water flow overboard to keep it out of the cockpit. It makes a great spot to mount an extra docking cleat on.

The tomcat doesn't have that, but I could probably mount one on the gangway. I would have to first grind down the tread-stuff though.

It's a shame the factory did not put a cleat amidships. To reduce stumble-factor, they could have set it down, like the others, so that the top of the cleat is roughly level with the gangway.

Anyone know who manufactures the cleats on the TomCat?

Mike, I have lines coming off that midship cleat that are left on there permanently. They are about 25' long and lead back into the cockpit for storage, tied off by cam cleats on the cabin sides just forward of the cockpit.

Charlie, can you post a picture of your cam cleats? I think I know what you are talking about, but a picture would help. You only use the cam cleats to secure the lines while underway, yes?

Little fender cleats can be mounted almost anywhere on the cabin sides.

True, but that only adds obstacles across the gangway. Or did you mean just above the rubrail?

The side deck isn't as treacherous as it looks.

Tell it to the Admiral. I bet I'll be the only one to walk it.
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mike

 

[Captains Cat]

Mike, I have lines coming off that midship cleat that are left on there permanently. They are about 25' long and lead back into the cockpit for storage, tied off by cam cleats on the cabin sides just forward of the cockpit.

Charlie, can you post a picture of your cam cleats? I think I know what you are talking about, but a picture would help. You only use the cam cleats to secure the lines while underway, yes?

Yes.

Little fender cleats can be mounted almost anywhere on the cabin sides.

True, but that only adds obstacles across the gangway. Or did you mean just above the rubrail?

What I meant was up on the sides of the cabin.

The side deck isn't as treacherous as it looks.

Tell it to the Admiral. I bet I'll be the only one to walk it.

My Admiral is probably larger and older than your Admiral :cry but she can do it when she wants to.

 

[colobear]

We use the same camcleats on C-Cakes and have been very satisfied with them. They keep the bow lines out of the way and easily accessible. They are mounted on the side of the cabin about 5-6 inches up from the walkaround.

 

[rogerbum]

I agree with Charlie that the best strategy is to have a line from the forward cleat and a line from the aft cleat that are always attached and which terminate in the cockpit (with plenty of additional line). That way when you get to the dock you can exit the cockpit with both lines in hand and have control over both the bow and the stern. If you rig it with enough extra line, you can tie off one end while controlling the other. This is what I do on my 22. I had several iterations of less efficient strategies prior to getting to this. Once I set things up this way, docking went from a 3 ring circus of rigging lines and jumping to the dock with less than full control of the boat to a simple task I can easily handle single handed.

A line from a midships cleat is also handy especially if docking in a cross wind that blows you off the dock. If you come in under a little more forward speed than you would on a calm day, you can get this line tied off and the forward motion against this spring line will bring you into the dock. If you're at the helm and some one else can tie off the spring line, you can put it in gear at idle to bring it against the dock. If you're single handed, it's a little trickier but if do things just right, you can take it out of gear, go to the cockpit and tie off while the boat is SLOWLY still going forward and the return to the helm to put it back in gear to snug it up against the dock. On my 22 with certain docks I can often reach out the window while at the helm and loop the spring line around the dock cleat and tie the other end back to the midships cleat. Then I leave it in idle to keep it tight to the dock while I secure the other lines, go back into the cabin and shut it down, then untie the spring line and adjust the position with the other lines.

 

[richnkay]

Mike,
Regarding your interest in some type of docking aid you might look at the "Landing Loop" at landingloop.com. Most of our boating is my wife and I with Kay doing the line handling. To help out with my less then precision skills at the helm I got one of these. A couple times with a cross wind and current it has been a huge help in getting a line secured to a cleat from a distance greater then she could safely reach. That being said, I will add that she mostly relies on a boat hook, the landing loop takes up space and 95% of the time is not really needed, but it does work as advertised.

Rich

 

[Captains Cat]

I agree with Charlie that the best strategy is to have a line from the forward cleat and a line from the aft cleat that are always attached and which terminate in the cockpit (with plenty of additional line). That way when you get to the dock you can exit the cockpit with both lines in hand and have control over both the bow and the stern. If you rig it with enough extra line, you can tie off one end while controlling the other.

And, as an added benefit, if you miss the dock and end up in the water, you still have ahold of a couple of lines to the boat! :cry Don't ask me how I know! :roll:

Charlie

 

[matt_unique]

Wow you guys have some fancy solutions!

I guess I'm simple when it comes to docking. I prepare two lines and three fenders prior to approaching the dock. The middle fender is tied to the midships hand rail (the others to the forward and aft side cleats). I then stop as close to parallel as I can, hop off, and grab the upwind or up-current line and secure it first. So if I have wind/current flowing from the stern toward the bow I will tie off the stern line first. The current/wind force will keep the other end against the dock in most cases. I then hustle to secure the other line.

The cleat I use for the bow depends on the dock/clear arrangement. I sometimes use the forward side cleat, sometimes the center bow cleat, and sometimes the bow cleats I installed on both sides of the center line.

--Matt

 

[Aurelia]

We use the two pre-rigged lines to mid and stern on the port side as well for a back-in landing at our covered slip. We don't have the cams to hold the lines (yet) so we just coil them and hang them on hooks in the cockpit. I slowly come into the padded corner (at a slight angle) on our side of the finger slip and Cindie steps off with both of those lines in hand. I give a little rear throttle to start the back around the corner then I step out and off and take one of the lines from her. We use those lines to round the padded corner (as a pivot) until we reach our other pre-rigged dock lines, fenders, and shock lines. Those lines gets snapped in place in about 1 minute and the pre-rigged stern and mid lines on the boat are hooked limply back in the cockpit ready for the next landing. So there are two lines on the mid and stern cleats while at our home slip with only one of which is use. If we land anywhere other than our slip, we put two large fenders off the stern and mid cleats and use the corresponding pre-rigged lines for securing the boat at least for short periods. We will normally add a bow line off the bow cleat with a dock bungee for overnights at other docks for added security. We do keep that one relatively loose to avoid pulling the stern away from the dock. We do not clip fenders to rails normally but have used the grab handles and radar arch on the roof to hang high fenders occasionally for a high sided, close floating neighborly situation.

 

[drjohn71a]

From years of solo sailing, I have the habit of keeping four lines minimum looped into the centers of the most forward and most aft cleats. I pull the forward lines back and tie them to the aft cabin handrails and make a coil with the two or more aft lines which I pull thru the center over the handrail making a quick release setup.

I keep 3, 8 inch fenders on each side all the time. the two aft ones are tied with 3/8 inch line to that cleat or the nearby handrail vertical so as to reach thru the flap on the canvas back in winter. While underway, these two aft fenders can lay up on the stern top under the railing, or can be pulled down to hang inside the cockpit in each corner.

The two midship fenders are tied with 3/8 line to the bottom of the aft cabin handrails and underway are pulled in to hang in the corner there where the cockpit meets the cabin. They are not in the way much there.

For details seep photo number 31 of 37 under Tom-a-Hawk's photo album for Grand Lake of the Cherokees.

The forward two fenders hang from the forward cleats ( you could also hang them from the aftmost bow railing vertical pole ) with 3/8 inch rope which is extended completely through the hollow center of the fender and has a huge knot tied with a loop hanging out of the bottom so I can attach a parachute line to pull them up and between the railing and cuddy cabin as well as to pull to release them for deployment upon docking.

I tie the parachute line from the bottom of the forward fenders to the cap rail on the hood of the cabin so I can easily reach out the window and pull them up so they lie just above that space between the pulpit rail and the cuddy cabin window, then just push them down to wedge them in place with an extendible boat hook pole or just walk up and push them down with my foot.

To deploy the forward fenders, I just pull up and back on the parachute cord and the fenders swing up and out from between the cabin and rail and fall into place.

To deploy the aft four fenders, I just walk around and flip them over the rail and they fall automatically into place.

I can do this both with the camperback on and off and all by myself easily.

Actually, I think that they are all tied in place with 1/2 inch line now that I look back on it.

I keep my boat in the water all year long and use it all year long, and I have not found any way to fully protect it with fewer fenders.

If the aft fenders are placed any further forward, the aft hull corner, Armstrong deck or motors are at risk. If the forward fenders are placed any more aft, the bow sides are at risk. If the midship fenders are omitted, that area is not protected.

Even if you tie up only one side, I have seen storms,tides, and floods come in that break loose other boats, floats, and docks and been very very happy to have all sides of my boat protected when the dock gets crushed like a nutcracker.

John

 

[stlof]

We have the Landing Loop, works well, but requires some practice. Takes a little room, it's like a boat hook with a basketball hoop (sans net) on the end.

 

[Mike...]

Thanks all for the replies. They have been quite helpful.

I can see how having lines already tied to the forward and aft cleats and secured in the cockpit would really be helpful. I am definitely going to try that.

I am also thinking about how to solve the lack of midship cleats problem. We'll see how that goes.
---
mike

 

[Doryman]

I am also thinking about how to solve the lack of midship cleats problem. We'll see how that goes.

I have been thinking about that issue for 4 years! It would have been so easy for CD to have molded in a recess amidships for a spring line cleat.

Warren

 

[Sea Wolf]

I am also thinking about how to solve the lack of midship cleats problem. We'll see how that goes.

I have been thinking about that issue for 4 years! It would have been so easy for CD to have molded in a recess amidships for a spring line cleat.

Warren

Warren-

As an alternative, you might consider mounting a recessed pop-up cleat that would be out of the way when off the dock...(?)

I know, it doesn't solve the "Why didn't they ..... " problem!

Joe. :teeth :thup

6" pop-up recessed boat cleat ($79.95) at Overton's

 

[Doryman]

As an alternative, you might consider mounting a recessed pop-up cleat that would be out of the way when off the dock...(?)

Joe, I had considered those before, and rejected them, but now I am giving them a second thought, particularly if I can mount them close enough to the cockpit that I can reach them to attach a line without having to go forward.

Thanks!
Warren

 

[drjohn71a]

I think there are two schools of thought on this bitter end vs free end thing:

Those of us who spent much time cruising from one port to another got the habit of keeping the forward lines attached and ran them back to the cockpit so you can just step off the boat onto the float with a forward and aft line in each hand.

Those of us who are used to returning to the same dock and are used to having lines permanently attached to the dock which are looped over or attached to the cleats upon return.

The problem of getting a firm attachment to the float without having to jump off the boat led me to design a device which can be thrown from a boat to the dock which will tie itself to vertical or horizontal posts and engage cleats on a flat deck. Then the pilot can just pull forward on a spring line and be in complete control.

It is called "The Counterweighted Grapple Hook" and can be used in mountain climbing, forestry, boating, salvage and emergency rescue activities. The patent search was done about 2 1/2 years ago and the final patent application was filed over a year ago, but it now takes 3-5 years to get through the process.

I have used it to recover run away jet ski's, and unattended craft which were not accessible by boarding as well as an aid in docking boats from 15 foot to 65 foot so far. The line and fitting sizes grow with the size of the boat.


John

 

[Mike...]

The problem of getting a firm attachment to the float without having to jump off the boat led me to design a device which can be thrown from a boat to the dock which will tie itself to vertical or horizontal posts and engage cleats on a flat deck. Then the pilot can just pull forward on a spring line and be in complete control.

That's sounds interesting. Do you sell them yet?
---
mike