The fenderboar for my 25 is a piece of 2x6 about 4 feet long. On either end is a "[" shaped rubber block about 4" thick and designed so the hole for the lines on the board go down through the top of the rubber block, then through the board, then through the bottom of the block, and then the line comes back through a parallel set of holes about 3 or 4" nearer the center of the board. The blocks look something like a more substantial version of these Taylor Made blocks in the West Marine catalog: http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId =10001 <http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogI d=10001&storeId=11151&partNumber=278871&langId=-1&searchKeyword=fender+board > &storeId=11151&partNumber=278871&langId=-1&searchKeyword=fender+board
I attach the board just below the toe rail, between the widest part of the hull and the adjacent piling. Only one board is needed, because you tie the boat snugly to the finger pier and run fore and aft springs to keep the boat from moving forward and back. On the 38, I have a board made of 2x8, about 5 to 6 feet long, with a line tied through a hole in each end. Pretty much the setup illustrated in the Practical Sailor article. The length of the board is determined by being sufficient to put 2 fenders between the hull and the board forward of the piling, and another pair aft of the piling. I basically use that board only when I will be away from the boat for a period of time. Again, fore and aft springs are needed to keep the boat from moving and "spitting" the fenders out the top of the board, or moving so far the piling goes beyond the end of the board. About 60% of the boats in the municipal marina where I work as Dockmaster use at least one fender board. A couple of the longer (40 +) trawlers use two. We have wind and water height that can vary by 3 to 4 feet on any given day, so a fender board arrangement will accommodate a lot of abuse from pilings and a lot of pounding from wind and wave. BTW, speaking of pounding, I can't imagine using PVC tubing for a protecting the boat. Even schedule 80 pipe would get crushed by any significant wave action. You can get away without a fender board if you use big double ended fenders, and your dockage is only for a short while. The ones on Imzadi are 10 or 12 inch diameter. I tie one or two around the piling so the fender is horizontal. The fenders (two may be needed if there is a significant variation in water height from day to day) protect the hull and stay on the piling. The downside is that if the boat is there for a longer period of time, the fenders will roll against the piling as the boat moves up and down, and the dirt/grit from the piling will get transferred to your topsides and may leave a fairly noticeable blemish. I use this method primarily when traveling, when I'm on the boat to tend the fenders, or when the boat will be in one place for only a day or two. Other than that, I use the fender board. Rick Brass From: CnC-List [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of David Knecht Sent: Sunday, January 12, 2014 5:41 PM To: CnC CnC discussion list Subject: Stus-List Fenderboards My topsides got scratched by piers while waiting to be pulled from the water in November. I did not realize until we arrived that the place we were bringing the boat to had only pylons and no dock or fenders on the pylons themselves. I tried to position fenders as best I could, but obviously it was not successful (especially since they pulled the boat 5 days after they said they were going to). Since then I have learned about fenderboards and plan to construct one for spring splash and future docking adventures. My question is about construction. I have read of both wood and pvc versions. Some recommend wood up to 2x8 for a boat of my size (http://www.practical-sailor.com/marine/build_your_own_fender_boards-10681-1 .html). That would make a pretty heavy piece of wood. The presumed advantage of PVC is that it won't weather or accumulate gunk from pylons. It was claimed PVC was lighter, but that depends on the type and size of wood. I can't see the need for either wider, heavier wood or big diameter PVC. It doesn't seem to me that the fenderboard is going to be subject to alot of stress. The PVC would be subject to crushing force between the boat and pylon, but the fenders will absorb alot of that. Also, I don't think that 3" PVC (cheaper and lighter) will be any weaker than 4" PVC (recommended in http://boatingtales.com/making-a-fender-board/) to a crushing force since the wall diameter is the same. I also can't see why a 2x8 (recommended for my boat size) would be any better than a 2x4. My goal is the simplest and lightest fenderboard that will work. It seems that either wood or pvc will work and the actual construction is simple, but the size is me concern. So what is the wisdom of the list on this topic? THanks- Dave PS- Any thoughts on the best way to get the scratches out of the topsides also appreciated David Knecht Aries 1990 C&C 34+ New London, CT
<<image001.png>>
_______________________________________________ This List is provided by the C&C Photo Album http://www.cncphotoalbum.com [email protected]
