Clever pontoon fender bracket

[Arcady]

Whilst in France last year, I spotted these seemingly well-designed brackets for securing a fender to the aluminium pontoon edge. My efforts with Google and reverse image searches have failed to identify these. Anybody knows who makes them or where they can be bought?

 

[Thistle]

Who is the pontoon manufacturer? Do they do the brackets too?

 

[LiftyK]

I don’t know about this bracket but at a boat show many years ago I bought some two part brackets that formed a similar function. A chunky receiver is bolted to the side (vertical part) of the pontoon. Into this a large mushroom-like bolt passes through a fender eye and into the receiver. This gives a permanently mounted horizontal fender.

 

[MoodySabre]

Not in this country and not a retailer FENDER HOLDER

ah here you are FENDER HOLDER

 

[LittleSister]

Not in this country and not a retailer FENDER HOLDER

ah here you are FENDER HOLDER

Ah, Spanish.

I thought it seemed far too sensible for the French, who seem to specialise in making docking as trying as possible, with those awful 'hoop' cleats and super-wobbly pontoon fingers!

 

[Arcady]

Not in this country and not a retailer FENDER HOLDER

ah here you are FENDER HOLDER

Ahh - brilliant! Thank you so much. My search terms were evidently too complicated! Pricey, but I may buy a couple none- the- less

 

[rogerthebodger]

Interesting design but could cause a trip point on any jetty and it could cause anyone walking along the jetty to trip and fall in

 

[Alex_Blackwood]

Interesting design but could cause a trip point on any jetty and it could cause anyone walking along the jetty to trip and fall in

Any more than a cleat in a similar position?

 

[rogerthebodger]

Any more than a cleat in a similar position?

Yes but this is much bigger and intrudes into the jetty walking space more the average horn cleat and there ae normally only cleats at each end and in the middle of the finger

IMHO a better design would incorporate a fender bracket into the edge of the finger not on the walking surface.


Ifs all about innovative design taking all factors into consideration that proper engineering designers do making the product better and more fit for purpose

This is less intrusive and less likely to trip any over that the bracket above

And of cause the mooring line is not attached to the cleat correctly. There was thread on tis a little while ago

 

[Daydream believer]

I assume that one has asked the marina owner for permission to install such things. I do know of one marina where the owner went round & removed a lot of fender adaptions that simply looked messy. When I queried it at Bradwell 15 years ago, they said that due to the older design of the pontoon spacing, they frowned on such things, as it reduced the spacing. I can see the point when a visitor arrives in the berth & I do find it awkward when my fenders catch on the regular berth holders awkwardly spaced adaptions.
Obviously it is their berth so I should not complain. But I do make the observation all the same.
If one knows they are there then one might leave one's own fenders off. But in most cases there is not time to make adjustments when arriving. More so when single handed.

 

[Mister E]

At that sort of price why not fit the proper bock fenders?

 

[rogerthebodger]

This looks to me no trip points

From

PVC covered closed cell foam marina fenders protect your boat when berthing

 

[Daydream believer]

This looks to me no trip points

But it catches visitors fenders on the ends when they arrive which demonstrates the point I made in #10

 

[rogerthebodger]

But it catches visitors fenders on the ends when they arrive which demonstrates the point I made in #10

Yes it could if the fender ic not continuous. If it is fitted end to end there would be no gap for a visitors fender to catch on.

The only catch point could be the outer end of the finger which is a catch point anyway

 

[MontyMariner]

I thought it seemed far too sensible for the French

I did look on google.fr for Défense de Ponton but couldn't see that type. Well done for MoodyS

 

[Arcady]

This looks to me no trip points

From

PVC covered closed cell foam marina fenders protect your boat when berthing

Perhaps so, but I doubt closed cell foam has the ability to absorb the movement and energy that an air-filled fender can. Even those big Plastimo bumper fenders (which admittedly are air-filled) are rather hard and not all that durable in my experience.

 

[Arcady]

I don’t know about this bracket but at a boat show many years ago I bought some two part brackets that formed a similar function. A chunky receiver is bolted to the side (vertical part) of the pontoon. Into this a large mushroom-like bolt passes through a fender eye and into the receiver. This gives a permanently mounted horizontal fender.

Yes, I recall those. It seemed like a good idea. My current cheapskate alternative is a series of pad eyes to which I lash a horizontal string of old fenders. The lashings typically only last a season or two.

 

[rogerthebodger]

Yes, I recall those. It seemed like a good idea. My current cheapskate alternative is a series of pad eyes to which I lash a horizontal string of old fenders. The lashings typically only last a season or two.

If you replace your fender lashing with stainless steel TIG welding wire best 316 it will last till the fender falls apart.

We use TIG welding wire for supporting garden plants on to trellis in wife's garden

 

[Daydream believer]

Yes, I recall those. It seemed like a good idea. My current cheapskate alternative is a series of pad eyes to which I lash a horizontal string of old fenders. The lashings typically only last a season or two.

How would you fix your system of horizontal fenders to the pontoon in the picture in post #12?
I do not think that with such posh pontoons the owners would want people screwing bits to them.
there are no holes for looping lines through.. It might work with older construction, but as owners upgrade they tend to avoid holes etc.
That being said some pontoons are now being built with rubber buffers anyway.
Not the sort of thing I would want to leave my boat against long term but nice for the clumsy docking maneouver

 

[rogerthebodger]

Yes, I recall those. It seemed like a good idea. My current cheapskate alternative is a series of pad eyes to which I lash a horizontal string of old fenders. The lashings typically only last a season or two.

How would you fix your system of horizontal fenders to the pontoon in the picture in post #12?
I do not think that with such posh pontoons the owners would want people screwing bits to them.
there are no holes for looping lines through.. It might work with older construction, but as owners upgrade they tend to avoid holes etc.
That being said some pontoons are now being built with rubber buffers anyway.
Not the sort of thing I would want to leave my boat against long term but nice for the clumsy docking maneouver

Arcady said he uses pad eyes screwed to the pontoon with lashings that only last a year, and I suggested using stainless steel welding wire which is in my case 1.5 mm Dia.

If the pontoon has wood sides, simply use stainless self-tapper or drill and tap if they are steel.

My Mobo jetty I did the same but like Arcady the lacing broke due to high UV and I lost some of my fenders so that how I know the issue and solution