fenders for stern-to mooring med?

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ernie_madoff

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Any advice please on best fender config for stern-to mooring in Med? presently got 7 f4 fenders but neeed to get a couple of those big ball fender thingies I guess. Just wondering what best size would be for a 50ft sports cruiser. Thx.
 
ernie_madoff said:
Any advice please on best fender config for stern-to mooring in Med? presently got 7 f4 fenders but neeed to get a couple of those big ball fender thingies I guess. Just wondering what best size would be for a 50ft sports cruiser. Thx.
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4x f4s each side should be fine. Lots of people get ball fenders for the two quarters on the boat but I have never understood what they do that a normal fender doesn't do, and I've never used them in 10 years of stern to-ing, and they are a nightmare to store.
 
I don't see why you need fenders a metre long, so i'd prefer F3, or even F2, but if you already have them then no point buying new I guess. Agree with JFM about ball fenders, you don't need them and they're a PITA to store.
 
We are in Cala d'Or Mallorca and it can get very windy in the afternoons when returning to our berth.

I use 2 ball fenders at the stern quarters as these ensure that the boats on the ajoining berths are pushed away if they are moving in the windy conditions.

Of more concern to me is the need for fenders at the stern as sometimes the wind can blow us back onto the concrete jetty with some force.

As our boat is used mainly by my wife and myself only and as we are both passed our sell by dates we need to keep things under control at all times.

To overcome this I have positioned 3 large ball fenders held together in a V configuration attached to the jetty so that if we get it wrong the boat cannot hit the concrete.

jfm is still a young whipper snapper and can run around his boat like an athelete but we only move at crawling speed now days and need all the help we can get.:)
 
Sorry forgot to add that we do not store our fenders, as we merely place them on the side decks still attached when under way and chuck them back over the side when at anchor.

Have mentioned in a previous thread that some folks may consider this very poor practise but who cares, its my boat etc.
 
I'm going to disagree with jfm here, at least partially. Until last season, we also only used standard fenders all the way along the boat but I managed to damage the edge of my bathing platform reversing into a mooring which had a concrete quay on one side. It wasn't my fault as the marinero had a stern line in his hand and pulled the stern of the boat hard in towards the quay and as a result the bathing platform went under the concrete quay and hit one of the supporting pillars. There was a standard fender on the stern quarter on that side but it wasn't fat enough to keep the boat far enough off the concrete quay. I had a right go at the marinero afterwards but he pointed out that had we had big ball fenders at the stern, it wouldn't have happened and he was right. I also had a right go at the gormless stupid teenager who was standing in the cockpit and watching it happen but thats another story:mad:
Since then, I've kept 2 large ball fenders on board which I now deploy most of the time. They store quite easily in the RIB on the bathing platform. Agree with jfm, 99% of the time you won't need them and sometimes they can be a hindrance when you're trying to squeeze into a tight space between 2 boats but they're just an extra bit of insurance IMHO
 
Hurricane said:
I agree with you about the marineros.
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Some of the Croatian ones I've met are the worst in the Med IMHO. Unsmiling, unfriendly and useless. Hangover from the communistical days, I suppose. Mind you, at least they don't bribing like the SoF marineros do
 
I have 2 ball fenders to protect the transom, just in case big wave throws the boat back against the dock - I seen the results on neighbours boat-expensive. Big wave caused by local fishermen immune to harbour speed limits. Water level in the med does vary with the weather, so however you set up the bow lines if the water level drops at some point later, your transom will be nearer the dock.

What size that depends on the shape of your stern but bigger is usually better bearing in mind what you want them to do and where you may keep them.
 
kashurst said:
Water level in the med does vary with the weather, so however you set up the bow lines if the water level drops at some point later, your transom will be nearer the dock.
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Very good point kashurst.

It's only when you have spent some time in the Med that you realize just how much the weather affects water levels.
 
harstonwood said:
Thread creep alert!

Why is this stern-to mooring malarky all the rage in the med? is it cheaper for the marina (no pontoons) or is there a security advantage? how difficult is it, and how often do boats entangle the bow lines?

Genuinely interested!
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No idea why stern mooring is used but certainly the average boat in Mallorca marinas is much larger than the UK.

On the east coast UK a 50 ft boat is very large whereas a 50 ft boat in Mallorca is average.

No security advantage whether you are moored stern or beam on.

I find it easier with stern-to mooring and have only seen one boat get entangled with any bow lines and that was because he was p*ss*d.
 
What about jfm giving up a weekend of his luxury living and allowing all forumites to board his boat and receive instructions on stern-to mooring.

Knowing how generous jfm is the wine and food will be free and flowing.

I would offer myself but as an OAP my state pension would not stretch to such largesse.;)
 
harstonwood said:
Thread creep alert!

Why is this stern-to mooring malarky all the rage in the med? is it cheaper for the marina (no pontoons) or is there a security advantage? how difficult is it, and how often do boats entangle the bow lines?

Genuinely interested!
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I guess it's cheaper as they don't need to provide finger pontoons, and you certainly get more boats in as you only need a fender width between them. They wouldn't work in the UK because of the tidal range.

Personally I marginally prefer alongside berths, as stern to moorings can be awkward in a cross wind when there's no other boats on both sides of you. The problem is that it takes a minute or two to get a stern and bow line secured, during which time the boat is being blown sideways. You can control it from the helm but then you do risk catching a bow line with the prop if the lines haven't been pulled back into the quay before being dropped


The bow lines also get very dirty and barnacled lying on the sea bed, and it's difficult not to get some of this on your boat as you walk them along the sidedeck.
 
DougH said:
What about jfm giving up a weekend of his luxury living and allowing all forumites to board his boat and receive instructions on stern-to mooring.

Knowing how generous jfm is the wine and food will be free and flowing.

I would offer myself but as an OAP my state pension would not stretch to such largesse.;)
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Yup that's a plan DougH. I'll work out a date for general forum practice at stern-to berthing, then lots of wine. Also we can do it at night with the "furum collection" of Lumishore lights in Antibes, which amounts to about 20 units, so bring suntan lotion and RayBans.
I'm going to email a story to the Daily Mail about whether OAPensions are excessive, and photo of big Sunseeker Manhattan. In time for the lad George Osborne to tax you a bit more in t'budget.
 
From my small pic you can just about see my configuration. The ball fender on the front gives me some piece of mind when neighbours are backing in, it's their first contact point (if they get things wrong). Agree stowage is not elegant, they just stay up front wedged in on deck.
 
I have one Large Ball fender on the pontoon and one I carry all the time. It is the most valuable thing we have. When mooring in a tight spot have son number one walking around with it to stop us damaging other boats if we get windage. Once 70% into berth ball fender goes on stern to stop us getting trapped under old Concrete jetties.

Sod the storage, we tie it over the stern on the swim platform!

Paul
 
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