Suggestions for dinghy fender / chafing strip

[joliette]

The Herreshoff Nereia tender I built last year has proved to be a great little boat under oars or outboard for getting up the Medina to Joliette's mooring. However, having put a few minor dents in the topsides (a problem I didn't have with my old inflatable!), I want to change or cover the teak chafing strip with something soft to serve as a fender .... any suggestions?

 

[Lakesailor]

I have some steam pipe insulation on my gunwhales. Not as pretty as your tender, but it certainly protects the topsides.
(It's all rumpled because I store the tender upside down on a rocky shore)

 

[Kukri]

Three inch coir rope.

There is a trick to doing this properly - you thread a small stainless wire rope into the heart of the coir rope, taper the ends of the coir rope down and seize them to the eyes in the wire rope and then secure the wire rope with twists of seizing wire through the gunwale and haul taut on the eyes.

If you are anywhere near Ipswich go and see Des Pawson and he will sell you all the materials and show you how to do it.

Lasts at least ten years.

 

[Sequoiah1]

The Herreshoff Nereia tender I built last year has proved to be a great little boat under oars or outboard for getting up the Medina to Joliette's mooring. However, having put a few minor dents in the topsides (a problem I didn't have with my old inflatable!), I want to change or cover the teak chafing strip with something soft to serve as a fender .... any suggestions?

Try these guys http://www.wilks.co.uk or even one of the automotive suppliers, I would use rope but it all adds weight to the tender especially when soaked.

 

[VicS]

The Herreshoff Nereia tender I built last year has proved to be a great little boat under oars or outboard for getting up the Medina to Joliette's mooring. However, having put a few minor dents in the topsides (a problem I didn't have with my old inflatable!), I want to change or cover the teak chafing strip with something soft to serve as a fender .... any suggestions?

Something like the rope fendering in the pictures below?

I suppose its about 3" circ but it's synthetic, dont know exactly what though. It is held by a light nylon lacing that goes through holes drilled vertically through the wood and pulled tightly into the lay of the rope. Holes have to be in the right positions!

I tried various ways of fixing it but this way looks the best and has proved completely satisfactory. Been on there a lot longer than 10 years

Click .... ....

 

[joliette]

Thanks all for the ideas. Much appreciated.

 

[Lyulph Hesling]

I bought some nice ex navy mooring line multiplait about 50mm diameter, which is now on my dinghy, laced on with holes in the strake. Macsalvors of Pool (near Camborne) have it sometimes.

 

[Zagato]

Article in PBO mag about this, one that has just come out

 

[Ubergeekian]

I have a rope fender round my GRP pram dinghy. The rope is as big a "natural" looking three strand artificial fibre one as I could find. It's held on using cable ties through cradles:

The cradles are screwed to the gunwhale at 45 degrees or so and secured with a single cable tie around only the innermost strand. This means that they are almost invisible. The rope is held just off the gunwhale, by a couple of mm, which means that there isn't a dark, dank trap for water, sand and muck to get trapped in.

It's only been on a year, but seems to be working fine.

 

[oldfrank]

White 'D' rubber with wooden insert. Screw straight through the wod & rubber into the hull to fix and the screw heads will disappear into the rubber. Looks a bit more 'yachty'.