What's the best design for a throw line.

  • Thread starter Thread starter KAM
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thinwater said:
MOB, no question, a throw bag is smart.

To a dock or another vessel, I question whether a throw line is better in most cases. You will need to attach another line, which takes longer. On the other hand, learning to throw a 1/2-inch line coil 40-50 feet, with just 15 seconds or so to coil it in your hands, is basic seamanship. It is a skill you need. As soon as they catch the line, it is ready for use. Using a throw bag to get a line to a dock seems like more potencial for tangle. The main advantages are that it takes less skill and has greater range.

Also, most throw bags need to be repacked if you miss the first time, which takes longer than recoiling a line to throw.

Really, two different functions.
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Most people using the Crinan canal will be pretty adept at line throwing. I thought I was until I had to pass fuel to a French yacht which had run out in quite rough conditions. As I was single handed it was pretty difficult to uncoil and throw a rope whilst maintaining position. It took a few attempts and in retrospect the throw line would have been a much easier option. Likewise drifting away from a dock with a failed engine where youve only got one shot a throw line might be a good option.
 
Apparently real heaving lines are somehow considered dangerous.
My reccommendation for by far the most effective means available removed.
 
So I gather a throw bag has weight to make it throwable but also buoyancy to make it float. You throw the bag and retain hold of the end of the line that is in the bag. Have I go that right? I did make a throw line for MOB safety witha 6mm floating rope stuffed inside. I tied a largish bow line on the end for a MOB to grab. My mode of operation was to pull the rope out of the bag and heave the rope in the usual manner. The end of the rope emerged from the bag and was meant to be tied on to the boat. Or at least put a foot on it. Have I had it all wrong all along? ol.'will
 
William_H said:
So I gather a throw bag has weight to make it throwable but also buoyancy to make it float. You throw the bag and retain hold of the end of the line that is in the bag. Have I go that right?
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Yes, the added weight is minimal in this type, 2022 Palm 20M Pro Throw Line 12273 (other makes are available) which as I said earlier are used by the rescue services and as the line is 11mm has enough mass in the bag to make throwing easy.

www.solocoastalsailing.co.uk
 
The bag is effectively a soft weight, you throw underhand and we practise aiming at a small tub, becomes quite competitive
 
William_H said:
So I gather a throw bag has weight to make it throwable but also buoyancy to make it float. You throw the bag and retain hold of the end of the line that is in the bag. Have I go that right? I did make a throw line for MOB safety witha 6mm floating rope stuffed inside. I tied a largish bow line on the end for a MOB to grab. My mode of operation was to pull the rope out of the bag and heave the rope in the usual manner. The end of the rope emerged from the bag and was meant to be tied on to the boat. Or at least put a foot on it. Have I had it all wrong all along? ol.'will
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The bag which I have linked to in my Post#13 above, a standard sailing MOB throw line, has a weight encased in buoyant foam sown into a pocket at its base.
The best method is to have a loop in the end of the line that can be pulled out and put around one's wrist. The velcro fastening must be opened, then the bag, with line within, is thrown underhand towards the casualty.
There is some confusion in this thread between the MOB Throwline, various multipurpose larger diameter ropes in bags used on kayaks, and the act of heaving a line to someone on shore etc.
 
William_H said:
So I gather a throw bag has weight to make it throwable but also buoyancy to make it float. You throw the bag and retain hold of the end of the line that is in the bag. Have I go that right?
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Yes, however in the kayak style throw bag (at least the ones I have used), there is no deadweight in the bag. The throwing weight comes from the line it contains, plus a bit from the fabric of and the handle on the bag. The line is bouyant and bag also float on the surface.

You can see more details on the product sheet included at Throw Bag

Here's a tweet from one of our local police teams which nicely shows one of their chaps trying out a throw bag:
https://twitter.com/x/status/1501958483943510019

As Daverw notes, a throwbag session can quicky turn into some quite competitive entertainment.
 
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Slowboat35 said:
Apparently real heaving lines are somehow considered dangerous.
My reccommendation for by far the most effective means available removed.
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A heaving line with the knot made around a solid object is regarded as dangerous because it could knock someone out, or worse, if it hit them on the head. If using a traditional Monkey's Fist or similar, it's best to make them round a soft core - a bag of sand, for example.

An alternative to a Monkey's Fist that doesn't need a core is a multiple overhand knot, which forms a "sausage" shaped knot with an attractive spiral appearance. It's also dead easy to tie!
 
Spirit (of Glenans) said:
... the end of the line that can be pulled out and put around one's wrist. ...
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I don't think you meant this the way you wrote it. This has the potencial to creat a second victim, particularly in white water, but even in the case of a boat drifting off the dock.

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Remember to perfect your underhand throw method over guard rail (24" minimum). Depending on the length of the bag, this will alter your swing a good bit.
 
How do you repack these kayak throwing bags. I assume they are just flaked inside the bag so they deploy easily but how do you put the line in bag???
David MH
 
You just ram it back in, never flake it as it then knots and tangles, that’s why it quick to repack
 
davidmh said:
How do you repack these kayak throwing bags. I assume they are just flaked inside the bag so they deploy easily but how do you put the line in bag???
David MH
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If you need a second throw, you don't repack. You very quickly coil the line over one hand and throw. Keeping the bag full of water at this stage adds a bit more weight as well
 
Daverw said:
You just ram it back in, never flake it as it then knots and tangles, that’s why it quick to repack
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Yes, I find it easiest to hold the bag at about waist level with one hand, run the rope over a shoulder and stuff it into the bag with the other hand.
 
thinwater said:
I don't think you meant this the way you wrote it. This has the potencial to creat a second victim, particularly in white water, but even in the case of a boat drifting off the dock.

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Remember to perfect your underhand throw method over guard rail (24" minimum). Depending on the length of the bag, this will alter your swing a good bit.
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I won't be sailing my yacht in white water and I would not be using my MOB throwline in a 'drifting off a dock' situation, where heaving a warp would be a better solution.
As I mentioned in my Post#26, this thread is about deploying MOB throwlines as used on sailing yachts but has been hijacked by those writing about heaving lines designed for use with kayaks and also the act of heaving a warp or dockline.
If I was using a throwline to rescue an MOB, it would be in a situation where I have performed an emergency heave-to, leaving me with the boat stopped close enough to the casualty for the line to reach him(her), hence no danger of being dragged overboard. Having thrown the line successfully to the casualty, it would make sense to secure the end of the line to something on the boat before taking further action.
 
Spirit (of Glenans) said:
I won't be sailing my yacht in white water and I would not be using my MOB throwline in a 'drifting off a dock' situation, where heaving a warp would be a better solution.
As I mentioned in my Post#26, this thread is about deploying MOB throwlines as used on sailing yachts but has been hijacked by those writing about heaving lines designed for use with kayaks and also the act of heaving a warp or dockline.
If I was using a throwline to rescue an MOB, it would be in a situation where I have performed an emergency heave-to, leaving me with the boat stopped close enough to the casualty for the line to reach him(her), hence no danger of being dragged overboard. Having thrown the line successfully to the casualty, it would make sense to secure the end of the line to something on the boat before taking further action.
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Not entirely true in my case at least. It is very many years since I paddled a kayak but I recognised then how effective a bag-type thowline is and bought one specifically for my sailing boat. It has formed one of my primary MOB recovery methods ever since.

I have attended a number of offshore survival courses as a requirement for my work. The throwing bag has been included in most of these. A useful complement to the bag is a webbing loop that the casualty can slip over his arm, keeping him attached to the vessel or structure.
 
vyv_cox said:
Not entirely true in my case at least. It is very many years since I paddled a kayak but I recognised then how effective a bag-type thowline is and bought one specifically for my sailing boat. It has formed one of my primary MOB recovery methods ever since.

I have attended a number of offshore survival courses as a requirement for my work. The throwing bag has been included in most of these. A useful complement to the bag is a webbing loop that the casualty can slip over his arm, keeping him attached to the vessel or structure.
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This is the type of throwline with which I am familiar. I've never seen a kayak one :
Osculati Throw Line 30m
During my time instructing on Glenans 5.70s I became quite proficient at demonstrating how to throw these lines to their full extent, and how to repack them.
In the photo , (if I have managed to upload it successfully), the sections of plastic tube mounted on the transoms of the boats house the throwlines. It is obvious that guardwires were not a issue when throwing:)

Sherkin 1.jpg
 
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