dock and boat bumpers?

[JimB]

Just bought our first mastercraft! Haven't purchased a lift yet and want to best protect the boat from dock mishaps. At present we have an aluminum framed dock with no bumpers. Some say to wrap a 2X12 w/ carpet, others say hull huggers. Can someone help me out?

[bigmac]

Just bought our first mastercraft! Haven't purchased a lift yet and want to best protect the boat from dock mishaps. At present we have an aluminum framed dock with no bumpers. Some say to wrap a 2X12 w/ carpet, others say hull huggers. Can someone help me out?

The solution varies depending on how your dock posts are set up. Mine are 1 1/4 galvanized pipe. The company that makes the dock sells PVC bumpers (http://dhdocks.com//products/11%2Ejpg) that slip over the posts, but they're $40 each. Floe makes some nice bumpers (http://www.floeintl.com/roll-in_docks/dock_accessories.html) too, but they're $60 each.

I've used bumper strips along the dock edge, but no matter how soft they are, they still scratch the gel coat if they're hitting against the hull, so I wanted the bumpers to hit against the rub rail, not the hull. I elected to make some out of 4 inch heavy PVC pipe, slotted for the support bracket. I bought some styrofoam boat guides, cut them into 6 inch lengths and enlarged the center with a hole saw to slip over the 1 1/4 post. The PVC slips over the styrofoam segments so the PVC doesn't wiggle. The boat's rub rail nudges against them and the hull can't hit the dock. If it's going to be tied for any length of time, I just attach a couple of regular boat bumpers to the cleats on the boat.

Each PVC post bumper I built cost less than $10 from the local hardware store. The writing on the PVC pipe comes off easily by wiping down with a little acetone, or some sandpaper. I haven't gotten around to that yet.

http://mccollister.info/bumper.jpg
http://mccollister.info/bumper2.jpghttp://mccollister.info/bumper3.jpg

[T Scott]

How about some basic whips.....$169.00 from Overtons.

[RobertT]

Here is what I have found to be the best.

I took 2x6's, long enough to run 6" below the waterline to 3' above. West Marine has a white cloth type bumper system that you nail or screw into it. I placed one of them at the widest part of my boat (directly next to the driver), and another about 2' to the front of the back of the boat by a cleat.

I then tied a dock line at the exact length needed to the front post that facilitates driving up, reaching over and grabbing the post, then grabbing the dock line with the loop on the end, and putting the loop from the dock line over my pylon. Only one rope is needed.

I would never trust plain fenders on a metal dock, in big chop they tend to pop up and leave everything exposed.

Having that said, I also purchased a 10" round fender and placed it exactly 1' in front of the forward post. This bumper does two things...first it acts as a cushion, and second it acts as a fulcrum keeping the back of the boat nicely pushed over onto the rear post. Anyway, it was less than $60.00 total for all of it, and works perfectly. I got the idea from the ski team guys on my lake, they use the single dockline on the pylon system for all of their boats. No fenders allowed for them, they say that a fender will screw up a boat faster than anything.

Let that rub rail run up and down the padded post, thats what its made for.

I also bought 2 8" fenders to keep under the rear seat for other peoples dock. Definitely, dont skimp on them...get the largest fenders you can comfortably store in your boat!

If you have a tower, my trick for the front fender (its hard to get it in the right spot) was to get the type of fenders that have a hole all the way through them. I then bought a 6' fender line, and fed it through the center...leaving the loop at the top. I then brought the loose tag end of the line around the fender and tied it 2" below the pre-made loop on the top (basically went all the way around).

The reason for this is because the driver can reach behind him, grab the fender which has a small loop already on it, and put the loop on the lowest tower knob. On my boat, it hangs perfect, protecting everything.

If this makes no sense, I can take pictures next week.

Hope this helps.

[JimB]

Thanks for the reply. I think I understand what you're doing. Sounds like a good idea.
I appreciate the help.

[JimB]

What a good idea! Thank you.

[danbinz]

If your dock has a slip in it you can attach eyelets to your post then buy some bungee cord rope and snap hooks. attach a cord from 4 sides of the boat to pull the boat to the center of the slip.This works pretty well and the bungee will need to be replaced every 2 years or so.

[School Skier]

If you can get a lift for the new M/C it's worth it!

[AirJunky]

I have a boat slip, one of 2 side by side on a floating dock. I made a mooring system similar to this (http://www.overtons.com/modperl/overtons/detail/pdetail2.cgi?r=detail_view&item_num=26386) out of 2" PVC & 3/8" bulk mooring line I bought at Home Depot. Cost me about $20 & keeps my boat off the docks & the boat next to it so well I don't use bumpers at all. After a few windy evenings this summer & seeing how well my boat handles the wind & waves, 3 other inboard owners on my dock have made the exact same thing. Works great.

Another good option is the mooring whips. I've seen them used for years without any failure.