evetsmd":2qae6ahm said:
Is that double loop thru the carabiner and then tie off a common form of knoting or a scheme of knoting that you came up with? Why this approach rather than an eye splice over a thimble and carabiner.
What size carabiner are you using?
My whole reason for clipping my stern lines to the eyes was because if I crossed my lines while docked stern-to, they would be across my motor. With constant wave and wind action, it would only take one season before the paint on the motor would become permanently scarred.
The upside of crossing the lines is that the boat moves very little in the slip because the boat is always pulling against one line or the other. In my old slip (bow towards the seawall), I could cross my stern lines without the lines contacting the motor.
The downside of crossing the lines while stern-to is damage to the paint. That is why I came up with the method I use.
Because the lines are not crossed, it does allow the boat to wander a bit. To correct that, I run 2 spring lines (one on each side) to check lateral movement.
I run a total of 7 lines on my boat. 2 conventional bow lines, 2 spring lines (attached forward to check rearward movement), the 2 stern lines (which check forward movement), and a small 'locator line' off the stbd quarter so the boat doesn't move away from the finger pier when stepping on and off. :shock:
Not certain of the size of those clips... I'll have to remember to measure them tomorrow. Rough guess... 4 to 5". It was one of the largest stainless clips that Boaters World had on the shelf.
As far as my knots...
The knot that you see is called a "double figure 8 on a bight" and the tail behind the figure 8 is secured with two half hitches (and a zip tie).
I used that knot because I can tie it in my sleep
. It can also be untied without resorting to a knife if needed.
The "family of 8 knots" are used extensively in technical rope rescue (which I used to teach) and that particular family of knots stresses the rope much less than a bowline will. I rarely tie a bowline anymore, and will substitute a figure 8 whenever I can.
Why did I double it on the clip? Extra chafe and strain relief.
Why the two half hitches? Habit. It isn't needed with a figure 8, but it does make a tidy package when neatness counts. 8)
If you wanted to splice an eye in the line you could easilly do so. I chose to put the eye (in a slip loop) around the piling, and tie the other end. In fact I do that with all of my lines.
Some folks like to put the eye on a cleat and tie the piling. My preference is to put the eye in a slip loop over the piling, and tie off to the cleat. That allows me to better adjust my lines depending on weather conditions. This method has already proved beneficial through several tropical storms, which is why it's my preferred method. Or... maybe I'm just 'different'. :wink:
How do I know where to place my lines when I dock, if there isn't a simple eye to throw on a cleat?
All of my lines are marked with a zip tie to show me where to make the line fast.
Sooooooo..... It's really not just one thing that caused me to secure my boat the way I do.
Remember... you asked! :lol:
