Learn to tie a Bowline

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O C Diver

O C Diver

Guru
Joined
Dec 16, 2010
Messages
12,867
Location
USA
Vessel Name
Slow Hand
Vessel Make
Cherubini Independence 45
It's Labor Day weekend and I thought I'd spend it at the Crisfield, MD Crab Derby festival. Walking the docks to look at boats is lots of fun. Occasionally you see something something that nobody will believe without a picture.

This line is >1" in diameter. Clearly the owner was concerned about safety as there are two hose clamps of above average quality (wider) instead of just one. :nonono:

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Ted
 
Dang, even a couple of granny knots would be better!
 
Kind of defeats the purpose of the heavy line.
 
Obviously its too short - use the clamps to add another piece, then tie the bowline. Duh
 
Does anyone notice the line fraying? I wonder if that method caused the fraying. I would avoid being around that boat at all cost and the owner. I'm not asking for a call out. If I was in that area, I would want to know the boat name so I could avoid them.
 
Things that make you go...WTF?

There's a guy on my dock who just twisted an eye lagbolt into the caprail on his gunnel for a spring line. I won't post a pic for obvious reasons...but it's pathetic.

Every evening the dink's available, I enjoy marina rides to check out boats. In addition to the priceless entertainment value, it been fortunate that I've ended up helping many other boaters (3 last July 4th alone) along the way. Two loose dink grabs and grounded dink tow. Also have made a few friends along the way.

This week I was in Oakland, CA at British Marine getting my port HP fuel pump replaced. In the evenings, I'd go for dink rides around town. Even found the inland end of the estuary near OAK airport, General Aviation side...where I used to operate regularly so it was somewhat familiar. It was a great 7 mile dink adventure under cool bridges and open shallows in ideal conditions. It's great having a relatively dry and stable dink at 15 kts on the bay.

Stopped at Ayala Cove, Angel Island on the way home from Oakland. This poor guy caught the mooring ball chain on his prop. He was stuck 3 hrs while SF Bay Vessel Assist saved the day. It was quite the show for the 10 minutes leading up to the incident.
 

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FlyWright said:
Stopped at Ayala Cove, Angel Island on the way home from Oakland. .
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Angel Island. Used to charter sail boats out of Sausalito when I lived over there and spend the afternoon on Angel using the BBQ stands they had there. Good times, only you had to be wary of the afternoon winds! A solid reef was you friend!
 
Those clamps are overkill. Zip ties would be do,they cost less and would look better.
 
BruceK said:
Those clamps are overkill. Zip ties would be do,they cost less and would look better.
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High Wire said:
How about bread ties :D
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You fancy yacht club types with your double breasted blazers and your fancy ass zip ties and bread ties! Think you're better than me?! All any real sailor needs is some electrical tape!
 
High Wire said:
How about bread ties :D
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Wayfarer said:
You fancy yacht club types with your double breasted blazers and your fancy ass zip ties and bread ties! Think you're better than me?! All any real sailor needs is some electrical tape!
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I used to have a covered uber-protected slip in the freshwaters of Riverboat Marina on the Delta Loop with a drop-down shade fabric on the stern. I swear, I could have tied up my boat with braided dental floss and it would have been just fine.

On the backside, if we had a negative tide, I might be stuck in the slip due to a shallow exit or else I'd polish the props. A friend recently tangled with some weeds backing out of the restaurant slip in a 4788.

Each marina has its own "peccadilloes." Pick your poison.
 
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Took these some time ago at our marina. Tie-ups ranging from attempts at works of art to downright dangerous.

I'll leave the commentaries to you all....
 

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I have been at some marinas where the dockmasters will uncoil your neatly flemished coils.


The is the thought that they help promote dock rot.....hold moisture...especially neat the cleat.


Also many commercial guys will never use a half hitch to finish of a cleating...have seen then jam too often if the line isn't just the right size for the cleat or whatever tying to.
 
Yes the CG does not use a hitch on a cleat also, just figure 8 it then a wrap around the base of the cleat. In your photos number 1 actually got it correct. No comment on the others...
 
Comodave said:
Yes the CG does not use a hitch on a cleat also, just figure 8 it then a wrap around the base of the cleat. In your photos number 1 actually got it correct. No comment on the others...
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As a sailor, I was taught this for for all working lines on the boat (sheets, halyards, downhauls, etc...). However, for dock lines I was taught to finish the cleat hitch as shown in #1.
 
I finish mine with a hitch also and have never had a problem with them jamming. But the CG would not let us hitch them due to a possibility of a jam. So when we were on patrol we would figure 8 them and then took a wrap around the base of the cleat. I never had a problem with them coming loose but I didn’t like not hitching them.
 
Read about tugboat hitches and lines...if everything is correctly sized... 3 complete turns around something provides enough friction that the line will part before it slips. Hitches waaay redundant and possibly an issue.


The problem is sizing line and clear.



Been there ....done that.
 
I had a Coastie tell me the same thing about a year ago so I stopped hitching it on the dock cleat but onboard when I secure a load on a gunwale cleat, I hitch 'em.
 
Yes, you do need to use a size of line appropriate for the cleat. The line should be 1/16” per inch of cleat length. So 8/16” or 1/2” line for an 8” cleat. Not saying that a different size line won’t work but that is the correct size for an 8” cleat. A different size may or may not work, it may slip.
 
O C Diver said:
It's Labor Day weekend and I thought I'd spend it at the Crisfield, MD Crab Derby festival. Walking the docks to look at boats is lots of fun. Occasionally you see something something that nobody will believe without a picture.

This line is >1" in diameter. Clearly the owner was concerned about safety as there are two hose clamps of above average quality (wider) instead of just one. :nonono:

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Ted
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Get a book titled "The Klutz Book of knots"
 
Maybe it's a hurricane hitch? (or maybe just a big knot of line)
 

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My Dad, who spent 20 years in the fleet (admittedly not a boatswain 's mate), said a knot has to do two things:
Hold securely,
Release quickly.

Most of the above examples fail this test.
 
AlaskaProf said:
My Dad, who spent 20 years in the fleet (admittedly not a boatswain 's mate), said a knot has to do two things:
Hold securely,
Release quickly.

Most of the above examples fail this test.
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I have an axe on board.
 
Ted. You taught me to use hose clamps like that on a permanent line but to wrap the clamps with duct tape so they wouldn’t get stolen. :)
 
As a kid I was taught to Flemish Twist the extra line, later I was taught to figure 8 it to allow air circulation. Now I just pile it on the dock and I hope it bothers those in their captain hats and shirts. :)
 
I love people that leave their extra dock line draped all the way over the dock so that they can trip the unaware. Like you I just coil it and lay it next to the cleat, I don’t waste time flemishing it.
 
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