On Sat, 26 Jul 2008 21:35:26 -0400, Gene Kearns
wrote:

On Sat, 26 Jul 2008 20:56:18 -0400, Eisboch penned the following well
considered thoughts to the readers of rec.boats:

The boat I bought had fenders equipped with a similiar device on them. One
of the first things I did was remove them and toss them in the dumpster.

I don't like attaching dock fenders high up on the horizontal bow rail. If
the boat is in a slip and the wind is blowing, the fender gets squeezed
between the hull and the dock, pulling strongly on the bow rail.
I tie the fender lines either to a cleat or low on the vertical sections of
the bow rail, where it is secured to the boat.
This avoids bending the rail as the boat moves around during heavy weather.

Tying them with the right type of hitch is faster, more secure and easily
adjustable.


If one can expect certain conditions these appurtenances may not be
the best choice. However, in transient situations they certainly can
be convenient to establish fender height to match available dockage,

My daughter bought me some of these as a Christmas present when I had the
last boat.

http://images.westmarine.com/large/198277.jpg

I left them on the boat when I traded it in. I like the speed with which I
can move fenders about when using only a clove hitch.