Floating dinghy painter?
 

What is a good dinghy tow rope and painter? Should float well enough
that it doesn't get sucked into the prop but still pleasant to handle
and hold knots well.

--

Roger Long

Floating dinghy painter?
 

On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 15:07:08 GMT, "Roger Long"
wrote:

What is a good dinghy tow rope and painter? Should float well enough
that it doesn't get sucked into the prop but still pleasant to handle
and hold knots well.

I have sailed many charter boats and have handled many painters. I am
partial to braided polypropylene.

Jack

_________________________________________
Jack Dale
ISPA Yachtmaster Offshore Instructor
CYA Advanced Cruising Instructor
http://www.swiftsuresailing.com
_________________________________________

Floating dinghy painter?
 

I find that it doesn't hold knots well, though, and I tape them up with
plastic tape.

Capt. jeff

Floating dinghy painter?
 

How about an overhand knot p'styrene sphere (craft / hobby store) drilled
to the line dia overhand knot: every (two times the depth to the top of
your screw) on your preferred line type?
BF

"Tamaroak" wrote in message
...
I find that it doesn't hold knots well, though, and I tape them up with
plastic tape.

Capt. jeff

Floating dinghy painter?
 

Yuck. This all sounds like a horrible kludge and I hate that rope.
Isn't there anything else that floats?

--

Roger Long

Floating dinghy painter?
 

On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 15:07:08 GMT, "Roger Long"
wrote:

What is a good dinghy tow rope and painter? Should float well enough
that it doesn't get sucked into the prop but still pleasant to handle
and hold knots well.

I use braided polypropylene in a two-point bridle off the
stern-quarter extrusions, and I put a lot of extra hitches in the
knots. I also use the usual three-braid (non-floating) painter as a
back-up, but it's paid out mostly as a shock absorber and is never
slack enough under way to foul the rudder or the prop. If I'm backing
down, I use a boat hook to keep it out of harm's way.

One comment: Having a 10 foot RIB with a 9.9 four-stroke *does* have
one not-so-obvious advantage in that if your engine hits a spot of
trouble and the wind's dead, you can get home using the RIB to tow the
boat at the hip.

I did this at 4 knots for about 10 nm when I had an engine overheat on
my 33 foot sailboat, and we got home fine. I tied the RIB off,
gradually tweaked the throttle and the direction for "least resistance
dead ahead" and then got back on the sailboat at the rail and had my
wife at the tiller. Thus an empty but closely observed tender "towed"
us back to dock.

The only tricky part was going through our seawall with the
unaccustomed beam and keeping enough way on to dock with the Zodiac
hauling us to starboard.

Mainly, I use it as a toy on windless summer nights. I didn't even
bring it when we went for a week's cruising to Belleville in October,
as we had dockage everywhere.

R.

Floating dinghy painter?
 

Roger Long wrote:
What is a good dinghy tow rope and painter? Should float well enough
that it doesn't get sucked into the prop but still pleasant to handle
and hold knots well.

Use anything you like but put a float on it.

Floating dinghy painter?
 

Subject

Standard 3/8", 3 strand yellow poly sold as low cost rope for
construction sites at places like Home Depot.

Low cost, high visibility, ready availability, and it floats.

Replace yearly in northern climes, semi-annually in places like South Fl.

Lew

Floating dinghy painter?
 

Roger Long wrote:
Yuck. This all sounds like a horrible kludge and I hate that rope.
Isn't there anything else that floats?

Spectra

Floating dinghy painter?
 

"Roger Long" wrote in news:wU9wf.77876$XC4.33248
@twister.nyroc.rr.com:

What is a good dinghy tow rope and painter? Should float well enough
that it doesn't get sucked into the prop but still pleasant to handle
and hold knots well.

--

Roger Long



The Mizzen boom! Put a preventer on it to hold it out to whichever side
you like. Tows the dink well under power in the ditch. In port, tie up
the dink to the outhaul car to you can easily retrieve it alongside the
boarding ladder to board. Haul the dink out to the end for "storage" so
it can't bump into anything it might scratch.

Isn't that why they put that little car on top of the mizzen boom,
anyways?...(c;

Floating dinghy painter?
 

Evan Gatehouse wrote:
Roger Long wrote:

Yuck. This all sounds like a horrible kludge and I hate that rope.
Isn't there anything else that floats?


Spectra

Warp speed. How much do you want to spend?

Floating dinghy painter?
 

On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 09:29:04 -0800, Tamaroak
wrote:

I find that it doesn't hold knots well, though, and I tape them up with
plastic tape.

Capt. jeff

Most of the ones I have seen are spliced.

Jack

_________________________________________
Jack Dale
ISPA Yachtmaster Offshore Instructor
CYA Advanced Cruising Instructor
http://www.swiftsuresailing.com
_________________________________________

Floating dinghy painter?
 

You can get braided (not three strand) polypropylene at Home Depot. It
will work and tie just like regular braided line, but floats. Comes in
colors like green, blue, etc. If it's out in the sun all the time, I'd
replace it yearly; it'll still weaken quite a bit in constant
sunlight.

If you want to use that yellow stuff (three strand) splice it and
forget the knots.

Floating dinghy painter?
 

I have used for several years now a towing bridle made by C-Level in CT. It
clips on to the towing eyes on the tubes of my inflatable and has a float at
the loop where you attach the tow line. For a tow line I have a length of
3/8" poly line with an eye spliced in one end. I loop the eye of the tow
line thru the eye in the bridle then attach the bitter end to a stern cleat.
I can adjust the length as necessary and move the line to an amidship cleat
and pull it alongside when I back up or anchor.

--

"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
What is a good dinghy tow rope and painter? Should float well enough that
it doesn't get sucked into the prop but still pleasant to handle and hold
knots well.

--

Roger Long

Floating dinghy painter?
 

New England Ropes makes a rope just for this purpose - a nylon braided
cover over a poly core called "Dinghy Tow Line". West Marine has it in
their catalog. It floats but the nylon outside means that it doesn't
slip. The poly is also protected from UV by the cover.

Carl
S/V Sula

I have no relation to either company.

Floating dinghy painter?
 

Thank you. That is exactly what I was looking for and why I posted in
this in the first place.

--

Roger Long



"Carl" wrote in message
oups.com...

New England Ropes makes a rope just for this purpose - a nylon
braided
cover over a poly core called "Dinghy Tow Line". West Marine has it
in
their catalog. It floats but the nylon outside means that it doesn't
slip. The poly is also protected from UV by the cover.

Carl
S/V Sula

I have no relation to either company.