Where to place cleats for fenders?

[max]

Hey all,

I'm getting close to putting backing plates in undearneath the deck to support deck cleats for lines and fenders when tied to a dock. I'm wondering if there's some strong opinions/recommended guidance out there for where these should go?

The plans seem to call for two cleats, one right around bulkhead 7 and one right around bulkhead 2/3. Doing that, with the curve of the hull, would definitely mean I'd need to attach a fender in the middle somewhere (the oar locks?) to keep her from rubbing on a dock.

I've seen some scamps with three cleats with pretty much exactly this setup, an extra cleat installed right below the oar locks.

And some have just two cleats, usually with the forward cleats moved closer to bulkhead 4 while the aft ones remain near 7, although I'm not sure if the place of those would still allow for a couple of fenders keeping the boat clear from the dock.

What have folks done? What do you like about your setup?

Thanks!

[GregWads]

I have just finished glueing on my skegs. Before I putting on the deck I made backing blocks of 1 inch thick white oak and filled the area between the carlins and the sides between bulkheads 7 & the transom, bulkheads 3 & 4 and because I wasn't sure also put blocks from bulkhead 4 about half way back to bulkhead 5. I also added blocks to fill between stringers, carlins and sides about 8 inches from the bow towards the stern. I am sure I went a little overboard on backing blocks but it was alot easier to add them before putting on the deck than trying to add them after the fact.

[dsimonson]

Hi Max,

I use three cleats. Aft cleat just forward of the aft end of the combing, so it doesn't foul the sheet when your running off the wind. Forward cleat as far forward as I can comfortably reach from the cockpit. And, the middle one equidistant between the others. The fenders and dock lines use the middle and aft cleats, because that's where the bulk of the hull is. The forward cleat gets used for a spring line, and/or other misc tasks. Of course there's also a bow painter for coming into the dock, and getting on and off the trailer. When rafting with other boats, I often hang an additional fender off the oarlock, or the cleat on B4. Or both!

Cheers,
Dale

LUNA in the "Heritage Classic" sailboat "race" by Dale Simonson, on Flickr