Swinging mooring strops

[Antonia Hasslacher]

Starting a new season with Scallie. She is kept on a swinging mooring in a tidal estuary. Any suggestions as to the best way to attach to the bouy without the line fouling the bobstay. I have the mooring chain attached to the bracket where you attach the trailer winch and wondering if there is some way of attaching the mooring ropes or a yoke to the samson post? Advice please. Antonia

[Justin Greig]

Hi Antonia, my mooring is in the Swale which has a pretty fierce tidal flow. So friction would be a significant issue if the bobstay was left in place. I slacken it right off and use the tail of the bobstay line to pull the bobstay up and tie it to the bowsprit. As I am still worried bout the bobstay cleat (ie the bracket where you attach the bobstay and the trailer strop) rubbing against the mooring line, I also have a piece of 3" flexible plastic pipe shielding the mooring line for approx 3 feet below the mooring buoy. Sounds like you could do the same around your mooring chain, but fastening the chain to the bobstay cleat sounds like a hassle. I pull the buoy onto the foredeck and then pass the top loop of the mooring line over the samson post. The mooring line runs through the bow roller.

[Chris Wicks]

Our swinging mooring is non tidal (Aegean) but gets waves sometimes. From the mooring swivel about 1 metre below the surface I have two lines. One with a loop and pickup buoy for the sampson post. When I leave the boat in my dinghy the second line that has secured my dinghy to the mooring whilst sailing is transferred to the bracket at the base of the water stay. It is this line that takes the tension. It is shorter than the pick up line on the Sampson post. I replaced my water stay with stainless steel chain. I tie the slack portion of the sampson post line to the bobstay where I have the pickup buoy. This holds the pick up buoy and stack rope in a position where it cannot chafe on the water stay. Not sure if that makes sense to you but it has served me well for 17 years. ( The system I have renewed it once or twice as required)