Wooden side fenders

[Morris]

I generally try to manage without side fenders but recently we tied up somewhere that had nasty bolt ends sticking out of the armco.  Taking inspiration from the planks on the edges of some lock landings, I fashioned some fenders from 1"x4" plank I had in the boat and hung them on rope from the edge of the canal with storm pegs. 

They worked fine and without the demented dolphin noises I seem to get from go-kart tyres or those torpedo shape fenders. 

I just wondered why wood is never mentioned when fenders are talked about? Is there some horrendous consequence I've yet to discover? 

[mrsmelly]

Wood has been used for fenders since forever. I have some fotos ( God know where lol ) of the barges my dad worked, owned by my great uncle with wood fenders, also ships at sea used them. I have used myself railway sleepers on warships. We hung them all round the ship when  we were having altercations with Icelandic gunboats a few years ago. Yours make perfect sense to me.

This was why we started to use railway sleepers

 

 

Edited May 9, 2023 by mrsmelly

[rusty69]

I suppose it depends on what material your boat is made from. Yes, it will save your paintwork if a steel narrowboat, but traditional fenders offer some cushioning benefit on a plastic or wooden boat.

 

 

[ditchcrawler]

I have gone back to rope fenders, I have tried Go Cart tyres, plastick oblong, pipe. 

[Alan de Enfield]

Very commonly used on lumpy water boats.

 

Strangely called "Fender Boards" and commonly used in conjunction with fenders.

Ideal for the very widely spaced corrugated Armco use on harbour wall, or where thick wooden piles are used (when the individual fender 'falls' into the corrugation).

 

There is nothing new in boating !

 

 

 

[Peanut]

2 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Very commonly used on lumpy water boats.

 

Strangely called "Fender Boards" and commonly used in conjunction with fenders.

Ideal for the very widely spaced corrugated Armco use on harbour wall, or where thick wooden piles are used (when the individual fender 'falls' into the corrugation).

 

There is nothing new in boating !

 

 

 

If the fender board is thick enough, you can drill edge wise to the cross hole.  The rope goes down the edge of the board and the knot is buried, preventing chafe.

[Alan de Enfield]

6 minutes ago, Peanut said:

If the fender board is thick enough, you can drill edge wise to the cross hole.  The rope goes down the edge of the board and the knot is buried, preventing chafe.

 

Good tip, but I've never suffered from chafe - but 'chubby rub' is another matter entirely.

 

The walls in Geat Yarmouth harmour use enormous Arrmco.

The corrugations myst be about 2 feet apart and at least 12" (maybe 18") 'deep' and the wall is 20 odd feet above water level (depending on the state of the tides)

 

 

 

[ditchcrawler]

5 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Good tip, but I've never suffered from chafe - but 'chubby rub' is another matter entirely.

 

The walls in Geat Yarmouth harmour use enormous Arrmco.

The corrugations myst be about 2 feet apart and at least 12" (maybe 18") 'deep' and the wall is 20 odd feet above water level (depending on the state of the tides)

 

 

 

You would probably get some good photos of spring lines being used there on the smaller boats, The big boy's just keep adjusting the lines

 

[Alan de Enfield]

1 minute ago, ditchcrawler said:

You would probably get some good photos of spring lines being used there on the smaller boats, The big boy's just keep adjusting the lines

 

I cannot find our photos of when we were there.

But once the springs were set and the fender boards deployed it was a comfortable night, but never again - trying to get the dogs off was a nightmare.

Moved down to Lowestoft the next day.

 

What is the name of that historic boat that is permanently moored there ?

(Open for tours and talks about the 'old fishing fleet')

[ditchcrawler]

10 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

I cannot find our photos of when we were there.

But once the springs were set and the fender boards deployed it was a comfortable night, but never again - trying to get the dogs off was a nightmare.

Moved down to Lowestoft the next day.

 

What is the name of that historic boat that is permanently moored there ?

(Open for tours and talks about the 'old fishing fleet')

Lydia Eva  Home (lydiaevamincarlo.com)

[Alan de Enfield]

7 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Lydia Eva  Home (lydiaevamincarlo.com)

 

Thats the one - thankyou.

 

The last steam powered herring boat in existence.

 

We moored just behind her - because of the 'orrible armco we asked if we could breast up but they declined, saying that they closed up at (whatever time) and we could not cross over her.

 

 

[David Mack]

59 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

The walls in Geat Yarmouth harmour use enormous Arrmco.

The corrugations myst be about 2 feet apart and at least 12" (maybe 18") 'deep' and the wall is 20 odd feet above water level (depending on the state of the tides)

 

 

Not Armco. Those look to be Frodingham interlocking sheet piles. Available in various sizes and the largest sheet piles generally available. Generally too heavy duty for canal use, but we did use them on the Droitwich Barge Canal where the channel was realigned to squeeze between the bowling green (built on the original canal line) and the River Salwarpe.

[jpcdriver]

53 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Not Armco. Those look to be Frodingham interlocking sheet piles. Available in various sizes and the largest sheet piles generally available. Generally too heavy duty for canal use

Commonly used on some northern canals e.g. Aire & Calder, Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation.

Edited May 9, 2023 by jpcdriver
Changed northerner to northern

[system 4-50]

7 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

I remember a doctor putting one of those down my throat when I was very young, and asking me to say "arhhhh".

[Alan de Enfield]

1 minute ago, system 4-50 said:

I remember a doctor putting one of those down my throat when I was very young, and asking me to say "arhhhh".

 

 

You must have had some mouth on you - my Doctor used a lollipop stick.