Cover Questions

[Dave 205]

I have the factory Sunbrella bow and cockpit covers, and a Sharkskin custom mooring cover on the way from Overton's.

I've been trailering with my bow and cockpit covers on. Got caught in a pretty good rain the other day. I didn't have the support poles underneath. The cockpit was not an issue, but the bow cover formed a pretty good bowl of water that eventually made it through the cover.

So, I decided to trailer with the support pole under the bow cover. That pole seems to create a pretty sharp point in the cover. And, I still see water bowl potential around the support. :huh: The more I raise the support, the sharper the point that seems to be a wear and tear risk. Again, I have the factory Sunbrella cover that is reinforced at the support, in is in near new condition.

Do any of you use some sort of accessory to expand the surface area of the pole?

Do you use the support pole and bow cover under the mooring cover to keep that cover from forming a bowl?

Words of advice appreciated!

 

[quailrunner]

When we owned an older boat, we used a plastic vent that installed into the cover. Pole snapped into the vent. Offered a lot more support than just the pole snap and reinforcing fabric patch (and helped to allow the boat to 'breathe'. Don't have it anymore; the current cover is what we got from the prev. owner (think its SR standard covers). Works well, even in a real downpour; no pooling, and no indication that the pole snap point is wearing through.

 

[Lazy Daze]

Always, always, always use the poles (bow and cockpit). If you don't, your canvas will wear out faster. Raise the pole high enough that it works, but not so much that it's a pain to snap the snaps.

 

[Tonka Boater]

This is a complete guess but do you think you could wash and dry the bow cover to shrink it? Then treat it with 303 for water resistance. I don't think it would shrink so much that it couldn't be snapped but maybe it would get the original shape back.

 

[Mikeyf]

I had exactly the same worry as you, so I've created something myself. I've cut a section out of an offcut of a piece of uPVC (what we use for window cills in the UK) and screwed (using very small screws) a popper male on one side and female on the other. This now works great and I've never had the pole fall off the cover when installing.