Mooring whips - looking for practical experience

[caymancanuck]

As a newbie and proud owner of a soon to be arriving from Tampa 2005 270 Select SLX, I am looking to see if anyone has used mooring whips on their dock and if they actually work. My boat will be docked in from of my house on a canal and it will be taking the prevailing winds broadside day in and day out. The previous owner of the boat had mooring whips when I went to do the lake test and it looked good to me and kept the boat a good 3 ft from the dock.

I am sure this will be one of many questions to come once the boat arrives.

Thanks

Scott

 

[BON DIA]

No experience with mooring whips....I'd suppliment with numerous fenders between your dock & boat.

 

[sbw1]

I have a neighbor who used them for several years with good results. The boat was a 25 foot Wellcraft with twin outboards. Prevailing wind is from the west, frequently at 15-25 MPH. We live on a part of the lake that is not a slow no wake area so boats get bounced around quite a bit. I occassionally take water over the back of my transom to give you an idea of conditions. The whips worked fine for him. Obviously you need to size the whips for conditions, but if you are on a canal this should be a piece of cake. Are tides a factor?

 

[osd9]

I've been using mooring whips for over 20 years. The Monarch brand is made in the town right next to me. I currently have a set of the Nor'easters on my 410DA and they work great. I would HIGHLY suggest that you add the quick release system offered by Moonarch as they make boarding much simpler.

I am on the main canal and many folks go by way to fast. The whips definitely perform as advertised and keep the boat away from the dock....even during some nasty wind storms...

You can somewhat see the whips in my avatar pic


If you need any specific info just ask..

 

[comsnark]

I swear by whips.

It will take one or two attempts to get the ropes set perfectly, but once they are set they will last for decades. I don't reset any lines when storms show up.. . .the whips and normal four mooring lines work just fine.

But whips are not perfect. Besides the wind, how much wave action does the boat take in the new location? If you see a good chop in addition to the continual wind, most people in my area install a lift.

 

[osd9]

The intent of the whips is to keep the boat away from the dock/pilings. The line on my Nor'easter's (the largest they make BTW) are only 5/16". They will provide no additional holding power in a strom should you loose one of you main dock lines. When we have storms around here, I always double up on my dock lines. If the water is expected to get exceptionally high, I also add a set of fender boards and pull "in" on the whips....which is another good reason to get the quick release kit for the whips. It allows you to make adjustments to the tension on the whips very easily.

For instance, When ever I am boarding to do some work on the boat, I release the whips, tie in the boat close enough so that I can board, and then put some tension back on the whips. That allows me easy on/off while maintaining a small distance away from the dock/pillings.

 

[billandamy]

My parents had them about 10 years ago, on a very busy river in CT. They had a 21' Century.

Worked perfectly for keeping the boat at bay with waves. As far as it being a bit from the dock, from what I remember, the whips had an adjustment on them to bring the boat against the dock for loading/unloading, and it was simple.