Scantlings

I have a canvas winter cover for my boat. I didn't by it; it came with the boat when I bought it. I did have it re-stitched, though.

There are grommets around the bottom edge which get tied to the perforated rail at intervals. I use the cheap, hardware store cord as pictured because it is soft and seems to take a pretty good knot unlike high class marine line that's too hard to knot easily. It chafes on the sharp edges of the rail, of course, and many ties only last one year. That's fine.

The problem is that even though the knots look nice and tight, they come loose as the tent flaps in the breeze. I use square knots because they are easy, but I'm thinking I need a better knot. Any suggestions?

Semi,

I’ve had good luck with a bowline tied to the grommets at the cover’s edge. Then run the line through the toerail and back along the standing part. Use a six wrap Prusik knot to create an adjustable slider that allows you to tension each line as needed. Make sure the prusik’s wraps don’t have slack in them. You can cinch those up as needed and get everything tight.

Charlie

Semi, my covers are tied on and I had the same problem in a blow. I use a bowline in the grommet then a clove hitch through the hole in the railing with a single hitch on top of the clove hitch. It seems to stay in quite well.

BeauV wrote:Semi, my covers are tied on and I had the same problem in a blow. I use a bowline in the grommet then a clove hitch through the hole in the railing with a single hitch on top of the clove hitch. It seems to stay in quite well.

Thx. I'll give it a try.

The only way to get and hold tension on a tie down is the trucker’s hitch. Happy Thanksgiving!

Benno von Humpback wrote:The only way to get and hold tension on a tie down is the trucker’s hitch. Happy Thanksgiving!

That's what I use. Still tight come spring...

https://www.animatedknots.com/truckers-hitch-knot

Ken Heaton (Salazar) wrote:

Benno von Humpback wrote:The only way to get and hold tension on a tie down is the trucker’s hitch. Happy Thanksgiving!

That's what I use. Still tight come spring...

https://www.animatedknots.com/truckers-hitch-knot

The concept of "trucker's hitch" had occurred to me, but I hadn't stirred myself to look up what it is, so thanks for the link. The problem is that the grommet in the cover comes to within a couple inches of the rail, so there isn't room for an elaborate knot.

I'm going to experiment with the basic concept of tying a separate knot at each end rather the making a loop.

SemiSalt wrote:

Ken Heaton (Salazar) wrote:

Benno von Humpback wrote:The only way to get and hold tension on a tie down is the trucker’s hitch. Happy Thanksgiving!

That's what I use. Still tight come spring...

https://www.animatedknots.com/truckers-hitch-knot

The concept of "trucker's hitch" had occurred to me, but I hadn't stirred myself to look up what it is, so thanks for the link. The problem is that the grommet in the cover comes to within a couple inches of the rail, so there isn't room for an elaborate knot.

I'm going to experiment with the basic concept of tying a separate knot at each end rather the making a loop.

If you don't have enough room to make a loop for the trucker's hitch (which I do recommend as a knot), just run the line up through the gromet again after running around the toe rail, then pull down to tension the line and tie the tail around the standing part with two half-hitches. That should work fine. You'll want the two half hitches right up against the gromet/cover at the top so they can't slide towards the load.

I went down to the boat in the cold and wind to see how the ties were holding up (not too badly!) and to experiment.

This is original SemiSalt method. It's a bit hard to see, but two strands go from the grommet to the rail where they are tied with a square knot.




This is the Beau method (I call it "Tie Beau") with a bowline at the grommet and a clove hitch on the rail. It's a fussy business to get a small enough bowline for the distance alloted. I think I can make it a bit less fussy, though.



I did another based on the principles of the trucker's hitch, but looking at the picture when I got home, I realized I did it wrong. So that will have to wait. My fingers were cold to the bone by that time.

Semi,

The temp drop today was a big difference from yesterday for sure. We saw some flurries up our way.

Since your cover tightens down close to the toerail, with scant room for two knots in the gap, how about this:

Tie a short length of line to two adjacent grommets, using small loop bowlines. Run each through the toerail openings directly below the grommets, and bring them towards each other horizontally along the toerail. Tie a bowling in one line, pass the other through the loop, and use a truckers hitch to tighten both lines. You’ll have plenty of room to work the hitch tighter. Do this in grommet pairs around the whole cover.

Charlie wrote:Semi,

The temp drop today was a big difference from yesterday for sure. We saw some flurries up our way.

Since your cover tightens down close to the toerail, with scant room for two knots in the gap, how about this:

Tie a short length of line to two adjacent grommets, using small loop bowlines. Run each through the toerail openings directly below the grommets, and bring them towards each other horizontally along the toerail. Tie a bowling in one line, pass the other through the loop, and use a truckers hitch to tighten both lines. You’ll have plenty of room to work the hitch tighter. Do this in grommet pairs around the whole cover.

I hadn't thought about that. The grommets don't match up with gaps in the rails very well which might make it difficult.

Okay, okay, how about this? Get a bunch of bulk bungee cord and “sew” each side with a continuous line. Then figure out a way to anchor it on each end, e.g., by making fast to any convenient object.

I don’t cover my boat with anything. Am I a bad/improvident owner?

Benno von Humpback wrote:Okay, okay, how about this? Get a bunch of bulk bungee cord and “sew” each side with a continuous line. Then figure out a way to anchor it on each end, e.g., by making fast to any convenient object.

I don’t cover my boat with anything. Am I a bad/improvident owner?

I've thought about that. The downside is a single failure is a total failure. But going with , say, three independent segments might be good. No need for bungee, though, regular light stuff is fine.

Why not just bring the boat inside?

I would start with a clove hitch on the rail, then take the end through the grommet and back through the rail giving you 2 to 1 purchase. Then a slipped half or clove hitch around the pair of lines to secure. Plenty of room for that.

kdh wrote:Why not just bring the boat inside?

I would start with a clove hitch on the rail, then take the end through the grommet and back through the rail giving you 2 to 1 purchase. Then a slipped half or clove hitch around the pair of lines to secure. Plenty of room for that.

I agree about the clove hitch. I think most of the chafe has been due to motion against the relatively sharp edges on the rail. I hope less of a problem with a tight knot. I'll try various possibilities on the grommet end.