Swinging mooring advice

[Daydream believer]

Thats not great as the mooring buoy itself gets shaken around much more violently with small waves leading the the eye of the mooring buoy tearing off prematurely. The line from the buoy to boat around this area is usually 3 metres long which gives the buoy an easier life. If you have a hippo type then there is no eye to get torn out.
Hauling the mooring buoy up is even worse as when the boat rides over the mooring the large shackle underneath starts grinding into the hull.
Twin strops on a narrow hull can often end up wrapping around each other to the point where the whole mooring gets wound up, dragging the boat down.

We ask mooring holders to keep penants to 2M or less because dinghies racing from the club can get caught in the trailing line when there is no boat on it. Twin strops should not be a problem because the majority of buoys ( certainly all those that I supply) have the top eye swivelling so no tangle happens It is better to have a solid bar through the buoy with the weight of the mooring hanging directly on it. This means that the central bar does not move up & down insde the buoy as the waves move the buoy up & down. If the top of the buoy is lifted up on the bow the buoy can slide down the chain or bar then back up it as the bow dips. This wears the middle of the buoy causing inflatables to burst or foam filled ones to expose the foam & the buoy to collapse.
However, having too long a penant allows the buoy to rub along the bow causing damage. So correct placement between boat & buoy is essential by correct penant selection length.
I normally make a number of holders penants each year & we always discuss this first.
But at the endof the day different areas have different mooring systems. We have ours & over many years we know what works for us. It does not mean it is right or wrong for someone else.

 

[Rappey]

But at the endof the day different areas have different mooring systems.

That is true.

 

[Lightwave395]

Really appreciate all the help and comments,
I'm currently minded to lengthen the 10mm chain (I think it's a bit tight on length) and get two 20mm or even 24mm polysteel lines to shackle to the mooring buoy ring and come up through the port / stbd bow fairleads leaving the chain slack as a big reserve. I have a bow fender in place to help stop the buoy causing any damage to paintwork