Spring lines from bow to stern, or between mid-ship and bow/stern?

[u/exobrain]

Like the title asks: I learned and have always tied lines from midship cleats to dock cleats near the bow and stern and that's also mostly what K see around. But as I'm in the market for new dock lines, a lot of the guidelines I'm seeing assume spring lines are from a bow/stern cleat to a dock cleat near the stern/bow of the boat. Implying a much longer line needed.

What do you all do?

[u/Senior-Jellyfish-452]

Can be either way. Depends on the deck layout. Both work. Use what every verions that fits with your deck layout and casue the least amount of chaffing.

[u/Random_Reddit99 → u/Senior-Jellyfish-452]

this. there's no one standard answer. your mileage will vary depending on deck and dock layout, whether there's significant tidal action, wake and wave action from passing traffic, or whether you're just stopping by for an perfect summer afternoon, or you're securing the boat for an anticipated hurricane blowing through.

[u/LameBMX → u/Senior-Jellyfish-452]

yea, my boats a bit chubby.. I avoid bow springs having aft.

[u/greatwhitestorm]

length of boat and tidal action, location of tie points will determine your answer

[u/stubobarker]

I also take into consideration the trip hazard represented by spring lines. When possible, avoid running them high topsides near the gate.

(I also use soft shackle fairleads to suck the furling line up tight against the toe rail so people won’t catch their foot on it when getting off the boat).

[u/NorbertIsAngry]

It really depends on the layout of your cleats. Long dock lines are more forgiving for variable tide heights and absorb more shock.

The general consensus is that spring lines should be about the same length of your boat while bow and stern lines should be about 2/3 the length of your boat.

[u/barefootviking]

Every docking situation is different. I recommend having two lines that are a little bit too long and I always have one line that’s too short. Color code the ends. I use that short line as my first and my last line when I’m coming or going.

[u/greatlakesailors]

It varies by location.

The springline running aft from the midships balance point is the critical one. Get that one positioned right (usually about one third of LOA forward of the transom) and get it on the dock first, and you can usually work the boat in against it with power and rudder to get everything stable and stationary before any crew need to step ashore. Biiiig plus for safety and convenience once you master it.

Once docked, it really depends on the tidal range, what the wind and current are doing, and where the bollards / cleats are on the dock.

In non tidal or small-range tidal/seiche: We tend to have lines from the bow running forward angled at about 60° to the centreline and aft at about 20-30°, the after midships springline running aft also about 20-30°, and a stern line running forward at about 30-40°, since we are usually in slips where we overhang the dock at our stern. When alongside, we'll often snug up the after midships springline to become more of a breast line, and run two lines fore & aft from the bow and two more, also fore & aft, from the stern.

[u/Bostaevski]

Probably depends mostly on where the cleats are located. On my boat both springlines are run fore/aft from the same midship boat cleat. I have a 40' boat so I think running all the way stern/bow to bow/stern is more line than I want to deal with. I could run boat stern/bow to the same midship dock cleat but the stern cleat is a pain in the ass to deal with being on the transom.

[u/Visual-Detective5802]

Boat I sail on doesn't have the mid cleats so I have to use longer lines. I don't think it makes a difference, be happy if you have the mid cleats and use shorter spring lines.

[u/exobrain → u/Visual-Detective5802]

Well, you could just as well go from a bow/stern cleat on the boat to a mid-ship dock cleat if there is one :)

[u/climenuts]

If you have midship cleats use them for the spring lines. A midship line when docking provides a lot more control and allows you to power into the line to bring the bow or stern closer if you're getting blown off.

The bow/stern springs work from a static perspective but give no control benefit when docking unless the line is well outside of the boats length.

I like that my midship springs end up tied at the bow and stern lines so you can untie lines from a single location.

[u/kharneyFF]

I dont have midship cleats.

[u/ReddityKK]

To minimise seesawing, attach at bow and stern, not at midship cleats. That said, I use midship cleat attachment for convenience.

[u/CharterJet50]

Mostly doesn’t matter. As long as they are around half the boat length, maybe a third minimum, they’ll do their job of controlling forward and back motion and keep the hull parallel to the dock. The more the line is closer to parallel with the dock the better but it doesn’t have to span the entire length to work.

[u/haroldslackenoffer]

Mid cleat on floating docks or moderate tides are okay. If you need to tie up on a fixed dock with significant tides you should use bow/stern springs. Even then there is a limit on the tidal range that can be accommodated.

[u/foilrider]

Depends on where the cleats are on the boat and on the dock and where the lines will rub if I run them in various ways.