1 reply to this topic

[pakalolo]

I'm about to drill the holes for the painters in the bow and stern, but I'm not really confident about the location. I see some pictures where it looks like the are back 10 inches from the bow and others only look like 4 or 6 inches. If they go back 10 inches I'd be in the first circular cutout of the plywood bow piece and it seems to me that I would want a separate hole for my painter so as not to stress the skin.

I am building Vardo. Should I just go back like 4 inches and down 2 inches or should I go back far enough to go through the gunwales and the bow piece?

[Kudzu]

I put mine through the Gunwales because it is stronger than just the bow stem. But you are right you don't want them pulling on the skin.

Putting them through the gunwales spreads any load out. Where you put them is really a personal preference and would depend on what you would use them for. If just pulling the boat around in the water it's probably not going to matter. If you're going to run a safety line to the car by all means go through the gunwale and bow. Just keep in mind, bow and stern lines should be just in case a strap came loose, not the main tie down point.

One thing to keep in mind, painters are a good place to slide a spare paddle under. Sometime I will put mine back a little ways on a longer boat so my spare (Greenland) paddle will be easy to reach and the fit under the painter. Wide blade Euro paddles will not fit to well.