Issuma Gets a Set of Tires
22 December 2020 | Marystown
Richard Hudson
Old tires make the best fenders.
In the picture, Issuma is being pushed against the wooden dock by 45-55 knots of wind, and the camera is looking down, between the hull and the dock. The tires are both preserving the paint on Issuma's steel hull, and protecting the dock. Inflatable fenders (of which I have a few) would be punctured by the load on the tire on the left of the picture.
My friend Joe kindly gave me a set of four, wide tires, two of which are in the picture. The wider the tire, the more it keeps the hull off uneven surfaces.
It takes about ten minutes with a 1/2" (12mm) electric drill to drill a 3/4" (19mm) hole in the tires (less time if the tires don't have any steel belts in them) to pass a rope through.
The downside of tire fenders is that they are difficult to store when underway (they also make black marks on the hull, but that can be solved by painting the hull a dark color). I tie the tires on deck, but they do take up a noticeable amount of space.
So in case you thought voyaging boats don't use tires...now you know :)