Scott,

Assuming you are using Peter’s below attached definitions for bow eye and bow cleat, the only reason you would want to tie off to the bow eye vs the bow cleat would be if you are anchoring on short scope or if the anchor is set into a poor holding bottom.  Tying off to the bow eye reduces the vertical distance from the tie off point to the anchor.  Remember, the vertical distance is the water depth + height of the tie off point above the water.  An example may make this more clear.  My bow eye is about 1.5 ft above the water and my bow cleats are about 3.0 ft above the water.  Suppose we are anchoring in 7 ft of water using 60 ft of anchor rode.  Tying off to the bow eye would yield a scope ratio of [60 ft] / [7 ft + 1.5 ft] = 60 / 8.5 = 7.1 .  Tying off to the bow cleat would yield a scope ratio of
[60 ft] / [7 ft + 3.0 ft] = 60 / 10 = 6.0 .  A scope ratio of 7.1 would probably be OK for anchoring overnight.  A scope ratio of 6.0 would be iffy.  So, if you are trying to anchor in a situation where there is limited room to swing &/or a poor holding bottom; then, consider using the bow eye vs the bow cleat to slightly improve your scope ratio.  Of course, using the bow eye is much more trouble vs using the bow cleat.  A typical mooring has a huge deeply set anchor that is unlikely to drag and so there is usually no reason to use the bow eye vs the bow cleat on a mooring.

Having said that, I used my bow eye and stern eye at my slip very time I docked at my home slip.  But, I was in a situation where I parked sideways to a wharf and the boat was exposed to wave action from the side.  Rather than depend upon fenders to absorb the wave action and keep the hull off the dock, I had a pair of mooring whips.  Mooring whips look like HD fishing poles attached to the dock.  I had my mooring whips setup to attach to the bow eye and stern eye using quick release carabiners.  They held the boat about 2 ft off the dock.  Of course all that gear was swept away along with my dock during the May 19, 2020 dam failure and flood!

Roger Pihlaja
S/V Dynamic Equilibrium

Sent from Mail<https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986> for Windows 10

From: Peter Nyberg<mailto:peter at sunnybeeches.com>
Sent: Tuesday, March 9, 2021 11:00 AM
To: sea20 at verizon.net<mailto:sea20 at verizon.net>; The Rhodes 22 Email List<mailto:rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] mooring

Scott,

I’m not sure what you’re asking, and it may be a terminology issue.  Is it possible that when you say ‘bow eye’ you mean ‘bow cleat’?  The bow cleat would be attached to the deck, where as the bow eye is attached to the stem of the hull.  You could in theory attach your mooring to the bow eye, but I can’t see why you would want a second one.

Adding one or two more cleats at the bow is a pretty common project. You would want it through-bolted, and you would want to avoid any possibility of water finding it’s way into the deck core.  I’d recommend a drill-fill-drill approach.  If you don’t know what that is, I can elaborate.

—Peter

> On Mar 9, 2021, at 8:44 AM, Scott E Andrews via Rhodes22-list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org> wrote:
>
> Greetings all,    I will likely be on a waiting list for a slip next season and will be on a mooring. I have a couple questions regarding painter and pendant attachment. I read MJM"s email regarding use of the bow eye with chocks. Is the any reason not to add a second bow eye? Also, is there a recomended pendant or painter length? Thanks everyone.
> Scott AndrewsFirst year owner, Wilmington De