Looking for boat cover

SDDon

New Member
Hi,
I'm looking for a cover for a 1989 14.2. We store it on the trailer in a storage yard without the mast. (The mast and boom are hung from the ceiling of our garage.) It should be able to keep rain and snow out of the boat. We cut a poly tarp down and bungeed it to the boat this last year, but the UV made strings out of the tarp. I bolted a 2x4 to the mast hinge and tied the other end to the transom to provide support for the tarp. I think we're ready to buy a quality cover. Any suggestions??

Don
 
Hi Don,
I'm in the same boat you are - so to speak.

Last fall I bought one of those expensive poly tarps at Lowes with the heavy duty grommets. My expectation was it would last more than a year but it hasn't. There are numerous holes in it and the material is so weak, it should rip during the first heavy snow.

I've been looking at real boat covers and the best seem to be made from Sunbrella which is guaranteed for five years. I suspect they will last ten. But this begs the question: is it more cost effective to buy a string of cheap tarps or one good one? From what I can see, the former is true, but the latter would be more environmentally friendly.

Sigh...
 
tarps

What works for me is to stow the mast on the boat/trailer on crotches.

This forms a natural peak for the tarp when draped over the mast.

I use a quality tarp from Menards (Home depot) but be sure to get the silver one. Cost $15-20. I think it is about 15'x8' size-perfect for the boat. You can replace these every couple of years and still come out ahead over an expensive cover. My experience with canvas type covers is that they loose their water-repellancy after 2-3 years and after that they are really only good for keeping the tree junk and bird Poo off anyway.

I made mast crotches from fiberglass square tubing and at the top used standard trailer bow Y-stops. The front one bolts to the winch support and the aft one fits into the rudder gudgeons. I made pintles from small alum angles and a 1/2" bolt. The mast travels this way on the trailer.

The tarp is held down with bungees.

It has seen some pretty bad wind and rain and keeps the topside and cockpit clean and dry.
 
I've had mine from the Sailor's Tailor for six years in the blazing Colorado sun and it still looks great and keeps the water out. I highly recommend it. There are others if you search a bit in historical posts in this forum.
 
I appreciate the info from everyone. I searched for Sumbrella covers on the internet, to no avail. We received a sample kit from Sailors' Tailor about a week ago. I think we'll probably end up going with them. Their material looks pretty robust.
We thought about another poly tarp, but the "el cheepo" one we used ended up falling apart into strings after one year. We spent a fair amout of time cutting it to fit the boat and adding grommets. About the only other ones we've seen at the local home stores are thicker poly tarps and canvas ones. I guess I'd rather get something already fitted to the boat than make a new tarp every year or two. Also, we don't store the boom or mast with the boat. The boat is in a storage yard run by our homeowner's association that a lot of people have access to. I cut a long 2x4 to fit from the mast step to the stern and padded the stern end. I'd rather lose a 2x4 than an expensive piece of the rigging. The 2x4 provided enough support for the tarp to keep most of the rain and snow out of the boat. If anyone has a source for Sumbrella covers, I'd appreciate it.
Don
 
Mooring cover

jplancaster,

I have a mooring cover made by ths Sailor's Tailor which came with the boat I purchased this spring. The former owner just a had it made in 2006.

Make sure you ask for snaps to attach it to the gunnel. The former owner said he got the cover with strap-type hooks that hooked over the gunnel, but he did not use them because they marred the glass. He requested and received a snap kit. You just thread a bungee (supplied with kit) through the grommets and the female snaps (with a loop of nylon sewed into them). You then match the snap locations with the male (screw in heads) on the underside on the gunnel. Drilling is required, but if you place them under, and drill into the rubber portion of the rub rail out at the edge, they are not visible. The snaps have held just fine so far.

I use this cover when we keep the boat on the beach and it has seen some high winds without any failures. Sailor's Tailor makes a quality cover. Overall fit is very good.

There are still some marring issues because they use bronze grommets, but this is very minor.

The cover is not completely water tight because the front in way of the mast
is fastened with snaps and you have to tie the very front to something. I lash it the the roller furling line that runs from the bow.
 
Thanks

Thanks for the info. We did finally order a cover from Sailor's Tailor. I'll check into the strap.

Don
 
paulsheller said:
I've had mine from the Sailor's Tailor for six years in the blazing Colorado sun and it still looks great and keeps the water out. I highly recommend it. There are others if you search a bit in historical posts in this forum.

What material is your cover made of? I checked their website and there are a few different options.
 
Sailor Tailor questions

Hi Guys,

for those of you that have the "Mooring/Trailer" cover, I have a few questions for you:

1. How long dit it take to get?
2. If you store it without the mast, does the "mast hole" become a problem in terms of leakage, etc.?
3. They are available in both Poly and Acrylic. Do you prefer one over the other?
4. It's an option to add "vents," 2-4 of them. What are these vents for? Should I get them?

Thank you!
 
Boat Canvass

If you have one of those mooring covers,(mast-up), as I do, you'll find it to be unsatisfactory with the mast down. The unused holes for the shrouds, mast, and forward stay, plus the snapseam render your boat less than "covered" with regards to keeping out critters and heavy weather.
Anyone know of a marine canvass shop near Ventura California?
I'd like to drop off my "mast-up" cover and using it as a template, have a "boat on trailer underway" cover built, having a heavy drawstring installed at the permeter to cinch it tightly to the boat.
I have a cover of this type for my Minto and it stays in place nicely when going down the road, plus prevents anything from getting in while being stored.
 
I appreciate the info from everyone. I searched for Sumbrella covers on the internet, to no avail. We received a sample kit from Sailors' Tailor about a week ago. I think we'll probably end up going with them. Their material looks pretty robust.
We thought about another poly tarp, but the "el cheepo" one we used ended up falling apart into strings after one year. We spent a fair amout of time cutting it to fit the boat and adding grommets. About the only other ones we've seen at the local home stores are thicker poly tarps and canvas ones. I guess I'd rather get something already fitted to the boat than make a new tarp every year or two. Also, we don't store the boom or mast with the boat. The boat is in a storage yard run by our homeowner's association that a lot of people have access to. I cut a long 2x4 to fit from the mast step to the stern and padded the stern end. I'd rather lose a 2x4 than an expensive piece of the rigging. The 2x4 provided enough support for the tarp to keep most of the rain and snow out of the boat. If anyone has a source for Sumbrella covers, I'd appreciate it.
Don

Hey Don,

Masthead makes a sunbrella cover for a 14.2 (mast up, boom up, mooring style). It has a price tag on it to be sure, but allows you to stay totally rigged and is sunbrella, which seems important.
http://www.mastheadsailinggear.com/pc-18485-2269-capri-142-mooring-cover-boom-up.aspx

Hope this helps,
Ben
 

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