I didn’t have the scuppered inwales on my Skerry since it was a “rescue,” and I didn’t see the point in adding inwales if I was not going to replace the scuffed gunwales (filled the gouges and resurfaced them before sealing with epoxy and varnish on top). I replaced all seats, both breast hooks, redid the outer and inner hull fairing and paint.
I am considering drilling the three ribs close to the gunwales and thread a 1/4” line through as a flexible attachment point for fenders, and perhaps netting to stuff gear and my mug that I invariably spill everytime I sail, for lack of a storage location).
How well does that work, and do you all have a potentially more elegant solution, short of installing those beautiful scuppered inwales? ~ Eric
I did exactly as you describe on my NE Dory. The lines make a great place to tie fenders and secure assorted stuff. Just be sure to leave some “meat” on all sides of the hole, also to seal it well with a Q tip and some epoxy or varnish or some similar effort. (I put my holes in during initial build.) It helps to keep the line as tight as possible once installed. I found the “bent” fenders with a top tail that wraps over the gunwale work best with this set up - also because the standard fenders tend to offer little or no protection if not over the rail due to the highly flared hull angle. And I consider this an “elegant” set-up: works well, easy to do and little cost - thus elegant.
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Great, thank you for the comment Jeff. Will go with a D-F-D job on the ribs and pull a line through. I have a tiny bit of paint left that should be sufficient to touch up the holes after epoxy cured. And, yes the wrap around fenders seem like the ticket. I have a few vertical ones that are not worth anything on this kind of boat. Cheers,
~ Eric