Buying fenders

[hotdogs]

Hi everybody,

I've been lurking here for a little while, but I finally have a reason to post with a question. Basically, I'm now in charge of outfitting and repairing five boats (2 J/22s, 2 J/24s, and 1 J/29) for a sailing club. My budget is very limited.

One of the first things I want to do is get some decent fenders for the boats. Fenders are particularly important where I am because the piers are very rough and the users are relatively new to sailing and caring for boats. Each boat has a couple of very small fenders, but I'd like to get 1-2 more for each boat. In particular, I'd like to get one very large (12" diameter) fender for each that could be attached near the beam of the boat to prevent scratching when tied alongside the pier. I would prefer to get a "ball" style fender over the "barrel" style, but this consideration comes way after cost.

Looking through a variety of vendor webpages, however, I am finding it difficult to get fenders for a price that fits my budget. I am generally finding that a 10.5" diameter fender costs upwards of $45 and the price goes up rapidly for anything larger than that. Has anybody else had this experience? When might I be able to find fenders for less? Are there options I am overlooking? (note: I can't do anything about the pier; that's out of my hands)

Thanks!

[AboardIndigo]

Try a want ad in craigslist or similiar. Mention that it's for a club and you have no budget.

There are lots of people with the kind of money it takes to replace fenders because the look old and scuffed rather than clean them up. Or, the old bat who's trying to clean out her garage after she's given hubby the boot.

Those are the people you might get lucky and hear from.

[erps]

You can also check a commercial fisheries supply store and get some of the round buoy fenders for half the price. I bought some that are about 18" in diameter for our work boat for about $25 each.

[sailingdog]

You also might want to look at making up fenderboards... since small fenders work better if you have a fender board.

[speciald]

Fenders take up a lot of room. I use inflatable fenders that I store empty and inflate with a dinghy pump They take up much less space. See Praktek. Inc - NuWave Marine Products. Featuring Inflatable Fenders, Fenda Sox Fender Covers, Air Pumps and Inflators, Inflatable Catamarans, and other Marine Accessories

[sailingdog]

Speciald-

Price, not stowage, is his major concern. The Pratek inflatable fenders are pretty pricey compared to the ball-type ones bought in bulk.

[JiffyLube]

You could just buy one fender at a time...that makes it easier on the wallet.

[duckduckgoose]

why not put a notice up in the club house asking that people donate any large fenders that they aren't using? someone must have some!

An idea you might like to use is to have a sailing jumble sale in the club. Most people have loads of stuff that's usable, if not unused for some reason, that they just don't need anymore and they'd rather get out of the house. Last year I got two tins of antifouling that went unused because the owner had decided to go with a copper coat. Only cost about $3 a tin. It'd be a handy way of picking up gear cheaply.

[wchevron]

try a marine consignment shop. you can usually get some pretty cheap. the one place i know about is marineconsignment.com in wickford, ri & mystic, ct. but there are others out there.

[cardiacpaul]

try the maint. or security guys at the marina...
they usually have some that"wash-up" on shore or old ones that might be helpful.