Mooring Pendants
Shop Mooring Pendants at West Marine
Mooring pendants are part of permanent moorings which consist of a large anchor, anchor chain, a buoy on the water’s surface and a mooring pendant (pronounced "pennant") that is either shackled to the mooring chain directly under the buoy or to the top of the buoy. When a boat "picks up a mooring” it is the mooring pendant that the boater grabs with a boat hook and draws up to the boat. To make this process easier, mooring pendants often include a pickup buoy that keeps the mooring pendant at the surface of the water and makes it easier to grab.
Traditional Mooring Pendants
Traditional mooring pendants typically consist of a length of three-strand or double-braid nylon line with a spliced eye at one end and thimble spliced on to the other end. Nylon line is preferred due to it elasticity which helps to absorb shock loads. These pendants are sold in various lengths and diameters to accommodate boats of different sizes and displacements.
A New Type of Mooring Pendant
While most boaters still use the traditional mooring pendants described above, one of the drawbacks of mooring pendants made of elastic nylon line is that addition to suffering abrasion where they run through a chock, constant stretching generates heat which can lead to line fatigue that shortens the life of the line. This brings us to another type of mooring pendant which is New England Ropes’ Cyclone Mooring Pendant, which in place of nylon is made of incredibly strong, ultra-low stretch, 12-strand, Dyneema® rope. It also includes a protective sleeve along its entire length, which protects the rope portion of the pendant from chafe where it runs through a chock. These pendants are offered in various lengths and diameters to accommodate vessels from small runabouts to mega yachts.
Bridle Systems
Mooring bridles are often used to attach a boat to a mooring pendant. The purpose of a mooring bridle is to distribute the load evenly between the two points of attachment on the boat, reducing the strain on any one point and minimizing the risk of damage or failure. West Marine offers two types of bridles, one for monohulls and one for catamarans. Choices include mooring bridles in various lengths and line diameters to accommodate boats from 30 to 70 feet.