Staples, who likes them?

[BruceK]

We are in the process of adding staple rails to our boat to make it easier to get in and out of the dinghy. These are 2 inch staple rails.

Aha! Called "Granny Rails" here.

 

[Mr. Blu]

I use a rope to get in and out of the dinghy. Works fine and is easily removed. And I have only my left arm and hand functioning. Can also be used as a emergency boarding ladder when you leave it on the swimplatform hanging. The “staples” take a lot of walking space and are often in the way. That’s why they are removable. Something from superyachts comercialized for smaller yachts.

 

[magna 6882]

I feel safer with fishing and crabbing off the swim step. They are like a guard rail but also dont seem in the way at all.

 

[mvweebles]

thanks for this. You say $36/pair? I'm seeing $652 for one (non-removable 34" version) - I like $36 a lot better, what am I missing?

https://www.tannermfg.com/store/Fixed-Standard-2-Swim-Platform-Staple-Rail-34-x34-p442485639

I believe he was referrring to the additional cost for backing plates alone, not the staples themselves.

I've run a couple boats with staples along top deck around dinghy - staples needed to be removed to launch dinghy. Minor annoyance, but stowing them when removed was awkward.

Peter

 

[danderer]

The PO of our boat had a different take on staples. They had a couple vertical bars installed. These serve as handholds when accessing the dinghy. They aren't removable.

Pros:
- They interfere less with crossed stern lines (removable staples would help here)
- They extend about 8" below the swim platform. On our boat the platform is high enough that the dinghy can easily ride under the platform - the extensions help prevent this.

Cons:
- When on the platform you don't want to accidentally back into one.

I've thought about replacing them with removable staples but I don't now see a significant-enough benefit to doing so.

 

[bowball]

The PO of our boat had a different take on staples. They had a couple vertical bars installed. These serve as handholds when accessing the dinghy. They aren't removable.

Pros:
- They interfere less with crossed stern lines (removable staples would help here)
- They extend about 8" below the swim platform. On our boat the platform is high enough that the dinghy can easily ride under the platform - the extensions help prevent this.

Cons:
- When on the platform you don't want to accidentally back into one.

I've thought about replacing them with removable staples but I don't now see a significant-enough benefit to doing so.

I was thinking instead of staples one removable pole that had a mount for the grill and the stern tying reel.

Gets the benefit of dinghy access too.

 

[AlanT]

I use a rope to get in and out of the dinghy. Works fine and is easily removed. And I have only my left arm and hand functioning. Can also be used as a emergency boarding ladder when you leave it on the swim platform hanging. The “staples” take a lot of walking space and are often in the way. That’s why they are removable. Something from superyachts commercialized for smaller yachts.

I tend to agree with you. The swim platform needs to be sufficiently wide to allow easy passage for two people with staples installed to be worthwhile IMO. Borderline on the 4788 but for some the utility will outweigh the consumption of real estate.
~A

 

[ABfish]

I doubt anyone will walk side-by-side on a swim platform. A comfortable sidewalk for side-by-side is 5 ft. wide.

 

[Comodave]

I put a swim platform extension on our boat this winter and now the platform is 63” deep. I would like to put staples on but I want to see how it is without them this summer.

 

[AlanT]

I doubt anyone will walk side-by-side on a swim platform. A comfortable sidewalk for side-by-side is 5 ft. wide.

Two people need to be able to pass one another IMO simply to handle dinghy, kayak chores and loading people on and off. They do not need to walk side by side however, that would be silly.

 

[bowball]

I decided to put staples on my swim deck. I think it will make entry much easier for everyone, especially from the tender.

 

[zigzag930]

These look great, but the seem to be ridiculously priced. I'd use 3-4 on my platform, but can't justify $2400-3200 to do this.

Anyone found alternative to Tanner?

2" 316 stainless pipe is about $350 for 8'. That is enough to make one staple.

Mounts (removable) are a bit of a problem to find and would probably need to be fabricated....

 

[Bmarler]

These look great, but the seem to be ridiculously priced. I'd use 3-4 on my platform, but can't justify $2400-3200 to do this.

Anyone found alternative to Tanner?

2" 316 stainless pipe is about $350 for 8'. That is enough to make one staple.

Mounts (removable) are a bit of a problem to find and would probably need to be fabricated....

The bulk of the cost in stainless fabrication is labor. The welding, blending and polishing all takes time, and talent.

 

[mvweebles]

The bulk of the cost in stainless fabrication is labor. The welding, blending and polishing all takes time, and talent.

......don't forget polishing materials. An enormous amount of sandpaper is consumed. I've had quite a bit of stainless fabricated lately by a guy in the yard so I've watched the process. Final grit before final polishing is 3200 grit sandpaper with over a dozen steps before. I was stunned at how labor intensive it is.

I'm sure you could save a lot of money if you could live with raw SS tubing.

Peter

 

[Bmarler]

......don't forget polishing materials. An enormous amount of sandpaper is consumed. I've had quite a bit of stainless fabricated lately by a guy in the yard so I've watched the process. Final grit before final polishing is 3200 grit sandpaper with over a dozen steps before. I was stunned at how labor intensive it is.

I'm sure you could save a lot of money if you could live with raw SS tubing.

Peter

i do a fair amount myself. i've found a few specific abrasives that will significantly shorten the tie it takes, but these are expensive materials and may be hard to get in mexico. i use sanding discs to 400g, maybe 600g depending, then switch to silicon carbide unitized wheels to do most of the rest. then i've got a really good diminishing abrasive that brings it up to mirror. still time consuming though.

 

[Osprey69]

I would peruse second hand marine stores. I was given a binnacle grab rail that was perfect as a staple.

 

[Comodave]

We just ordered one from Tanner. It will be 34” high and 36” wide. I wanted to put a pair on but the ribs on the underside of the platform will not allow 2 so one it is. It is supposed to be about 3 weeks to ship. Hopefully it will be nice.

 

[AlanT]

We just ordered one from Tanner. It will be 34” high and 36” wide. I wanted to put a pair on but the ribs on the underside of the platform will not allow 2 so one it is. It is supposed to be about 3 weeks to ship. Hopefully it will be nice.

It may be too late to consider this comment, since you've already ordered however...

My current boat has staples and the center staple is removeable which is very handy. It stows neatly on the platform as shown on the second pic.
~A

 

[Slainte 1]

Staples

We just upgraded to Slainte and haven't had any time on her yet but I'm seriously thinking about adding staples to the swim platform. Every boat I've been on that has them, I've loved'em! Really great for getting in and out of tenders or for the kids with kayaks or "floaties".

I may need a wider platform which is costly, but I'm trying to justify the expense with the safety and convenience factor!

So, if I were you, I'd go for them!!

Have a great season!!

 

[Comodave]

It may be too late to consider this comment, since you've already ordered however...

My current boat has staples and the center staple is removeable which is very handy. It stows neatly on the platform as shown on the second pic.
~A
View attachment 135209
View attachment 135210

I thought about the removable one, but our swim platform is over 5’ fore and aft so we have a lot of room. Also I didn’t really have a good place to store it when it was out. We are only putting one in the center so we have a lot of room on either side. The configuration of the bottom of the platform only really gave me room to put one staple on otherwise I would have done two. The G10 fiberglass for the backing plates came today.

 

[Comodave]

Just got an email that my staple has shipped. Supposed to arrive next Thursday. I will try to take some photos of the installation.

 

[Pete Meisinger]

An interesting concept, (and an interesting use of the word). Can you imagine the amount of leverage a 200 pound person would exert trying to pull himself up using one of those? Especially from near the top? I don't think even through bolting would hold.

pete

 

[Comodave]

It has 4 1/4” bolts on each base. I am glassing in a 6”x12” plate of G10 structural fiberglass under each base. Then a 316 S/S backing plate under the G10. It will hold.

 

[OldDan1943]

Depending upon the price, you might consider applying a some sort of knurl to the staples. They seem to get slippery when wet

 

[Comodave]

Depending upon the price, you might consider applying a some sort of knurl to the staples. They seem to get slippery when wet

It has already shipped. Besides I like the smooth shiny look. We will just have to keep a rag to wipe it down. It is 2” diameter so it should be a good grip.

 

[mvweebles]

An interesting concept, (and an interesting use of the word). Can you imagine the amount of leverage a 200 pound person would exert trying to pull himself up using one of those? Especially from near the top? I don't think even through bolting would hold.



pete

You're over-thinking this. Goal is to provide a hefty guardrail at the edge of a platform, not a winch point. I've seen them used on boat decks to allow a dinghy to be launched without lifting it above railing height.

On sailboats, outboard of the mast are often railings to allow someone at the mast to steady themselves when reefing, hoisting, etc. They are often called "Granny Bars."

Staples are a nice safety feature, especially for boats with guests aboard.

Peter

 

[Comodave]

We finished the staple installation today. It is very solid and looks great. The Tanner people were great to deal with. The staple seems to be very well made and we are quite satisfied with it. We were fortunate that the boat in the barn behind ours wasn’t 2” further to our starboard or we couldn’t have finished the installation until spring, but we had 1.5” clearance where the bow overhangs our swim platform so it was good.

 

[bowball]

As the OP, I did install staples last year. They are great. Take care to make sure your swim ladder is compatible with staple placement. Mine are removable. I also added a combo bbq, fish cleaning table and stern tie post reel attachment to another removable post m

 

[Comodave]

They moved our boat out of the barn today. We are going to launch Friday. Here is a couple of photos of the staple.

 

[Osprey69]

We put a "staple" (sailboat binnacle guard) onto the RIB's locker deck with through bolts and washer fenders. It's great because swim platform or dock we are good to go. Will probably need to strengthen the underside of deck further as the RIB locker deck was not meant for a load of that kind, though we use it only for balance.