I have just made an aluminium bracket that works perfectly and attaches to the edge of the foredeck very securely with industrial velcro. Total cost c£3.50, as I used less than half of a £6.20 length of 40mm x 2mm aluminium strip from B&Q. It was measured accurately and bent in a vice using wood blocks to get the corners sharp and precisely at 90 and 45 deg. Then I drilled it for the Tacktick back plate ( 2 new c/s holes required in the backplate), sprayed it with Halfords primer and gloss black and stuck on the velcro ( I already had Velcro and paint). It is very secure, gives loads of room for control lines behind, doesn’t foul anything and is easy to attach and remove in seconds. It comprises a 15cm deep x 13cm wide ” U ” with the last 5cm of the legs of the “U” angled outward at 45deg. That gives a 5cm x 4cm contact surface for the Velcro on each end where it meets the vertical deck edge profile. Although my Mk1 version is angular and slightly “industrial” in appearance it is secure and functional as well as being very cheap. I have enough strip left to make a second more refined design if I can be bothered. It does not involve making any holes in the boat. Took 2 hours to make.
(Andy Shaw – H2 123)
