Best Anchor ?

[DennisC]

Hi Folks,

I've got a 22lb Bruce on my Aloha 28. Can anyone suggest a better alternative, and why?
How about one of those really lightweight Aluminum Fortress anchors, would'nt that be an easy way to go??

Thanks in advance for the info
Dennis C
..._/)*...

[Steve]

I don't know that much about the science of anchors, but I have been told the best choice depends on the type of bottom you are likely to encounter. If a muddy bottom is most common, an anchor like a danforth that burrows in is the best. If the bottom is rocky, a danforth might not be the best choice because it can wedge in cracks easier than other designs. Is any of this true? This is the extent of my anchor knowledge. I would hate to find out it is not true and I know nothing.

[strongsail]

Lightweight hinged-fluke anchors like the Fortress are easy to handle, but therein lies their weakness. This type of anchor shape - the hinged fluke type like Fortress, Danforth and Davis Seahook - does not set well in bottoms with lots of vegetation - the "cabbage" will foul the flukes and it won't dig in. And yes, if you get this type of anchor stuck in a rocky bottom, it's easier to bend it (especially true of the aluminum Fortress) in the process of freeing it.

The Bruce you have now is a pretty good choice - lots of folks swear by 'em - they are very strong for their weight. The hinged plows like the CQR are also good but they are heavy, expensive and hard to stow - you usually don't see CQR's on boats under 30 feet. I have a CQR on my present boat, but have used a Bruce in the past and it held pretty well, but will sometimes drag in soft sand since it doesn't dig real deep - but the Danforth style sometimes has the same problem.

If you do a lot of cruising in remote areas you should carry a second anchor - as a backup, and so you can set 2 hooks in confined areas to keep from swinging. A Danforth-style would be a good second anchor. Set it up with its own rode and stow it on the stern rail when cruising - it's handy to have it back aft so you can deploy it off the stern in case (yes, it happens) you run aground and need to kedge off in a hurry.

[strongsail]

Dennis C sent me an email with this response:

Thanks for your response regarding the anchors. It's great to make a contact in your area for a surveyor who is willing to share their knowledge.

Thanks Dennis for the good words - I've been boating for long enough to make my living at it now, and am glad to pass my knowledge along - it's not like any of it is secret anyway, and I work for an insurance company so I have a real interest in safety. This forum is a great place to discuss these topics, and like you Dennis, I hope the traffic here picks up - this site could mature into a really great regional resource. Tell your boating friends about it!

[Jack Tyler]

Here are two great ways to break past individual views on anchors (and also drogues) and learn from someone who's researched their use from a technical/engineering as well as cruising sailor background:

Oceanography & Seamanship by VanDorn
Anchors and Drogues (or something like this - it's on the boat) by Earl Hinz
Both are in-depth, readable and thought-provoking.

A few add'l thoughts:
1. CQR's are no harder to store than Bruce anchors, IME. They both require an outboard roller, a roller base that will accommodate their unique shape, and a method for handling/storing an appropriate amount of chain.
2. The more ways you can help the anchor rode offer the anchor a proper catenary, the better the anchor will work for you...yet we rarely hear about this but rather focus on the anchor, itself. A kellet can be easily made from 4" PVC and PVC end caps, e.g. and, if stuffed with old tire weights and sand, then lowered down the rode by using a simple rope loop, it will improve catenary significantly. Buoying a rode properly with a sizeable fender will require the boat to 'sink' the buoy before riding back fully on its rode, a technique often used in the Pacific when deep water and short scope are called for. And more chain is better than less chain, as we all know. (Thumbrules like 'amount of chain should = waterline of the boat' can be very misleading).
3. Practical Sailor has done a LOT of anchor testing. Some of their conclusions: Bruce anchors bury faster than the CQR or the new DeepSet, but are unable to equal the amount of absolute holding power of the latter two (given comparable anchor sizes). I've seen this time & again in Caribbean anchorages, which are usually 'optimum' seabeds for anchoring. The West folding fluke (aka: 'Danforth') anchor has beaten the Danforth anchor at its own game; the Danforth design that came about when patent protection was lost apparently was a step back.

Jack

[strongsail]

I will be 'relearning' the anchoring process on my boat soon. I am fiddling with a new rode after installing a Muir vertical windlass this month. It's electric, but I am going to use it manually this season to be sure I have the bugs worked out of it before I apply 1000 watts to the mix - it's pretty easy to use with a winch handle in the manual mode. The electrical part of the installation can be done in the winter, anyway.

I have a little over 2 shots (about 195 feet) of 5/16HT chain, and I am discovering that I may have to shorten that a little - my boat has quite a fine entry, which makes for a small forepeak, and the chain piles up and jams against the chainpipe, which I had to build because the chain was piling up against the hull, jeez what a lot of noodling - -

So the important question is, why is it called a "shot?" I discovered it's 90, feet, 15 fathoms, but why is it called that?

My anchor is a 35lb CQR, and the chain weighs 1.1 lbs per ft, and now she's a little down at the bow, another reason to think I will end up with about 120 feet of chain with a 50ft rope tail. Is that enough for these cruising grounds?

It seems that I almost always set my hook with less than 100ft of rode, when I had the standard "boat length" of 1/4" chain, and this larger chain will let me ride on less scope, so I will very seldom need more rode except someplace like Princess Louisa, where I will just have to back a little closer to shore before taking a stern line ashore.

Maybe I will try for 150 feet of chain...

I did my first (and last?) 8-strand rope-to-chain splice this weekend...got the splice out of Brion Toss's book, great reference.

[Steve P]

I like anchoring on all chain. It really makes me feel secure and sleep tight.

In most places I go I try to anchor in 20-30 ft of water. Right now I have over 100ft of chain and it is just right for around here.

But after thinking about it a lot I've decided that a mixed rode for any deeper water is good. That leaves a whole lot of chain to help keep the rode flat on the bottom but allows me to get into deeper water without carrying all the extra weight of chain.

There should be all chain down towards the bottom to mitigate any chafe issues.

I also think that in a desperate situation like a anchoring off a lee shore the nylon will absorb a lot of shock and both allow the anchor to hold better and lesson the abuse on the boat.

Seems like the best of both worlds so thats how I'm going to keep it; about 100ft of chain and 200-300ft of three strand nylon.

I currently use an old Danforth that came with the boat and I don't have any trouble around here, but for deploying off the bow, which I'm not set up to do yet I'm thinking a Bruce because that seems like a such a common anchor in these waters so I figure it must be working good for people.

[Steve P]

You have basically answered my question about rope to chain splices.

I currently have a large eye splice and thimble for the rope, but it wont fit through my (future/proposed) hawse pipe so it would have to be attatched at the time of deployment. Does this seem reasonable?

Given your findings it doesn't sound like it would be a good idea to sit off a lee shore tugging hard on a rope to chain splice. So why use it all if you have enough chain for all chain anchoring under most situations.

Does anyone have an opinion on Bruce vs. Claw?

Does that sound like a good choice for a primary anchor in the PNW? I've always been a danforth guy so these are a bit of an unknown to me. But I have seen the Danforth drag, and they have something of a reputation for not reseting after direction changes.

[strongsail]

Here's a link to a good pic of a Mid-link:

http://www.cpostores.com/hamiltonmarine/browse.cfm/4,1881,1,29,717.html

I agree with Jack, I don't think I would be comfortable with trusting that rope-to-chain splice in a gale, so I will probably keep the chain I cut off the main rode and set it up with another rope tail (fisherman's bend to a ring shackled to the chain), then use a mid-link at the end of the main rode (I can get to the bitter end link through the splice since the 8-strand plaited braid is quite flexible) to tie the two rodes together. I also carry 40ft of 1/4HT chain and 150ft of 5/8 8-strand on a Danforth-style (Davis SeaHook) as a stern kedge, which I could set as a backup bow anchor since I have 2 rollers forward.

I have found the Danforth to not set well in "cabbage," the broad-leafed kelp that grows around here, and it also fouls in seagrass if it's thick. I have no experience with the Claw, but have used a fairly small Bruce on an Ericson 30 and found that it sets and resets quickly, but does not dig as deep as a CQR - I remember trying to kedge that Ericson off a sandbar (if you never go aground, you never go anywhere) with the Bruce - it dug a lovely furrow as I winched it back to the boat about 10 times...

[Jack Tyler]

A few follow-ups given Strongsail's plans...
1. I just opened up by chain-to-rope splice after two years, mostly of non-use in the anchor locker. I'd used shrink tape around the strands where they weave thru the last link and before back-splicing the line. Cutting everything open revealed localized rust even tho' that splice had never been in the water - just being soaked by the chain coming back aboard. Inspection and replicing occasionally looks well warranted.
2. Somewhat like Strongsail mentions, I'd been carrying 200' of 5/16HT chain and 100' of nylon 3-strand and just reduced it back to 150' of chain & 50' of nylon, in part to help it self-stow and also because we don't need more 99.9% of the time. IMO the best chain-to-chain link on the market is the Mid-Link offered by folks like West Marine. It has no moving parts (beyond the 2 removeable pins), is drop forged, and has a rated WLL corresponding to HT chain of the same dimension. I haven't been able to find it galvanized but squirt one occasionally with Boeshield and found it lasted one year before getting to be rather obnoxious looking, rust wise - tho' I doubt it's strength has not yet been effected.
3. Since I have made up a chain-to-rope splice, I guess this sounds like a contrary statement, but I would avoid relying on the splice in other than normal anchoring conditions if at all possible. Just looking at the tight turn of all those fibers around the rough surface of the chain link - and then reflecting on how nylon line can stretch amazingly, all the time working against anything it's up against - makes me uncomfortable depending ultimately on this arrangement. That's one reason I carry extra chain and 'H' links.

Jack