Anchor for BRe

[Jamesphillipps]

Saw a long thread about anchors in 2013 with different contributors stating they were going to give feedback on their experiences with Danforth, Fortress Cooper etc. Any views in 2015 on best anchor set up for BRe, how to deploy from cockpit and how to avoid dings when pulling anchor up!

[Peter Taylor]

Hi James, the problem with anchors is how well they perform tends to depend on what the seabed/lake bottom is like - so if you always sail in the same area, find out what other locals use!  Otherwise of the various reviews, I found the Yachting Monthly November 2009 Anchor Test the most useful article.  My own experiences can be found via...

http://www.seatern.org.uk/SeaternDiaries/firstyear01.php

However a major factor was what would fit into the BC20 anchor locker so not really applicable to a BRe. In summary I started with a Fortress but relegated it to being a kedge because it got in the way on the foredeck. I now use a 6kg Kobra with 10m of 7mm chain - so far it's held. The small Cooper is suitable for a small (tender) dinghy only, being marginally better than a folding grapnel (which isn't saying much).

Deploying for the cockpit is not a problem if you lead the rode back from the bow and pay attention to the wind direction - otherwise you can end up anchored via the rudder which I managed once. I'm not qualified to advise re. avoiding dings!

Peter

[Julian Swindell]

I use an 8kg Brittany anchor on my BC20. It is like a Danforth, without the long cross bar, which allowed me to fit in a heavy one. I have about 10ft of chain which must nearly double the total weight of metal. I can squeeze both anchor, chain and rope into one bow locker, but it is very tight, so I usually put the rope and chain in one locker and the anchor in the other. I always go forward to drop the anchor, I don't like having it in the cockpit. It has only slipped once, when I pulled in the rope until it was straight up and down, then got distracted (easily done) and when I finally remembered that I had been planning to set off, I had drifted 1/2  a mile down the Wareham Channel in Poole Harbour.

I am sceptical of the value of many anchor test articles. They are really aimed at people planning to anchor 40ft yachts in 50m of water whilst they sit out a force 12 hurricane in the Caribbean. I rarely anchor in more than 2m of water, and if things look bouncy, I drive her up the beach on a falling tide and sit it out on the ground. Having £300 pounds worth of aeronautical aluminium in a hydrodynamic anchor up front seems a little bit OTT. (Hope I don't live to regret saying this!)

[David Hudson]

Julian is quite right about magazine reviews.  As he says they are often irrelevant to folk like us. There are so many clever dicks around willing to say, "that's the wrong anchor for round here."

I have chosen a 1.8kg "build your own" Fortress. Its built size is 600mm x 480mm but for me the weight is the deciding factor. As to chain, I have some 8mm knocking around. I will probably start with a couple of metres in a bag and go from there.

[Graham W]

As Peter says, some anchors that are suitable for some conditions are unsuitable for others.  So a lightweight Fortress with a weighted anchor line (not chain), is very good for shallow muddy lakes and off sandy beaches but pretty useless on rock.  And I agree that folding grapnels, even heavy ones, are no good as they tend to collapse, either injuring your fingers or dragging on the bottom. Non-folding ones are much better but are difficult to stow and dangerously spiky on the boat.

I have a Manson Supreme galvanised 5kg with about 10m of chain when at sea.  As I pay it over the side near the mast, the chain has damaged my wooden gunwales, so have now put some stainless rubbing strip in the most vulnerable spot.  So far and perhaps because I also have the wooden rubbing strake option, it hasn't done any damage to my gelcoat.

 

[Julian Swindell]

I would second the stainless steel rubbing strips on the gunwales. I did a lot of damage to mine hauling up the anchor. Most of the paint chips I have to touch up over the winter are the result of the anchor flukes banging the side as it comes up. I haven't really found a way around that.

I've bought one of those stretchy "anchor buddies" to use for lunch stops this coming year. Will report on how effective it is once I have used it in earnest.

[david]

Hi James,
                I have a "claw" type anchor, 12 lbs, with 25 ft of chain. I sail mostly in the Pacific, not lakes, and so always have this on-deck, handy. I keep it in a bucket ready to deploy at all times. I am mainly concerned with navigating in and out of the breakwaters that are really just big rocks! Not anything you want to come into contact with. Reason for my concern was picking up seaweed and fouling the prop. So, I always keep it "at the ready". If you only need it for lunch and overnight, stowing it should be OK. It just depends, as others have already said, it's what your cruising ground looks like and the type of sea bottom you expect to encounter.

[Peter Taylor]

Most of the paint chips I have to touch up over the winter are the result of the anchor flukes banging the side as it comes up. I haven't really found a way around that.

Glad it's not just me! Julian's previous post here reminds me that another criterion was that the anchor had to be cheap enough for me to risk throwing it over the side of the boat!  There's always that possibility that you don't get it back.

Despite some comments, I still think the Yachting Monthly November 2009 magazine article is worth a look.  They covered a fairly wide range and the conclusions generally agreed with other reviews where similar anchors were tested.  One conclusion I noted (which I'd seen elsewhere too) was that although the Fortress has very good holding power in sand or mud, it is poor at resetting e.g. when the tide turns.  It was one reason I demoted mine to being a kedge, I may not need to ride out a hurricane (at least I hope not) but it would be nice to be in roughly the same place at the end of a night!
Peter

[Tony]

I've bought one of those stretchy "anchor buddies" to use for lunch stops this coming year. Will report on how effective it is once I have used it in earnest.

Hi, Julian.

Me too! (The Devil makes work for idle hands.)
Not quite sure of the best way to use it yet. I have a nasty feeling it might be an unnecessary complication and it doesn't look strong enough to stop a determined Labrador (if there is such a thing) but we'll see.