Favorite Anchor?

mattie

Looking for a new main anchor for the windlass. Our newer boat came with a 22lb Azure Blue Star Stainless wing anchor.
It's the coolest looking piece of jewelry on the boat. But it's pretty much useless. Just lays on its side & drags everywhere.

Azure Blue Star

Had a nice galvanized Lewmar Delta on the last boat, worked really well. That is why I'm surprised that this Blue Star doesn't work at all. Similar in design.

Mantus anchors look like they work real well too. A 25 lb would likely work https://www.mantusmarine.com/

Hopefully I can retrofit the bow roller fit the new anchor....

Mostly sand type bottom - occasionally weedy or soft clay.

Black_Diamond

Mantus anchors have great reviews. Use their on line template to see if it will fit your bow roller. 

Glassguy54

Fortress anchors are highly regarded and are used by the USCG.

Stodge

I have a fortress as my stern anchor for my 342, and as the primary on my center console.  If I thought it would fit right in the anchor roller I'd have one as the primary on my 342.

Ian

Various types work better in the different bottom materials, I am looking to perhaps go with one like you have now. If you are looking to part with it @mattie message me.

rasbury

Not sure what style mine is but looks like a plow..don't use it much anyway but always held the boat when I did - but do not deal with currents. So, was thinking of this question as smaller boats I have had did not have a windlass....so when you are ready to leave, I'm scared to death if I run the boat forward, if my rasing the anchor speed is not faster than my forward speed I will end up with a lot of chain in my dueo props...how are you supposed to deal with this?

diggin2day1

    I have a Fortress on my FV270 and I use it quite often for overnight - full week at a time... sometime in very heavy winds. I upgraded last year and glad I did. 
   As for using the windlass, the idea is just NOT to let the windlass pull the boat. Depending upon conditions I range from bumping the throttle to a continuous propulsion in order to keep the rode slacked while I reel it in. You would have to be extremely aggressive in order to get it jammed up in the props. 

rasbury

Mine is like the one pictured, just not stainless.

LaRea

I'll give a +1 for the Delta. 

Yesterday I had 125 tons of boats rafted up on my anchor in a 10-mph breeze.  Our club's annual raftup ... people just kept showing up.  We had 22 boats at one point.  Everybody kept saying they weren't staying very long, so nobody wanted to put out more anchors.  

Dream_Inn

LaRea said:

I'll give a +1 for the Delta. 

Yesterday I had 125 tons of boats rafted up on my anchor in a 10-mph breeze.  Our club's annual raftup ... people just kept showing up.  We had 22 boats at one point.  Everybody kept saying they weren't staying very long, so nobody wanted to put out more anchors.  

Been there done that many times.  Finally I had one time last year when we started to slide  (had 13 boats, none smaller than 35).  Now we just always put two out.  This weekend was lots of switching around and new anchors going out.  At one point, I had to pull out because my genny ran out of gas.  Left my stern, reinstalled bow anchor when I go back.

PickleRick

In soft clay i use a trieded and true danforth.  Its not the sexiest anchor around. Have one on the 26 ft saiboat and one on the 235.  The one on my sanjuan 26 is a 22lbs with 20ft 3/8 chain. When we vacation and live on the hook for up to a week at a time we like to sleep sound.  In clay a shifting wind will reset its self with proper scope.


I only have maybe 4 ft of chain on the 235 but its new to me and the 18lbs anchor came on the bow roller.  It will be upgraded to 22lbs with 20ft of chain this winter.
I dont have a windlass on either.  I reallty need to tie it up break away style. Im fortunate I've only hired 1 diver to retrieve an anchor in 10 years of weekending on the hook all summer.  

I barely anchor in more than 30 ft of water but consider 75 ft of rode plus 20ft chain a minimum.  


In the keys fishing the reefs i like a cheap home made graple from rebar.  Cheap rode.  If i cant get it off the rocks im not out much and the salt water dissolves it in short time.

Pull hard enough to snap the rode at the grapple so not to hurt any wild life.   

Dream_Inn

PickleRick said:

I barely anchor in more than 30 ft of water but consider 75 ft of rode plus 20ft chain a minimum.  

In 30 feet of water, I would not sleep without a minimum of 200 feet of rode out.  My normal anchor depth is around 10ft.  Add the 3-4ft up to the pulpit, I almost use ~150ft (25 of it being chain).  A 5-1 ratio is fine for day trips, 7-1 is minimum for overnight, with 9-1 in any winds.  I do agree that a Danforth is great in clay type bottoms (it is what I use for a stern anchor).

PickleRick

Dream_Inn said:

PickleRick said:

I barely anchor in more than 30 ft of water but consider 75 ft of rode plus 20ft chain a minimum.  

In 30 feet of water, I would not sleep without a minimum of 200 feet of rode out.  My normal anchor depth is around 10ft.  Add the 3-4ft up to the pulpit, I almost use ~150ft (25 of it being chain).  A 5-1 ratio is fine for day trips, 7-1 is minimum for overnight, with 9-1 in any winds.  I do agree that a Danforth is great in clay type bottoms (it is what I use for a stern anchor).

How big is your boat?  Ive ridden out storms in the main channels with 2 to 3 ft waves and 60 mph wind gusts with less than 50 ft (approx 20ft chain 20 ft rode) in the saiboat many a weekend without doint much other than burying the danforth deeper.  Our inland lakes used to be forrests so floors are puff mud and clay several ft deep.  (Upstate sc)  this was in 17 to 20 ft of water.  I realize my 26ft saiboat doesnt catch as much windage as even a 22 ft power boat with a full enclosure.  My 18 lbs danforth on the 235 doesnt give me much confidence especially with less than 5 ft of chain. For a danforth the chain is what in my opinion makes or breaks the bite. 

Dream_Inn

Well, my boat is 40ft and weighs ~25k lbs with fuel.  So, I'm guessing you'd be less than 25% of my weight.  The freeboard is quite high on mine as well.  I rode out a storm where it took down the roof on a marina on the river I was anchored (est wind gust close to 80mph).  We had 3 of my boats riding basically on my stern anchor (wind came at the stern, luckily with beach directly behind boats).  There was another stern, very small, that ended up flinging about 80feet away.  My stern had been pulled about 6 feet thru sand on a beach, leaving a trench (cause it was originally buried a few feet down using a shovel).  Sorry, kind of got a bit off topic here.

LaRea

Chain makes most any anchor.  @mattie maybe you should try adding more chain before you abandon that pretty anchor.  How much do you have now?

mattie

LaRea said:

Chain makes most any anchor.  @mattie maybe you should try adding more chain before you abandon that pretty anchor.  How much do you have now?

Yaa maybe look closer at the chain. Only got this boat last August...used it for a few weeks. Windlass has got a good amount of chain/rope. Although the chain is a smaller diameter than our last Rinker. Gonna have to really study up the issue.
Our 276 BR had 30’ chain & 100’ rope & a Lewmar Delta. Really worked perfectly.

Feel stupid that I don’t know how much chain/rope is on this new boat - gotta get cracking. Out of storage on Friday. 

PickleRick

Yeah if i had a 40 footer id have more scope too!!  

I thought plow.anchors required much less chain than a danforth? I own a 30 pound swivel plow but never used it.  I dont have a windless and it was a chore just to get it under my work bench. Pulling it up by hand feels like it would be torture.  I figured if i ever do sail to the Bahamas ill want that plow for the sand and coral, im a sucker for a good 20.dollar yard sale find. 

Dream_Inn

PickleRick said:

im a sucker for a good 20.dollar yard sale find. 

Now, I hear you there!  I specifically go to them just for boating stuff!  (which there is lots of around here)

Jstew

I have a 2017 370 EX. It came with a 22 pound lewmar delta anger.  That anchor dragged a lot so I just ordered a 35 pound replacement. I spoke with a rep at Lewmar and that is what he recommended.