Anchor Size

[martydiaz]

Hello I am new to the board. I recently purchased a Mac 25 and am in the process of refurbishing it. My question is how heavy of an anchor should I have? I plan to sail in Lake Michigan but will probably avoid any serious weather until I develop my skill set. I crewed aboard a 30 Ft. Cat for several years but just took for granted the equipment aboard. Thx in advance for what may be a stupid question.

[David Mellon]

If you go to westmarine.com and look at anchors you will find that they suggest the size anchor for the size boat. Depending on your price point, stowage, expected bottom conditions, depth and if you expect to anchor over night you may choose different anchors, chain and rode. I recently bought a 14 lb. LEWMAR Delta™ Fast-Set Anchor rated to 30' and have ordered 25' of 5/8" hot dipped galvanized chain to go with it. I have enough rode in stock. You may want a different anchor and chain for the stern. So much of this decision depends on your expected conditions. You may consider a prepackaged set, they are short on chain length for my taste. Enough chain can make a huge difference in holding power, especially in rough seas. Don't forget the shackles, swivels, mooring snubbers, stainless-steel seizing wire, mounting hardware and a wench to pull it up using a winch if necessary. Then you can start considering roll control. Heck, perhaps a slip is cheaper!

[Hamin' X]

and a wench to pull it up using a winch if necessary.

I can't resist. Do you have to be married to the wench, or are girlfriends allowed to use the winch?

~Rich

[Shane]

Our boat came w/a 13 lb. danforth copy and some line. I added 30 ft. of chain, but anywhere there was lots of swing, I never felt really comfortable or confident with it. My family has progressed in baby steps, and are now enjoying the anchoring out and I know with one dragging anchor it will be back to docks, marinas, and mooring buoys, so this season we'll be using a Rocna 10kg. I still have to mount it, and that's a little bit of a challenge; still haven't come up with what I think to be the best solution for our boat. A friend dropped of a 4 foot long 2x10 of completely clear cypress for me yesterday, so I may be doing some woodworking for the bow of the boat soon

Regards,
Shane

[bubba]

I usually use 2 Danforth type anchors on the bow ( spread apart about 20 or 30 feet and a 15 lb folding break-away grapel anchor on the rear, each have 20 lb of chain on them and we do not drag at anchor even in 30 + breezes, sometmes the rear anchor moves but not much. I put an extended anchor roller on and leave one #14 danforth on it for easy access, it is handy at lunch.

[opie]

Every one may choose a different anchor rig for various good reasons. Thanks to this board, I have settled on this arrangement:
-- 10 Kg (25 lb) Lewmar Claw (also called a Bruce) for the primary, with 15 feet of chain and 200 ft 1/2" rode. This is the primary.
-- 5 Kg ( 12 lb) Claw with same chain and 150 ft 3/8" rode. Secondary.
-- Danforth ( size is a bit less than the dimensions of the MacX bow anchor locker, with all rode, no chain.

The claw(s) hold the best. The Danforth fails to set often, so I use that as my kedge backup or third anchor to stop swinging.

[bastonjock]

i went overkill with my anchor,i have an 11kg (25lb) Delta,it is backed up with 30ft of 3/8 link chain and 200ft of rode.
I anchored my in a force 6-7 choppy seas and we did not budge an inch.I dont care if it is overkill,id rather go over kill than be smashed against something hard,and i can sleep at night

however,eating greasy food such as fish and chips is not a good idea whilst anchoring in a f6-7

[c130king]

however,eating greasy food such as fish and chips is not a good idea whilst anchoring in a f6-7

Matt is setting me up on this one. Most of the vomitus went over the side and the heavy spray the next morning washed the remains away.

I have not had fish-n-chips since that day (Aug 08)...and that used to be my favorite British food. Now I am more of a bangers-n-mash kind of guy.

And his anchor is a beast and it worked great. But it is difficult to store unless you modify the anchor roller somehow to store it hanging off the front. You should have seen Matt up on the bow the next morning at sunrise, 25kt winds, 6-8' seas minimum with the bow pitching up and down about 35-40 degrees trying to pull that thing in as I attempted to keep the boat pointed into the waves. What a ride.

Get Glissando fixed so we can go do that again. I promise not to puke on your boat again.

Jim

ON EDIT: Well "Shiver me timbers"...look who got promoted to Admiral.

[bastonjock]

yup jims correct about the storing the large anchor being a hassle,i keep thinking that ill get a 14 lb delta for the bow roller and use the 25lb as back up .

hopefully the parts from rodgers factory will arrive within the next few weeks.

[martydiaz]

Thanks for all the info. Although I will be trailering most of the time I remember some very choppy water while watching the the Air and Water show and some very tense anchoring issues with the Cat 30. Being a fireman I tend to be more of a "belt and suspenders" type of guy. I will lean more toward over kill than 'Oh S@#t" A slip is somewhere on the horizon but will probably be a few years before I make the commitment.

[martydiaz]

I just checked the anchor that came with my used Mac 25 and its 9lb with no chain. This looks inadequate to me.Might be ok as a secondary but I wouldn't want to risk it with some of the wild people I have seen on Lake Michigan. What is the best way of affixing chain to this anchor? I'm pretty handy with tools and have welding and a hydraulic press in my shop.

[martydiaz]

Its a Danforth type.

[Night Sailor]

Anchoring is not an exact science or feat of engineering. The experience of others with your boat, and the same anchoring conditions is the best indicator of what might work for you.
With that in mind here is what I've used. A genuine Danforth Hi Tensile DeepSet, 12lbs, 12ft of 3/8" chain, and 250' of 5/8" line for all the 11 years I've had the X. It all fits neatly in the bow anchor locker. I've only been in mud, sand, gravel and clay bottoms, but it has not budged when set, even in winds up to 30 mph with gusts to 40.

I try not to be out in conditions like that, but it happens when NOAA's forecast is wrong. Interestingly, this anchor with a 1/2" rode also worked just as well in the same conditions for a 30' sloop I once owned.

I don't think my anchor and rode is an appropriate choice for shell, coral, or rocky bottoms, so you should have anchors on board made for those bottoms if you are in those areas for anchoring. Tidal surges or current swings and ocean swells can add to forces on the anchor and rode that must be considered in relation to your chosen cruising grounds.

Bigger, heavier, more expensive is not necessarily better as many anchor tests published have shown. Type purpose is important, and you must always consider that deploying and retrieving it should be within the efficient capability of the smallest, weakest member of your crew. You may not be able to do the job yourself if injury should happen to incapacitate you.

[bubba]

We usually anchor in small coves in 10 to 25 feet of water and the coves are not more than 100 feet wide so short anchor lines are used so not to hit trees and shore. That is a good reasion to use 3 anchors. We do tie to bouys when availiable.

[markh1f]

The safe bet is to look at the recommended size anchor and go up one size, that way you can sleep at night. What may be even more important is the type of anchor, in my experience - close to 600 nights anchored out with my previous boat, the Bruce style anchor is the best all around. Sets every time in any type of bottom, I have only had a Bruce drag one time and that was in sand so fine that even though the anchor was completely buried it pulled thru the sand. Never came loose, just over several hours of strong current pulling the boat it dragged 10 or 15 feet. Chain is also important, use 1/4" High Tensile, 50' minimum, 75' is better. The 1/4" HT chain has the strength and is light enough that it will not sink the bow. Scope is also important when anchoring 5:1 minimum 7:1 is better if you have room to swing. I have used up to 3 anchors at a time but prefer just one if you can do it that way, much less complicated and if you need to get out of there in a hurry (because the guy anchored up wind is dragging down on top of you or for some other reason) you can easily with one anchor down, not so easy with 2 or 3. Been there done that, it was not fun...
Mark