I was puzzled myself by the length of chain (1/4", by the way); it was already installed on the boat with only about 10 feet of rope bit. Seems backward, and in addition, there was a 100’ rope with about 10 feet of chain stashed in the gunnel. Presumably this was the original and was replaced. The boat has a windlass, and in my experience chain works much better than rope in windlasses, where the splice often slips or hangs at inopportune times. The 1/4 " chain is relatively lightweight, so it makes sense to have that much chain, because 90% of the time you would anchor without letting out into the rope bit. I thought to splice 200 feet of rope bit to the chain rode for a total of 300 feet. In addition I will either buy or fabricate a reef anchor as beautifully described above, in addition to the plow anchor. That way I will have plenty of anchor line length and function for most circumstances. Thanks as always for the advice, guys!
GREAT advice! I saw a Grappler reef anchor chap at west marine, with similar specs. I think I will try one. Awesome post! Thanks!
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Originally posted by specHere is a post by our admin. describing the the type “reef anchor” I used back in my offshore days:
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All Forums Articles Boating Reef Anchor Made Easy Forum Locked Send Topic to a Friend Printer Friendly Author Previous Topic Topic Next Topic Admin Forum Admin2571 Posts
Posted - 03/08/2007 : 09:07:19 AM Show Profile Email Poster Visit Admin’s Homepage Send Admin a Private Message
As I was thinking about what to write about this week I have to admit I have sheepshead on the brain. A good friend of mine tried to talk me out of working today and playing hooky on the reefs, but I really had too much to do to break away. My thoughts kept going back to fishing all day long, spring fever began to set in and the next nice day we have I may find myself on the reefs. A question that comes up quite frequently is how to make a reef anchor. Here is an article that Tim wrote 3 years ago that explains how to make a reef anchor complete with pictures. Enjoy and we’ll see you out there.Reef Anchor Made Easy
Last year my father and I found a calm Saturday in July and decided to run to Capers Reef and try the Spadefish. We arrived at the reef with our jellyballs to find several other folks on the structure. We maneuvered around them to a spot just off the reef, or so we thought, and decided to drop anchor and play the tide and wind to drift onto the structure. The second the anchor hit the bottom it hung and my father and I both knew we had messed up. Evidently the tide was running a little harder than we thought and the anchor landed in the structure. After playing out all
I think they used that much chain because it performed better in the windlass. It is a Leinart 5000
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Originally posted by specWhy?
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
Thanks for the link to the polyball video…ingenious!
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Originally posted by saltydog235quote:
Originally posted by skulldigger48I remeasured. I have 150 foot of chain.
Cut chain in lengths of your boat. Go buy 300’ of good quality rope, tie on the chain and a danforth anchor. Get a polyball. Go up current from the structure and drop anchor, drift over structure and drop bait.
Watch Sellsfish’s video on getting the anchor up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwiNDQW_r08
Mark
Pioneer 222 Sportfish Yamaha F300
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
Intrepid 323 Open. Windlass on board.
OK, after seeing the size of your boat and learning of the windless, it makes sense. But, 150 ft., even of 1/4" chain, seems like a lot of weight in the bow. I guess for your size boat and all those horses it is not a big factor.
Having the windless is sweet! I still remember (long ago) being armpit deep as the bow buried into a wave as I pulled the hook on my dad’s T-Craft. I’d wrap the rope around the bow cleat, take up the slack in the troughs, and let the boat do the pulling as the bow rose.
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
hmmmm, i suppose all things considered:
- only 1/4 inch chain, so probably well under 1 lb per foot
- 150 feet of chain plus the 150’ of rope too.
- boat length
- windlass working well only with chain (probably the most important factor)
I’d probably just stick with what you’ve got.
fwiw, I have 20 feet of 3/8" chain and 300’ of rode (my boat’s much smaller).
As for tips on how to anchor, it really depends on the size of the spot you are trying to anchor over and what type of bottom it is. When anchoring over live bottom, I will typically drift over a known spot two or three times dropping bait to scout the spot for fish. While I do this I place GPS pins on the hottest spots of the day (they often change over live bottom). while I do this, the gps plots three drift lines on my plotter. I then approach the hottest spot(s) from down current in the exact same direction as those three lines. Once I go over the hot spot on the finder, I go a little ways past it (varies with the current strength) and drop anchor. Ideally, if I do this right, my fish finder should light up when the anchor sets. In my opinion, each boat, anchor, depth finder, and gps combo is a little different and may require a few hit/misses before you get the hang of it. With a windlass, hopefully it won’t be too much trouble if you drop in the wrong spot on the first try!
Like I have stated before, wish they made an I pilot for my Bertram! I use one on my 23’ CC and it work like a charm!!
Having a long chain rode is very nice as long as your windlass is reliable.
Just remember, don’t use the windlass to hold you in place.
When stopping on a chain, use a snubber attached to at least one cleat.
Here’s a helpful link: http://commutercruiser.com/7-tips-for-using-a-snubber/
Also, if you can, be sure to rig your anchor with some sort of release mechanism.
Never Satisfied
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Never-Satisfied-Fishing-and-Cruising/199406440221361
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Originally posted by Cracker Larryquote:
200 ft. of chain? Wow!
Try your best not to drop the anchor on live bottom, anchor in the sand.
amen to that.