Looking for better snubber securing arrangement for anchor chain.

[Oceanride007]

Well I happily had arrangement that worked well for a couple years, I secured my snubber line by a sheet bend on to a prusik knot wrapped around my 10mm anchor chain.


Story: Problem is one night, it was blowing maybe up to 40 knots and between Midnight and 4am the boat upwind of me had moved & was now 2 boat lengths away, my anchor is beneath & fwd of him, best thing to do is let out more chain, problem is I need the engine to motor forward to assist with pulling chain in to get to my knot/s, OK but then the Sheet bend is so tight I spend a inordinate time trying to undo it, then my yacht found his slip stream & did some damage, sad but true.



Lets concentrate on knot, atm now using a stainless steel claw but that won't ride over the roller like a knot & tends to drop off the link before I set it & is a bit difficult to reach fwd of the roller..


Have heard someone else have a problem with a sheet bend directly on chain, the knot tightened up under similar circumstances & they had to cut the knot off.


What U reckon for a solution. Thks

[rslifkin]

Personally, I just use a line with a spliced eye and prusik the whole line onto the chain. It's slightly more of a pain having to pull the whole 30 foot snubber through the loop, but it can be done quickly. I have more than 1, so if needing to let more out, I'd just tie the loose end off to the chain further up as I let more chain out, then attach another snubber (and recover the first one when departing later on).

[chris mac]

We use a mantis hook on a long bridle(catamaran)
The hook stays on easily, but is easy to undo quickly.
We also have the bridle attached to cleats on deck, so if necessary we can dump the bridle, knowing the mantis hook will keep it on the chain, and let out as much extra chain as we need. A back up bridle (also with a mantis hook) is ready to go

[sailingabe41ds]

i really did not want to spend more money...but i too used the mantus hook with their snubber kit and have no regrets.
abe

[boatpoker]

Been using a chain hook for a few decades ... $6.99

We replace it every few years as it corrodes. Galvanic corrosion of the chain has never been an issue.

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/k...aw.ds#store=70

[StuM]

Originally Posted by Oceanride007

Well I happily had arrangement that worked well for a couple years, I secured my snubber line by a sheet bend on to a prusik knot wrapped around my 10mm anchor chain.

Sheet bend?

Two words: Zeppelin Bend


https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post1574834

[Jim Cate]

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned using a dyneema soft shackle: eye splice in end of snubber, soft shackle through a link, done. If that doesn't seem adequate (although many folks are using such successfully, a much longer soft shackle tied as a Prussic and then made through the eye splice is pretty chafe free, easy to undo and strong as hell... you can use as large dyneema as you wish with the Prussic.

Jim

[Joh.Ghurt]

Originally Posted by Oceanride007

Story: Problem is one night, it was blowing maybe up to 40 knots and between Midnight and 4am the boat upwind of me had moved & was now 2 boat lengths away, my anchor is beneath & fwd of him, best thing to do is let out more chain, problem is I need the engine to motor forward to assist with pulling chain in to get to my knot/s, OK but then the Sheet bend is so tight I spend a inordinate time trying to undo it, then my yacht found his slip stream & did some damage, sad but true.

The best and very easy solution is to drop the snubber from the cleat, let out more chain and then get another snubber for the rest of the night. Next day, when things have calmed down, you retrieve the snubber.

This is why you should tie the snubber with a cleat-hitch to the cleat and not drop just a spliced or tied loop over it. If you want to position your chafe protections reliably, add a whipping mark to the snubber where it should be positioned. In a pinch you can use a docking line as a second snubber.

[Captain Puget]

I second the second snubber approach for all chain rode.

This is one of the reasons for a mixed rode, especially if you are not in an area with coral and therefore concerned about line shear. The additional issue we face in more northly latitudes is 2x daily larger tide changes with multiple scope adjustments ( +/- 16ft) …. Easy if you have a mixed rode with enough chain to cover at least 3:1 in your typical depth for comfortable anchoring.

[sailcrazy]

Just like Boatpoker. we have been using a simple chainhook on a 3-strand nylon line for several years.....and have never had it come off. We put the chain out, set the anchor, then hook on the chainhook and keep it under tension as we let out the added chain and snubber. when the snubber it tight, we let out a little more chain, and done! I also set a lock on the chain, and then tighten down the windlass. To let out more chain, just reverse with the windlass until the chain it tight, undo the chain hook and let out more chain, then reapply the hook. so far-works well!

[Flatswing]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned using a dyneema soft shackle: eye splice in end of snubber, soft shackle through a link, done. If that doesn't seem adequate (although many folks are using such successfully, a much longer soft shackle tied as a Prussic and then made through the eye splice is pretty chafe free, easy to undo and strong as hell... you can use as large dyneema as you wish with the Prussic.

Jim

What I use. I make a new 1 every year or 2. $5-10. The crown knot is easier to make if you leave each tail 1’ longer. then cut off the extra 2’ at the end. Costs extra $2 in Dyneema but way easier for beginners

[OS2Dude]

We form a prusik knot on the chain with a dyneema loop and attach to snubber with a shackle.

[meirriba]

We have on our bridle a Wichard hook with a captive safety pin. It cannot get free by itself, and is very easy to take off the chain (just pull the pin out and take the hook out off the chain). Can be done with one hand.
It is expensive but we use it now for 10 years without any problem, including several instances of releasing and re-attaching in strong winds.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Oceanride007

Well I happily had arrangement that worked well for a couple years, I secured my snubber line by a sheet bend on to a prusik knot wrapped around my 10mm anchor chain.


Story: Problem is one night, it was blowing maybe up to 40 knots and between Midnight and 4am the boat upwind of me had moved & was now 2 boat lengths away, my anchor is beneath & fwd of him, best thing to do is let out more chain, problem is I need the engine to motor forward to assist with pulling chain in to get to my knot/s, OK but then the Sheet bend is so tight I spend a inordinate time trying to undo it, then my yacht found his slip stream & did some damage, sad but true.



Lets concentrate on knot, atm now using a stainless steel claw but that won't ride over the roller like a knot & tends to drop off the link before I set it & is a bit difficult to reach fwd of the roller..


Have heard someone else have a problem with a sheet bend directly on chain, the knot tightened up under similar circumstances & they had to cut the knot off.


What U reckon for a solution. Thks

The classical solution is the rolling hitch.


Use it, and be happy. Holds without fail, and easy to undo after being under strain. It's the perfect knot for a snubber. Generations of cruisers who used the rolling hitch for their snubbers were not stupid.

[drcot3]

Use a simple snap hook(carabinier or similar) with a separate eye for threading your rope to each port/starboard bow and tie off as normal on your cleats, but leave your anchor chain made off, in case the rope/snap hook breaks. Then just winch in a little and no pressure on your rope so you can undo from the bow cleats (figure of eight round cleats and a round turn to stop slippage). then loosen anchor chain as much as you want. then repeat above and just collect 1st snap hooks when hauling your anchor if you could not winch in enough anchor chain to reach them. OR WAKE boat in front and reprimand him/her for dragging/too much rode on his/her anchor, make sure he/she is a nice and considerate person first, mind you I would not care about their feelings.
Next time in a busy anchorage, you could mark your anchor`s position with a small buoy tied to your anchor. Don`t you love hindsight. Or use a bowline knot