Fortress Flopper-Stopper

[Dockhead]

Anyone try to use a Fortress anchor as a flopper-stopper?

I know that a correct flopper stopped needs to have a bottom which can flip up to let it sink on the down-roll, but wouldn't a Fortress anchor work in a similar, if less effective way? The flukes will fold up.

I don't have enough need for such a device to go to the trouble to make one up and then store it somehow.

I would use a halyard led through the end of the preventered-out boom, I guess, to hold it out. My boom is about 22' long, and half the beam is 8', so it ought to get the anchor clear of the side by at least 10'.

Before I try it, does anyone have any similar experience?

[UNCIVILIZED]

You might try using a drogue instead, say one that's 1m or less in diameter, with a few weights on it to keep it submerged at a reasonable depth. They stow really easily, & are cheap/can be made cheaply.

[Dockhead]

Thanks -- a really good idea. I don't have a drogue on board (trailing warps is my thing) but might be worth acquiring a small one for this purpose.

But I'm still curious -- has no one tried a Fortress in this role?

[Jim Cate]

DH, interesting idea, but I suspect that the Fortress does not present enough frontal area to provide much drag. If the flukes folded out to 90 degrees it might, but even in the mud setting I believe t hat it would come up way short. Further, because f the "one sided" shape of the anchor, it would tend to fly off sideways when on the upstroke, and I t hink this would also reduce its effectiveness as a roll stabilizer.

But that is just my idea, and I don't own a Fortress, so why don't you try it out and give us some objective data?

Jim

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

DH, interesting idea, but I suspect that the Fortress does not present enough frontal area to provide much drag. If the flukes folded out to 90 degrees it might, but even in the mud setting I believe t hat it would come up way short. Further, because f the "one sided" shape of the anchor, it would tend to fly off sideways when on the upstroke, and I t hink this would also reduce its effectiveness as a roll stabilizer.

But that is just my idea, and I don't own a Fortress, so why don't you try it out and give us some objective data?

Jim

I'll try it and report.

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