Cruisers Forum
 


Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on Cruisers Forums. Advertise Here
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 22-06-2010, 12:25   #1
Registered User

Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 1
Question Jordan Series Drogue vs Paratech Sea Anchor

I am preparing for transatlantic cruise and would like to get some comments on the subject above. Thank you
toelpel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 12:34   #2
Registered User
 
swagman's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Winter land based UK New Forest. Summer months away. Making the transition from sail to power this year - scary stuff.
Boat: Super Van Craft 1320 Power Yacht
Posts: 2,175
Images: 10
Send a message via Skype™ to swagman
I'm not a supporter of either device preferring to run before the weather as opposed to standing up before it.

But of the two everything I've read would place the versatility of the Jordan series drogue ahead of larger sea anchor.

Please note this is opinion only and not based on practical experience with either device.

JOHN
__________________
Don't take life too seriously. No ones going to make it out alive......Go see our blog at https://www.sailblogs.com/member/yachtswagman/
swagman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 12:48   #3
cruiser

Join Date: May 2010
Location: SF Bay Area; Former Annapolis and MA Liveaboard.
Boat: Looking and saving for my next...mid-atlantic coast
Posts: 6,197
I would not use the drogue as a sea anchor.

Either run with it or heave to with a sea anchor - the latter being preferable if you are short handed or have inexperienced crew.
SaltyMonkey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 13:33   #4
Registered User

Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Whangaparaoa,NZ
Boat: 63 ft John Spencer Schooner
Posts: 956
This is fun

If I had to choose one I would go with the drogue (irrespective of crew numbers) . Haven't used the Jordan, haven't had the opportunity, and not silly enough to go looking for one, but have used drogues in anger before.
While there may be occasions where the sea anchor would be preferable, i believe there are even more where the drogue would be preferable. Add that the drogue is waaaay easier to deploy and retrieve in greater safety and I see it as a no brainer.
If you can manage the cost, weight, space, have both, but not many can do that.
__________________

dana-tenacity is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 13:46   #5
Registered User
 
Sabbatical II's Avatar

Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Lake Macquarie
Boat: Bluewater 420 CC
Posts: 756
Images: 1
Quote:
Originally Posted by swagman View Post
I'm not a supporter of either device preferring to run before the weather as opposed to standing up before it.
I actually agree, but I'm buying both for my new boat because I want to have options. It's like an umbrella, it never rains when you've got one and when it rains you wish you had one.

Greg
__________________
Greg
Sabbatical II is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 13:57   #6
cruiser

Join Date: May 2010
Location: SF Bay Area; Former Annapolis and MA Liveaboard.
Boat: Looking and saving for my next...mid-atlantic coast
Posts: 6,197
Believe what you will, but history shows...you need both.

Good luck with that drogue trying to keep the boat stern-to on a cross or confused sea created by shifting winds on a fast moving or secondary lows. Good luck with an inexperienced crew when you have to perform rotating shifts to keep teams at peak concentration while aiming through the rogues.

In any case please make sure you take the change out of your pocket because I hate the sound of money rolling around in the bilge after a broach or a roll.
SaltyMonkey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 15:45   #7
Senior Cruiser
 
skipmac's Avatar

Cruisers Forum Supporter

Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: 29° 49.16’ N 82° 25.82’ W
Boat: Pearson 422
Posts: 16,306
Done a few miles offshore and never needed either. But studied the benefits and problems with both, read many reports from sailors that had to deploy sea anchors of various designs and a reports from users of the drogue. Yes I would also choose to run off in bad weather but when your speed reaches the point where pitchpoling is a risk I would choose the Jordon drogue.
__________________
The water is always bluer on the other side of the ocean.
Sometimes it's necessary to state the obvious for the benefit of the oblivious.
Rust is the poor man's Loctite.
skipmac is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 15:59   #8
cruiser

Join Date: May 2010
Location: SF Bay Area; Former Annapolis and MA Liveaboard.
Boat: Looking and saving for my next...mid-atlantic coast
Posts: 6,197
Also, depends on the hull shape, length, and displacement. But in most survival situations, the sea-anchor approach served best for reasons stated.
SaltyMonkey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 19:16   #9
Registered User

Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 774
These are two different tools for two different jobs. The safest is the drogue, but a chute allows you to heave too in almost any weather. But both of them are like ice skating, don't go and strap on a pair of skates just because the pond freezes over; learn how to skate first.
__________________

Seahunter is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 19:21   #10
Registered User

Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Hampton, VA
Boat: 45'=not anymore
Posts: 335
Send a message via Skype™ to xxuxx
drogue vs drogue anchor vs anchor

Why not compare apples vs apples like the paratech drogue vs the jordan series drogue??
xxuxx is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 20:05   #11
cruiser

Join Date: May 2010
Location: SF Bay Area; Former Annapolis and MA Liveaboard.
Boat: Looking and saving for my next...mid-atlantic coast
Posts: 6,197
Not a fan of drogues, prefer two lines streamed off back - Not looped or bridled
SaltyMonkey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 20:08   #12
Senior Cruiser
 
skipmac's Avatar

Cruisers Forum Supporter

Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: 29° 49.16’ N 82° 25.82’ W
Boat: Pearson 422
Posts: 16,306
Quote:
Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey View Post
Not a fan of drogues
I could tell that.

Why not? Any particular reason or bad experience using one?
__________________
The water is always bluer on the other side of the ocean.
Sometimes it's necessary to state the obvious for the benefit of the oblivious.
Rust is the poor man's Loctite.
skipmac is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 20:31   #13
Registered User
 
maxingout's Avatar

Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Cruising
Boat: Privilege 39 Catamaran, Exit Only
Posts: 2,723
I have both a Jordan Drogue and a parachute sea anchor. Both of them work extremely well on a catamaran when used properly.

Here are my thoughts on drogues and parachutes sea anchors on my own yacht. It's the way I look at things and keep things in perspective when I sail offshore.

Blue Water Catamaran - Exit Only Sails Offshore Around The World.* Captain Dave - Privilege 39

There's lots that can be said about storm management offshore, and there are many different ways of dealing with storms depending on the type of storm and the yacht design.
__________________
Dave -Sailing Vessel Exit Only
https://RealOceanCruiser.com
https://PositiveThinkingSailor.com
maxingout is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 22-06-2010, 20:50   #14
cruiser

Join Date: May 2010
Location: SF Bay Area; Former Annapolis and MA Liveaboard.
Boat: Looking and saving for my next...mid-atlantic coast
Posts: 6,197
Experience and frustrations, but not as bad situations as the analysis I've read of others less lucky.

Warps easier to set up, set out, keep set, work the boat, and retrieve, but you need an extra long pair of them to slow the boat down effectively - and that takes up storage room.

You need sea room with either and be able to steer (don't trust the autopilot) The basic theory is the waves and wind are headed in the same direction and you are just running down wind with your butt to the breaking waves slowed down by the drogue or warps. Not so. And not just one direction for waves. And remember the forces play against your rudder. Here, I'm talking about bad-a weather not a sleigh ride, which is why you need the other option.

OTOH if you set a sea anchor, you are stuck with it for a long time, unless you cut the rode. Sea anchors are probably better for smaller boats under 40 ft. due to stresses and heat - Pardey Bridle - and I believe (although I don't know) restricted for boats that have good displacements and can heave to/balance. Not sure they are good for fins and spades. Never used one on anything but medium displacement wineglass. But, in the worse weather, they pull through best.

But hey, to each their own. Take both and try it out. You can pick up a cheap small parachute and test it out.
SaltyMonkey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-06-2010, 09:51   #15
Registered User

Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: The boat lives at Fidalgo Island, PNW
Boat: 36' custom steel
Posts: 992
Quote:
Originally Posted by toelpel View Post
I am preparing for transatlantic cruise and would like to get some comments on the subject above. Thank you
My understanding is that a sea anchor essentially stops the boat, or nearly so, while a drogue slows the boat down to facilitate steering and control surfing.

The Jordan series drogue is a hybrid in that it performs somewhere in between the two. You can't steer with the Jordan series drogue, unlike a normal drogue. Nor does it stop the boat like a sea anchor, but it does slow it down more than a drogue.

The primary function of a series drogue is to prevent pitchpoling and to relieve the helmsman of steering (in the case of fatigue or injury). The primary function of the drogue is to slow down surfing while sailing the boat. The primary function of a sea anchor is to stop the boat (think lee shore), prevent pitchpoling, and relieve the helmsman.

Therefore, each is not necessarily an apples-to-apples comparison.

My thinking is to use a drogue in normal storms, and a series drogue in a survival situation. I would favor the series drogue over a sea anchor because of consistent reports of (i) horrible motion with sea anchors, (ii) parted lines on account of the high forces, and (iii) possible damage to steering systems from bouncing backward on elastic rode. The series drogue was specifically designed to address these latter three problems, and the reports are that the series drogue works as advertised.

Obviously, a drogue is not the tool of choice if the boat's crew is incapacitated, which is why many offshore sailors carry two of the three.

To summarize: Sea anchor, big brake and no steering but high forces. Drogue, little brake and need steering. Series drogue, medium brake and no steering but no large forces.
__________________
John, sailing a custom 36' double-headed steel sloop--a 2001 derivation of a 1976 Ted Brewer design.
Hiracer is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
anchor, drogue, sea anchor

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Jordan Series Drogue vs Para-Anchor ? markpj23 Health, Safety & Related Gear 5 30-10-2011 20:17
Series Drogue Joefloki Seamanship & Boat Handling 18 03-02-2010 06:21
Series Drogue or parachute Anchor ozboatie General Sailing Forum 11 11-04-2009 13:49
Series Drogue Crak Multihull Sailboats 58 13-01-2009 05:24

Advertise Here


All times are GMT -7. The time now is 19:30.


Google+
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Social Knowledge Networks
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.

ShowCase vBulletin Plugins by Drive Thru Online, Inc.