Mahe 36: Anchor and Windlass

[Jef & Marin, Netherlands]

Dear all,
One month to go before we get our Mahe 36 nr 88. Full time preparing.
For anchor and chain we are considering:
- A Rocna 20 kg anchor, which seems to hold very well. Worry is whether the shaft fits through the hole of the anchor locker.
- As chain we are considering to use an 8 mm G70 chain, which (at 50 meter length) is 45 kg lighter than the 10 mm chain. G70 material is stronger than G30, so the 8 mm G70 is actually stronger than the standard 10 mm G30 chain. And just a bit more expensive.
I guess this would mean that we have to change the chain wheel of the anchor winch. Is this doable? Can anybody tell me the brand name and type number of the anchor winch?
- Attached to the anchor chain we want to use another 50 m of anchor line.

I would appreciate to hear all your ideas about anchoring. Also ideas about what to take as 2nd anchor. (type, weight, chain / rope)
The Rocna is very good for sand and clay, also with plants on it. It is not specifically designed for coral and rock.

Thanks
Jef

[Nordic cat]

I use a Fortress one size bigger than reccomended for the boat, with 10 metres chain and 50 rope.

It's light, and easy to use as a stern anchor as well. Never used it in rocks, works well in a rock/sand combination.

For its weight it wil outperform nearly all others in most bottoms.

Do you have a good anchor bridle and strong attachment points done? If not,you may want to do what I did, I exchanged the 2 bottom forward bolts on the crossbeam attachments with strong Wichard eyebolts. Shackle the bridle to these.

Regards

Alan

[Jef & Marin, Netherlands]

Nordic cat, thanks. I have no idea about shackle and bridles; we will get our Mahe in one month, and I will find out then. And check the strength.
Regarding the windlass, I know a little bit more now by a phone call to Fountaine Pajot: presently (since a few weeks) an Italian Lofrans Cayman 88 1000 W windlass is used on the Mahe 36. It has a 10 mm chain disc. This can be replaced easily. A company here in the Netherlands has the 8 mm chain wheel on stock. They are even willing to take the 10 mm disc back in exchange.
So I'll go for the stronger type 8mm chain and save 45 kg.
This leaves one showstopper: what is the size of the hole into the anchor locker? Anybody out there on a Mahe who can tell me the width and height available for the shaft of the anchor? Kev&Jo maybe?
Thanks in advance
Jef

[Kipper]

Don't know about the Rocna but I use a 25kg Delta that fits fine (just)...

[Jef & Marin, Netherlands]

Hi Kipper, thanks for the reply. One question: the "just fitting" is that regarding the length of the arm of the anchor, or the height passing through the hole of the anchor locker? The Rocna seems to have a longer arm, and greater height. But your Delta is a bigger size, maybe that compensates.

[Scott730]

Jeff and Marin
My Mahe came with a Brittania anchor (very much like a Danforth) with 100 ft of 5/16" Galv. chain and a bridle. At first I was going to put my Bruce anchor as my primary, but I tried the Brittania and it works great in sand. We were out in 18 knot winds this past weekend and the anchor held great. Over the past year it has worked like a charm, now my bruce is the backup.
All
I've taken some pictures of the outboard motor mount but am having trouble down loading them, if anyone is interested, send me your email ansd I'll send them to yoyu.
Also, I would not buy the factory Bimini, I had miine made and it cost me less and I got what I wanted.

[kev&jo]

Hi Jef,

Just been and measured the height of the anchor hole and mine is 150mm long, in height that is, hope this helps.

By the way, when I get chance I will be going for exactly the same as you, Rocna with 8mm chain. I can also confirn the Lofrans Cayman 88 model, we like it.

[Jef & Marin, Netherlands]

Kev&Jo, thanks for your info. Great. I will check the height of the Rocna arm. If you want to know the dimensions of the Rocna anchors: go for www.rocna.com/distributable/patterns. This link you will not find from the starter page.
Regarding the stronger chain:
The chain is DIN766. This is calibrated chain, DIN764 is uncalibrated. The stronger chain is G70 i.s.o. G30 grade. G30 is steel, G70 is manganese steel. 8 mm G70 is a bit stronger than 10 mm G30 chain. Also, at 50 meters length it is 67.5 i.s.o. 112.5 kg. Price is around 9.50 euro i.s.o. 8.50 euro/meter for 10 mm G30. Delivery time may be an issue, I tried to order today but was told it takes 6 weeks. I'll go on looking tomorrow.
I ordered the Rocna 20 kg today, with bring-back option if it does not fit.
Have a great sails,
Jef & Marin

[Kipper]

Originally Posted by Jef & Marin, Netherlands

Hi Kipper, thanks for the reply. One question: the "just fitting" is that regarding the length of the arm of the anchor, or the height passing through the hole of the anchor locker? The Rocna seems to have a longer arm, and greater height. But your Delta is a bigger size, maybe that compensates.

By just I meant when retrieving and storing the anchor the tip of the anchor stays clear of the hull but not by much. There's plenty of room for the arm but if the anchor blade was much longer the tip would actually make contact with the hull while it was stored.

Hope that clears things up.

[Scott730]

John
I would love to see the anchor locker support, I just have a rope tied to the hatch for now but it is not the best solution.
Thanks for sharing.

Scott

[Wayward Wind]

Scott: I have attached a photo of strut as requested. Cheers!

Lonnie: Our solar panels are made by Kyocera, and the controller is by Morningstar Corp, PA. Hope this helps.

JohnC

[lstyles]

Thanks for the advice on the head problem. I will try that out tomorrow and see if that makes the difference.
My first question went so well I will ask another question, when we raise the anchor the chain frequently jumps out of the metal channel (dont know what you call that) at the roller and over the side edge when the boat angle turns to the roller. I try to go slow and let the boat settle before pulling up more chain but its pretty cumbersome. Its a pain (and kinda risky) to get it back in the channel. I was thinking that maybe some modification to the end of the channel (like a rod across the channel at the to edge might keep the chain from jumping out of the channel. Has anyone else run into this or have any thoughts about solutions?
Thanks,
Lori

[lstyles]

Its hard to take a picture of if because of the netting on the trampoline. I am talking about the metal "trough" that is on the outside of the boat where the anchor chain leaves the windlass lazarette. We are going to try and build up the sides of the trough to see if by raising the sides we can keep the chain in the trough rather than jumping over the side edges. I tried taking pictures but the netting gets in the way.
Lori

[MKB53]

Hi Lori

The anchor chain does tend to ride up on the anchor fairlead when the boat veers to one side. This is because the chain catches on the straight/sharp edge. I think the only solution is to have the end of the fitting flared out. What I do is use the engines to keep the boat straight ahead but this obviously need two people.

I have not had my fitting modified yet but I think I will do so. Interested to hear if anyone else has done this. The thin bead they have welded inside the lip on the steel plate (as a wear strip?) probably aggravates it!

Cheers
Martin

[Talbot]

Originally Posted by MKB53

The anchor chain does tend to ride up on the anchor fairlead when the boat veers to one side. This is because the chain catches on the straight/sharp edge. I think the only solution is to have the end of the fitting flared out.

Are you talking about the end of the bow roller. Most that are on the market are just straight with nothing really holding the chain onto the roller. On my catalac there was a flange that projected beyond the roller, and was angled outwards at 45 degrees for about 2 inches.