What was the
weather like?
What was the bottom like?
I disagree with Ziggy, I think the chain will improve your holding, not a ton but some.
I also disagree with Cfarrar on some points, I don't think the CQR is notorious for dragging. And I don't think that Manson or
Rocna anchors are stunningly better than CQR or Bruce. While reading a lot of anchor anchor threads here I've noticed that a lot the folks that rave about how much better the new anchors hold compared to their old anchors at some point mention they up-sized when the made the change.
I think that in 10yr or so when the hoopla dies down the consensus will be that the new anchors are somewhat better than CQR or Bruce and that up-sizing has a much bigger effect on holding. Also that in special situations like mud/soft sand or rock/weeds, Danforth/Fortress and Hershoff/Fisherman/Luke, are still better in those respective situations.
My recommendation would depend on your
budget. In order of increasing
budget I would:
1. Up size the CQR 1 step
2. Increase rode to 100-125' of 1/4" G4 chain plus a 200-300' of line.
3. Get a Fortress/Danforth w/ 30' chain and 200' line (use the rode left over from #2.
4. Get a Luke anchor w/ 30' chain and 200' line
5. Install
windlass and increase chain length to 150' or more (still 1/4" G4)
6.
Electric windlass
7. Change main anchor to a Delta (up-sized from current)
8. Change anchor to Manson or
Rocna (up-sized from current)
My reasoning:
1. Up-sizing is the best bang for the buck. It appears that they are back in production, though at a pretty hefty
price.
Buying used should put you in the $200-300 range. Given that a lot of people are converting to newer anchor designs, they should be available
cheap at local swap meets or on Ebay.
2. Going with a lot of chain provides a several small primary benefits related to holding: aid to catenary, abrasion resistance, some drag on the seafloor until the
wind becomes so strong most or all of the chain is lifted clear; and secondary benefits: less sailing back and forth at anchor. Assuming you do not have a windlass (and even if you do) you should install a chain stopper at the bow just behind the roller. With the stopper you can manually hoist a fairly large weight of anchor and chain.
3. & 4. Whatever your main anchor is there will be special
anchoring situations where you want a specialist anchor, soft sand and mud (Fortress/Danforth) and rock & weeds (fisherman/Hershoff/Luke). To use a car analogy, if you needed to drive across a desert you would want a 4
wheel drive jeep, you could do it in a pickup or maybe even the
family sedan but the jeep would be much preferred.
5. A windlass makes pulling up the anchor and resetting it a lot easier. For a boat your size a
manual windlass would be just fine though there are only 2 models in
current production anymore,
Lofrans Royal and Vetus Ursus. Expect cost to be about $1000 installed.
6.When you are cold, wet and tired, the effort of raising anchor and setting it again may make you choose to live with the
current set even if it is questionable. Electric makes the process easier and therefore you are more likely to do so. Figure the cost at about $2000 installed including
wiring and breakers. You will need to make sure your electric system can handle the loads and you need to make sure the windlass you choose can
work manually and and has a reasonable mechanical advantage (12:1 or better). A vertical axis windlass is unlikely to have sufficient mechanical advantage unless it is geared like a
cockpit winch.
7. Mild improvement in performance over a CQR. $300 or so new for 44lb model.
8. Somewhat better performance over same sized CQR. $500-1000 depending on source and
shipping.
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