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Lagoon4us · 03-01-2013, 13:50

We have an advantage with our winch and chain locker being at the mast base, the chain running over the foredeck (walkway) for some 2.4metres makes it so easy to connect a snubber/bridle in conditions foul.

Our previous mono's had less than a metre of run which was also in the forward overhang making anchor work in a pitching sea difficult.

A direct connection of chain to bitts/cleat/winch will drive you crazy and likely destroy the connection, we use 1inch nylon on our bridle which has a great dampening effect.

Boats on the Australian coast tend to use chain with silver the dampening effect of a combo rope chain rode negating the need for a snubber.

Reef work brings problems of chafe and chain is the go, snubbers become essential. Most use a chain hook or hitch there have not been many other choices in Australia in the past.

Along with bitts the demise of winches capable of handling rope/chain rodes is lamented.

Bash · 03-01-2013, 13:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by SimonV

I use the eye grab hook, why its called an eye grab has me beat as it does not grab an eye but holds the whole link.

It's a hook on one end with an eye on the other. The eye is where you splice the snubber.

In most hardware stores, at least in the USA, it's just called a "Galvanized Chain Hook."

thinwater · 03-01-2013, 14:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lagoon4us

Previous to the Ultra we shackled onto the chain but we enjoy the simplicity of the Ultra hook and it seems to stay put in slack shallow anchorages i.e. 3metre minimum.

Cheers

There are many answers because there are many boats and situations. I use several, depending. For example....

3 meters is not shallow. Most of the Chesapeake Bay is less that 3 meters and few harbors are that deep. 1 meter is shallow, 1 1/2 is typical for me, and 2 meters is quite deep. Perhaps 50% of the time, my bridle will be on the bottom if the wind dies. Thus my hook spends uncountable hours bouncing, finding ways to come loose. If it requires 1000 bounces to come off, that's nothing.

Different horses for different courses.

Lagoon4us · 03-01-2013, 14:28

That's true, here in Croatia we commonly anchor in 15+ metres, there are shallower places but not that many. After a dozen or so anchorages at 15 metres if we see 3 metres come up on the sounder whilst checking our chosen spot we quickly retreat...LOL

Cheers

**Cotemar** · 03-01-2013, 14:41

Here in the Eastern USA we can find a lot of good anchorages in the 1.55 metres (5 feet) range. The problem I run into is that our bridal is 6 metres (20 feet) per side and it will drag on the bottom with no wind and release it self, so an Eye Grab Hook will fall off if it does not have a positive lock on it. Need a positive lock eye grab hook.

Kettlewell · 03-01-2013, 14:51

When I owned a shallow draft cat I used a rolling hitch to create the bridle and it could drag on the bottom and wouldn't come off. Even in deeper anchorages or on a mono if you let out a long length of snubber it might very well end up on the bottom. I've had chain hooks release before, but as someone pointed out they usually only do that in calm conditions when it really isn't a problem.

DotDun · 03-01-2013, 15:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by JonJo

Big opportunity here for Mantus?

I think so, I've looked at several and the Mantus is the heaviest best constructed I've seen. There is no positive lock but it takes a very distinct move to get it off the chain (and it can be done single handed).

I'm thinking if one is afraid of it coming apart due to long bridle on a cat laying on the bottom, a 1" long piece of 1/2" fuel hose wedged into the intersection would stop any casual disconnect. The fuel hose would stay in place due to it's own memory.

Lagoon4us · 03-01-2013, 15:42

The Ultra is angled back and the section that snubs up behind the chain is curved, it hasn't let go yet.

Pic's attached show our experiments using a rubber snubber on the bridle and bridle shackled to chain with a captive pin.

All piled up in 3 metres in a typically weedy bay on HVAR.

**Cotemar** · 03-01-2013, 16:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by DotDun

I think so, I've looked at several and the Mantus is the heaviest best constructed I've seen. There is no positive lock but it takes a very distinct move to get it off the chain (and it can be done single handed).

I'm thinking if one is afraid of it coming apart due to long bridle on a cat laying on the bottom, a 1" long piece of 1/2" fuel hose wedged into the intersection would stop any casual disconnect. The fuel hose would stay in place due to it's own memory.

What ever I do to make a positive lock has to be woman friendly, since my 1st mate does the anchoring and is not the strongest woman out there.

JonJo · 03-01-2013, 16:39

We cannot use a long bridle ahead of our bows on our cat - we have a prodder (bowsprit in mono speak - why they are called prodders, no idea!) The prodder is held down with kicker wires (why kicker - no idea) that run from prodder end and are secured just above the waterline on the bow. A long bridle direct off the bow would need to be under or over the wires, if under the bridle would wear out over night in any wind and if over they would wear out in a few nights hanging loosely over the wires - hence our bridle starts at the transom horn cleats and is almost hull length + half the beam - about 13m each side. Our chain hook really only just touches the water (because most of our bridle/snubber is along the deck) and as we draw, about, 1m - even with a min of 2m water depth we can have a fair amount of slack chain as the bow roller is at about 1.5m above the water - so securing the hook by 'gravity'. We need a fair amount of slack anyway to cater for the stretch of the bridle.

SVNeko · 03-01-2013, 16:51

That sounds complicated. We have a similar rig. The bridle attaches to the bows and goes over the sprit guys, which have PVC pipes over them for chafe protection. Our chafe issue is not the bridle lying gently on the guys but rather when an opposing current pulls the bridle under them.

**Cotemar** · 03-01-2013, 17:08

My bridal is bit different. I need the bridal to be long enough to be pulled into the anchor locker, so that is the 6 metres (20 feet) length per leg.

JonJo · 03-01-2013, 17:16

Doesn't the car get wet when you are sailing?

I like the Mahe system, the chain and anchor exits under the bridge deck which keeps the bow clear (and clean). There are a number of cats with something similar. Ours is more conventional, runs through a channel above the trampoline, and we need attach the bridle 'ahead' of the cross beam. But I note you have no prodder.

When you lift the anchor I assume you look 'through' the tramp to see when it breaks the water?

JonJo · 03-01-2013, 17:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by SVNeko

That sounds complicated. We have a similar rig. The bridle attaches to the bows and goes over the sprit guys, which have PVC pipes over them for chafe protection. Our chafe issue is not the bridle lying gently on the guys but rather when an opposing current pulls the bridle under them.

Its actually quite simple but really its the only way we could think of to maximise the snubber length. The snubbers run alongside furling lines and are less obtrusive than our jackstays. Assuming we stretch to 10% of length we have 1.3m of stretch each side, Cotemar with his 6m snubbers has only 600mm and has the possible disadvantage of the snubber sitting on the bottom. Most cat owners have 3m snubbers and basically 'no' stretch at all.