Is a 45 Pound Delta Big Enough for a 40' Offshore Liveaboard ?

[Captn Larry B.]

one thing you might want to try is a sentinel....if I'm setting in 2-3 foot sea I set mt 45lb. cqr and run a 12lb. ding mushroom anchor down the road about 2/3's way ...it takes the snap out of the road and I've lost my set

[teejayevans]

Originally Posted by speedoo

Hmmm. What would work best in that kind of bottom? A larger Fortress, set for mud? Something with a large surface area to pile up mud to create purchase?

Exactly, this happen to me a few times. I know the it was buried, because it was covered in soupy mud. I've deployed a fortress when it started to drag and that would stop me. I've also had a my delta hold in 45 knt winds and had it drag in 20, you got know the limitations of your anchor(s).
Tom

[Captn Larry B.]

sorry guys I've never lost my set

[Jon Hacking]

Originally Posted by speedoo

Hmmm. What would work best in that kind of bottom? A larger Fortress, set for mud? Something with a large surface area to pile up mud to create purchase?

A blue-water cruiser should really carry multiple TYPES of anchors, to handle the different types of bottom you'll encounter. A Fortress is wonderful for soft bottoms & has tremendous holding power once it digs in, but it doesn't turn easily & you can easily bend it if you get it caught under a coral head. Still, it's what carry as a storm anchor. A Fisherman type (& sometimes a claw) will work best in rock or coral but has little holding power in softer bottoms. We've found the new "Dragon's Tooth" type anchors (Rocna, Manson Supreme, Bugel, etc) set & reset very quickly but don't have the surface area (therefore the holding power) of plows & etc of the same weight. Still, this is what we now use as our working anchor. We go into more depth here () on our Anchors & Anchoring Page.

[PEACETIME]

What I do is determine the type of bottom First! Usually it isn't a dire emergency when I drop the anchor. I chose my spot, drop my lunch-hook
( 17lb danforth) and then pull it up to see what the bottom is. I can see what came up with the small anchor and judge what type main anchor to use. I keep a CQR and a large Danforth ready to deploy. In the cruising grounds I anchor in the depth is around 20' so it isn't a big deal. Not sure what I would do in an area that requires 300' of rode though.
Peace

[dennisail]

Good advice on the multiple types of anchor. Next time I will consider using my large danforth. The only issue is, in the Marquesas you anchor at the foot of deep valleys where you normally get 2 wind directions. Either straight in or straight out of the valley. This 180deg direction change happens a few times a day at can happen with great force.

The good news is I will be anchoring in coral and coral sands for a few months from now on. I will be complaining about jammed anchors next!

[delmarrey]

There are some bottoms nothing will hold very well!

Up here in the North some holes are just a bunch of round rock on a solid rock base. You can get the boat to stay in one spot but if the wind picks up you better be awake and on board. Usually it's close to a cliff or rocky shore (small deep cove) where you can tie off to opposite sides and keep the boat from swinging while the anchor keeps it off the beach.

Then there is the thick sea grass where the anchor just sit on top and slides along.

[Hud3]

Originally Posted by speedoo

Hmmm. What would work best in that kind of bottom? A larger Fortress, set for mud? Something with a large surface area to pile up mud to create purchase?

I think my Fortress would definitely have done better than the Delta in soupy mud, but the thunderstorm was upon us and I was too busy at the helm keeping us off the bulkhead five boat lengths to lee to haul it out of the lazzarette and deploy it. This was in the basin at Somers Cove marina in Crisfield, Maryland. Some here may know it.

I also had a Bruce on the anchor roller, and did set it after the storm passed by, along with the Delta in a vee formation, just for a little peace of mind in case another storm came up. The Bruce is pretty good in mud.

I bought these anchors before the "new generation" were all the rage. Starting from scratch, I think I'd have a Manson Supreme and a Fortress ready to go. But as I said in my earlier post, my Delta only dragged that one time, in very marginal bottom conditions, and we've anchored all over the Chesapeake, Bermuda, Bahamas and the West Indies. I even watched it reset itself after a 180 wind shift in Chesapeake sticky mud, only taking a few feet to dig in. I was happy with it.

[colemj]

Originally Posted by Jon Hacking

We've found the new "Dragon's Tooth" type anchors (Rocna, Manson Supreme, Bugel, etc) set & reset very quickly but don't have the surface area (therefore the holding power) of plows & etc of the same weight.

Really? I think it is the other way around. Attached is a picture from another forum member (Mainesail?) showing anchors of equal weight. The CQR plow has significantly less surface area than the Rocna or Spade.

Mark

[dennisail]

Any anchor with lead in it is going to have less surface area. The delta has a lot of lead.

[sailorboy1]

Well I'm going to start calling my Manson Surpreme "Backhoe" for the amount of mud it brings up. My windlass can not even pull it out of the mud and I have to give it a while to break out with the boat.

Far as the orginal question: my 410 is only a little larger than the 40.5 and it came with a 45# Delta which I changed to a 60# Manson Surpreme right off the bat!

I don't what other "type" of anchor one would have as part of anchor choices if you a MS! The only 1 really would probably be an old fishermans anchor for rocks. But I will probablyy get a Danforth/Fortbess type smetime. I like that the only negative in the various pro/con anchor type charts for the MS is cost!

[svWindfall]

We are full time cruisers from the Pacific NW - Get the 65 pound Manson Supreme...Our boat weighs in at 20 ton and we sleep very well at night. I've been told when they laugh at the size of your anchor it's the right size (true).

[Factor]

Originally Posted by Don Lucas

Well I'm going to start calling my Manson Surpreme "Backhoe" for the amount of mud it brings up. My windlass can not even pull it out of the mud and I have to give it a while to break out with the boat. !

And that is my only concern with the supreme and rocna design. If the boat is swinging on tide or wind changes to the extent that there is a strong 180 degree movement I wonder about the reset ability if it is chocked with mud? I am not dissin the MS, its a very good anchor, its just a thought bubble.

[cat man do]

Originally Posted by svWindfall

We are full time cruisers from the Pacific NW - Get the 65 pound Manson Supreme...Our boat weighs in at 20 ton and we sleep very well at night. I've been told when they laugh at the size of your anchor it's the right size (true).

I am thinking my purchase of a 125 pound supreme* for an 8500kg boat may be a bit of overkill.
I think I will trade down for an 80 pounder.

* I did get it cheap

[downunder]

Originally Posted by Don Lucas

Well I'm going to start calling my Manson Surpreme "Backhoe" for the amount of mud it brings up. My windlass can not even pull it out of the mud and I have to give it a while to break out with the boat.

Far as the orginal question: my 410 is only a little larger than the 40.5 and it came with a 45# Delta which I changed to a 60# Manson Surpreme right off the bat!

I don't what other "type" of anchor one would have as part of anchor choices if you a MS! The only 1 really would probably be an old fishermans anchor for rocks. But I will probablyy get a Danforth/Fortbess type smetime. I like that the only negative in the various pro/con anchor type charts for the MS is cost!

I guess one of the SARCA anchors design advantages over other new generation anchors is its convex design sheds mud better and disturbs bottom less.

SARCA in Action - anchorright.com.au