Alternatives to Rocna / Mantus M1

[SurlySailor]

Lots of replies! Yes my comment about comically oversized was more a comment on its size relative to my boat ( with a relatively plum and narrow bow) but I agree is is the right size anchor to have for a boat this size. The problems were a couple of fold:

Anchor roll bar blocks Nav lights, bow roller is not long enough so bar was hitting pulpit, and anchor shank was back beyond my anchor locker hole that the rode goes through, point of anchor was also hitting bow.

So in order to fit the M1 or a Ronca I’m thinking a lot of surgery would be called for. Our roller is welded into the stem fitting so it would be cutting it off and fabricating a new one. Also potentially relocating Nav lights.

I was hoping something like the M2 would fit. I think the advice about creating the cardboard cutouts would be helpful because I measured for the M1 but I didn’t account for the angle for how it would sit on the roller. Which was hard to visualize until after getting it onto the boat. That small difference meant I was about an inch off in a few different directions.

As far as the M1 is concerned it’s a really nice anchor with awesome build quality I’m actually pretty disappointed it didn’t fit. Plus it looks cool.

[LAGO]

On our Leopard 38 cat we have a SARCA Excel No.5. Designed and made in Australia. it has amazing setting and holding power and costs a lot lot less than either Rocna or Mantus.

SARCA Excel No 5 - Anchor Right Australia

[slap]

SV Panope videos of anchor testing:

https://www.youtube.com/user/flygoodwin

[rslifkin]

Based on the issues you described, look at the spade, Vulcan, and other modern non rollbar anchors. They tend to be a little shorter from roller to tip and have shorter shanks, so they'll likely fit better than their rollbar cousins.

I can confirm after today's experience that the Vulcan has no trouble getting through heavy weeds (enough that I kept losing depth reading). Despite pulling a few small dog size clumps of salad off the chain and anchor, it came up with a load of sandy mud on the fluke indicating that it had gotten through the weeds to good bottom below. It set solidly and held good power in reverse in that stuff too.

[David B]

Originally Posted by SurlySailor

Hello we have a 38 foot boat with about 18k pounds displacement. I wanted to upgrade our ground tackle from the 15kg Bruce anchor that sits on our undersized roller while cruising and in the bow locker while racing. I bought a Mantus M1 (also 15 kg)and it was comically oversized and won’t fit on our roller or in our bow locker. Is there a good alternative I should look at? Anyone have any luck. For reference our boat is an Xyachts 38 and we cruise LIS, block, New England and hopefully the Caribbean at some point.

Spade - everything I keeps seeing brings me back to Spade

[mglonnro]

Similarly sized boat, we have a 16kg Ultra. Nothing but good experiences so far (and knocks on wood)

https://www.ultramarine-anchors.com/

[oceanshoretiga]

I carry 4 anchors in my steel Herreshoff which weighs about 13 tonnes loaded for offshore (eg 500kg of water).
1. old CQR that came with the boat and never been out of the bilge. insurance.
2. a 10kg Bruce that I kept when I sold my previous boat. Now kept in the stern for anchor there if needed. it has held Tiga in sand with 20+knots of wind.
3. a 15kg Bruce that was my working anchor for 25 years and always worked very well except in weed. Is the backup anchor on by bow rollers.
4. a 25kg Sarca Excel, bought a few years ago for use in deeper water of unknown bottom in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Has held where used and set properly and bought on the recommendation of a professional friend (sailor, fishing company).
5. I have a Swarbrick break-down fisherman type anchor at home. Doesn't hold well there, though.

I carry 75m of chain on the Sarca and chain/rope on the 15kg Bruce.

Anchor safely and securely is my eternal hope.

cheers, JIm

[nwdiver]

Originally Posted by Smokeys Kitchen

Rocha Vulcan

+1........

[Panope]

I have recently completed testing of a 25kg/55lb. Rocna Vulcan anchor. Video not yet posted.

The anchor performed among the top anchors.

Steve

[SV__Grace]

Originally Posted by wingssail

We cruise and race our 43' sloop, and have done so for many years.

We engineered and built our own bow roller (double) and installed a windlass 10 ft aft of the roller.

We use a 20kg (44lb) Bruce as our normal anchor, and it lives on the bow except during racing season along with 300' of chain led to the bilge near the mast. During racing season we leave both ashore and then only carry a Fortress and a rope rode, both kept below deck.

If we decide to race while we have the Bruce anchor aboard we put it inside the pulpit and lash it to the rail.

The Bruce fits our roller and has performed flawlessly, without exception, for over 25 years. We sleep very well.

We do, however, carry a 30kg Bruce as a storm anchor, but have used it very rarely.

Wingsail, I'm loathe to criticize the choices of others, especially fellow salts such as you seem to be, but it makes no sense to me to have two identical anchors. Your second anchor should help you by being able to set in conditions your primary bower isn't designed for, or perhaps a new gen HHP storm anchor.

I've had good experiences with Bruce anchors but wouldn't want one as my storm anchor. Have you anchored in 60+ knot winds with 6 foot waves -inside- a "protected" anchorage? I have with the Rocna Vulcan, and in my opinion Bruce is fine for many things, but not for that.

But, if you can vouch for the Bruce holding you in a strong gale I'd be happy to modify my perception.

Otherwise, for those with size/weight issues who don't wish to use their storm anchor as their primary bower (as I do) due to size, weight, etc, the Mantus and Fortress come apart and are beasts in a storm.

[anacapaisland42]

add a lot more chain
Bill

Originally Posted by SurlySailor

Hello we have a 38 foot boat with about 18k pounds displacement. I wanted to upgrade our ground tackle from the 15kg Bruce anchor that sits on our undersized roller while cruising and in the bow locker while racing. I bought a Mantus M1 (also 15 kg)and it was comically oversized and won’t fit on our roller or in our bow locker. Is there a good alternative I should look at? Anyone have any luck. For reference our boat is an Xyachts 38 and we cruise LIS, block, New England and hopefully the Caribbean at some point.

[kmacdonald]

A 10 kg new gen seems about right.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by SV__Grace

Wingsail, I'm loathe to criticize the choices of others, especially fellow salts such as you seem to be, but it makes no sense to me to have two identical anchors. Your second anchor should help you by being able to set in conditions your primary bower isn't designed for, or perhaps a new gen HHP storm anchor.

I've had good experiences with Bruce anchors but wouldn't want one as my storm anchor. Have you anchored in 60+ knot winds with 6 foot waves -inside- a "protected" anchorage? I have with the Rocna Vulcan, and in my opinion Bruce is fine for many things, but not for that.

But, if you can vouch for the Bruce holding you in a strong gale I'd be happy to modify my perception.

Otherwise, for those with size/weight issues who don't wish to use their storm anchor as their primary bower (as I do) due to size, weight, etc, the Mantus and Fortress come apart and are beasts in a storm.

SV__Grace, We choose the bigger Bruce (30kg 66lb) as our storm anchor based on the experience we've had with the smaller one (20kg 44lb) over quite a few years. It has set quickly and held well in all types of bottom and weather, we trust it explicitly.

We do have other anchors but honestly, we never use them in place of this Bruce, never need to because the Bruce never fails.

Can we vouch for its holding power in a gale of wind? (full gale=34-47kts)?

Absolutely!



This photo was taken while anchored in Struisbaai new Cape Agulhas in Dec 2011. The wind was in the high 30's to mid 40's. The waves were 3-4 feet high (this was fetch of 1/2 mile). We had chafing gear problems which we fought for two days before we finally solved that but the anchor (the 20kg Bruce) was holding fine after setting on the 2nd try. We did however change to the 30kg Bruce as the wind was forecast to build. Both anchors has zero problems in these conditions. We stayed here over three days until the conditions eased. Rescue services checked on us by helicopter and a rescue services vessel pulled another yacht into the bay. That vessel was unable to proceed on its own in the conditions. This was a serious gale. As to the possibility of 6 foot waves? They were present in the bay where we were but we didn't measure any of that size.

All of this is documented in the log we kept which I have included those pages here. If you can read my writing you can see the conditions (2nd page). Our wind strengths are accurate. They are the reading we had at the moment of the log entry. They are not peak readings. Sometimes I think people exaggerate the conditions they have been through, I do not.





I do not doubt the usefulness of new style anchors or other people's choice, but I trust what I have.

[Izikalvo]

Get the Viking 10, 9.5 Kg of HT steel that will hold you forever.

https://vikinganchors.com/products/anchors/viking-10

And I am whoI am

[Mickeyrouse]

There is a universe of anchoring techniques and anchors. Many of them work. Under cat 5 conditions probably nothing does. Our 30k boat, (loaded, fueled, watered, provisioned, spares, my guitar, my wifes’ shoes) came with a 35 lb CQR stainless plow. and 70 ft of 3/8 proof coil. We drug that plow from Brownsville Texas to Jonesport Maine and just about every place in between. The 20 lb. Danforth would hold time after time when the CQR drug. I settled on a Fortress FX23. In 20 years since, the only time it drug was in very loose silt while fouled on a piece of sheet metal across the palms. Other cruisers swear by other methods..