Anchor- 44lb spade/rocna vs 55lb Lewmar delta

[Orion Jim]

I have a Spade bower and a Mantus kedge. Both are fantastic anchors. There is literally no comparison between these two and any anchor I’ve had in the past which included Bruce, CQR, Danforth, and Navy.

[Paul M]

You guys have sold me on the spade. I so appreciate the input.

[Gaia]

Imho do not go by 'opinions' �� Or personal experience. Check out the well run tests and base your decision solely on them. This from a very satisfied Spade owner. Two of them . One Aluminum for easy deployment from a dinghy in an unexpected blow.

Jim btw those unbiased tests favour new generation anchors particularly Spade and Rocna last time I looked.

[Paul M]

I completely agree with using objective evidence to determine the best anchor. Spade takes it.

When looking at price it’s 100 vs 800 for plow/cqr vs spade. Not many good deals on used spades around.

I also have a danforth on the bow for sand so I may have to shoot for less expensive primary anchor.

[wrwakefield]

Paul,

I see you are leaning toward the Spade.

We did too with absolutely no regrets on our 43 ft ketch displacing 22 tons cruising weight. [We play in mid and higher latitudes and have yet to challenge the Spade...]

We chose the Spade S180. [One size up from what we would have been comfortable with... At 99lbs it is is our undisputed primary bower, among several other very good anchors on board...]

You won't regret it...

Cheers! Bill

[Cpt Mark]

Which anchor is like asking about which religion or which team will win the Super Bowl in 2025. Yes, I've seen the tests.

My personal experience is that a real CQR, not a knockoff, sets fast and every time. The only time one didn't set we noticed when we got to the dock we had over 15 feet of kelp and root ball hooked onto the anchor. Nothing was going to set.

My advice based is simple. 1. Do not buy a knockoff brand. 2. Buy one size larger than recommended. 3. Have chain, lots of chain.

[Emouchet]

Originally Posted by Cpt Mark

3. Have chain, lots of chain.

Chain weight does not help much with holding when the wind is blowing. it may help to set the anchor if you pull gently.

Once the wind gets to about gale force all rodes made of chain sizes that are practical on a yacht pull pretty much bar straight with almost no catenary.

You need a snubber.

[Yellow bird]

Originally Posted by Paul M

Hi all:

We recently lost our CQR during a storm and are looking to replace it on our Morgan OI 41 before an upcoming Key West to Exuma cruise.

It appears I can get a 44 spade for the same price as 55lb delta.

They both seem to be strong anchors but I wanted to see if anyone here had experience with the 11lb weight difference vs Stronger holding.

Cheers

Paul

The anchor is the last thing to save money on

Take a 55lb Spade!

[Chuck Hawley]

Originally Posted by Paul M

Attachment 185856

Has anyone seen this anchor before? Seller doesn’t know brand but it looks like a mantis or original Rocna.

Manson Supreme. Approximately same generation as original Rocna. Excellent anchor. I have used them from 10# to 44# and they have been reliable, compact, and ruggedly built.

Chuck

[Captain Bill]

As full time cruiser my anchors take a bit of a beating. My backup Bruce had rusted pretty bad 2 years ago and it was time to move the delta into the backup position. I bought a Spade 44 to replace the Delta. I'm very happy with the result. The Delta would occasionally plow in strong winds even in pretty good bottom. It is a plow after all. It never broke out ut under some conditions I would loose about 6 feet per hour sometimes even in good bottom. I anchored out in a TS last fall in NC in lousy bottom and only lost 20 feet on the spade after over 12 hours of 50+ kts. The Spade sets faster and more dependably than the Delta. I'm very happy with the choice.

[noelex 77]

The Manson Supreme is a very good anchor that has perhaps received a bad rap recently. In my view, it is slightly inferior to the Rocna, which in turn is slightly inferior to the Mantus, but the difference is not large.

The main drawback of the Manson Supreme, in my view, is the short heavy shank. Manson boast that a Manson supreme shank has never been bent. An extraordinary claim, while this is tough to verify, it is believable. Unfortunately, shank weight decreases the performance of most anchor designs and this holds true for the roll-bar anchors.

Some have cut off material to modify the shank of the Manson Supreme. This has the effect of reducing the weight and strength. There are reported positive effects on the performance, as I would expect.

Many anchor discussions progress into discussions about shank strength. Super strong shanks are easy to produce and not necessarily expensive, but there is a performance trade off.

If you want a shank that will (probably) never bend, the Manson Supreme is your anchor. If you want a blend of performance and strength, in my view there are probably better choices, but the Manson Supreme is still a very good anchor.

[Simi 60]

If I lost our Manson supreme I would get another in a heartbeat.
Amazing anchor, instant set everywhere we have dropped it and had no problem holding our high windage 65,000 kg in an 80+ knot blow.

Saying that if one of the other new gens was cheaper I would look at them as well as I believe they are all pretty much equal and far superior to older types.

[David Mark]

Originally Posted by sailjumanji

It's a Manson supreme. A Rocna wannabe. I had a delta for years and it was worthless. Got a Rocna and never dragged again.

From one Seawind owner to another , Ours a 1160 Deluxe , Not sure which anchor came first , the Rocna or the Manson Supreme ? I do know one thing our two Manson Supremes have been excellent anchors in any and all conditions and bottoms . So to call it a Rocna wannabe is to bad , they both work off the same principle and are both great anchors .

[sailjumanji]

Originally Posted by David Mark

From one Seawind owner to another , Ours a 1160 Deluxe , Not sure which anchor came first , the Rocna or the Manson Supreme ? I do know one thing our two Manson Supremes have been excellent anchors in any and all conditions and bottoms . So to call it a Rocna wannabe is to bad , they both work off the same principle and are both great anchors .

I think the Rocna came first. But I'll agree that Rocna, Manson, Mantus, Excel and Spade are probably a step above the rest.

[GALAWA]

I have a 30 kg SPADE on my 44' catamaran.
the spade holds well when dug into sand, but:
- I have often seen my SPADE fail to dig in on grassy bottom
- The shank of the SPADE is hollow in order to lower its center of gravity closer to the tip. As a result the shank is fragile and I have bent it while attempting to hoist it while the SPADE was stuck in rocks
- It is ballasted with lead in the tip, but the tip is not welded shut. The resulting electrolysis between lead and steel, plus the poor zinc galvanization in the first place, caused my SPADE to start rusting after 2 years of service.

My next anchor will be a ROCNA