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Old 27-08-2017, 18:56   #1
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Anchor chain fall

All of the few catamarans I have sailed on you had to knock the anchor chain down by hand, including my own.
I often see and hear catamarans wieghing anchor around me with the crew having to knock down the chain. Is this a problem with most cats in general? and has anyone devised a solution to this issue?
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Old 27-08-2017, 19:37   #2
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Re: Anchor chain fall

There are a few designs with a roller on each bow, that stow the chain in the hull. The PDQ's maybe??? But otherwise I'm thinking it's tough to get around this problem. Maybe a hawsepipe which runs from underneath of the windlass over to a purpose built chain locker in one hull or the other. But I'm not sure if it'd be steep enough, especially on a wide cat with skinny hulls. It's worth looking into though. That & you might query some yards which build custom cats, & the designers who draw them up. As there must be some sort of solution.
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Old 27-08-2017, 20:02   #3
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Re: Anchor chain fall

I had all of about 16 inches of fall to the floor under the windlass, way too little.

The original chain was 10 mm proof, so I replaced it with 5/16 high test which helped some.

But the ultimate solution was to totally rebuild the windlass platform and anchor locker. I was able to raise the windlass 9 inches, which does't sound like a lot, but it made a huge improvement.
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Old 27-08-2017, 20:06   #4
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Re: Anchor chain fall

My son and his girlfriend bought a 42ft Simpson cat in florida and we installed a lofrans tigress in much the same location as the former(stolen) manual windlass that used to drop into a deep locker, it now drops into the locker ahead which is much shallower but the 170ft of 3/8" chain stows fine. We spent june and july delivering it back to western lake superior anchoring most nights and it always self stowed without help.
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Old 28-08-2017, 04:48   #5
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Re: Anchor chain fall

Varies a lot by boat of course. I run a few larger cats like a Lagoon 500...no problem.

It is amazing how chain can stack itself into such a steep vertical peak. Some sort of automatic flaking system would be handy. Just a simple guide that moved back and forth with the windlass should work.
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Old 28-08-2017, 05:53   #6
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Re: Anchor chain fall

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Originally Posted by UNCIVILIZED View Post
There are a few designs with a roller on each bow, that stow the chain in the hull. The PDQ's maybe??? ....
Yes. Nice deep chain locker, about 3 feet.
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Old 28-08-2017, 07:23   #7
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Re: Anchor chain fall

We have a one meter fall and our 100 meters of 10mm chain still stacks up like a traffic cone. Speaking of traffic cones, we tried that trick but it didn't work. Last year we painted the chain with a phosphoric acid primer to try to stave off rust until we can replace it. The rust-proofing didn't work out so well, but the primer made the chain a bit slipperier so now it flakes easier. I suspect when we eventually replace it or the primer wears off we will be back to knocking down the pile every 10 meters or so.
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Old 28-08-2017, 08:44   #8
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Re: Anchor chain fall

I've been told that Stainless Steel Chain dosn't have this problem (of stacking) nearly as much as it slides around / fills up the locker better.

Can anyone comment on that ?

I was looking at replacing our chain, and it was stated as part of the 'pro' of going stainless, but I've no experience either way so any thoughts appreciated.

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Old 28-08-2017, 08:55   #9
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Re: Anchor chain fall

Quote:
Originally Posted by mikereed100 View Post
We have a one meter fall and our 100 meters of 10mm chain still stacks up like a traffic cone. Speaking of traffic cones, we tried that trick but it didn't work. Last year we painted the chain with a phosphoric acid primer to try to stave off rust until we can replace it. The rust-proofing didn't work out so well, but the primer made the chain a bit slipperier so now it flakes easier. I suspect when we eventually replace it or the primer wears off we will be back to knocking down the pile every 10 meters or so.
The PDQs use 1/4-inch chain. For a larger cat, no, 1 meter is not enough, since the chain size is larger, unless you go with grade 70.

How much chain do we need? In shallower waters, 100 feet is enough. In deeper water (30'?) you will need less scope, so 200 feet should be plenty. If it is deeper than that and you feel the need for more rode, add rope, which will not stack or contribute to the cone. The rope won't be on the bottom, so cutting should be a non-problem. I suspect few people need more than 200 feet of chain. If they do, then they will have to make other compromises. For me, 100' of chain (plus 30' bridle) backed by rope allows me to anchor all-chain nearly 100% of the time
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Old 28-08-2017, 09:46   #10
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Re: Anchor chain fall

Quote:
Originally Posted by Catapault View Post
I've been told that Stainless Steel Chain dosn't have this problem (of stacking) nearly as much as it slides around / fills up the locker better.

Can anyone comment on that ?

I was looking at replacing our chain, and it was stated as part of the 'pro' of going stainless, but I've no experience either way so any thoughts appreciated.

Regards

Mark.
Stainless chain does flake considerably easier due to its inherent smooth surface. The down size is its added cost and not best if using for a permanent mooring. And not all stainless is the same strength/quality for a given size, but that's true for galvanized as well. Cromox is an excellent AISI stainless brand.
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Old 28-08-2017, 10:07   #11
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Re: Anchor chain fall

Quote:
Originally Posted by UNCIVILIZED View Post
There are a few designs with a roller on each bow, that stow the chain in the hull. The PDQ's maybe??? But otherwise I'm thinking it's tough to get around this problem. Maybe a hawsepipe which runs from underneath of the windlass over to a purpose built chain locker in one hull or the other. But I'm not sure if it'd be steep enough, especially on a wide cat with skinny hulls. It's worth looking into though. That & you might query some yards which build custom cats, & the designers who draw them up. As there must be some sort of solution.


No doubt you get a better drop in the hull, but that puts the weight where you really don't want it.
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Old 28-08-2017, 10:27   #12
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Re: Anchor chain fall

I had very little fall in my Lagoon 42, had to knock it down often or get a jam.
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Old 28-08-2017, 11:02   #13
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Re: Anchor chain fall

It seems I am not alone with this issue, what i have experimented with so far is a prism shaped deflector that sits just under the chain entry hole and deflects the chain to either side of the locker, as my locker is wider than it is deep it works quite well. I haul 100ft of chain in then move the chain that is hanging over to the other side of the deflector and the last 100ft just about stowes itself, I need to widen the deflector on one side and it should hopefully work. As we normally dont anchor with more than 100ft of chain it should manage itself most of the time.
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Old 28-08-2017, 11:06   #14
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Re: Anchor chain fall

We manually flake the chain each time. More effort but never had a jam.
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Old 28-08-2017, 14:09   #15
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Re: Anchor chain fall

Quote:
Originally Posted by belizesailor View Post
It is amazing how chain can stack itself into such a steep vertical peak. Some sort of automatic flaking system would be handy. Just a simple guide that moved back and forth with the windlass should work.
Looks like somebody's filed a patent for that: CHAIN FLAKER SYSTEM, TO DISTRIBUTE ANCHOR CHAIN EVENLY IN ANCHOR CHAIN LOCKER - Sierra Madre Marine LLC
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