Can You ID this Anchor ?

[sailson]

I bought a new Columbia 26 in 1970, also a lightweight Danforth anchor with mostly nylon rode. While cruising in the upper Fla keys,during a line squall we blew into 3' of water with a 4'-4" draft. Decided then I needed a better anchor! After asking a lot of the sailboat owners in the marina, I bought an anchor at a marine hardware in Coconut Grove. As near as I can remember, the anchor is manufactured in Scandinavia somewhere? It is a handforged "X" configuration, the main part of the anchor is like a Fisherman anchor without a stock. The shank(?) of the anchor is square from the arms part of the way up the shank and the other half of the anchor is a sliding arm with flukes exactly like the fixed part.To use, I slide the moveable part up the shank to a rounded part of the shank, turn it 90 degrees, and slide it back down to form an "X" with four flukes. In 40 years I've only drug one time, and I think the rode fouled the two exposed flukes as I was anchored in shallow silt over a hard bottom. My anchor is approx 25-30 lbs, but I saw numerous larger ones on a lot of boats in South Fla in the 70's. I'll try to take a picture if my description isn't clear enough.

[thinwater]

Sounds like a variation on the Northill:

Google Image Result for http://www.web4homes.com/c380/anchor31.gif

The genuine models were pretty good, though you could foul the fluke. They were very polular in some areas. They are no longer made, but you see them on e-bay. There are copies still made, many of which stink. I would be avoid those, unless you can get a recomendation.

Only 1 fluke is expose if properly set in sand/mud.

I had one and liked it fine. I would still use it as a secondary if it fit my boat. But I would get a Delta or Rocna if buying now.

[sailson]

Better description: a four-armed, heavily made grapnel that can be stowed flat on deck by moving two of the arms up the shank and turning parallel with the fixed arms. To anchor, I move the two arms up the square shank and turn them into an"X" configeration. Actually looks a lot like a four-armed fisherman anchor without a stock.

Sailson

[ConradG]

Sounds interesting. I'd love to see a picture..

[paradix]

Like this one?



or this one?

[zopi]

If you can draw it..it can be built...

I tend to use an anchor one size larger than any given MFR recommends...

[ggray]

You are very accurate in describing the style anchor i used to see used in the Bahamas 50 years ago. Sounds like it is still available. Very effective anchor in grass and rock I'd expect, sand as well, but would need to be heavier than danforth or plow.

[paradix]

One more possibility?

[sailson]

Good draftsmanship! That's what I was trying to describe, including the square shank part way up from the shank and the square hole in the crown of the sloding part. The lower anchor on your previous post was close but the anchor is more "massive" than that seems.
Do you know any more about this anchor? Who made it, what it's called, How effective it is rated to be?

Sailson

[paradix]

Those later drawings are from a patent application I found online which seemed to describe the anchor you mentioned. I'm afraid I couldn't find any more information than that!

Boat anchor

The earlier drawing is from a very old nautical dictionary - unlikely to be much help in answering your questions either, I'm afraid.

Dixon Kemp Dictionary, 1913/A

I thought that by posting visual images it might help spark recognition of the design by others on the forum more experienced than I...