Photos of Anchors Setting

[skipgundlach]

Originally Posted by Fortress

Noelex, this is certainly true, as an obstacle can become lodged in between the crown (center part of anchor) and the shank, which in turn will not allow the shank and flukes to pivot.

However, this is also an advantage in soft mud, as by contrast a fixed fluke anchor can have difficulty orienting with the fluke downward if it lands on its side, or upside down, which was observed during the Chesapeake Bay soft mud bottom testing.

With a pivoting fluke / Danforth-type anchor, there is no upside down, and the long stock (narrow round rod) helps to stabilize (or stabilise) the anchor as well once it reaches the sea bottom.

I own a Fortress...

And I like it.

But I wouldn't trust it for general anchoring. I have seen too many instances of fouling and if the points aren't down, even if the foul isn't in the tips, there's no way it could possibly set as it skates across the bottom.

If you can guarantee that neither the tips nor the shank will be fouled, it's great.

Said from someone who rescued a friend's boat from the rocks; the Fortress came up with a segment of concrete block wedged in the shank...

[Fortress]

Originally Posted by skipgundlach

I own a Fortress...

And I like it.

But I wouldn't trust it for general anchoring. I have seen too many instances of fouling and if the points aren't down, even if the foul isn't in the tips, there's no way it could possibly set as it skates across the bottom.

If you can guarantee that neither the tips nor the shank will be fouled, it's great.

Said from someone who rescued a friend's boat from the rocks; the Fortress came up with a segment of concrete block wedged in the shank...

Skip,

Thanks for your comments. I think that any anchor can collect debris from the sea bottom and foul, although with their larger two flukes, Danforth-type anchors are certainly more likely to collect and bring up a greater amount of stuff with them.

During the Chesapeake Bay testing, which was confined to a small area, a CQR was fouled with an oyster shell stuck to its very pointed fluke, a Rocna was fouled when it got stuck on an abandoned anchor, and a Fortress was fouled by a short piece of heavy rusted chain.

Safe anchoring,
Brian

[skipgundlach]

Originally Posted by Fortress

Skip,

Thanks for your comments. I think that any anchor can collect debris from the sea bottom and foul, although with their larger two flukes, Danforth-type anchors are certainly more likely to collect and bring up a greater amount of stuff with them.

During the Chesapeake Bay testing, which was confined to a small area, a CQR was fouled with an oyster shell stuck to its very pointed fluke, a Rocna was fouled when it got stuck on an abandoned anchor, and a Fortress was fouled by a short piece of heavy rusted chain.

Safe anchoring,
Brian

I believe any anchor can be fouled on another abandoned anchor, or many other places as well documented here recently.

It's my concern for egregious fouling which makes me use my danforth types only when I hand set them, and for a limited amount of time...

[hoppy]

Originally Posted by noelex 77

I have not seen the Vulcan in the flesh. It would be nice, even on dry land, to see how the the anchor behaves. It would be interesting to see how much of the righting movement is due to ballast and how much is due to the tall, light and highly curved shank.

For us anchorholics, it is helpful to understand how the Vulcan works. It provides some insight into the anchor's likely strength and weakness, but I suspect most readers are far more interested in the practical results. So keep the photos coming.

Come on down to Paros/Naxos and I'll give you a demonstration

[kas_1611]

Originally Posted by malbert73

Looks a bit like the Vulcan?


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

Depends on how many G&T you have had

Looks a lot different from the 33kg lump on the front of my boat

Keiron

[noelex 77]

Originally Posted by hoppy

Come on down to Paros/Naxos and I'll give you a demonstration

It would be great to meet up. I we see what I can arrange.

[noelex 77]

This was a small Delta.

It was dropped on smooth rock and has managed to grip a small fissure. Once again, notice how all the pressure is on the toe.

The yacht also tied their stern to this small abandoned mooring. I can understand the thinking. The anchor certainly was not secure, but it is easy to forget that fixing yourself to two different points like this will make you swing very differently to other boats.

A lot of distance is needed between boats lying to a single anchor, and boats with two (or in this case an anchor and a mooring) anchors. There were several other boats close by with only a single anchor.

BTW the Delta sticker that proclaims a "Lifetime warranty" is true, but the warranty only covers a manufacturing defect. It does not cover a bent anchor from, for example, being caught in rock. Other manufacturers do cover this. An important distinction. The sticker also claims "fast set"........well I will let you make up your own mind about that from the underwater photos on this thread .

[JPA Cate]

Just a comment about the Oceane: It does not look like it would fit well on most boats' bows, with that highly arcing stock.

Ann

[noelex 77]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Just a comment about the Oceane: It does not look like it would fit well on most boats' bows, with that highly arcing stock.

Ann

I suspect that was part of the reason for the modest commercial success, although the bump halfway along the shank is designed to rest just below the bow roller, reducing some of the problems associated with a highly curved shank. Océane even patented this feature (they call it the "Spike"). How this works in practice on different boats is hard to know.

Did you notice the second hole in the shank? This looks like a hole for securing the anchor on the bow roller, but is designed as a second attachment point for the chain. It adjusts the fluke angle from 34° to 45°. I have mixed feelings about this. It is easy to use the wrong fluke angle. If an owner uses the 45° setting in hard or even medium substrates, the anchor will have very poor holding. Even in substrates that are very soft, where the 45° would be appropriate, it is difficult to be sure the anchor is not going to hit an area of seabed that is firmer. Any slightly firmer substrate could stop the anchor setting if the wider fluke angle is used.

The Océane was a very unique design when it was released. Alain Poiraud is to be admired for incorporating so many innovative features. He was a true anchoring genius, although his lasting legacy is the excellent steel Spade rather than the Océane. RIP Alain.

[hoppy]

Originally Posted by noelex 77

It would be great to meet up. I we see what I can arrange.

I'm certainly in that area for the next couple of days, but if you're coming I can hang out longer. I have a month to get to Turkey, so I'm in no rush what so ever

[noelex 77]

Hi Hoppy.

PM sent.

[noelex 77]

Just a reminder that there is a lot of natural and, sadly, man made debris on the sea bed.

Towels and clothes are one of the more common bits of junk. I think most of them have been blown off boats where they have been hung on the rail to dry.

Something like this will not hinder raising the anchor, but if wrapped around the fluke could easily stop the anchor burying. One reason I am keen on setting the anchor is that it provides a test that the anchor is not caught up on something like this. I also always set an anchor alarm. Even if you know the anchorage has a good substrate and that your anchor is reliable, there is no way of knowing if something like this is lurking nearby.

[noelex 77]

This was one of the best Delta performances I have seen for a long time. Very much like the Delta in post #2384 , just a bit better in all aspects.

The Delta is really liking this nice softer sand it is a much easier substrate than the hard sand we normally encounter. The slightly better performance of this particular set compared to the Delta in post #2384 is probably due to the more generous scope. 7m @ 6:1.

[noelex 77]

A steel Spade in 3m@ 6:1

After the rocks, closer to the beach the substrate changed back to sand. This Spade was dropped in that sand. It looked like a reasonable bottom, but there was still some patches of rock around and I suspect under the sand as well. It was different to the fine sand found in deeper water where most of the other anchors were photographed.

The Spade has done a good job, although the performance is a little hard to evaluate. I did not see the drop, but It looks like the anchor was set across the wind and then the anchor has rotated close to 90° to line up with the prevailing wind. It has done very well if this was the case. The setting distance was reasonable. There is a lot more piling up of the sand than is normal for this anchor, but the fluke is reasonably buried and it is quite secure. It still has a moderate list, but this is as a result of its recent rotation. It is tough for an anchor to rotate before it has fully set and I think that is what has occurred here.

[noelex 77]

I don't see many anchors this shallow and it makes for easy Mermaid photos: