Rocna Mk II

[sailingharry]

Thanks for cheering me up, Steve. To be honest, I love my old Rocna. Its biggest shortcoming is it makes me sloppy. Drop, maybe back on it, done. I usually do back on it, but if I drop undersail, it's hard to get motivated to start the engine. Just go upwind of the mark, turn down, and drop at full speed. When the boat turns around, it's done.

[shrspeedblade]

Originally Posted by Panope

I wouldn't worry too much about it. I can (and have) said something bad about every anchor that I have ever tested.

Maybe I should go total 'grim reaper' and make a compilation video showing nothing but dismal anchor failures. Could have some really loud SpeedMetal music playing in the background. Of course the word CARNAGE would appear in the title.

The “Halloween Edition” ☠️ next year. I’d watch it!

[mpstan]

So we are in that demographic of wanting to upgrade our 22kg CQR anchor. We have a 1991 42’ Ocean Alexander sedan, located in Blaine WA. We are San Juan Island cruisers, but in 2 years (retiring) hope to explore as far North into SE Alaska as time allows. Seems to me the Mk2 makes a lot of sense. Our boat weighs 35,000 pounds in the slings, so we’re in between the 25kg and the 33kg sizes. I have friends that say their 25 is fine. I have no problem going to the 33 but don’t want to be silly big. We have an original Maxwell Nilsson 1100 Windlass. Thoughts?

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by mpstan

So we are in that demographic of wanting to upgrade our 22kg CQR anchor. We have a 1991 42’ Ocean Alexander sedan, located in Blaine WA. We are San Juan Island cruisers, but in 2 years (retiring) hope to explore as far North into SE Alaska as time allows. Seems to me the Mk2 makes a lot of sense. Our boat weighs 35,000 pounds in the slings, so we’re in between the 25kg and the 33kg sizes. I have friends that say their 25 is fine. I have no problem going to the 33 but don’t want to be silly big. We have an original Maxwell Nilsson 1100 Windlass. Thoughts?

Thoughts: what is the next size up from the 33kg?

If you are in between sizes you always round up to the bigger size. Now you need to decide if you need to oversize. Being halfway between sizes, it is a difficult decision with as much going for the 33kg as for the next size up. The closer you were to the 25kg the easier to decide that the 33kg is enough oversized.

What weather conditions does Rocna state for their sizing tables?

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by mpstan

I have no problem going to the 33 but don’t want to be silly big. We have an original Maxwell Nilsson 1100 Windlass. Thoughts?

If the windlass will handle the weight properly, there's not a lot bad about "silly big."

We usually mount the biggest/heaviest that will fit -- and that the windlass will handle -- even if an extra size or two over maker's recommendations.

-Chris

[Kettlewell]

You're already gaining performance just moving from the 22kg CQR to the 22kg Rocna. How much greater holding do you need? You'll find the Rocna bites in much faster and more reliably, giving you good sets with little fiddling. But, I think the 22kg CQR was a bit small to begin with, so I would vote for the 33kg. You will find the Rocna is huge compared to your old CQR, so make sure it will fit, including the rollbar and length.

[sailingharry]

It sounds like your boat is a power boat, so performance in a seaway is already not good (I'm really not trying to throw stones -- but power boats don't do seas as well). At least on sailboats, lots of weight on the bow can add to more hobby-horsing. If you already have a lot of issues with this -- and so don't go out in a rough head-sea, then no worries. But it might be a consideration.

[noelex 77]

Originally Posted by sailingharry

It sounds like your boat is a power boat, so performance in a seaway is already not good (I'm really not trying to throw stones -- but power boats don't do seas as well). At least on sailboats, lots of weight on the bow can add to more hobby-horsing. If you already have a lot of issues with this -- and so don't go out in a rough head-sea, then no worries. But it might be a consideration.

We are only talking about an extra 8 kg. This will not have any practical effect on a boat weighing over 15,000 kg.

If you are really concerned, there would be few boats that could not remove far more bow weight with a simple rearrangement or tidy up. Anything you throw out in the tidy up is unlikely to be as helpful as an oversized anchor.

For a cruising boat, fitting the largest anchor that can be comfortably managed is usually the best philosophy.

[mpstan]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Thoughts: what is the next size up from the 33kg?

If you are in between sizes you always round up to the bigger size. Now you need to decide if you need to oversize. Being halfway between sizes, it is a difficult decision with as much going for the 33kg as for the next size up. The closer you were to the 25kg the easier to decide that the 33kg is enough oversized.

What weather conditions does Rocna state for their sizing tables?

40kg is the next size up; Rocna states their table is formulated for 50kt winds. The 33 kg model is $2000 and change…..

[SailFastTri]

Originally Posted by mpstan

40kg is the next size up; Rocna states their table is formulated for 50kt winds. The 33 kg model is $2000 and change…..

Pricey. The Rocna Vulcan is a much better value, as are the Mantus Ml and M2. IDK what the relative performance of the Rocna MII is but those others are top-tier.
As for size, I’d get the biggest that will fit the bow roller space and windlass capacity. There’s no such thing as too much anchor on a pitch black night in a squall. “Silly big” isn’t silly at all if you’ve had enough experience.
Edit: I see “silly small” quite frequently, mostly on boats that are kept at a dock full time. IMHO - Boats that are cruising should be on a primary storm sized anchor.

[smj]

I prefer the size of the anchor to be determined by fluke area not the weight, you know, the part that actually digs in and does the holding.
If I had an anchor that was to heavy to be manhandled I would also have a windlass that could be operated manually as well as electronically. Gotta cover the bases.

[Kettlewell]

“Silly big” isn’t silly at all if you’ve had enough experience.

Not really arguing the point, just adding that there are disadvantages in going too big: hurts sailing performance to add weight to the bow, reduces forward buoyancy (particularly noticeable surfing down big offshore waves), harder to manhandle meaning you become dependent on the windlass, more expensive, might require a bigger shackle than will fit your chain, might have a shank that is too long, etc. Personally, I have found that even with so-called "new-gen" anchors the old rule of thumb works pretty well for sailboats: a pound of anchor per foot of boat, round up. In other words, for a 42-foot sailboat a 45-pounder should be adequate. The next size up would be as far as I would go for a working anchor.

[rslifkin]

I carry a 33kg / 73 lb Vulcan on my boat (power, 38ft, 27,500 lbs loaded). It's a size up from recommended, but not excessively large for the boat. The 33kg is certainly appropriate for the OA42 (I wouldn't go any smaller), but if it'll fit then the 40kg wouldn't be too excessive.

[s/v Jedi]

If you are worried about 7kg or 8kg weight at the bow then how about 100kg weight from the anchor chain?

Go down a size of chain and get grade 7 for equal strength and now you saved so much weight that you can buy a couple sizes bigger anchor.

But really, these 10kg or 20kg are not going to make a difference in this case. The size and shape of the anchor may become a problem, not the weight.

Also remember that seabed differences are a huge factor. Where a 22kg anchor will hold you in clean sand, it may not do so well in mud. You need the oversized anchor for suboptimal conditions, to compensate.