Single handed anchoring - el. windlass required

[bruce smith]

Most hand windlass's are not set up well. Most are too far forward, that a person cannot get between the roller/cat and windlass to lift the chain UP and let it fall into the gypsy. I rarely see a hand windlass mounted 6 or 8 feet aft.
But, an electric only needs to save your neck once to be worth the expense and weight. (same story with an engine)

[FSMike]

Let's see -

My boat dances around while raising anchor, I'm too old, it's dangerous, it's slow, it aggravates my arthritis, --- makes me wonder how I do it.

[rebel heart]

I haul a 65lb manson with 300' of chain. Normally I don't need to pay all of that out, but you're generally only pulling the weight of the chain that's off the seabed, so it's maybe 100lb's max, just guessing. Two points I'd make:

- Between shunning manual windlasses and ditching oars for an outboard, it's not hard to see the catering of cruising towards less physicality. It's a cycle. You do less with your body, then your body can do less, so do you less with your body.

- Taking it to the extreme of "well yeah but what happens when you're single handed in some really nasty stuff!" is somewhat hyperbolic because you can just tack on "oh yeah well what happens if you're single handing and your electric windlass breaks and you're already stated you're physically unable to retrieve your ground tackle?" In either case, if it really was survival conditions, just tie a big ass fender with some polypro to the bitter end and dump the thing.

I've gone back and forth about having an electric windlass myself. They're certainly handy as hell and on the fishing and charter boats I work on we have them on there. But on my boat I still have a manual, along with a spare few grand in my pocket that it would cost me to install the electric.

At a certain vessel size it's just not physically possible for humans to pull ground tackle up, but it's hard for me to see that extending to a ~30' sailboat.

[Travlin-Easy]

One of the best things I learned as a young man is how easy it is to herniate a disk. It just takes a half-second to blow one out of your spine, and the herniation usually results in a lifetime of pain. I've read the entire thread, and the folks that tend to say pull the anchor by hand are usually, relatively young. Old age doesn't always make you smarter, but we tend to learn from our mistakes.

One thing I learned while running power boats and fishing offshore, often anchoring in depths of 150 to 200-feet and chunking for tuna, was that you can effortlessly pull a 45-pound anchor from the ocean floor using nothing more than a 14-inch diameter ball and your boat's engine. You can do this from the safety of your cockpit, in rough seas, and it works with either chain or rope. Take a look at How To Use an Anchor Ball - South Chatham Tackle and you'll see how this system works. There are also videos on YouTube that show the system in action.

I installed an electric windlass on my Morgan 33 O.I., mainly for safety. I single-hand sail 90 percent of the time, and I love the ability to just push a button and quickly lower, or retrieve the anchor. I've been caught in some nasty conditions while anchored and would not want to attempt to drag that 45-pound CQR and chain out of the mud while getting hammered with 50-knot winds and torrential rains. If you single-hand the boat on a regular basis, you will eventually get caught in these conditions. That windlass could save not only your fingers, but additionally, it could save your life.

Good luck,

Gary

[Snowpetrel]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Do you have to get on your knees to get the angle right to pull through the pawl?

Nah, the homemade pawl is fitted on the top of the anchor roller side plates, so it leads fairly well to me sitting on the cabin top, with my cup of tea.

If there is any wind I set the main with the mainsheet slightly eased and the tiller free. With luck normally the boat sort of wriggles her way up to the anchor, and I take up the slack, being careful the pawl is holding well as she tacks at the end of the chain.

I try to avoid deep water anchoring and lee shores if I can .

The 45lb with 3/8 chain is as much as I would want to do without a windlass. I have my old electric windlass and my slightly newer Manuel one in the shed. I might get around to fitting one of them some time (probably the manuel on a removable system for long passages).

With no load I can pull it in by hand much quicker than either winch when I have to.

It is all much more awkward than a remote operated electric windlass, but works well enough in my home waters.

I would post a picture but the damn thing unbolted itself and is sitting under my mooring 11 meters down. will have to make a new pawl and locktight it on this time, Much harder pulling it without the pawl.

[bobconnie]

Well Im 74 last june and no way do i pull our anchor by hand !! LOL when I single handed, I used 20 ft of chain and the rest 3 strand Nylon about 150 ft I layed it out on the foredeck ready to drop with the bitter end led back to the cockpit and the Big sheet winch. I motored forward and stopped went forward droped the anchor and chain. went back to the cockpit and reversed and let out line till I had the scope I needed, and backed her down till she would do no more ! worked for me and easy retrive with the sheet winch and engine, never had to go forward till the anchor was aboard !! worked for me, the old Swede who taught me to sail showed me this way and im sure it still will work just fine !! just an Idea

[roverhi]

I have my old electric windlass and my slightly newer Manuel one in the shed.

I know the undocumented are cheap labor but how can you keep Manuel in the shed. Seems like you'd want to take him along to pull up the anchor. Even if you have a manual windlass, it'd be nice to have Manuel along to crank it.

Good idea to run the anchor rode back to the cockpit. It takes care of the problem having to be in two places at once. In tight quarters, you have to be in the cockpit to pilot the boat and you can haul in the rode with that system.

[Snowpetrel]

Even if you have a manual windlass, it'd be nice to have Manuel along to crank it.

Ha, damned spellchecker... *facepalm* need an edit button!

[teejayevans]

Originally Posted by Stu Jackson

If I'm "late" and the wind has started, I use the engine. I also have sailed out, maybe 5% of the time. I like the idea of locking the wheel and idling forward, which I've tried a few times, but I find if the wind is over 10 knots, I need to really goose the throttle to get past the anchor and haul up as the boat settles back.

I try to use just enough engine to balance the wind or a little less, that way, it takes the strain off, and if you keep an even pull, it will maintain it's heading towards the anchor, if done correctly, you'll be able to hand over hand without going back until over the anchor, use a chain hook to secure the chain, walk back to use engine to break out the anchor, go forward and pull anchor up most of the way, continue motoring out of the anchorage, when clear of boats, pull your now clean anchor and secure.
In chop it's a more challenge since the anchor breaks free early or you don't pull enough to keep boat headed towards the anchor and it starts heading off, so if in a crowd, you'll need to run back to helm and reposition and go forward to pull some more, repeat as necessary, rarely more than 3x.
BTW, you should use the engine anyway, even with an electric windless, they are designed to lift the anchor/chain, not pull the boat.
Tom

[teejayevans]

Originally Posted by Travlin-Easy

One of the best things I learned as a young man is how easy it is to herniate a disk. It just takes a half-second to blow one out of your spine, and the herniation usually results in a lifetime of pain. I've read the entire thread, and the folks that tend to say pull the anchor by hand are usually, relatively young. Old age doesn't always make you smarter, but we tend to learn from our mistakes.

It's really important to haul with a straight back, not be bent over, some sit on a fender, I just take a knee, and use my weight against the pull of the chain more than arm strength. Only problem with this is sometimes the chain is caught on a rock and gives way suddenly, since your so low already, it's not a big deal.
Of course I use lighter 5/16" chain and deepest water I've anchored in is 30', if I had to anchor in 10+ fathoms I might sing a different tune.
Tom

[Travlin-Easy]

Tom,

I ease the boat forward while pulling in the anchor with the electric windlass from the cockpit. When the chain is vertical, which doesn't take very long, I break the anchor loose by slowly nosing the boat forward a little at a time. You can feel the anchor pull free from the bottom by the way the boat handles. Then I put the engine in neutral, hit the windlass switch in the cockpit and pull the anchor into the bow-pulpit chock - mud and all. I'll rinse the mud off later with the saltwater washdown system when the weather is calmer. The mud is secondary to my safety.

Gary