anchor chain

[Tropic Cat]

Guys... Thanks. However, I believe all Catamaran owners know how to use a bridle on a Cat. My question was specific, although judging by the replies, apparently obscure.

Originally Posted by johnblow666

. .....I was looking at a leopard cat last week and noticed the anchor chain comes off the winch and through the deck just in front of the bridge deck .
i didnt get a real good look at it but ive been thinking it would have an advantage of not having the chain etc. run along the centre of the deck .

How do you hook this.... to a bridle quickly, and safely when it's passing underneath the bridge deck many feet from the bridle attachment points? Are you backing down on the anchor and snaking the chain, which is now beneath the tramp, with a boat hook?

This being opposed to what I would call the normal layout where everything is at your fingertips. A foredeck mounted windlass which plays chain over the bow roller and a chain hook on the bridle.

??

[Aussiesuede]

Originally Posted by Tropic Cat

How do you hook this.... to a bridle quickly, and safely when it's passing underneath the bridge deck many feet from the bridle attachment points? Are you backing down on the anchor and snaking the chain, which is now beneath the tramp, with a boat hook?

I still may be missing your point, so please excuse me if I'm overstating the obvious - but you do realise that the bridle is drawn back to the anchor locker beneath the tramp and hooked to a ring beneath the locker during anchor retrieval? Setting anchor, and bridle, is a simple process of releasing scope then unclipping bridle from ring and attaching it to the anchor chain link? Again, I may still be misunderstanding your question?

While under way, the bridle lines are attached to an o-ring beneath the red X in the photo. You just reach through and unhook it.

[Tropic Cat]

That explains it perfectly. Doesn't this leave a lot of "stuff" tucked under the boat?

My bridle is stored in foredeck lockers, My anchor is in it's bow roller. It's a simple matter to assemble, hook and splash.

[Aussiesuede]

Originally Posted by Tropic Cat

That explains it perfectly. Doesn't this leave a lot of "stuff" tucked under the boat?

My bridle is stored in foredeck lockers, My anchor is in it's bow roller. It's a simple matter to assemble, hook and splash.

If you're doing short hops, then it's no big deal. On a windward bash that's choppy, you can just unlatch the bridle at the bows and take up slack by either doing a wrap on the cleats - or simply haul up and latch em to the pulpit railing or life line. Remove and store the bridle on passage. Resetting it is a less than 5 minute process that can be accomplished by one person (just reattach the bridle to the hook beneath the anchor locker and 'hand over hand' pay out the bow ends by reaching through the tramp along the center compression post. I suspect it would be a bit of a pain on an undivided tramp.)

Basically, it's just what you're use to. My first experience in dealing with a Cat anchor was using this type of setup, so it's what's "normal" to me. Either setup works well. I've never really given it much thought, other than I do like the fact that the anchor chain isn't up over the tramp - but really wouldn't be all that bothered if it were.

[schoonerdog]

thanks for that note, for those of us who have bow rollers, I'd never have known how it was done. Seems simple enough, the principal advantage to me would be you keep more weight aft and off the cross beam by removing the anchor from the bow. That's not a small plus during a stormy passage. The people I knew who managed to cut their keel with their anchor chain did it during a retrieval where I imagine those preventers would have to be taken down to retrieve the anchor.

Originally Posted by Aussiesuede

I still may be missing your point, so please excuse me if I'm overstating the obvious - but you do realise that the bridle is drawn back to the anchor locker beneath the tramp and hooked to a ring beneath the locker during anchor retrieval? Setting anchor, and bridle, is a simple process of releasing scope then unclipping bridle from ring and attaching it to the anchor chain link? Again, I may still be misunderstanding your question?

While under way, the bridle lines are attached to an o-ring beneath the red X in the photo. You just reach through and unhook it.

[DtM]

We use a similar system.
Anchor behind the trampoline in a locker and the bridle end is stored in the locker (removed as it comes up) and the fixed ends stay attached to the forward cross beam.
Unclipping the bridle can be a bit of a pain but it simply involves reaching down to the chain at the approriate time.
To avoid damaging the keels or hull as the boat swings in strong breeze as we pull the anchor up we work hard with the motors to keep the bow steady and only pull up when the chain will run freely away from the hull. Once the anchor is free then even if there is a lot of chain to come in it pulls straight up.
I have found that it is important to show the admiral (who does all driving on and off the anchor or moorings) exactly what is going on. Pick a time when the issue is apparent but not critial and get her to come forward and look. A view saves 100's of words. Good communication of what you need to have happen with the bow is crucial.

daniel

[Wayward Wind]

Daniel

Great advice. Pity I didn't read it earlier as the anchor punched a little hole in the bridgedeck as it was coming up. Not sure when that happened but only spotted it recently when I was scrubbing the waterline and looked up.

Do you have a rubber neck where the bitter end of the chain is? I found that a real pain, and it looks fragile?

JohnC

[Scott730]

When I received my Mahe the anchor was attached to the chain via a few strands of 1/4" rope! Replaced that with a galv. swivel.
I agree that there is alot of coordination and engine work once the bridle is removed, but my wife and I work great as a team and we have never hit the hulls.
The advantages are the bridle is always ready to use and the anchor is moved off the deck and closer to centerline.
The biggest problem is getting at the anchor if you want to remove it. I use the dinghy and scoot under the bridge deck, have my wife drop the anchor right in my lap and work from there.

[Wayward Wind]

Thank goodness we have not hit the hulls at all, but this ding is higher than where the tip of the anchor rests, so a lot of head scratching there. I can only blame sloppiness on my part, and I suspect it happened at one of my favourite anchorages. I usually go there early on a summery weekend to swim and clean the hulls. However, it seems to be the favourite of just about every boat owner in Sydney so it gets very crowded as the day gets hotter, and the water gets real choppy with all the wash from the big cruisers, which is when we up anchor and leave. It must have happened when the anchor was coming up and a particular big wash hit us, causing us to bob up and down like a yo-yo. Needless to say, we are a lot more careful this time.