Siren 17 needs Anchor lift

[Goatman]

Wanting to mount an anchor lift onto my 17' Siren somehow and am seeking advice. Was thinking of getting some Mahogany wood and running straight off the front of the bow. Putting a pulley on the end. Problem is that the front bow light and furling jib mechanism is right there. Would it be stupid to run it off to one side or the other? Is there any products anyone can recommend?

Here's a couple things I've looked up: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Attwood-Lift-and-Lock-Anchor-Control/16350978

http://www.attwoodmarine.com/userfi...es/1524/069503_anchorliftinstr-13710-4_rb.pdf

Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks
Mitch

 

[Gene Neill]

A lot of boats have anchor rollers mounted off to one side or the other, or both. Nothing stupid about it.

 

[Goatman]

Thanks for the reply Gene. Can't say I've seen how these are done and wanted to make sure I do it right the first time.
Mitch

 

[Brian S]

Mitch, I personally wouldn't even consider hanging an anchor off a 17' boat. All my anchoring is done from the cockpit. I store mine in the lazarette in a rubber bucket with the rode sorta flaked in the bucket, chain on top of that, and anchor laying on the top. I lift it up out of the lazarette, drop off the stern, close to where I'm running the outboard, set it, and once I feel the anchor is set well, I will walk the bucket and remaining rode up to the bow, where I cleat off. To raise anchor. I go uncleat, and bring the bucket back to the cockpit, and haul everything in back into the bucket. There's no reason to keep that weight up on the bow of a small boat. Keeping it down low in the lazarette is a good place, rather than up high on the bow where it will contribute to hobby-horsing.

 

[st nick]

I had a siren 17 for years and enjoyed the boat very much ! Lee / fla

 

[Goatman]

That does make total sense Brian. I'll need to figure a good way to roll the line up to keep from getting it a tangled mess but I like your idea the more I think about it. I haven't done much anchoring but think the grand kids may want to swim off the boat this summer.
Thanks for your help.

Lee, I had my first Siren back in the 90's. Got away from sailing and ended up buying this one to take our grand kids out. Looking forward to some decent weather.
Mitch

 

[Brian S]

I'll need to figure a good way to roll the line up to keep from getting it a tangled mess but I like your idea the more I think about it.
Mitch

That's the beauty of the bucket! My ground tackle is a 4.4 pound Lewmar Claw (Bruce knockoff) with 10' of chain, and 150' of laid nylon line with a rope to chain splice. The opposite end of the line has an eye splice around a plastic thimble (why bother, plastic?) I tried a few plastic buckets, but they would crack unexpectedly. (One of them the metal handle came off, so I replaced with 3/16" rope, and it makes a good cleaning bucket now!) Someone recommended me a rubber feed bucket, so I went looking at Tractor Supply. My only complaint about the feed bucket is that it has a wider opening, and is relatively shallow. I'd rather something a few inches taller, and more cylindrical. In any case, I clip the eye splice to the beefy metal handle with a SS carabiner, and then just feed the line into the bucket. I often pretend to try and coil it, but it doesn't coil much, since it's still rather soft nylon. What looks like spaghetti fed into the bucket pays out very smoothly when I anchor. Once in the bucket, it doesn't get tossed around, so it doesn't tangle at all. I use the carabiner to clip the bucket handle to my bow pulpit so the bucket doesn't accidentally fall overboard. Because I don't anchor in rough areas, it's never been inclined to tip overboard, but what's a bit of insurance? Also, the carabiner prevents the bitter end of the line going overboard in case someone doesn't cleat well. That someone being me, I'd only have myself to blame, hence the slight insurance policy of the carabiner!

 

[Goatman]

I'll be giving it a try. Will need to do some trial and error attempts before I get it right I'm sure. Excellent info..

Anxious to give it a try.
Mitch

 

[Sumner]

I first used...

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor/rigging-4.html

... the soft sided coolers like above...

...but the hard sided ones work better as they stay open when it comes time to stuff the line back into them.

Put some holes in the bottom so they drain.

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor2/rigging-20.html

There is no need to coil the line into the bucket. Just stuff it in and it will always come out without tangling. Never had a problem and I anchor every night for weeks at a time.

I keep them on the bow where they haven't been a problem, but in your case keep everything in the back if you want and just pick them up and carry them forward.

More on them if you follow the links below the pictures,

Sumner
=================================================
1300 miles to The Bahamas and Back in the Mac...
Endeavour 37 Mods...
MacGregor 26-S Mods...
Mac Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida, Bahamas

 

[Brian S]

Sumner is the man when it comes to cruising a smaller boat!

 

[Goatman]

Sumner, got what you recommended. Picked up a perfect set-up at Walmart though the hard plastic liner was a separate item added but it fits perfectly. What do you recommend for cutting the holes int the bottom? I'm afraid whatever I do will end up ripping or coming apart. Should I burn the area where I put the holes in to melt the fabric? It looks like in your picture you're showing something that may have been used to put the holes in it but I can't say I've ever seen one of those before.
Showing 160' of 1/2" line and about 8' of chain in the bag.

Mitch

 

[Sumner]

...What do you recommend for cutting the holes int the bottom? .....

You can drill through the plastic insert and use a hollow punch to go through the fabric if you want...

http://www.harborfreight.com/9-piece-hollow-punch-set-3838.html

Good luck,

Sumner
======================================================
1300 miles to The Bahamas and Back in the Mac...
Endeavour 37 Mods...
MacGregor 26-S Mods...http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/endeavour-main/endeavour-index.html
Mac Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida, Bahamas