A better anchor setup

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David Hopkins

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Mar 18, 2014
12
Catalina 30 Vancouver
I'd like some advice on how to improve my anchor setup.

I have the standard "toy roller" anchor roller. setup Previous owner installed an extension on the port side roller. This extends that roller out a few inches. Unfortunately the extension is flimsy - the metal bends - so the roller does not spin very well. This makes hoisting the anchor difficult. I have a 10 kg Bruce anchor. It fits nicely in the extended roller. It does not fit on the toy roller because the arm reaches too far back (past the anchor locker) and the the anchor hits the bow of the boat. I also have a fortress anchor but it does not sit nicely in the toy roller either because the flukes hit the bow before

My goal is an inexpensive improvement. I realize I could take the toy roller out and replace with an extended roller but that's bit too involved. I'd like to be able to use the toy roller to hoist the anchor and store it.

Is there an anchor out there that will rest in the toy roller after being hauled up? I'd like to know what others are doing. Pictures would be awesome.

I've read some of the C34 forums on this topic. They were somewhat helpful but the dimensions of that boat are somewhat different than the C30.

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IMG_1081.jpg
 
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David Hopkins

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Mar 18, 2014
12
Catalina 30 Vancouver
Interesting suggestion. I had not heard of that. It may solve the problem of the anchor banging my bow. Unfortunately it does not fix the problem of the arm of the anchor extending too far back. There is very little deck space between the bow and the anchor locker.

I am contemplating cutting out a piece of my anchor locker door. If I remove the section forward of the hinge my anchor could fit.
 
centerline

centerline

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Mar 20, 2012
3,983
Cal 34-III, MacGregor 25 Salem, Oregon
David Hopkins said:
My goal is an inexpensive improvement.

I'd like to be able to use the toy roller to hoist the anchor and store it.

Is there an anchor out there that will rest in the toy roller after being hauled up?
Click to expand
firstly, there is no such thing as an inexpensive improvement to a bad anchor roller set up... pay the price and get it right the first time so you arent having to do it ever again (like you are doing now to somebody else's cheap and failed attempt)

preferably, you should be able to stow the bower anchor on its roller.
some boats may have 2 good anchor rollers on the bow. where both anchors can be stowed on them, but if not, the small roller is only for hoisting the anchor, where it can be lifted over the rail and stowrd away in the locker.
some boats such as yours (and mine) have a short roller and the main roller.. the short one is for the second anchor, if you use one, to hoist it to the rail so it can be lifted on deck for stowage...

there is no anchor that is usable for that size of boat that will stow on a short, stubby anchor roller....

I have a custom roller that stows the bower nicely, and one of the short rollers also, as well as one the stern of our boat... depending on the conditions, the second anchor may be deployed from either the bow or the stern, as needed. it cant stow the anchor, but it sure saves the back when weighing the anchor up to the rail...
 
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centerline

centerline

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Mar 20, 2012
3,983
Cal 34-III, MacGregor 25 Salem, Oregon
David Hopkins said:
I am contemplating cutting out a piece of my anchor locker door. If I remove the section forward of the hinge my anchor could fit.
Click to expand
maybe its only my opinion, but long term, cutting up the locker doors seems like a much more expensive fix than lengthening the roller...
and another opinion (its alright, they're free and I got lots of them;))... you should remedy the problem, not the symptom of the problem...
 
Michael Davis

Michael Davis

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Jan 5, 2017
2,265
Beneteau First 38 Lyall Harbour Saturna Island
You could fix that poor set up by making the extension U shaped. Filling in the bottom would make it much more rigid and you could extend it by a couple of inches too. Do you know a good welder in your area?
 
centerline

centerline

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Mar 20, 2012
3,983
Cal 34-III, MacGregor 25 Salem, Oregon
maybe something like this...
this is what I built for our 25... I purchased the white part, found the hinge bracket it sets in, and built the rest of it... the custom base unit that attaches to the boat is the also the stem head fitting. it is securely and strongly attached to the boat, so it will support the loading of the anchor from any direction, as well as the lifting load the headstay places on it.
you can see the headstay is attached in the photo.

all you would need to do is find a roller that is narrow enough that you could bolt in place of your existing roller, so it would extend where your anchor sits.....
it would appear that someone has already attempted this on your boat. the base unit seems to be a short anchor roller with the roller removed, and an extension bolted in place....
have a longer extension made up to take the place of the one that is already there....

2013-03-25_10-12-32_302.jpg
 
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Likes: Michael Davis
Michael Davis

Michael Davis

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Jan 5, 2017
2,265
Beneteau First 38 Lyall Harbour Saturna Island
centerline said:
maybe something like this...
this is what I built for our 25... I purchased the white part, found the hinge bracket it sets in, and built the rest of it... the custom base unit that attaches to the boat is the also the stem head fitting. it is securely and strongly attached to the boat, so it will support the loading of the anchor from any direction, as well as the lifting load the headstay places on it.
you can see the headstay is attached in the photo.

all you would need to do is find a roller that is narrow enough that you could bolt in place of your existing roller, so it would extend where your anchor sits.....
it would appear that someone has already attempted this on your boat. the base unit seems to be a short anchor roller with the roller removed, and an extension bolted in place....
have a longer extension made up to take the place of the one that is already there....

View attachment 132896
Click to expand
That looks great and looks like it works well too.
 
centerline

centerline

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Mar 20, 2012
3,983
Cal 34-III, MacGregor 25 Salem, Oregon
Michael Davis said:
That looks great and looks like it works well too.
Click to expand
it works very well. it was designed so that it self deploys.. the anchor rode is handled from the cockpit.
the anchor can be pinned to lock it to the roller for trailering, or rough weather, but for general boating as long as the rode is cleated, the anchor stays on its roller.
 
LeslieTroyer

LeslieTroyer

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May 20, 2016
3,014
Catalina 36 MK1 94 Everett, WA
Your rollers look surprisingly like mine - my primary may be slightly beefier holds a Bruce anchor running back to the windlass. I use the short one for running the downhaul/fore-guy for the ATN-Tacker (upside down from the anchor line). I can also use the short one if I need to deploy a second anchor off the bow - which is a fortress (like your danforth) the fortress is kept disassembled in a storage bag - to would take some time to assemble and connect to the chain.

If you do decide to beef up the rollers - think seriously about adding a small bob-stay to the end so you could fly an asymmetric without worry that you will twist the bracket out of the boat.
Les
 
Ned Ludd

Ned Ludd

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Apr 4, 2016
201
Newport 28 Richardson Marina
If you are a handy wood worker "Sailors Sketchbook" has some great anchor handling ideas.
 
Kingjim91

Kingjim91

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Jul 6, 2013
221
Catalina 30TR, Atomic 4 2480 Milwaukee
Does anybody have a good anchor set-up for a C-30 TR with a bow sprit?
 
Gene Neill

Gene Neill

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Sep 30, 2013
3,541
1988 Catalina 22 North Florida
David Hopkins said:
I am contemplating cutting out a piece of my anchor locker door. If I remove the section forward of the hinge my anchor could fit.
Click to expand
I'm not sure how similar our anchor locker covers are, but I did that very thing on my C22. I made a cutout in the forward end of the hatch, and built an epoxy "dam" around the underside of it for strength. I painted it with some leftover Kiwi Grip I had on hand. Although it doesn't look like it in the pic, the hatch now clears the anchor shank and can be opened at any time:



 
thinwater

thinwater

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Mar 26, 2011
3,410
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
I had a Stiletto 27 for many years and cruised it for weeks at a time. I never had a bow roller and never wanted one. Did want to hang the weight out there. The anchors were puny anyway, and the right place for them was in a locker, farther back.

No, twin rollers never work right. If you do deploy 2 anchors, with rodes in a locker, goo luck untangling the mess if the boat spins. You really do not want to do this. A better solution, if you use a second anchor, is to have it in a locker with a shortish rode, and then connect the 2 rodes so that only one comes over the roller. Much easier to deal with.

I think the mistake is trying to emulate bigger boats with different problems.
 
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