1/2" anchor line for my 34ftr??

Feb 26, 2009
716
Oday 30 Anchor Yacht Club, Bristol PA
I will make it a point to look again but, when I first checked out the boat I noticed the anchor line seemed to be half inch which, I think is too light for my boat, the chain on the anchor is definitely quarter inch!
 
Apr 11, 2018
71
Hunter 340 Dowry Creek, NC
1/2 was too small for mine. The sweet spot, that point where strength and handling meet, is 5/8. That's for conditions I've found along the mid-Atlantic and Southern coast.
 
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Jun 21, 2004
2,532
Beneteau 343 Slidell, LA
. the anchor line seemed to be half inch which, I think is too light for my boat, the chain on the anchor is definitely quarter inch!
I use 5/8” nylon with 35 feet of 3/8” chain. Ground tackle has held fast through some nasty thunderstorms. Good to have confidence in your setup; makes for worry free sleep when anchored!
 
Feb 26, 2004
22,759
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Depends on where you intend to anchor and what wind strength you size your ANCHORING SYSTEM for.

I've posted this link many times. My system is sized for 42 knots because when I lived in SF (for the first 18 years I've had this boat before I moved to BC in 2016) I was NOT going to be out in conditions that warranted anything larger. 1/4" chain, 1/2" rode. Other C34 owners, say on the east coast, experience conditions of higher winds, like afternoon thunderstorms, that require a "heavier" package.

In any event, I've found, based on the tables, that 3/8" chain for a 34 foot recreational boat, is overkill.

I never depend on what others have on their boats, I designed my system based on trusted engineering data.

Try this information, then YOU decide what YOU believe is right for YOUR boat depending on where you'll be anchoring.

Anchor System Sizing Tables (Reply #6) & Swivels Ground Tackle & Anchor System Sizing TABLES & Swivels
 
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Feb 26, 2009
716
Oday 30 Anchor Yacht Club, Bristol PA
Stu, from self study information like you have kindly posted is why I questioned the line size.
I'm more of a second anchor mindset, rather than a heavy single anchor if I were out in other than recreational conditions.
Chain is incredibly strong. My eventual conundrum is the cost of an anchor windlass and will I need larger than quarter inch chain. But, not a decision for today!
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,989
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
5/8” line would be a good size. Nylon would be the optimal material. Either 3 strand or 8 ply braid (which is easier on the hand and less likely to hockle) 8 Plait strikes a balance between a supple, firm, easy handling line and in nylon provides strength and stretch. 8 plait can be spliced to chain and will run smoothly through the windlass gypsy.
 
Feb 26, 2004
22,759
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
My eventual conundrum is the cost of an anchor windlass and will I need larger than quarter inch chain. But, not a decision for today!
Then you have time to think about it. But the reality is that 99% of the windlasses for our size boats have gypsies for 5/16" chain. That is certainly something you can research while you're thinking. :)
 
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Feb 26, 2009
716
Oday 30 Anchor Yacht Club, Bristol PA
5/16 was my thinking too. I keep trying to research anchor windlass installs on the H34 but find very few and as mentioned everything's archived that I can't seem the access, but not something I'm losing sleep over it's not rocket science to build into the anchor locker the appropriate structure to hold the winch and associated hardware
 
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Feb 26, 2004
22,759
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
5/16 was my thinking too. I keep trying to research anchor windlass installs on the H34 but find very few and as mentioned everything's archived that I can't seem the access, but not something I'm losing sleep over it's not rocket science to build into the anchor locker the appropriate structure to hold the winch and associated hardware
Yup, that's what's called, in engineering, "The Use of the Available." It's much easier to use one if they, uhm, actually make it! :) That said, of course you could change the gypsy, but why if you are in the position of needing new chain. In my case, I don't have a windlass and didn't intend to ever have to buy one, so I stayed with 1/4" chain. I actually tried a length of 3/8" I had when I first bought my Rocna. Not only did it look and feel strange but after I did the research, and wrote and posted that link, I realized just why that was. 5/16" is just fine.

If you can't find any H34 windlass additions, you might spend some time looking at our C34 tech wiki and searching on our forum.


There have been quite a few skippers who have done so, and some of the ideas may be helpful to you. Over the years of production (86-2007/9) there have been both single and double doors on the anchor lockers, so something should work for you.

All the best, Stu
 
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RoyS

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Jun 3, 2012
1,739
Hunter 33 Steamboat Wharf, Hull, MA
You probably do not need a windlass for a 30' boat. Nice to have, I suppose, but you can easily haul it up by hand if you have a bow roller. No need to motor forward while raising it either. Just plant yourself firmly at the bow sitting down behind the anchor locker and start pulling the rode in. The boat will start moving forward and it is easy to keep drawing the line in. I am 73 and do this all the time. Spend your money on something else. Just my opinion.
 
Feb 26, 2009
716
Oday 30 Anchor Yacht Club, Bristol PA
You probably do not need a windlass for a 30' boat. Nice to have, I suppose, but you can easily haul it up by hand if you have a bow roller. No need to motor forward while raising it either. Just plant yourself firmly at the bow sitting down behind the anchor locker and start pulling the rode in. The boat will start moving forward and it is easy to keep drawing the line in. I am 73 and do this all the time. Spend your money on something else. Just my opinion.
The 34-ft hunter
Is substantially different from a 30-foot hunter or the Oday 30 l had. It's not a must have but I'm at 73 myself and it's something I think about but I'm not ready to run out and spend $1,000+ if there isn't a reason
 
Jun 21, 2004
2,532
Beneteau 343 Slidell, LA
The 34-ft hunter
I'm not ready to run out and spend $1,000+ if there isn't a reason
Going to cost $2500 to $3000 IF you do it yourself. Approximately $2000 for the windlass, circuit breaker, control switch, drum, & gypsy, $500 for 1/0 copper cable and misc. connectors. Add to that chain, shackles, & rode and a method of mounting the windlass to your boat.
Definitely not an inexpensive or easy project; did mine 9 years ago installing a Lewmar V2 vertical windlass.
 
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Feb 26, 2009
716
Oday 30 Anchor Yacht Club, Bristol PA
Going to cost $2500 to $3000 IF you do it yourself. Approximately $2000 for the windlass, circuit breaker, control switch, drum, & gypsy, $500 for 1/0 copper cable and misc. connectors. Add to that chain, shackles, & rode and a method of mounting the windlass to your boat.
Definitely not an inexpensive or easy project; did mine 9 years ago installing a Lewmar V2 vertical windlass.
What's this, scare tactics now? Lol,
I haven't ruled out manual windless either, I know it's expensive, "BOAT" bucks.
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,989
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
$500 for 1/0 copper cable and misc......did mine 9 years ago installing a Lewmar V2 vertical windlass.
9 years ago...That was before Copper went through the roof. I did my Lewmar V3 in 2018. If I remember correctly, in order to get the desired voltage (with 3% or less drop) the 20ft from the batteries to the windlass and put the proper connectors on the cables, the cost for the copper wire was almost as much as the cost of the windlass. :yikes:

It was a great project and serves me well. :biggrin:
DF945E67-57C8-46B0-A20E-4E8A40F0C9AD.jpeg

I removed the manual windlass, which found a home as a storage weight in my garage. One day I'll find someone who wants a manual windlass. Someone young and full of the energy it takes to pump the windlass and wind up the rode/chain and anchor from 30ft.
 
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Feb 26, 2009
716
Oday 30 Anchor Yacht Club, Bristol PA
It is also possible to do a battery Bank in the bow of the boat especially a boat like mine has almost no weight up there! But I cannot make any real decisions on this until I actually get to sailing the boat.
 
Feb 26, 2009
716
Oday 30 Anchor Yacht Club, Bristol PA
Copper is still predominantly used in refrigeration air conditioning and hot water heating systems even though plastic has made some big changes with PEX tubing. Copper is still the best wire some of you old enough y'all may remember when some buildings were wired with aluminum wire.... Has anyone used 125 amp house service aluminum cable to wire a winch? NAH! (Something I've always meant to ask a surveyors)
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,989
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
when some buildings were wired with aluminum wire
Yes. I believe the buildings had wire connectors loosen, heat up and burn the buildings down... Maybe not all of them, but it was an issue with bad installation. Aluminum wire is not suggested for marine installations. Neither is solid single lead wire, like the copper wire used to wire your house.
 
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