Anchor Rode Return

dziedzicmj

dziedzicmj

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Aug 13, 2012
533
Catalina 270 Ottawa
This has nothing to do with liking (or disliking) the swivels. I don't have a strong opinion about them, either.

Obviously, any opinion expressed in one sentence does not allow for nuance.

I fully agree that if you use the right swivel (with appropriate working load limit, corrected for any side loading, properly installed, regularly inspected for corrosion or other failures etc.), and you use it correctly, you should be safe and could sleep soundly at night.

However, there is a number of reports and articles showing that not everybody follows such practices. Practical Sailor (02/2016) questions the need for a swivel in the ground tackle. Adventure Cruising (2010) asks "just to say no" to swivels. Many others, including the article in Sail, warns about problems, if not used correctly. Maine Sails advises to replace them every 2-3 years.

So it seems to me that there are serious issues that many sailors experience with swivels, and because of that one should be quite careful before deciding to install one. There is a serious potential for reducing the strength of the ground tackle. That's it.

(btw. I am sorry if I offended anyone in my previous post; it was not my intention)
 
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Will Gilmore

Will Gilmore

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Oct 19, 2017
7,754
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
dziedzicmj said:
(btw. I am sorry if I offended anyone in my previous post; it was not my intention)
Click to expand
No problem dziedzicmj. I wasn't offended and I doubt anyone else was either. I have never used a swivel nor had I ever heard there were problems with them. I only mentioned them because the OP seemed to be having a twisting problem and a swivel made sense. Your information about the articles and concerns people have had over swivels is exactly the kind of information these discussions are intended to bring out. The little trick of putting a short piece of chain between a swivel and the anchor is another good piece of information that would not have come out if you hadn't felt free to express your concerns that precipitated further responses. Without this back and forth between differing ideas, the OP would be less informed in the end.

- Will (Dragonfly)
 
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murrayabbott

murrayabbott

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May 4, 2012
47
Hunter 45DS Toronto
I have the same problem but I am all chain. I think that it is the design of the anchor locker. The windlas is designed to drop the rode in the middle of the anchor locker. On mine the chain piles up along the wall.
 
jviss

jviss

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Feb 5, 2004
6,748
Tartan 3800 20 Westport, MA
justsomeguy said:
A certain type of rope.
Click to expand
Ah, gotcha. I thought it was a spell-corrected "8-plait." On googling it I came upon the definition of brait, which is a raw diamond. But a more specific search yields results that seem to indicate that "brait" is proprietary to Yale Cordage. Do you know if this is so?
 
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