Has anyone tried the new hydrobubble anchor from anchor concepts? we are trying to chooze a good anchor for our boat and heard about this new one.I was wondering how it stacks up to the cqr , delta, and other anchors of a similar design. we currently have only a danforth anchor and are reluctant to take any trips with that one due to the tidal nature of where we sail. we want to choose and anchor that we won't have to worry about when the tide shifts. thanks for your help! Dunvegan
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a similar type failed the Practical Sailor tests
Dunvegan, a similar design called the "Hydro-dyne" failed to hold in the famous Practical Sailor 2001 test and was not included in the results. (http://www.noteco.com/bulwagga/multimedia/practical_sail_pdf_Jan_01.pdf) For a dissenting view on the test procedures, read http://www.waggonerguide.com/q_55.html
Dunvegan, a similar design called the "Hydro-dyne" failed to hold in the famous Practical Sailor 2001 test and was not included in the results. (http://www.noteco.com/bulwagga/multimedia/practical_sail_pdf_Jan_01.pdf) For a dissenting view on the test procedures, read http://www.waggonerguide.com/q_55.html
HydroBubble anchors
Re: Dunvegan's HydroBubble Anchor Inquiry We are the manufacturer and inventors of the HydroBubble anchor. The early Practical Sailor test of our anchor type did not take into account the basic characteristic of our anchor in that it has a flotaion device that completely rights itself when it is in at least 2 feet of water. That test was done in ankle deep water, but a subsequent test done by Practical Sailor recently found that the anchor did indeed work in a more than satisfactory manner. Our overall opinion of anchor tests is that they are flawed and do not address the main issues as commented on by Bob Hale of Waggoner Guide. All anchors are great when you get them to set in the ground. Most anchor failures are due to not setting correctly, or not resetting. The HydroBubble must set FIRST time... EVERY time. We have a 100% Customer Satisfaction record and in over three years have not had to refund or return any anchor for nonperformance under our 100% customer satisfaction guarantee. We guarantee our anchors will set EVERY time you use it or your money back... period! Please visit our website and read the testimonials from boating writers and satisfied customers at www.hydrobubble.com. I would welcome any personal discussion with you. Please call toll free 888-282-2535. Sincerely, John A. Willis President and Inventor HydroBubble Anchors
Re: Dunvegan's HydroBubble Anchor Inquiry We are the manufacturer and inventors of the HydroBubble anchor. The early Practical Sailor test of our anchor type did not take into account the basic characteristic of our anchor in that it has a flotaion device that completely rights itself when it is in at least 2 feet of water. That test was done in ankle deep water, but a subsequent test done by Practical Sailor recently found that the anchor did indeed work in a more than satisfactory manner. Our overall opinion of anchor tests is that they are flawed and do not address the main issues as commented on by Bob Hale of Waggoner Guide. All anchors are great when you get them to set in the ground. Most anchor failures are due to not setting correctly, or not resetting. The HydroBubble must set FIRST time... EVERY time. We have a 100% Customer Satisfaction record and in over three years have not had to refund or return any anchor for nonperformance under our 100% customer satisfaction guarantee. We guarantee our anchors will set EVERY time you use it or your money back... period! Please visit our website and read the testimonials from boating writers and satisfied customers at www.hydrobubble.com. I would welcome any personal discussion with you. Please call toll free 888-282-2535. Sincerely, John A. Willis President and Inventor HydroBubble Anchors
100 % my Aunt Tillie'e aspidistra!
I have a HydroBubble and I'd call it almost adequate at best. Dispite Mr. Willis's assertions it does NOT set first time, or even second time every time. I once fell back a quarter of a mile trying to get it to set in conditions where my Danforth or my Delta sets immediatly. I've tried getting it to set with long, medium and short scope and none seemed preferable. Once set though I don't recall major dragging problems. The other thing that really gets me cranked up is that the shank appears to be chromed aluminum and the chrone plating has peeled off 100% in just one season. How's that for quality? At least SOMETHING about it is 100%! If I had realized the shank was chromed aluminum I wouldn't have touched it. Even I know that doesn't work in salt. So, Mr. Willis, care to reply here? My final opinion? I'd rather give the "Bulwagga" a try. With three flukes I don't see how it could not set and reset quickly.
I have a HydroBubble and I'd call it almost adequate at best. Dispite Mr. Willis's assertions it does NOT set first time, or even second time every time. I once fell back a quarter of a mile trying to get it to set in conditions where my Danforth or my Delta sets immediatly. I've tried getting it to set with long, medium and short scope and none seemed preferable. Once set though I don't recall major dragging problems. The other thing that really gets me cranked up is that the shank appears to be chromed aluminum and the chrone plating has peeled off 100% in just one season. How's that for quality? At least SOMETHING about it is 100%! If I had realized the shank was chromed aluminum I wouldn't have touched it. Even I know that doesn't work in salt. So, Mr. Willis, care to reply here? My final opinion? I'd rather give the "Bulwagga" a try. With three flukes I don't see how it could not set and reset quickly.
Dunvegan , I have a 44lb Spade which I think
is a great anchor. It sets and handles tide changes very well, Practical Sailor highly rates it in lots of respects. But I know its not for everyone and is not cheap ! (biggest downfall) I know someone who has a "danforth" type anchor and never felt very comfortable with it. They now have a Bulwagga and absolutely love it ! I think if I was picking a 2nd anchor that made me comfortable when I slept it would be a Bulwagga, its *biggest* negative is its a bit awkward to mount and have on a bow roller. (Its kind of like an opened umbrella and a bit ugly...LOL
) I think its priced ok from what I remember. Here is their URL http://www.noteco.com/bulwagga/ Practical Sailor did test for just what you are looking for The Hydrodyne Anchor did not fair well Here is a link to the test results - (Spade didn't move an inch when it reset for a simulated tide change) http://www.noteco.com/bulwagga/multimedia/powerboat_pdf_Jan_01.pdf If ya got the $$ go for the SPADE, if you want to pay a bit less and don't mind the mounting issues try a Bulwagga
is a great anchor. It sets and handles tide changes very well, Practical Sailor highly rates it in lots of respects. But I know its not for everyone and is not cheap ! (biggest downfall) I know someone who has a "danforth" type anchor and never felt very comfortable with it. They now have a Bulwagga and absolutely love it ! I think if I was picking a 2nd anchor that made me comfortable when I slept it would be a Bulwagga, its *biggest* negative is its a bit awkward to mount and have on a bow roller. (Its kind of like an opened umbrella and a bit ugly...LOL
) I think its priced ok from what I remember. Here is their URL http://www.noteco.com/bulwagga/ Practical Sailor did test for just what you are looking for The Hydrodyne Anchor did not fair well Here is a link to the test results - (Spade didn't move an inch when it reset for a simulated tide change) http://www.noteco.com/bulwagga/multimedia/powerboat_pdf_Jan_01.pdf If ya got the $$ go for the SPADE, if you want to pay a bit less and don't mind the mounting issues try a BulwaggaWell Mr. Willis I guess you can never claim
100% Customer Satisfaction record anymore. LOL - (See Sam Lusts Post) I have never used your anchor, but having a "float" on something you want to "sink" deep into the seabed just seems so counterintuitive . Guess I'm old school, but I would think if you want an anchor to set everytime (not just land upright everytime as you claim on your website), then you'd want as much weight as possible in the tip digging into the sea-bed and you'd want that tip to be as pointy as possible.
100% Customer Satisfaction record anymore. LOL - (See Sam Lusts Post) I have never used your anchor, but having a "float" on something you want to "sink" deep into the seabed just seems so counterintuitive . Guess I'm old school, but I would think if you want an anchor to set everytime (not just land upright everytime as you claim on your website), then you'd want as much weight as possible in the tip digging into the sea-bed and you'd want that tip to be as pointy as possible.
Dunvegan,
As Rich and Tom have said....READ THE PRACTICAL SAILOR ANCHOR REVIEW ARTICLES ... Like Tom, I have a 44lb Spade anchor on my 420... It has been everything that the Practical Sailor articles suggested that it should be....For the past 3 years; from the mud of the northern Ches. Bay to the hard-pan coral bottoms of the Fla. Keys,( and MANY places in-between), it has dragged only once... and that was on the south side of the Sunset Beach, NC Pontoon Bridge. Extreme low tide forced us to wait 2 hrs. before the pontoon bridge could be opened.... Anyway, we anchored in shallow water on the windward side of the channel... Apparently, the anchor couldn't set well in the downward slope of the channel bottom and it slowly dragged (in 20kt winds)... (the other 5 or 6 waiting boats were dragging also). It was the only time in 3 years that the Spade hasn't set, and held securely. Spade anchors are similar to CQR, deltas, etc... but with several important differences. They are a French design; cast in Tunisia. They may be a little more expensive, but a good night's sleep at anchor when the tide shifts and the wind comes up, is worth the price.... But, the anchor is only half the solution to secure anchoring. An all chain rode is equally important. If your boat is smaller and you don't want the weight of 200' of chain in the bow, use at least 100', with another 100-150' of nylon rode... And never use less than 5-7:1 scope.
As Rich and Tom have said....READ THE PRACTICAL SAILOR ANCHOR REVIEW ARTICLES ... Like Tom, I have a 44lb Spade anchor on my 420... It has been everything that the Practical Sailor articles suggested that it should be....For the past 3 years; from the mud of the northern Ches. Bay to the hard-pan coral bottoms of the Fla. Keys,( and MANY places in-between), it has dragged only once... and that was on the south side of the Sunset Beach, NC Pontoon Bridge. Extreme low tide forced us to wait 2 hrs. before the pontoon bridge could be opened.... Anyway, we anchored in shallow water on the windward side of the channel... Apparently, the anchor couldn't set well in the downward slope of the channel bottom and it slowly dragged (in 20kt winds)... (the other 5 or 6 waiting boats were dragging also). It was the only time in 3 years that the Spade hasn't set, and held securely. Spade anchors are similar to CQR, deltas, etc... but with several important differences. They are a French design; cast in Tunisia. They may be a little more expensive, but a good night's sleep at anchor when the tide shifts and the wind comes up, is worth the price.... But, the anchor is only half the solution to secure anchoring. An all chain rode is equally important. If your boat is smaller and you don't want the weight of 200' of chain in the bow, use at least 100', with another 100-150' of nylon rode... And never use less than 5-7:1 scope.
HydroBubble Reply to Mr. Lust
Dear Mr. Lust: We were surprised and disappointed that our product has failed your expectations. This is the first time that we had heard about your problem, as we have no record of you attempting to contact us to allow us to address your issues. We feel that your comments may have presented a distorted and unfair criticism of our product, which we would like to try to address: 1. The corrosion you encountered of the aluminum shank was caused by electrolytic reaction with the aluminum and the nickel plating. We chose this method of ‘protecting’ the aluminum on the advice of our plating suppliers. It soon became apparent that this was a disaster and we immediately changed the shank treatment to a high tech Hard Coat Type III anodizing, which renders the surface completely non-conductive. This has proven to be an outstanding success and we thought we had addressed all faulty shanks in the market by replacement. We apparently missed yours. Please accept our apology for the oversight. 2. We can count on one hand the number of customer complaints we have received in over three years with respect to setting problems with the anchor, and after consultation we have always been able to resolve the problem. Invariably the answers have been simple and common problems for all anchors. Namely, trying to anchor with the boat still moving too fast relative to the ground, therefore not allowing the anchor to come to rest on the ground to allow it to commence digging in; or insufficient scope (we suggest 5:1, and if plenty of chain is used – at least a boat length - perhaps 4:1); and on two occasions an incorrectly installed float leaked and did not allow the anchor to right itself. We have no outstanding issues in this regard that we are aware of except for yours. We have several thousand units in the marketplace, and we still hold that our anchor is the best performing anchor a boater can use. We have an absolute Satisfaction Money Back Guarantee and are always ready and willing to refund the purchase price of our products if they fail to satisfy. We are taking the liberty of sending you a new anchor of a slightly different design, which we hope will meet your needs. If it does not, we are more than willing to refund your money. We respectfully ask that you keep an open mind about our company and its products. Sincerely, John Willis P.S. We would like to hear from anyone who believes they have a problem with our product, or conversely, if they would like to make positive comments to us.
Dear Mr. Lust: We were surprised and disappointed that our product has failed your expectations. This is the first time that we had heard about your problem, as we have no record of you attempting to contact us to allow us to address your issues. We feel that your comments may have presented a distorted and unfair criticism of our product, which we would like to try to address: 1. The corrosion you encountered of the aluminum shank was caused by electrolytic reaction with the aluminum and the nickel plating. We chose this method of ‘protecting’ the aluminum on the advice of our plating suppliers. It soon became apparent that this was a disaster and we immediately changed the shank treatment to a high tech Hard Coat Type III anodizing, which renders the surface completely non-conductive. This has proven to be an outstanding success and we thought we had addressed all faulty shanks in the market by replacement. We apparently missed yours. Please accept our apology for the oversight. 2. We can count on one hand the number of customer complaints we have received in over three years with respect to setting problems with the anchor, and after consultation we have always been able to resolve the problem. Invariably the answers have been simple and common problems for all anchors. Namely, trying to anchor with the boat still moving too fast relative to the ground, therefore not allowing the anchor to come to rest on the ground to allow it to commence digging in; or insufficient scope (we suggest 5:1, and if plenty of chain is used – at least a boat length - perhaps 4:1); and on two occasions an incorrectly installed float leaked and did not allow the anchor to right itself. We have no outstanding issues in this regard that we are aware of except for yours. We have several thousand units in the marketplace, and we still hold that our anchor is the best performing anchor a boater can use. We have an absolute Satisfaction Money Back Guarantee and are always ready and willing to refund the purchase price of our products if they fail to satisfy. We are taking the liberty of sending you a new anchor of a slightly different design, which we hope will meet your needs. If it does not, we are more than willing to refund your money. We respectfully ask that you keep an open mind about our company and its products. Sincerely, John Willis P.S. We would like to hear from anyone who believes they have a problem with our product, or conversely, if they would like to make positive comments to us.
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