My anchor roller saga - what I ended up doing....

[Chris & Lenore]

Guess it was a few weeks ago when I asked a ton of anchor roller questions.

Finally managed to get the project completed - here are pics of the finished product.
I used a 24 inch long piece of 3 inch wide by 3/8 thick 2026T6 under the roller assembly. This functions more like a "top backing plate" than anything else.
The roller itself is bolted through this and the deck with a large 1 inch thick oak backing plate. The other end is likewise bolted via the four bolts on the six inch SS cleat I added. The front of the roller is lagged to the bow with a bracket of 1/4 SS.

I can stand on the front of the roller, bounce up and down - and nothing moves. I beveled all holes and used "bedit" butyl. Had a few good rainstorms and no evidence of leaking. I went with a single roller as I always deploy my second anchor manually after the primary is down. It's a danforth that hangs from a pulpit mount - light and easy to manage. Rowing it out in the dingy gives me something to do since I'm out there anyway checking the primary anchor set.

One extra thing I need to do now is add a roller to the trailer, under the front portion of the hull. If I don't, the anchor and roller will hit the trailer post as the boat slides off the trailer.

Now we just need some warm weather so I can get the boat finished and in the water!

Chris

 

[Sumner]

Chris that looks very substantial and I wouldn't worry about the strength at all. Is the forestay going to attach to the sides of the mount?

The roller on the trailer might or might not help depending on the slope of the ramp. The two ramps we used in Florida were very steep and we had problems with the anchors and the bow rollers catching on the guide bunks on our trailer that wrap around the bow and ....

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor-trailer/trailer-mods-17.html

.... I ended up moving them down. What happened is the ramp was so steep that the boat floated off of that forward roller you want to add and the anchors came into contact and caught on the guide bunks. I never would of though that would happen at home. With a less steep ramp it wouldn't of been a problem. Are you sure they will hit the trailer stop now where you are going to put in? Maybe just leave the anchor on the foredeck while launching,

Sum

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[THECUSCUS]

Looks great ! I def agree with Sum, watch that baby closely at the ramp. Even if you keep the anchor off, the roller may still catch your bow holder. Mine is kinda high and catches if I don't slide the boat back alittle before totally floating her. Interesting alloy, 2026, to use. Any particular reasoning?

 

[Sumner]

.... Mine is kinda high and catches if I don't slide the boat back ablittle before totally floating her....

Good idea :dance:,

Sum

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Our Endeavour 37

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[Chris & Lenore]

Oops - meant 6061T6 alloy.

I do intend to attach the forestay to the side of the roller "U" channel (can't see the holes in the pic).

So to looks like launching and recovery might be interesting. I was hoping the extra trailer roller would do the trick but we shall see.

On to the next project - upping my solar capacity from 30 watts to 60. My old 30 watt panel was quite small but the ones I picked up are about 40 percent smaller and have a sun angle of 165 degrees (90 percent output at the extreme angle), so I'm not going to worry about a tilting mount.

Now if only the weather would warm up...

Chris

 

[Sumner]

...So to looks like launching and recovery might be interesting. I was hoping the extra trailer roller would do the trick but we shall see....................Now if only the weather would warm up...

Chris

Chris I think it is just going to depend on the ramp.

This ramp in Colorado wasn't very steep and I think we would of had no problem there if we had the anchors on the foredeck. The boat is on the trailer roller in this situation but...

... you can still see how the bow is getting closer to the front support and guides vs. when it is...

...totally out of the water and the stern has rotated down on the trailer and the bow up.

The ramp where we put in in Florida was way steeper and the boat was well off the roller and the anchors hung up on the trailer PVC guides. It was a real mess until I pulled back up out of the water and took the anchors off, but the rollers still were going to grab the trailer guides, so I took them loose at the front and pulled them down with a line to about...

...where they are now. I don't think we will have problems in the future, but I will leave the anchors on the foredeck until we are in the water. We don't have a problem with the steps or the "V" stop since the two rollers are offset to the side. It was the trailer PVC guides that was our problem. I don't want to give them up as retrieving the boat has always been very easy with them.

Hey is is warm down here (Florida) and getting too humid. We will be out of here in a few weeks,

Sum

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Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

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[centerline]

that looks great. you will never have to worry about it being too weak for whatever strain is placed on it.
as for the as for the anchor hitting the trailer riser during launch, the placement of a trailer roller will help, but as Sumner said, the ramp angle plays a big part when launching.... (but even so, im a big proponent of adding a bow roller for hull support on the trailer as there is a lot of pressure on the hull near the front of the bunks. a support roller is the only way to relieve it. it makes the boat happier and it rides more solid on the trailer)...

the last photo of Sumners shows that even with a roller, as the boat moves rearward it will drop dramatically if it is only setting on the roller when launching. I agree that with the boat just barely floating on the bunks, whether having a support roller or not, it may be possible to move it rearward a bit as THECUSCUS said....
another way to do it is to back the boat in farther until the bow is fully floating as the trailer drops away from it a bit more.....

 

[topcat0399]

That looks beautimous Chris. Any idea what the cost of materials was? My labor is plentiful - my wallet packing isn't.

After I get my deck and cores done and all the hardware remounted anchor roller is next. Damn leaks.

 

[Chris & Lenore]

The materials were reasonable. The metal cost was about $20 (aluminum and SS bar stock from the Metal Supermarket).

Bolts, nuts and washers were a ridiculous $40 because my favourite source (TSC stores or Tractor Supply in the US) don't carry stainless "by the pound" anymore.

The roller assembly was $60 - a "boat show special" at the Toronto show.

Also had to factor in three or four drill bits. Turned out I had crappy bits for drilling stainless.

What I should add is that it was a PITA to get the backing plate and nuts and bolts installed through the hole I cut in the liner. I followed Sumner's advice and made a large rectangular hole - but my reach was about an inch short for some of the nuts. I jammed the nuts into the end of a length of vinyl tube and taped the washers in place. This worked to get the nuts started. I could not just use a socket extension on the most forward bolts because of the slope to the bow. Couldn't get the nut at 90 degrees to the bolt and if I shortened the extension then I could not reach the bolt. There was a lot of "colourful" language coming out of the boat that day!

Make sure you allow LOTS of time, profit everything before applying sealant and if you use 4300 or similar - do not get the "fast setting" stuff.

Chris

 

[Sumner]

....Bolts, nuts and washers were a ridiculous $40 because my favourite source (TSC stores or Tractor Supply in the US) don't carry stainless "by the pound" anymore....... I jammed the nuts into the end of a length of vinyl tube and taped the washers in place. ....Chris

I get all of my stainless fasteners along with some bronze from....

http://www.albanycountyfasteners.com/

... now, great prices and they ship free over $20 I think and use the flat rate boxes if you pay. They always get the order out the same day. Tell Anna I told you to call.

I'm sealing all of my deck hardware now with the butyl tape from Maine Sail. Great stuff and recently while adding a second bow roller and windlass platform to the Endeavour I had to put nuts and washers on up under the foredeck in some awkward situations. A small piece of the butyl tape between the nut and lock washer and then the flat washer held them all together. It just took a pinch. He has a great product and I really recommend it....

http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/butyl_tape

The roller under the bow might or might not help with the launching and bow roller, but I also really like it for taking some of the weight and stopping the boat from 'hobby horsing' on the trailer. We also added a third rear bunk when we extended the trailer and now I don't worry so much with the two outboards on the stern and the fuel tank in the laz,

Sum

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Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

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[finding41]

Chris. Next time your at Princess Auto.
There called crows foot wrenches.
A ratchet fits into that square hole.

 

[MrBill_FLL]

I was thinking box wrenches, and gorilla tape on the open end (bottom).
I've bent and cut several cheaper wrenches for special jobs...

but you would need to tighten the bolt head not the nut..

 

[Chris & Lenore]

The tubing method worked really well for starting the nut/washer.

Once started I could use a "slightly sloppy" socket and ratchet with universal to tighten it.

In hindsight, I would have asked one of the neighbours who has a 6-8 sone with long arms

Chris

 

[chp]

That looks really good. Maybe next year for me. I too wonder about launching and retrieving the boat with hanging up on the ladder at the front of the trailer. When I first got my boat the first thing I did was raise the bow roller. However mine still doesn't go up high enough to support the bow once the boat is out of the water. Going to rectify this soon. Always something to do.