Lost Anchor

bbwhitejr

Well-Known Member
Apr 14, 2013
4,300
Lake Lanier GA
Boat Info
2003 420DA, 6CTAs
Engines
NA
Dropped the hook today in about 40ft of water. Had the Admiral put the transmissions in reverse for a couple of seconds and back to neutral. I had let out about 60ft of chain, very little wind, and in a very protected cove. I watched as the chain tightened and just before the boat began to swing....a sickening sound and the chain went limp.

I guess it would pay to swap out the swivel or at least the bolt from time to time....

420/44 owners, what size anchor do I need?
171A9E76-2415-43B9-B0D3-929ABCDA8B0E.jpeg

Bennett
 
Just say no to swivels. After my original one broke like that I went to a shackle. If you absolutely must have a swivel try a Mantus.
 
Dropped the hook today in about 40ft of water. Had the Admiral put the transmissions in reverse for a couple of seconds and back to neutral. I had let out about 60ft of chain, very little wind, and in a very protected cove. I watched as the chain tightened and just before the boat began to swing....a sickening sound and the chain went limp.

I guess it would pay to swap out the swivel or at least the bolt from time to time....

420/44 owners, what size anchor do I need?
View attachment 71322
Bennett
20-25 kilograms. I'd get a Rocna 25, but that's just me.
 
The anchor swivel is usually the weak link in the system. The original swivel on my boat was bent so it went in the garbage. When you get your new anchor, try a double shackle set up. A 3/8” alloy on the chain end (assuming 5/16 chain) and a larger one (the anchor shank size determines what size will work best) on the anchor. I doubt you will have any problems with the anchor not righting when coming into the roller. If you do, you can buy a swivel. Watch the ratings on the shackles, the WWL on 5/16 G-4 chain is 3900 lbs, get your shackles to match up. Anything stainless will need to be physically larger because it is not as strong as alloy. A 3/8 alloy shackle is rated at 4000# and the pin will fit the chain link.
2C54A79D-AFB2-4907-A32C-5A4193E040E0.jpeg
 
That $uck$. If the spot wasn’t too deep, is there any way you can retrieve it?
A lot of the places we anchor around here are fairly shallow and it might be possible to get the anchor and chain back.
 
When I upgraded my anchor to a Mantus 35lb I also bought their swivel, it's a really impressive design, definitely won't be the weak link. I have the 35lb Mantus and 125' ft of 5/16 HT chain, with an extra 100' of 5/8" 3 strand nylon as a backing for deeper water, but I find that I'm typically anchoring in 10 feet or so, and never get to the nylon, so I use a nylon bridle to take the strain off the windlass. This is on a 34' Sundancer. The 35lb is considered the cruising anchor for a 30-35' boat, a storm anchor would be their 45lb anchor for my boat. They have a nice chart on the website showing length and weight and three options, day hook, cruising, and storm. They have wind condition ranges for each, but I can't recall them. The original was a 25lb Kodiac, but I always thought of that as a day hook, and sometimes it didn't reset on a wind shift without some help. I feel much better about how the Mantus catches quickly.
 
IMG_4230.JPG
IMG_0642.JPG
I replaced the swivel on my ground tackle as a precaution when it was 10 years old. It had done serious work for a decade and looked brand new. But, as was said earlier, a weak link.
 
If you want to use a swivel make sure to put a couple links of chain between the swivel and the anchor as this will take the side load off the swivel. The swivel will always be in tension only. The swivel connected directly to the anchor will eventually bend then break.
 
That $uck$. If the spot wasn’t too deep, is there any way you can retrieve it?
A lot of the places we anchor around here are fairly shallow and it might be possible to get the anchor and chain back.

40ft is too deep for an old man like me and I can get most of an anchor for what a diver would cost me. No chain lost, only 1/2 a swivel and an anchor.

Bennett
 
The anchor swivel is usually the weak link in the system. The original swivel on my boat was bent so it went in the garbage. When you get your new anchor, try a double shackle set up. A 3/8” alloy on the chain end (assuming 5/16 chain) and a larger one (the anchor shank size determines what size will work best) on the anchor. I doubt you will have any problems with the anchor not righting when coming into the roller. If you do, you can buy a swivel. Watch the ratings on the shackles, the WWL on 5/16 G-4 chain is 3900 lbs, get your shackles to match up. Anything stainless will need to be physically larger because it is not as strong as alloy. A 3/8 alloy shackle is rated at 4000# and the pin will fit the chain link.
View attachment 71323

After researching and studying, I am going this direction. Thanks for the recommendation.

Bennett
 
When I upgraded my anchor to a Mantus 35lb I also bought their swivel, it's a really impressive design, definitely won't be the weak link. I have the 35lb Mantus and 125' ft of 5/16 HT chain, with an extra 100' of 5/8" 3 strand nylon as a backing for deeper water, but I find that I'm typically anchoring in 10 feet or so, and never get to the nylon, so I use a nylon bridle to take the strain off the windlass. This is on a 34' Sundancer. The 35lb is considered the cruising anchor for a 30-35' boat, a storm anchor would be their 45lb anchor for my boat. They have a nice chart on the website showing length and weight and three options, day hook, cruising, and storm. They have wind condition ranges for each, but I can't recall them. The original was a 25lb Kodiac, but I always thought of that as a day hook, and sometimes it didn't reset on a wind shift without some help. I feel much better about how the Mantus catches quickly.

same here....the Mantus anchor and swivel work great!

Mantus - swivel.jpg
 
40ft is too deep for an old man like me and I can get most of an anchor for what a diver would cost me. No chain lost, only 1/2 a swivel and an anchor.

Bennett

40’?
Don’t blame you.
That’s about 3 or 4 times the depth of a deep anchorage around here.
 
I've never considered the swivel being the weak link, but I'm going to learn this lesson from Bennett.

I have a Progress 1 with G40 5/16". Mantus website show I only require the S1 model? Is this correct?
 
I left an iPhone in 25ft of water a few years ago, no way I am going after anchor in 40ft, not in a lake - who knows what you might get tangled up in. 10-15ft no big deal. When most of the Core of Engineers and Duke Energy lakes like Norman, Lanier, Hartwell were built, they left a lot of the trees standing in the deep areas, other places are littered with sumps and limbs that were left.
 
I lost my anchor about this time last year also when the swivel broke in the same way. I went the Mantus swivel and Rocna anchor setup. In sand and weed/sand the Rocna sets far better than the original Delta it replaced.
 

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