[Rhodes22-list] Anchors

[Bill Effros]

Welcome, Alain,

I hope you will stick around for a while.  Feel free to advertise your 
anchor on this list in the course of explaining why you designed your 
anchors the way you designed your anchors, and your anchoring 
experiences.  Feel free to post text and pictures to the list that you 
have posted elsewhere.

Like most coastal cruisers (I sail on Long Island Sound) I knew very 
little about, and avoided anchoring for years on end.  Last summer I 
decided I should finally learn how to do it, and read everything I could 
(including your very helpful notes) on the Internet.

I have subscribed to PS for years, but have come to be dismayed by some 
of their shoddy testing techniques.  Dragging anchors through the same 
patch of sand or mud with a winch does not, in any way, simulate 
comparative anchoring in real world situations.  The test favors heavy 
anchors, plow shapes, and the first to be tested (before the bottom is 
completely disturbed).  The anchor selection was completely arbitrary, 
with some anchors weighing 5 times more than others.

While PS often claims that it doesn't "take advertising" it does seem to 
accept a lot of free gear which seems to wind up on the personal boats 
of the testers.  West Marine, in particular, seems to have noticed that 
the testers often have kind things to say about the gear that winds up 
on their own personal boats.  Shortcomings that disqualify other 
manufacturer's gear are often noted as just "shortcomings" on West 
Marine gear.  The (very small staff of) testers know there will be more 
gifts in the mail.

We spent some considerable time debating my anchoring conclusions on 
this list.  Your comments would be very welcome.  I will repost some of 
our anchoring threads for your review.  Feel free to say what you really 
think, and don't worry about offending people (like me) who you think 
are way off the mark.

Bill Effros



First off, feel free to

Alain POIRAUD wrote:
> Thanks Bill.. 
>
> Yes,  I’m also the designer of the Sword. :0) I have designed this last one,
> to answer the comments of many sailors who have been complaining about the
> price of the Spade. (regardless of the quality).
>
> Therefore, I have designed an anchor based on most of the principles of the
> Spade, but based on the same “low cost” manufacturing technology than our
> competitors..
>
>  As a result, the new SWORD’s price , is only 40% of the one of the Spade
> anchor.. 
>
> I have also used some “new” ideas… As holding is related to the fluke
> surface area, I have removed the heavy lead ballast present on the tip of
> the Spade.. and use the spared weight to nearly DOUBLE the surface area..
>
> But WEIGHT on the tip,   is very important for the first part of the
> penetration process.. therefore I’ve used a very original idea, by moving
> the fixation of the shank, from backward .. to the first half of the fluke..
> and then, I use the weight of the shank as a ballast.. 
>
> I will not talk further about the characteristics of this new anchor as I
> don’t want to make a “sales speech” here.. but I will be pleased to answer
> all technical questions. 
>
> Coming back on PS anchor tests, during years.. they have done a very good
> job, testing anchors in different grounds (sand - mud) and testing the
> various parameters: Holding, but also penetration and veering tests.. but
> you can’t repeat  the same tests indefinitely.. 
>
> I don’t believe that the latest tests have been conducted by the same team
> that did the previous ones. 
>
> I’ve read many criticism about them, on several nautical forums.. and this
> is a pity as PS is the only magazine without ADVERTISING , and the only one
> which can do objective tests.. But they really need to stay
> “professionals”.. 
>
> Safe anchoring to all,
>
> Alain
>
> --
> View this message in context: http://www.nabble.com/Anchors-t1344828.html#a3936889
> Sent from the Rhodes22 forum at Nabble.com.
>
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