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2nd Anchor

JTaylor

JTaylor

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Woodbridge, VA
I’m very happy with my small box anchor as my primary anchor, but I’m thinking I need another anchor for the few times I want to deploy a 2nd anchor to control the swing of the aft end of the boat.

I’m sure a baby box anchor would work great as a 2nd anchor, but it seems like overkill (price and set up/put away time).  The dealer gave me a fluke anchor when I got the boat, but I’m thinking about buying a simple mushroom or river anchor – they seem inexpensive, easy to set, and easy to put away.

I don't always spend a lot of time at anchor, but when I do it's mostly in muddy areas without a lot of current.  Any thoughts on whether I should get a mushroom or river anchor as a 2nd anchor?
 
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I have a mushroom and It's basically useless. I tried using it for a while as one of my beach anchors where I had the luxury of burying it deep in wet sand and having the line nearly level. A storm came through and ripped it right out while I was hiking. The wife had to fire up the engine and drive the whole boat onto the beach to keep it from drifting into cliffs. I think it's worth spending the coin on the baby box, personally. And the lack of rope and chain makes the setup/breakdown still easier. With a price match and coupon, you can get it for under $100. Check out the 'overton's price match' thread on here. 
 
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I have the small box for the bow  ,just ordered a baby for the stern.

I got it @ Overtons with a price match and a coupon for under $90 .

I used a danforth last season for the stern  ,was not happy 

Updated ,We use ours in sand 
 
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I have a mushroom and our lake bottom is mud. It doesn't hold very well, but it will hold the sten in light winds.
 
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I'm using 18 lb. coated river anchors forward and aft. They take a much better bite than mushrooms, if there's enough wind to break them loose I'm usually done for the day. A bucket keeps things tidy when not in use.

 
Good article Jack, thanks.  I like that kind of testing and analysis.

My local West Marine carries a lot of the mushroom and river anchors, so that’s why I was thinking they might work for a light load in our area.  I’ll talk to the experienced folks at my marina to see what they say.  
 
Very interesting article Jack, thanks for posting it.

I wish they had done some of the box anchors...
 
Yeah, I really like my box anchor.
 
I carry a richter as a spare. Or if throw it on the bank to hook on a stump and use the box off the other end. It's bulky but it and the small box fit in my corner seat with two spools of rope. No chains on either.

It works well for a quick drop over the side for fishing and it's great for rocky/debris fields as it hooks tight.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Richter-Anchor/734181.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3DAnchor%26x%3D-738%26y%3D-52%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=Anchor&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products
 
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