My initial thoughts are that it looks pretty neat. I like the idea A LOT.
Apparent Pros:
- If on a lake or River bottom where that sort of anchor can hold ones boat well, it certainly looks like an elegant and easy to use system.
- Compact and Retractable: A cleaver and slick set up. I really like it.
- Simplicity and Ease: Push button operation is nice. For anyone with mobility and strength concerns, this sure would be nice to have.
- Mounting and Installation: Everything seems flexible and straight forward. Only big challenge is going to be mounting & wiring for those with under-skinning.
Apparent Cons:
- Expensive: The retractable model for larger boats is coming in around $2k. The smaller version is about $1800. Oh boy! It better hold your boat well and be reliable at that price. That is darn pricey for simply dropping & retracting ones anchor.
- Effectiveness & Grip: Ability to hold ones boat could vary with boat size, wind and water conditions and particularly lake bed. You’d certainly want to know it will hold you in advance at the price it sells for.
- Under-skinning: Mounting and wiring would quickly become more involved for many people.
- Anchor Options: Potentially very limiting based on browsing their website. Can the system hold bigger and different anchor styles???
Anchor Options:
Poking around on their website, it looks like they have 20 & 30 pound mushroom/drum anchor options. Based on video they are using 1 or the other weight/size. I wonder if that is the max anchor size, type and weight you can use with the system? Could it handle a heavier mushroom anchor? For those that a mushroom anchor doesn’t hold their boat (probably many people), are there any other styles that could work with the system? At $1800-2,000, that’s a potentially VERY limiting factor.
I think if you had mobility challenges or strength limitations for any reason (such as age, injury, medical condition), something like this would be wonderful. A potential game changer. Outside of that though, I wonder if the expense and potential anchor limitations are otherwise detracting factors for many other people?