which anchor?

Iraq 69

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Hey All,

I have spent much time searching the topic of anchors and still have a question.

To those of you who boat on the local lakes in MO, OK and AR with rock/tree studded bottoms like Grand, Beaver, Nor Fork and Table Rock....which anchor do you use and how well does it work. I really don't want to end up with several anchors that are left in the garage because they don't work.

The box anchor seems to be the favorite but it would be nice to hear from the locals

Thanks in advance for your advice,

Marc
 
Marc

While I am in a different geographic area I am often in a gravel/rock bottom, I can tell you my favorite anchors are the box anchors

I also like that I can use 1/2 the rope....and yes, I have several other anchors in my garage
 
+1 on the Box anchor. I've had one in my Malibu for years and we regularly have a couple of other boats tied to us on just our anchor.

DC
 
Iraq69...............The box anchor is very popular on this forum. To give you an alternative I have had "The Digger" anchor going on it's 7th season now and just love it. Check it out..............http://www.diggeranchor.com/
 
A lot of Table Rock is rock bottom and I am not sure how the box will work but would be interested in hearing of anyone's personal experience with one on Table Rock Lake.

Jack
 
I am a huge fan of the Box Anchor.

Our boat at 30 foot plus and 2 awnings- massive wind drag..

All Ohio lakes are man made. Our dok is at Indian Lake. Shallow, sandy, muck bottom.

We used a chained fluke style and mid weight Richter and would break free at the worst times, everytime causing huge stress as your boats heading t others at the sand bar.

Now, one box anchor. Hasn't happen since.

Heavy wind days, I will toss the richter out to square off. No chains on either.

A rocky, tree bottom: the richter is nice on also.
 
Anyone on Table Rock Lake have a box anchor??  If so, please share your experience with it.  Currently I use a fluke anchor and it is hit or miss as to whether or not it will hold and that can be very frustrating.  I would love to get something more reliable that doesn't just bump along the bottom on top of the rocks.

Jack
 
Marc

I know you are looking for direct info on a specific lake , but I want to let you know...

NH= Granite State

Squam Lake = Largly granite bottom

Many times when I am going to through an anchor in a REAL rocky bottom, I reach for my baby box.

The smaller size really slides in all the nooks and crannies.....works like a charm
 
I use the Slide Anchor Box Anchor.....the largest one they make.  it's nice MOST of the time however when it's windy it still drags (even if my bimini is in the radar position).  My boat is very heavy so I'm guessing I actually need a 2nd one of these to really hold it down.  I wish they made a size heavier because I'm sure that would do the trick then.
 
Welcome back Keith!
 
Thanks!

Since I posted I looked on their web site...they DO have a bigger size anchor now but wow it's $250!  Says it's for houseboats and cruisers longer than 32 feet but the large size just doesn't work on mine on windy days.
 
So since my last post on this I emailed Slideanchor and told them of my issues with their large box anchor not working well with my boat on windy days.  The OWNER of the company called me late that same day (2 days ago) and provided me with some very important information about anchors in general and also some info specific to his anchor (he owns the company....he designed the anchor himself).

First, he insists that my (his) anchor should indeed EASILY work for my boat even stating that it should hold mine and 4 other boats tied up to me, especially the size anchor that I have (their large one).

Second, it was found that I was using it incorrectly.  With a traditional anchor you generally let as much anchor line out as possible so as to allow the anchor to dig in vs. having the boat close to being directly about it which would keep dislodging the anchor.  His achor is designed to be used as a 2:1 ratio of anchor line to water depth:  If you're in 30 feet of water then you want to use 60 feet of anchor line....not all 100 like I was doing.

Third, he stated you want to use TWISTED nylon anchor line, not braided like I have been using.  Reason being is that braided line doesn't have the 'elastic give' that twisted nylon has.  So when my boat is being pulled against the anchor due to winds, there is almost zero give in the anchor line thus it's 'snapping' the anchor and making it move along the bottom of the lake.

So basically I have been doing everything wrong; wrong line and incorrect length of line used.  He also stated not to throw the anchor out while the boat is still moving (which I don't do).  He stated to just drop it over (with the correct amount of line out) and the anchor is designed to roll over into the correct position and fasten itself to the bottom correctly.

Again, this is for the box anchor, not a traditional anchor (except for using the twisted nylon line which he states you should use with any anchor).

I'm not trying to insult anyone's intellegence by posting this.  Perhaps most already know this but I have been involved with boats and lived on lakes almost my entire life and I didn't know some of the things he told me so I thought I'd share.

He ended with saying that he wanted me to save his phone number in my contact list on my cell phone and that if by this summer when I use my anchor again (correctly and with the correct anchor line) and the anchor still doesn't hold, even on windy days with my bimini fully deployed, to call him and he would buy the anchor back from me (and I have used it for 2 years now).  That's backing your product.
 
That is a great post.  I did know about the 2:1 ratio which is great for when we anchor in a cove with other boats but did not know about using only twisted nylon.  I will have to check when the boat gets out of the barn.  Thanks for the info.
 
Good info for sure. Thanks Keith.     :)
 
Great Info, I was getting ready to order a box anchor, not thinking of the twisted nylon.

Thanks Joe R
 
Great info. I had no idea on the twisted line either. Mine has the braided stuff, though I've never had a problem.
 
I did not know about the 2:1 line on the box anchor.  I never bought one due to price, especially since what I got holds my boat just fine.  But the 2:1 makes it worth the extra money since it would let you get deeper into a tight cove.  Thanks for the info.

Didn't know about the twisted line either.
 
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I've always used the 2:1 ratio regardless of what anchor I use. My main anchor is the "Digger" and I use a regular fluke off the stern. Another thing I've always done is mark my anchor rope w/ a permanent marker at 10 foot increments up to 50 feet. This way I can easily set the anchor w/the correct amount of rope in relationship to the depth. Makes it so much easier........
 
Me too. I put one band on the rope with a sharpie for every 10 feet. So at 60 feet, there are 6 black marks/bands. I drop the anchor straight down, note the depth on the rope, then throw out 3 to 5 times that depending on how windy it is. If it is really windy, I'll use motor power to set it.
 
That's a great idea about marking the line like that.  I'll be doing that after I purchase the new twisted nylon line this year.
 
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