Recent content by Brian@Fortress

Interesting, because I thought the Caribbean was almost exclusively sand or sand/clay, with occasional rock and coral. However, Bob Taylor, a retired US Navy soil mechanics and anchor design expert who consulted for us on the Chesapeake Bay anchor test, mentioned that soft mud can be found in...

Snowleopard, it appears that you encountered a similar bottom type to where the Chesapeake Bay test was conducted, as per the images below: [/URL] Here's the 21 lb (10 kg) FX-37 once we got it back aboard after one pull test: [/URL] And after we hosed off the soft mud: [/URL] We ended up...

TimBennet, there are many great quotes on simplicity, here's one that seems appropriate: “Knowledge is a process of piling up facts; wisdom lies in their simplification.” ~ Martin H. Fischer I might end by saying to you "good luck," but based on your expertise, as stated above, you obviously...

I sent the OP a PM with some follow-up questions in order to assist him with a model recommendation. In any type of common sand, mud, or clay bottom condition, the precision-machined Fortress with its two massive and sharpened flukes should deliver superior performance. In bottoms such as...

Typically anchor tests involve Fortress models being pitted against steel anchors which are much heavier and this Chesapeake Bay soft mud test was no exception, as the 21 lb / 10 kg FX-37 was tested along with a 35 lb / 16 kg Danforth HT and nine 44-46 lb / 20-21 kg models. In terms of physical...

For additional background information to this discussion, Bob Taylor spent over 45 years in anchor design and soil mechanics with the U.S. Navy and offshore industry. He has met Peter Bruce and discussed anchor design with him, and our late company founder was a follower of Bob's work, as he...

Noelex, in the link you posted, you will note that during two pulls the 21 lb / 10 kg Fortress FX-37 @ the 45° angle achieved tensions which were still climbing above 2,000 lbs when the test was ended. In another pull, the tension reached 1,800 lbs early on before falling back to over 1,000 lbs...

Thank you. We only used 20 ft (6m) of 3/8" G4 chain, along with wire rope, so I don't think I can help with that argument.

In soft mud we recommend initially setting the Fortress at a very short scope (ex. 2:1 or 3:1), as this should prevent the shank from sinking below the flukes, and I think this is good advice for any "pivoting-fluke" type of anchor. The Chesapeake Bay test protocol called for a payout of 5:1...

Well reported? I cannot speak for Danforth, but I have worked with Fortress for over 17 years and based on your comment, I'd expect to have been inundated with complaints from owners during that time by phone, e-mail, at the various boat shows, etc. Sorry, I haven't. In fact, the only time I...

Gents, Regarding Fortress vs. Guardian, our late founder wrote up the following several years ago after a USA oil spill response company inquired about purchasing a large quantity of Guardian anchors for their containment boom systems: • Fortress Anchors are designed for the broadest possible...

Thanks Noelex. For whatever reason, I have tried (3) web browsers and was only able to see the check off box a couple of times and then delete just an image or two, but I was able to squeeze the one below in, which is for the point I made above.

I shared e-mail discussions with Alain of Spade as well and he was quite the character. He was very proud of his product and rightly so, and he certainly had a strong opinion about competitive brands. We engaged in some heated "my anchor is better than your anchor" type debates, but they were...

Vyv, I appreciate the input. Soft mud is very common here across the pond in bays, lakes, and rivers. It is certainly possible that in addition to soft mud, the CQR might also perform better in difficult bottoms such as grass, weeds, and rocks where the roll bars of the new generation anchors...

Not to side track this discussion, but during our 3 days of extensive and preliminary testing aboard an 81-ft research vessel in the soft mud bottoms of the Chesapeake Bay, we found that a 45 lb CQR had a better trajectory and higher effective fluke angle when being pull through these bottoms...