Anchor chain rode

[thinwater]

If your current gypsy can't do it, you should be able to find one that will also work with the rope. Mine does. Even the splice goes through fine, though I do have to help it down the hawse hole.

I couldn't find the figures online quickly, but I believe that 6mm G79 chain will have a similar strength to 8mm "ordinary" chain, but with a big weight saving. (If I'm wrong, someone will be along PDQ to say so)

If you do go down that route, and the budget allows, a switch to an electric winch at the same time would make sense, as a new gypsy is a significant proportion of a new electric winch with the right gypsy, and your back will be EXTREMELY grateful

The splice problem can be solved by using a long splice. It is a more difficult splice to master. But SO smooth.

Long Spice

 

[Chiara’s slave]

The oversize anchor argument, Spade recommend going up a size for multis. The one that came with my boat is a 7kg aluminium one, for boats from 8-12.5 metres. We are 9.2m and 2 tons. Should it really be the same anchor as a mono up to 52ft and up to 9 tons? I doubt it would fit in the locker, I daresay that’s part of the reason why we have a 7kg. Yet there it is in black and white. Multis should go for a size larger. I don’t find it surprising that people are confused, nor why people suggest goung up a size ‘to be sure’. I can say that we have never yet dragged once it’s set. Though a couple of times we’ve had trouble setting it. Probably slippery hard ish mud on a down slope.

Having noted the Knox table in Viv’s article… I’m either a lot stronger than I though, our our loads are a lot lower. I have little trouble is going hand over hand on the anchor rode with 20kn of wind. I just pull it in til we’re nearly up and down, cleat it, and Mrs C breaks it out with the engine on my signal.

 

[sigma38dave]

The reason I'm pondering this is my boat is Scandinavian and the anchor chain is in a silly little bow locker that isn't big enough and all the weight is up forward high up. I have a manual windlass 8mm and the chain has a join half way along I might just go for one half as I have some octoplat and suck it and see. Tha anchor is actually to big for the boat 16kg but fits and was cheap. In the future I want to get a electric windlass and put a pipe to a locker below the waterline , it's possible but ......well you know.

On our other boat we started with 10m of chain and 40m of rope. I had a few quite nasty experiences with the rope getting wrapped on the keel during tide or wind changes. I did try an angel weight but felt like I was adding more string and hassle to a problem with a simpler solution - more chain.

To save weight in your solution I’d keep the minimum amount of chain you can for your 6m, say 25m and a bit of rope for deeper waters but as soon as you stick a few boat lengths of rope over you’re increasing the possibility of the boat drifting over it at tide time or being blown over it. The chain is always vertical from the bow so no issues with this.

If you’re only stopping for lunch probably not an issue, or on a flat bottomed mobo but if you’re out overnight worth considering the potential of rope related hassle.

 

[BabaYaga]

The reason I'm pondering this is my boat is Scandinavian and the anchor chain is in a silly little bow locker that isn't big enough and all the weight is up forward high up. I have a manual windlass 8mm and the chain has a join half way along I might just go for one half as I have some octoplat and suck it and see. Tha anchor is actually to big for the boat 16kg but fits and was cheap. In the future I want to get a electric windlass and put a pipe to a locker below the waterline , it's possible but ......well you know.

Did you consider if it is possible to enlarge the bow locker to stow the chain?
My boat originally had a rather shallow anchor locker with an almost horisontal floor. When starting to use my 20 metres length of chain I made a shaft or box for the chain, so that it sits a bit lower and does not slide around when the boat is heeling. The chain box intrudes into a storage space in the forepeak that was not very practical anyway.

 

[vyv_cox]

Did you consider if it is possible to enlarge the bow locker to stow the chain?
My boat originally had a rather shallow anchor locker with an almost horisontal floor. When starting to use my 20 metres length of chain I made a shaft or box for the chain, so that it sits a bit lower and does not slide around when the boat is heeling. The chain box intrudes into a storage space in the forepeak that was not very practical anyway.
View attachment 208770

There was an interesting article on this in PBO a few years ago. Written by Barry Nielsen, owner of Sailing Holidays charter company. He modified many of their fleet vessels in a similar way.

 

[billyfish]

Did you consider if it is possible to enlarge the bow locker to stow the chain?
My boat originally had a rather shallow anchor locker with an almost horisontal floor. When starting to use my 20 metres length of chain I made a shaft or box for the chain, so that it sits a bit lower and does not slide around when the boat is heeling. The chain box intrudes into a storage space in the forepeak that was not very practical anyway.
View attachment 208770

Yes this is what I'm thinking for next winter project

 

[Channel Sailor]

My preference is 10-14m of chain, the remainder rope rode. What Sigmadave said above is important for me too. With 6m of chain I have once had a rode caught on a keel.

I shorten up the rode as LW approaches.