Anchor to rope splice needs renewing.

davidpbo

Well-Known Member
Joined
14 Aug 2005
Messages
4,886
Location
Boatless in Cheshire. Formerly 23ft Jeanneau Tonic
myweb.tiscali.co.uk
Me thinks this anchor chain/rope splice needs redoing:

[image]http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/easttest/Boat%20Picts.htm[/image]

Sorry, having difficulty posting picture in this message so have posted link, anyone any idea why? I have done it successfully before.

http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/easttest/Boat%20Picts.htm


Can anyone point me in the direction of a diagram showing how?

We sail sheltered waters and tow the boat so I want to keep the weight down. We have 5m of chain with about 25m of rope to a 15kgs Danforth type anchor. (23ft boat, 1900Kgs).

I am tempted to increase the chain to 10 or 15m, if I did I am correct in thinking that joining on to the existing chain is not a good idea.
 
Jimmy Green have an anchorplait to chain splicing guide and diagram on their web site [under technical]. For three strand, I believe that the thing is to somehow turn it into 4 strands by separating out bits of the other three and then doing something similar to anchorplait. If I were going to make the chain longer I would start with the right length of new chain, it would not be worth the small saving in cost to risk a join.
 
Hi David

Try here
http://www.bluemoment.com/warpchainsplice.html

and here
http://www.sw-marine.co.uk/acatalog/8_strand_multiplait_to_chain_Splice.html

Personally I use 8 plait rather than 3 strand as it's nicer to handle for anchoring and I think the splice is stronger. You need to do the splice along at least 8 links of chain.

I did the original anchor line to chain splice for our main anchor following similar instructions and it's still holding strongly 4 years later. I check it each time we anchor though as we didn't have a windlass on our trailer sailer and I got used to pulling up the line and chain by hand. I still pull in up to the splice, then put the chain on the winch!

The previous owners only had 5m of chain when we bought the boat so we bought 10m of new chain - had to borrow chain cutters from the chandlery to cut the anchor shackle off as it was rusted solid!
 
[ QUOTE ]
There are clear instructions on rope-chain at http://www.neropes.com/SPL_3StrandRopeToChain.aspx

If you want to upgrade, there are special chain joining links available and I had no problems adding a section of chain. Another option is to go the leaded rope route. The fishing industry have been using this for years. Timko Ltd is one source. http://www.ropesandtwines.com/products.asp?cat=37
Is you want to go lightweight, a 3.2 kg Fortress anchor would more than do the job.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's a good idea..............well it would be if they had any stock! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
Talking of chain joining links, has anyone any views on them? I have several that I have never used as I felt that they would be a weak point and that a shackle would provide a stronger joint.
 
one of the mags, either pbo or YM, tested links a few months ago - the upshot was that none of them were nearly as strong as the chain, and some were downright weak.
 
Ken - I followed the advice recently (last year) in one of the mags, penned by Viv Cox.

2 C links werer recomended - one from West Marine and one from Selby Engineering (01977 684600).

I ordered the one from West Marine as it was considerably cheaper than rip off UK. HOWEVER - the product sent was NOT what was ordered - which was Heat treated drop forged. It turned out to be a cheap Chinese substitute of cast origin, which is no good to man or beast, which their supplier had subsitituted without telling them. So I wonder how many Yanks are anchoring on substandard c links!!!!

I then bought one from Selby .

The way to tell if they really are made of drop forged, is that you have to really hammer very hard indeed to set the rivets, as opposed to the cast ones which take a few bangs of the hammer.
 
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