Anchors aweigh.

[doug748]

There was a desultory effort to turn Snowleopard's Salcombe thread into a anchor row but nobody was interested.

Now.

I am either going to get my 10kg Bruce regalvanised or buy a newer design. If I get a new one it probably be a Delta, the only other option, for me, would be the 11kg Manson Supreme but at £230 is is on the outer edge.

Question is, has anyone used a small Bruce changed it for a Delta and noticed an improvement? I have been pretty pleased with the Bruce but on hard ground it can struggle.

I know people will understand when I say I am only interested in the three anchors mentioned and first hand experience.

 

[prv]

I have first-hand experience of the Spade, and rate it, though the fact that mine is bleedin' massive for the boat also helps

I know it's not what you asked, but if you want to start a proper anchor thread then you'll need lots of fuel for dispute

Pete

 

[Way]

I had a 5kg Bruce which wasnt really big enough for the boat...not sure I've even ever used it. Replaced it with a 6kg Delta and love it. Had a CQR on my last boat and would still go for a Delta next time. Like Pete mine (in theory) is fine for a bigger boat but it works. Every time, first time.

 

[DJE]

I have a 10kg Delta and a 7.5kg Bruce on my 29 footer. I'm generally very happy with the Delta but I have dragged it twice in very soft mud and strong winds. I suspect that at least part of the problem was poor anchoring techinque on my part. The Bruce has held in the same location where the Delta dragged but it wasn't as windy on the day when I tried the Bruce. Next time I'm there I will have to do some sort of comparative test. I seem to be saying that you need both which is probably not the answer you wanted to hear!

 

[doug748]

I have a 10kg Delta and a 7.5kg Bruce on my 29 footer. I'm generally very happy with the Delta but I have dragged it twice in very soft mud and strong winds. I suspect that at least part of the problem was poor anchoring techinque on my part. The Bruce has held in the same location where the Delta dragged but it wasn't as windy on the day when I tried the Bruce. Next time I'm there I will have to do some sort of comparative test. I seem to be saying that you need both which is probably not the answer you wanted to hear!

Well no. It is exactly the sort of thing I am interested in.

I don't trust all the hyperbole over anchors. I look at the shape and surface area of the Bruce and it looks to me like a better bet in mud than the Delta. I would hate to dump the Bruce and find the new anchor has comparable, but different, limitations.

 

[charles_reed]

There was a desultory effort to turn Snowleopard's Salcombe thread into a anchor row but nobody was interested.

Now.

I am either going to get my 10kg Bruce regalvanised or buy a newer design. If I get a new one it probably be a Delta, the only other option, for me, would be the 11kg Manson Supreme but at £230 is is on the outer edge.

Question is, has anyone used a small Bruce changed it for a Delta and noticed an improvement? I have been pretty pleased with the Bruce but on hard ground it can struggle.

I know people will understand when I say I am only interested in the three anchors mentioned and first hand experience.

I have never used a Bruce and whilst they seem to score low on various "tests", some experienced yotties, whose opinion I respect, swear by them.
I do have a Delta, only 5kg and used as the aft kedge, and that has proved effective in Med bows-to anchoring, having only dragged once in Astypalea on a mass of old rope.
Of 3 Manson users whom I've met, 2 were contemptuous of the anchor and one was non-committal.
As the anchor is only part of the system of anchoring I'd suggest that, if you're satisfied with the Bruce, you stick with it and re-galvanise it.
A couple of potential problems with galvanising an anchor:- if made of high-test steel it may be annealed to a lower strength. Most galvanisers have a minimum batch weight, seldom below 25kg - the answer to that is to combine with someone else's batch. Due to the length of time out of production I've not been able to access the precise spec of the Bruce material.
Genuine small-boat Bruces have not been made since 2007, if yours is later than that I'd suggest you are as well to change the anchor.
Personally I'd go for the Delta, every time.

But then I'm quite happy with a 25lb CQR, a 7.5kg Danforth and the 5kg Delta and quite agree with your reservations about the inflated claims made for many of the "new" anchors. I anchor about 200 times a season, far more frequently than tying alongside. The boat is 31'long and about 4.5 tonnes.

 

[vyv_cox]

Well no. It is exactly the sort of thing I am interested in.

I don't trust all the hyperbole over anchors. I look at the shape and surface area of the Bruce and it looks to me like a better bet in mud than the Delta. I would hate to dump the Bruce and find the new anchor has comparable, but different, limitations.

It is often said that no single anchor will work well in every bottom. Your post hits that particular nail on the head. I have no experience of the Bruce but lots with various Deltas. They work very well in most sandy bottoms, typical of Atlantic coasts. On very hard sand mine once failed to set, on what is effectively a surf beach outside Pwllheli marina. In very soft mud in Vliho in the Ionian Sea it dragged repeatedly. Conversely, the Bruce is reputed to hold well in soft mud, but so would other anchors with large areas for their weight, e.g. Any of the flat ones. But the Bruce is known to not cut through weed well and have problems with harder, i.e. sandy bottoms.

 

[BrianH]

But the Bruce is known to not cut through weed well and have problems with harder, i.e. sandy bottoms.

Exactly why I gave up using a 15kg genuine Bruce in the Adriatic. Hard sand and especially anything with sea grass on stopped the Bruce from setting and I changed to a backup Danforth, which always set in those conditions.

In mud the Bruce set well and held like a limpet but I was happy to see it go with my last boat and would never have another on board. Now I have a Rocna that sets instantly in everything I have anchored in. The trusty Danforth is always there in case though.

 

[photodog]

There was a desultory effort to turn Snowleopard's Salcombe thread into a anchor row but nobody was interested.

Now.

I am either going to get my 10kg Bruce regalvanised or buy a newer design. If I get a new one it probably be a Delta, the only other option, for me, would be the 11kg Manson Supreme but at £230 is is on the outer edge.

Question is, has anyone used a small Bruce changed it for a Delta and noticed an improvement? I have been pretty pleased with the Bruce but on hard ground it can struggle.

I know people will understand when I say I am only interested in the three anchors mentioned and first hand experience.

Well, I wasn't going to rise to the bait...

We seem to be remarkably lucky in that I have never had a issue whenever we have anchored... In salcombe, Falmouth, the east coast.... We have bunged down the hook with plenty of chain and in anything up to 25knts we have sat quite happily....

This is the beast...

I have not a clue what it is, Came with the boat, but does seem quiet big in comparison o others of similar size.

So I have a theory... Something pointy, heavier than you think is needed, with plenty of chain and a keeness to bung it out, and the odds are it will work.

 

[prv]

I have not a clue what it is, Came with the boat

Knockoff CQR.

Pete

 

[doug748]

I have never used a Bruce and whilst they seem to score low on various "tests", some experienced yotties, whose opinion I respect, swear by them..
..Genuine small-boat Bruces have not been made since 2007, if yours is later than that I'd suggest you are as well to change the anchor.
Personally I'd go for the Delta, every time..

It is an old gen Bruce.

I have an even older 15kg model which would solve the problem nicely but my back is not up to it.

 

[prv]

I have an even older 15kg model which would solve the problem nicely but my back is not up to it.

In that case, pity the postman who delivered my 20kg Spade

It wasn't in a box, just wrapped in bubble-wrap and tape, so it was perfectly obvious that I was mail-ordering anchors. This was not an activity of which our postie approved!

Pete

 

[DJE]

Well no. It is exactly the sort of thing I am interested in.

I don't trust all the hyperbole over anchors. I look at the shape and surface area of the Bruce and it looks to me like a better bet in mud than the Delta. I would hate to dump the Bruce and find the new anchor has comparable, but different, limitations.

I was back in my favourite soft mud anchorage on Sunday night. Carefully set the 10kg Delta and dug it in with some gentle engine power astern and it seemed to set perfectly. But increasing the power caused it to drag slowly and steadily through the mud. Didn't have time for lots of experimenting but I recovered the Delta and attached the 7.5kg Bruce in tandem with about 5m of chain shackled to the Delta's tripping eye. This combination set solidly and no amount of engine power would shift it. On recovering the anchors yesterday morning the Bruce seemed to be much more firmly dug in than the Delta. Next time there I will take the Delta off the chain and try the Bruce on its own.

Having said all that the Delta has set absolutely solidly everywhere else I have tried it.