Bruce anchors; so bad?

[ColinR]

Reading some of the threads on anchors, Bruce seems to get pretty poor report with Rocna, Delta etc being the favourites.

I have had a 35lb Bruce for years on my 30' medium displacement long keeler. I anchor a lot and have used it in up to F8. Only once has it failed to set first time and drag, when the bottom was foul and it picked up some debris. I have 35m 8mm chain and 65m anchorplait.

So have I just been lucky? I'm no engineer, but the compound curved shape and substantial casting looks extremely strong compared to the flat shank jointed onto fluke of a modern design. I cant ignore the test results in which the Bruce never seems to fare well, but my own experience has been very good.

I was reading about this as I have just bought a Fortress as a kedge. It seems very well made and if you believe the torrent of advertising testimonials that came with it, its absolutely the best anchor in the world. But to me it looks very flimsy compared to a good cast anchor. Folded alloy all fixed together with nuts and bolts. It looks ideal as a light kedge which is what I want it for, but it looks like it would bend if it came under real load.

Colin

 

[sailorman]

Reading some of the threads on anchors, Bruce seems to get pretty poor report with Rocna, Delta etc being the favourites.

I have had a 35lb Bruce for years on my 30' medium displacement long keeler. I anchor a lot and have used it in up to F8. Only once has it failed to set first time and drag, when the bottom was foul and it picked up some debris. I have 35m 8mm chain and 65m anchorplait.

So have I just been lucky? I'm no engineer, but the compound curved shape and substantial casting looks extremely strong compared to the flat shank jointed onto fluke of a modern design. I cant ignore the test results in which the Bruce never seems to fare well, but my own experience has been very good.

I was reading about this as I have just bought a Fortress as a kedge. It seems very well made and if you believe the torrent of advertising testimonials that came with it, its absolutely the best anchor in the world. But to me it looks very flimsy compared to a good cast anchor. Folded alloy all fixed together with nuts and bolts. It looks ideal as a light kedge which is what I want it for, but it looks like it would bend if it came under real load.

Colin

I too have a Bruce (Bower) & a Fortress kedge with no problems to date

 

[Ludd]

I used to have a 45lb CQR. Sometimes didn't reset when tide turned. Eventually held so well( picked up an abandoned mooring) that I couldn't lift it. Abandoned also.
Bought a 20kg Delta---great anchor. but in fine sand in a F9 it dragged.

Motored off the beach and set a15kg Bruce ( a REAL one.) Stuck like glue!



Moral: set the right anchor at the right time----but which one that is ,I never find out till after the event.

If you set two,you end up with a snake's wedding!



I also have a 20kg Spanish -made Brittany type and a 25 lb "Stoke" pattern,which has seen use as a lunch hook.

 

[Dazedkipper]

I used to have a CQR as bower and Bruce as kedge. The Bruce was literally 'chuck it over the side and it set', whereas the CQR when carefully laid would fail to set, trip, drag and was generally hopeless. I changed to a Bruce and it's never let me down.

 

[sailorman]

I used to have a 45lb CQR. Sometimes didn't reset when tide turned. Eventually held so well( picked up an abandoned mooring) that I couldn't lift it. Abandoned also.
Bought a 20kg Delta---great anchor. but in fine sand in a F9 it dragged.

Motored off the beach and set a15kg Bruce ( a REAL one.) Stuck like glue!



Moral: set the right anchor at the right time----but which one that is ,I never find out till after the event.

If you set two,you end up with a snake's wedding!



I also have a 20kg Spanish -made Brittany type and a 25 lb "Stoke" pattern,which has seen use as a lunch hook.

you need a Tandem my boy

 

[tonybannister]

I had a CQR as a main anchor and Bruce for kedge and was happy with them. When the CQR had to be reset my wife became nervous and many in Turkey were buying new style anchors like the Rocna. I was pursuaded to buy a spade and what a difference it has made. To keep wifey happy in Greek/Turkish waters I would snorkel to have a look what is going on down there. The CQR would land on its side and have to be dug in and would have to be reset every so often. The spade digs in first time every time and never pulls out. Do not bother to snorkel anymore. Peace of mind is restored on Red Marlin.

 

[Seajet]

I too have been surprised by the lack of respect for the Bruce; I suspect it just isn't 'trendy flavour of the month'.

As other things cost more, they 'must' be better then ?!...

I've used a 7.5kg Bruce - with 4 metres chain & 30 metres warp - on my Anderson 22 for 34 years, including anchoring through 2 severe gales ( at Studland ! ) and it has never let me down.

It also works well on a short scope in monitored, slight conditions such as being in a confined space for lunch at a busy anchorage, such as East Head.

One of the features I like is zero moving parts, unlike CQR's, Danforths etc which can easily nip fingers on a bouncing foredeck.

 

[Bosun Higgs]

it looks like it would bend if it came under real load.

Colin

Pal has a 37 Fortress on a 12 tonne schooner and yes it has bent one fluke a bit. Fortress give a no quibble lifetime guarantee so he can have a new fluke if he wants. And he anchors , usually around Scilly, for maybe three months per summer.

Any anchor will bend inc your Bruce. I have a bent CQR. The Rocna phobes go on about Rocna bending as if its something new when it isnt at all.

I distrust anchor tests but nevertheless bought a Rocna based on them and now swapped for a Manson. On the same basis I sold the Bruce that my boat came with.

 

[Ludd]

you need a Tandem my boy

Gimme a break---I just bought a mountain bike!

 

[Twister_Ken]

I suspect some of the opprobrium heaped on the Bruce is because there's no such thing. There are a range of Bruce-alikes, some of which are better than others.

I have one of the bad ones. The only marking on it is 15kg. It looks like it was turned out of a Moldovan foundry at the end of the week-long National Vodka Drinking Championships. It even failed to set first time in Newtown Creek mud. Currently it's at home, coz I don't want it on the boat and my conscience won't let me eBay it. However, I'm pondering if there's a way I could use it as an angel on the bower.

OTOH, someone with a good Bruce knock-off will have a much higher satisfaction quotient than me.

 

[noelex]

The new generation anchors are much better than the old anchors. A single dive around a busy anchorage will clearly show the difference.
The main weakness of the Bruce is in weed and to a lesser extent hard sand. It also doesn’t seem to "scale" well with large anchors (say over 25KG) working much better than the same design in the smaller versions.
Its strengths are good storage on the bow roller, strong construction (as you noted). When it does drag it drags reasonably slowly and although, in difficult surfaces, it does not set well it usually achieves some sort of set, so it is reasonably reliable in moderate winds (say 35 K), but it is a poor performer in strong winds on a more difficult surface.

If you anchor a lot IMHO it is worth an upgrade, but the fact the Bruce has served you well indicates you are anchoring on sea beds where the Bruce anchor works well.

Despite all the recent press anchors rarely bend. I have never bent one(and I anchor over 300 days a year) and although I have met boats that have bent anchors it is certainly not common even mixing with cruising folk like myself that anchor a lot.
The Fortress anchor will bend much easier than all the other designs, but you are still very unlikely to bend one. If you do they give a no questions asked guarantee which works very well in practice (they will post you out a replacement part immediately)

 

[NormanS]

I suspect some of the opprobrium heaped on the Bruce is because there's no such thing. There are a range of Bruce-alikes, some of which are better than others.

I have one of the bad ones. The only marking on it is 15kg. It looks like it was turned out of a Moldovan foundry at the end of the week-long National Vodka Drinking Championships. It even failed to set first time in Newtown Creek mud. Currently it's at home, coz I don't want it on the boat and my conscience won't let me eBay it. However, I'm pondering if there's a way I could use it as an angel on the bower.

OTOH, someone with a good Bruce knock-off will have a much higher satisfaction quotient than me.

Well, my Bruce is a genuine one (20kg). IIRC it says "Bruce, Belgium" on it. I am anchored for most of the summer on the West Coast of Scotland, when not underway. Once, when anchored in a really silly place, it came up clutching a huge boulder to its bosom, but normally it has held well in all weather. As others say, there are no moving parts to cut your fingers off. I also carry a Danforth and a Fisherman, but the Bruce is the one in regular use.

 

[LadyInBed]

Well, my Bruce is a genuine one (20kg). IIRC it says "Bruce, Belgium" on it.

Good on ya cobber that you would trust something called Bruce,
but a Bruce from Belgium

 

[oldharry]

Twister Ken is right. Bruce look alikes are rubbish: I remember this when they first came out - and have experienced it myself. Without measuring you cant tell the difference, but the 'real' Bruce sticks like glue, while the imitation wouldnt hold a dinghy in a F2. The only guarantee I would give a look-alike is that it WILL drag! I believe it is to do with the angle of attack of the central blade. Too fine it wont set at all, too coarse it doesnt dig in properly. This seems quite critical.

I have a genuine Bruce, which has gone with me from boat to boat for over 25 years and it has NEVER yet failed me except in thick weed. I hang on to it, because I just dont have to think about it when anchoring - put it down with enough scope and forget it.

 

[Seajet]

Old Harry,

yes that would explain a lot, chiefly why views are so polarised and I couldn't understand why the critiscsm !

I have a genuine Bruce too; I remember the fuss about fakes, but didn't realise they are so common as they seem to be; I thought CQR's were the main victims of fakery.

Like you, I swear by - never at, ( yet ) my genuine Bruce.

 

[Deleted member 36384]

The Humble Bruce

It also doesn’t seem to "scale" well with large anchors (say over 25KG) working much better than the same design in the smaller versions.....

The yachtsman's Bruce is in fact a scaled down version of the monster oil rig anchors over 8 m high developed for North Sea mud.

http://anchors.synthasite.com/bruce-anchors.php

Based upon field testing and engineering studies, Lloyds of London approved the replacement of a 45,000 pound conventional oil rig anchor with a 14,331 pound Bruce. The Bruce has earned an Award of Special Merit for Engineering Products Award from the Design Council (London, 1978).

However, you are probably correct because the yachtsman's anchor only shares the angles with the big ones.

http://www.anchorguide.com/?p=18

While initially designed to secure floating oil rigs, the design for the recreational marine market bears no resemblance at all to the industrial version.

These guys think it doesn't scale down well (at least some do) from 14,000 lbs to 30 lbs: http://www.trawlerforum.com/t45705034/do-anchors-scale/?page=2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchor for more history of the Bruce and setting reliability opinion.

And finally, the official Bruce Anchor web sight: http://www.bruceanchor.co.uk/ check the size of the 40,000 kg version; should hold well.

 

[ffiill]

I used three good copies as mooring anchors-before using them I experimented in my garden.
I attached the 60 feet of mooring chain and attached other end to my 4x4.
The anchor set through the turf almost instantly and even with a snatch load it would not shift.
Anchors did not fail in three years.
Not that that can be said of the shackles!

 

[pagoda]

I suspect some of the opprobrium heaped on the Bruce is because there's no such thing. There are a range of Bruce-alikes, some of which are better than others.

I have one of the bad ones. The only marking on it is 15kg. It looks like it was turned out of a Moldovan foundry at the end of the week-long National Vodka Drinking Championships. It even failed to set first time in Newtown Creek mud. Currently it's at home, coz I don't want it on the boat and my conscience won't let me eBay it. However, I'm pondering if there's a way I could use it as an angel on the bower.

OTOH, someone with a good Bruce knock-off will have a much higher satisfaction quotient than me.

Yep.
Generic bruce on 35' yacht. Works well in most circumstances- including F7+ dinghy flipping weather. It has only failed to work in hard sand -in very windy conditions, when we were being blown astern faster than it would set. They are still in use for mooring almost all the floating rigs I have ever worked on, so I reckon I can avoid a spend of £200+ on a fancy replacement.
Graeme

 

[Quandary]

My experience of the Bruce has also been good, I was advised to use a 22kg one as a mooring anchor for our Trapper 300 outside Carrickfergus harbour for two seasons prior to the marina opening, I had about 10m. of 5/8" chain on the bottom with a 10mm galv. riser, it was reliable even in on shore gales when there was some surf and took quite an effort to winch up for the winter. In those days Bruces were regarded as mooring anchors because of their solid construction. I still have it and last used it as a primary anchor on a Sigma 38 where I preferred it to the regulation CQR when going cruising.
Our Sigma 33 conformed to one design rules so had a 15kg. CQR main anchor but you also had to carry a 7.5 kg Bruce kedge and we used it frequently when racing with only a couple of metres of chain on it plus a long rope for deep water kedging to allow it to be lifted and stowed speedily when getting under way again in zephyrs. One summer, cruising in it with the family we sought shelter at Canna on a dark blustery evening, all the clear sand seemed to be taken and we spent over an hour putting the CQR and chain down time after time only to drag each time in the squally wind. In desperation we tried the Bruce, it bit and held first time. Perhaps we were lucky and just managed to find a gap in the weed but we stayed in the same place until the weather settled and we left.
Both of these were old, genuine, Bruces and I would still use the big one if it was not a bit heavy and awkward to handle on a smaller boat, now I use a Manson with a Delta second anchor.

 

[blackbeard]

Had a 7.5 kg "Bruce" lookalike, maker too ashamed to put his name on it, let me down several times, last seen in scrap metal bin of local council dump; small but presumably vital differences in geometry when compared to a real Bruce.