Robin
Well-Known Member
Thanks. I guess it could be a Lewmar 'Claw' version though as they are stocked by West Marine in the USA which would be the most likely place to have bought it.
Bruce anchors; so bad?
- Thread starter ColinR
- Start date
Thanks. I guess it could be a Lewmar 'Claw' version though as they are stocked by West Marine in the USA which would be the most likely place to have bought it.
sailorman
Well-Known Member
wazza
Well-Known Member
Mine says Bruce on the side, so I'm hopeing its an orginal and not made in Uzbekistan....
having said that maybe the Uzbekistanies make fine anchors
having said that maybe the Uzbekistanies make fine anchors
rotrax
Well-Known Member
Hi, We have a Belgian made Bruce also. Only failed to set once when like yours the first thing it encountered was a tightly fitting rock that filled up the setting place. Also have a Simpson Lawrence made Spade-dont use this as the Bruce works so good. Also keep an unknown make fortress type as a kedge, but its a steel one. Our boat is over 12 tons with all the cruising gear on board.
Enya
Well-Known Member
I swapped my CQR (too heavy and awakward) for a 7.5KG Bruce lookalike made by Osculati and called a genuine Trefoil!! My boat is about 2.5 tons and the "bruce" has proved fine in not too testing conditions. As and when I cruise more widely, should I get a bigger or better anchor and consign my "bruce" to a kedge?
Kelpie
Well-Known Member
I would consider that a bit on the light side.
I also have a 2.5t boat and have a 10kg unbranded Bruce copy. It has evidently been on the boat for many years and she has lived to tell the tale. We haven't really tested it in any serious conditions, the only gnarly anchoring situation we have encountered I also threw down my 15kg folding fishermans in tandem so wasn't going anywhere in a hurry.
The only time I am sure that the pseudoBruce has dragged was when we left the boat for a day, in light but switching conditions, and left the plotter turned on. When we got back we found that the anchor had dragged up to a boatlength each time it had reset. I was a bit surprised about that, given how light the conditions were, and I had initially dug it in with full astern for two minutes so had reckoned we were safe enough.
I also have a 2.5t boat and have a 10kg unbranded Bruce copy. It has evidently been on the boat for many years and she has lived to tell the tale. We haven't really tested it in any serious conditions, the only gnarly anchoring situation we have encountered I also threw down my 15kg folding fishermans in tandem so wasn't going anywhere in a hurry.
The only time I am sure that the pseudoBruce has dragged was when we left the boat for a day, in light but switching conditions, and left the plotter turned on. When we got back we found that the anchor had dragged up to a boatlength each time it had reset. I was a bit surprised about that, given how light the conditions were, and I had initially dug it in with full astern for two minutes so had reckoned we were safe enough.
Leighb
Well-Known Member
I have a 15kg Made in Belgium Bruce.
It came with the boat, I don't anchor as often as some, but it has never failed to set and hold. I have lain to it with another similar sized yacht alongside for a couple of days in a tidal river without it budging so it obviously coped perfectly well with changes of tide.
Admittedly as an East Coaster most of the anchorages are mud, but some are more gravelly. So far I have not encountered weed thanks goodness.
I see no reason to change it.
It came with the boat, I don't anchor as often as some, but it has never failed to set and hold. I have lain to it with another similar sized yacht alongside for a couple of days in a tidal river without it budging so it obviously coped perfectly well with changes of tide.
Admittedly as an East Coaster most of the anchorages are mud, but some are more gravelly. So far I have not encountered weed thanks goodness.
I see no reason to change it.
Dipper
Well-Known Member
Genuine Bruce anchors have Bruce on the shank plus the the weight and usually other words but I think this has varied over the years. Most were made in their factory in Belgium. Just before their demise (the small anchor division) they moved the factory to Brazil so the last anchors have 'Made in Brazil' on them. I checked with Bruce at the time and they assured me they were exactly the same anchor made on the same production line which I believe was dismantled and reassembled in Brazil.
Genuine Bruce anchors are made from a steel alloy and have quite a nice 'ring' to them (which lasts up to 5 secs) if you tap the shank with something hard. Their flukes are also much sharper than the poor quality copies. I once compared a 7.5kg geniune Bruce with a 10kg copy by placing them side by side. They had virtually the same dimensions except that the flukes on the copy were fatter and rounder. Even with the extra weight, I would trust the smaller genuine anchor rather than the heavier copy.
I suspect the demise of the Bruce anchor was hastened by the poor reputation of the copies. I don't know if the Lewmar claw is up to the standard of the genuine Bruce or not but it does look better than most copies.
Genuine Bruce anchors are made from a steel alloy and have quite a nice 'ring' to them (which lasts up to 5 secs) if you tap the shank with something hard. Their flukes are also much sharper than the poor quality copies. I once compared a 7.5kg geniune Bruce with a 10kg copy by placing them side by side. They had virtually the same dimensions except that the flukes on the copy were fatter and rounder. Even with the extra weight, I would trust the smaller genuine anchor rather than the heavier copy.
I suspect the demise of the Bruce anchor was hastened by the poor reputation of the copies. I don't know if the Lewmar claw is up to the standard of the genuine Bruce or not but it does look better than most copies.
vyv_cox
Well-Known Member
I don't know who made this one but it's clearly not a forging. Brittle fracture typical of cast iron.
Here's another, not broken quite so fatally as the first but quite bad enough
Here's another, not broken quite so fatally as the first but quite bad enough
sailorman
Well-Known Member
I don't know who made this one but it's clearly not a forging. Brittle fracture typical of cast iron.
Here's another, not broken quite so fatally as the first but quite bad enough
that i believe is a copy / fake
vyv_cox
Well-Known Member
I didn't suggest otherwise. No reputable manufacturer would make an anchor by casting it. Looking around many chandleries shows that cheap anchors made in this way are far from rare.
Robin
Well-Known Member
That is IT! Ours is HISTORY! So a new Delta it is just as soon as we get there to change it....
doug748
Well-Known Member
As far as I am aware the Bruce anchor was never a forging or ever claimed to be.
They were marketed as cast steel. I don't doubt that many of the copies are cast iron, which is a good enough reason not to buy one in my view.*
* This looks ambiguous. Good enough reason not to buy a copy, I mean.
I have been perfectly happy with my Bruce. The 15kg model performed so well that I reduced the size to 10kg; this is a bit of a porky as the real reason was it eased my back a little.
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vyv_cox
Well-Known Member
I didn't know that. Cast steel is usually OK if done well, many quality engineering components are made this way. It does need careful treatment on manufacture to ensure good grain size and distribution for a stressed item. Cast iron is widely used for cheap anchor copies and is not recommended.
wazza
Well-Known Member
Well Sailorman, I bleeding hope it's a fake!!
