Chain info. please

[petersto]

I want to renew and increase the size of my anchor chain and I have found several places that could supply me with 8mm galvanised chain. Info. required is, is there any particular grade or quality I shoud be aware of and does the size of the link matter(no windlass). Any other relative info. would be welcome no point in throwing it away.(money I mean) Thanks in anticipation.

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[duncan]

if there is no windlass involved it sort of comes down to weight /length - short link will be heavier (approx 1.5kg/metre for 8mm) than long link and is more commonly used for anchoring. Other than that I wouod be asking any supplier to quote me the load capability of the product.

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[snowleopard]

8mm chain is pretty solid stuff to be handling without a windlass. have you checked out how much weight you're going to be lifting when the anchor is just off the bottom? we have a 36lb anchor on 6mm chain and that's too much for us to haul manually on a regular basis.

having said that, there's only one real option at that size, galvanised short link. stud link is only available in larger sizes and long link isn't often made for high load applications like this.

callibrated chain is exactly the same stuff but is passed over the appropriate make of gypsy and rejected if it doesn't run clean. the stuff that passes is labelled 'callibrated' and sold at a higher price.

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[Rohorn]

Hi....Just kicking the ideas around...dunno what size of boat you will have on the end of that chain, for info, why are you choosing heavier? Guess you are moving up from five sixteen. If you have no windlass, you're gonna lift it by hand. So how long will it be, because if you anchor in say more than ten metres, 8mm chain plus the anchor may be too much to lift without a windlass....so...it might be prudent to get a chain which will run through a windlass. That, in turn, kind of eliminates long link chain.
There's really quite a difference in weight going up in size....I went from 8 to 10 mm for my cat which weighs 5.5 tons. Certainly she sits quieter with the extra weight there, doesn't snatch so readily, but on the occasion when my electric windlass was u/s, pulling it up by hand was quite a job, only possible because with my big wide foredeck, I could lie out on my back, pulling hand over hand, with my feet braced against a hatch cover!
The ultimate strength of the chain seems to me to be more in the mind...the handling and the movement of the boat at anchor is more relevant.
Hope those thoughts help...cheers....R

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[Keith]

Grade 70 chain is worth a look, its what truckers use for tying down loads, has a higher working load than normal anchor chain, its more like hi-test and its cadmium plated not galvanised, normally the price is a bit more reasonable as its not "marine"..............keith

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[petersto]

Details
Its a westerly centaur with a 15lb danforth type and 1/4 chain apparently the surveyor says this is to small. It needs to be 35lb cqr and 8mm chain.


<hr width=100% size=1><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by petersto on 13/10/2004 12:42 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[macd]

then tell the surveyor to haul the damn thing up. Agree that a decent scope of 8mm will be hard work without a windless. £35 pounder will certainly work, but on the heavy side for a Centaur. And why is he specifying a CQR? Overrated,in my view. Most of the anchors I've seen dragged (usually in weed) have been CQRs

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[duncan]

If you are not going to have a windlass then you will need to limit your chain to around 15 metres of 8 mm - with a 15kg anchor and that length of chain you will have around 38 kg to haul up if you anchor in 15metres or greater - really wouldn't go any more!
Just add 14mm octoplait (anchorplait) as required to make up the total length appropriate to your cruising ground.

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[dickh]

Hmm - unfortunately cadmium plated chain will start to rust very quickly compared to galvanised chain - always use HOT DIP Galvanised. For chain try
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.griffchains.co.uk/>http://www.griffchains.co.uk/</A> who seem reasonably priced. Must be short link chain.

<hr width=100% size=1>dickh
I'd rather be sailing... /forums/images/icons/smile.gif<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by dickh on 13/10/2004 14:39 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[dickh]

35lb CQR seems heavy for a Centaur - 25lb CQR should be fine - not sure about ¼" as against 5/16" - I am seriously thinking of upgrading to 5/16" on my Jaguar 27.(the ¼" chain is getting shorter and shorter as I keep removing the rusty bits....)

<hr width=100% size=1>dickh
I'd rather be sailing... /forums/images/icons/smile.gif