How do you mark your chain?

[pmagowan]

Car enamel. Lasts a few years

ten meter intervals: red, white, blue, red red, white white, blue blue etc

 

[michael_w]

Cable ties.

My colur coding is:

Pink approx 3m, so I know the anchor is nearly home.

1 x Black - 10m

1 x Black, 1 x Blue - 15m

2 x Black - 20m

2 x Black, 1 x Blue - 25m

1 x Pink - 30m

1 x Pink, 1 x Blue - 35m

2 x Pink - 40m

1 x Pink approx 3m from the bittter end. (50m in total)

 

[baffled9]

Remembering your code is all well and good - but I have a large print laminated list of the markings taped to the underside of the chain locker. That way, any user knows the code.

 

[Daydream believer]

Not having a windlass i tend to mark my chain at random points in blood

 

[NormanS]

I'm not sure that I see much point in having a mark at 5metres. How shallow are you going to anchor in?
Also, I would never have a depth marked by a single cable tie. They do come off occasionally, so if a single one comes off, you have lost the mark entirely.

 

[KellysEye]

Cable ties and the little plastic blocks that fit in each link, also red white and blue for each 20 feet. The cable ties do eventually get eaten by the winch but I just replaced them

 

[Downsman]

" I'm not sure that I see much point in having a mark at 5metres. How shallow are you going to anchor in? "

For me, with a manual windlass after cranking up 30+ metres of chain, my 5 metre mark let's me judge whether I've got enough strength left to recover the hook or snuff it with a heart attack.

5 metres...just a "nearly there marker" really for me as a single hander..

 

[prv]

Isn't strange that there is no convention for this?

There is, but only if you're a ship and dealing with chain that comes in 15-fathom "shackles" . Then the actual joining shackle is painted red, and for each shackle of chain another link either side is painted white.

Pete

 

[LadyInBed]

Not too keen on the colour system, it needs a torch when anchoring in the dark.
I use woven cord, about 4cm long for the 5's and 7cm for the 10's, so 25 mtrs will be 2 long and 1 short.

 

[Jcorstorphine]

I mark mine every 3 metres so that I have fewer markings. EG at 12 metres of chain I have a yellow painted lenght of chain of about 30 cms. In the wheelhouse I have a look up table where Yellow indicates the correct length of chain for anchoring in 4 metres of water. Works ok for me.

 

[Roberto]

I use the coloured inserts + cable ties, with colours in alphabetic order B - G - R - Y, Blue Green, Red, Yellow. Problem is when people with different languages are onboard.

The inserts indeed tend to drift to the same grey-brownish colour, so I used them in groups: one 8link length blue for 10m, two 8 link lengths green for 20m, etc; instinctively the cable ties are a lot more visible.

Now I am to the point my chain will soon need to be swapped end-to-end, it is most annoying to having to move all the markings at the other end of the chain.



Thanks for the input as to paint and re-galvanising.

 

[MM5AHO]

I use leather bootlaces.
At every 2 fathoms of chain there's a lace or more. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 laces etc.

So seeing 3 laces means 6 fathoms chain out.
Then I convert fathoms to metres to reconcile with the depth sounder. The laces are easily seen in even low light, not relying on colour, and the mental arithmetic keeps me awake.
One day I might re-do them at 5m intervals.
Rarely put out less than 3 "leathers", but sometimes do anchor in quite shallow water. The leather goes round the gyspy easily.

 

[Downsman]

I shouldn't worry too much about paint and galvanising, an old paint brush and some Nitromors paint remover shifted every scrap of paint off my chain when it went off for re-dipping.:encouragement:

 

[Scillypete]

I use coloured ribbons every five metres, easy to tie on cheap to replace (not lost one yet) and never likely to catch your hand on a sharp cable tie edge, the gypsy doesn't even notice them

 

[AndrewB]

" Yes! I made this mistake once and spent hours scratching off every shred of paint to spare the extra cost of removal "

Tie it to the back of you car and drive it up and down a dirt road. That will remove all of the paint. If it also removes some of the galvanising all the better.

Does that really work? My car would fall apart if asked to drag 100 meters of 10mm chain down a dirt road! It complains enough when I stick it in the boot.

 

[rogerthebodger]

Does that really work? My car would fall apart if asked to drag 100 meters of 10mm chain down a dirt road! It complains enough when I stick it in the boot.

With the dirt roads we have in deepest darkest Africa it does but if the dirt road is wet like in the UK most of the time it may be less effect.

 

[GHA]

I use short pieces of cord, 1 knot every 5 metres up to 25m then 2 pieces of cord. Easy to remember and can feel them in the dark.

 

[onesea]

Not having a windlass i tend to mark my chain at random points in blood

Then you can also count how much is out by the number of cuts on your hands

I used to use cable ties when I had all chain in the end I only needed a few marks:
Just deep enough water, plus rise and fall,
A couple of meters under the keel plus rise and fall,
Bugger it might as well stick the lot out,

It worked for me...

 

[Daydream believer]

Bugger it might as well stick the lot out,

Best method!!

 

[Daydream believer]

Does that really work? My car would fall apart if asked to drag 100 meters of 10mm chain down a dirt road! It complains enough when I stick it in the boot.

I had to take 80 M of new19 mm long link mooring chain ( 0.5 tonnes)down to the club one day. Rather than load it into the disco i hooked it on the tow bar in several bights. & went via a 300 metre private unmade road plus a bit of tarmac road.
All went ok until i had to go home. No way could i have gone up that unmade road as i had ploughed for the full length. I would have been strung up.
Plus the customers complained that there was no blue paint left on the chain - ungrateful s..ds