Leaded anchor line.

[dgadee]

I have heard of this and have been thinking about a stern anchor system using it. There seems to be two kinds - last few meters leaded or whole line leaded. Does it really matter which?

 

[thinwater]

Not a good idea IMO. You want the chain on the bottom and you want the rope to lift easily, so that it does not wear on the bottom. And the leaded line is just harder to coil.

 

[dgadee]

Not a good idea IMO. You want the chain on the bottom and you want the rope to lift easily, so that it does not wear on the bottom. And the leaded line is just harder to coil.

Sorry, meant leaded line attached to a few meters of chain attached to a Fortress.

 

[BabaYaga]

My understanding is that the all-leaded line is intended for use with an electric anchor winch and automated stowage – much like a chain rode systems.
Lines that are leaded the last 10 metres or so are intended for hauling by hand. The leaded portion acts as the chain part of a mixed rode, from a weight perspective.

Regarding chafe on the line from the seabed: I have used a polyester line directly shackled to my stern anchor for many years and had minimal chafe. But this will depend on how the anchor is used of course and also the seabed in your area.

 

[Neeves]

I have no experience, I doubt many do. I agree with Thinwater. You will have a relatively expensive rode, the leaded line, that will be subject t o wear. I find a Fortress, or a FX 23 or 37 (which are quite big) do not need chain at all, though Fortress suggest a few metres.

I'd stick with a few metres of chain and then rope. I'd keep the chain attached to, or stored with, the Fortress and coil the rope separately. Just remember to mouse the shackle or use Loctite (if you use a shackle). Loctite will set underwater, so you can tighten the, Loctited, pin with a spanner, deploy and 'use'. Only use blue Loctite. If you keep the rope and chain together the rope will inevitably be stored damp and if the chain is 'used' it will be prone to rust. If you store the Fortress assembled use Duralac on the bolts - or when you come to disassemble you may (I found out the hard way). find the stainless has reacted with the aluminium.

The fact that the number of people using or having leaded line is indicative of popularity/acceptance.

As you have done - it is worth airing - maybe if anyone has used same - we will learn of a benefit of which we were unaware.

Jonathan

 

[dgadee]

Speaking to someone who uses leaded line at stern. He has 30m fully leaded and about 2m chain onto a 10kg bruce. Says it works well going bows in. Can tighten up on a winch. What was interesting was he said most of the lead had gone from the rope - it seems to disappear during longish usage. I felt it and it was same weight as normal braid on braid.

I have about 6m of spare chain so think I'll just use 12mm braid onto that and then onto the fortress.

His boat identical to mine and I saw that two hingey bits at stern are for this very anchoring purpose. Result. Always wondered what they were for.

 

[MM5AHO]

a leaded line sounds to me like over-reliance on catenary - something that dissappears the more you need it.

 

[Neeves]

I have heard of this and have been thinking about a stern anchor system using it. There seems to be two kinds - last few meters leaded or whole line leaded. Does it really matter which?

I do suggest you try your anchors with the various option you have available to you. So try each anchor with a short length of chain and a long rope rope, or no chain just all rope. I think you might find some anchors set surprisingly easily without chain - if you don't rush at it. Remember that in deep water you will need more rode deployed to have the same sort of rode angle to seabed - so its easier to get a near horizontal tension in more shallow water. We find Fortress surprisingly easy to set - in the absence of weed. Our Excels, both the steel and aluminium versions set well in most seabeds, even some weedy bottoms. Once any anchor engages - you are good to go (unless it is very deep and you do not have a long one - introducing too much 'lift'. We have never found Spade remarkable - maybe because it does not have a sharp toe.

I'd add - old style anchors, particularly Bruce, do not have a sharp toe and whilst they may be superb in combination with chain and mud the anchor will be more difficult to engage, especially in smaller sizes, with a lighter rode and firmer seabed.

Much depends on the combination of rodes you are using but if you are anchored, or secured, bow and stern then normally only one needs to offer elasticity or catenary - it will then provide the protection against snatches. There are exceptions - if there was a lot of chop in the stern then some snatch protection might make life more comfortable (but if its that bad - we would move).

The solution we have chosen was based on different circumstances as we wanted a spare rode that could also be the primary rode - in case we had to chop off the bulk of the primary rode. We needed the benefit of steel (for coral) so steel had to be part of the spare rode - and ours is based on 15m of 6mm chain (the same quality of chain we use for our 100% chain primary rode) and 40m of 3 ply nylon. We set the spare rode with the primary if we anchor in a 'V' or fork and as the rode if we deploy a stern anchor (which we will be doing tomorrow using a FX 16), like this - you can just see one of the stern anchors, the red line (its dyneema) off the starboard transom our spare rode with the 6mm chain is securing the port transom. Both stern lines are to Fortress and are deployed by hand and then tightened with the sheet winches. We will be staying overnight and the 3 anchors keep us secure overnight. The snubbers (bridle) at the bow, the blue lines from deck and waterline at the bows offer us all the elasticity we need in this arrangement (its not complicated. left permanently attached - all we need do is attach a bridle plate to the chain when the bow rode is deployed and secured).



There are a number of ways a leaded line could be incorporated into a rode or series of rodes, in the same way we use dyneema for one rode, 3ply nylon for another and all 6mm chain for a third. Dyneema was probably never intended for the rode - but in our circumstances (I think) perfectly acceptable.

I suspect a short length of chain + nylon will be cheaper than long length of leaded line

As usual there is no single right answer just a series of options.

Jonathan

 

[BabaYaga]

a leaded line sounds to me like over-reliance on catenary - something that dissappears the more you need it.

In the type of stern anchoring that I am familiar with there is really no great demand for shock absorption, neither by catenary nor elasticity. Reason being that the bow is within stepping distance to a rock or a quay. Consequently, the stern anchor rode is always pulled taut.
I have never used a leaded anchor line, but I believe the reasoning for it is twofold. The weight, similar to a length of chain, might make it easier for the anchor to dig in. The weight also helps the line to come off the winch drum and to stow better in the rope locker.

 

[thinwater]

What is the weight of the leaded line? Ordinarily the weight is just enough to keep the line below props, for fisherman's use, not heavy like chain. No catenary benefit, only keeping it below the prop.

A special purpose product that is not what some think it is. I suspect their "success" is simply buy's confirmation bias.

 

[fisherman]

There are different types and you get what you pay for. Cheap (none of it is cheap) rope has one lead wire in it. It stretches, the wire parts and falls out, over time. Next is three wires, in the three strands so they don't part so much. Then there is super heavy which has a string of lead beads on a twine in it. You won't want to be handing that.
Lead Braid Heavy Duty Weighted Cord Rope Lead Line UK Manufacturers