Manson and Bow Roller

oldvarnish

Well-Known Member
Joined
15 Jul 2005
Messages
1,895
Visit site
I have no problems with my Manson Supreme as an anchor, except for the way it sits in the bow roller. (It's not a problem I have with the Spade, which is now my spare anchor).

I wonder what others have done to stop it rattling from side to side? I've tried winching it hard in, lashing it, ratchet straps etc. Any ideas before I call in the stainless steel man?
 
I spoke to manson who had no problem with me drilling a hole through the shank to take the bow roller pin. Took an hour and three drill bits though.
 
My problem is that my pulpit has a single central support running down to between the two bow rollers and this fouls the roll bar on my manson. The only long term solution is a forward extension of the roller as in this months PBO. Short term the anchor is either in the anchor locker of lashed to the pullpit with lots of bits of rope.
 
I extended my bow roller by bolting on new plates to the original (to take a Manson) and installed small s/s cleats on each side for a short lashing rope. Works so far. Have no pics to hand but will get some if anybody interested.
 
Not sure if your problem is you cannot get the anchor far enough back or its fine where it is but wobbles.

For the former, we simply cut a plastic, nylon, chopping board to fit inside the 2 sides of the bow roller, so it sits at right angles to the length of bow roller, and a slot for the shank. When the anchor is seated we drop the board into place - ours is actually a bit wider, slots for the 2 sides of the bow roller as well, so 3 slots (like a comb). Sorry no pics. We tie it to the boat with a short strop, so it cannot fall overboard or blow away. I know someone who riveted nylon blocks to the top edge of the bow roller, high enough to not impede the chain or shackle, when the shank is 'at home' they stop it wobbling.

We have on a marina near us a 45' yacht with a Supreme, they have cut the roll bar off - but have no idea if it still works!

Jonathan
 
I have no problems with my Manson Supreme as an anchor, except for the way it sits in the bow roller. (It's not a problem I have with the Spade, which is now my spare anchor).

I wonder what others have done to stop it rattling from side to side? I've tried winching it hard in, lashing it, ratchet straps etc. Any ideas before I call in the stainless steel man?

Here's a DIY idea: if you've got the room, mount a 6-8" long teak block aft of the bow-roller, with a snug-fit groove down its middle to hold the shank firm. Don't know how high this would need to be, or the slope of the groove (you can work this out yourself), but make it high enough to accommodate a hole for a pin immediately above the shank. That should then hold the anchor reasonablly captive. Make sure to give a generous roundover to the edges and corners for comfort and safety.


I spoke to manson who had no problem with me drilling a hole through the shank to take the bow roller pin. Took an hour and three drill bits though.

Can't comment on the integrity of the shank with an additional hole through it, but I was recently advised not to use a bow-roller pin at all on the basis that if the pin gets bent or otherwise damaged with the anchor in place, then you could find yourself in the dangerous position of not being able to deploy it!
 
Can't comment on the integrity of the shank with an additional hole through it, but I was recently advised not to use a bow-roller pin at all on the basis that if the pin gets bent or otherwise damaged with the anchor in place, then you could find yourself in the dangerous position of not being able to deploy it!

I spoke to Manson who said it wouldn't make any difference to the integrity. We wave not had a problem with it in three years although if you were that worried you could always change the pin for some line. still holds it firmly in place and can be cut if needed.
 
Our original bow roller was a cylinder of solid nylon, slightly waisted. Our Delta used to slide from side to side on every tack. I replaced the roller with one with a central groove that just fitted the shank. This roller was an injection moulding, hollow with reinforcing ribs. It collapsed during an incident when the anchor was trapped in rocks in Italy. Since then I have managed to buy a solid one of the same shape that has lasted for many years. If you are not able to buy one like that it would not be a big problem to have one turned.
 
Vyv,
Why do I get the impression that as a kid you took everything you ever had apart to see how it worked. I suspect that you have never grown up and always have at least one thing in bits around your boat. I bet Swmbo worries when she goes to sleep in case she wakes with an organ missing!
 
Vyv,
Why do I get the impression that as a kid you took everything you ever had apart to see how it worked. I suspect that you have never grown up and always have at least one thing in bits around your boat. I bet Swmbo worries when she goes to sleep in case she wakes with an organ missing!

Isn't that how we all learned? Not much money around in my youth. Meccano & Bayco building sets, crystal sets and ex army & airforce receivers for Radio Luxembourg, building bikes out of scrappers etc.
 
I bet Swmbo worries when she goes to sleep in case she wakes with an organ missing!

She doesn't worry any more, all the useful bits have already been replaced with Meccano.

And no, never anything left in pieces on this boat but the motorsailer back home was bought specifically to mess about with, which is why it has travelled about 30 miles in nearly two years.
 
Our original bow roller was a cylinder of solid nylon.....if you are not able to buy one like that it would not be a big problem to have one turned.

Where might you source the nylon? Is it easy stuff to turn? Would a woodturning lathe do it?
 
answering my own post now - first sign of madness.

Found this from a few years ago on this forum. Makes sense:

'Brent Swain (of Origamiboats fame) makes his own custom rollers using high density polypropylene from kitchen chopping boards. The method he uses is to roughly cut-out a few disks then 'glue' them together by flaming the surfaces to be mated with a blowlamp until they just begin to melt, then firmly clamp them together. Repeat this until you've achieved the required thickness. Drill a central hole and insert a suitable long bolt. Tighten the nut and clamp the shank of the bolt into a lathe (preferably) or a pillar drill. Then, using a sharp tool, profile the edge of the sheave to the desired shape.'
 
Where might you source the nylon? Is it easy stuff to turn? Would a woodturning lathe do it?

I wouldn't try. Any small engineering shop will do it for you very cheaply. Take the old one as a pattern for width and hole diameter. Mine is quite X shaped, perhaps 3 inches diameter at the edges, not much more than 1.5 inches in the centre. Photo tomorrow maybe, anchor and lazy line on it at the moment.

I have some doubts that the laminated polyprop one would be sufficiently strong to take impact loads following anchor jamming such as we experienced.
 
UHMWPE bow rollers .....

Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE, UHMW)

is a subset of the thermoplastic polyethylene.

Also known as high-modulus polyethylene, (HMPE), or high-performance polyethylene (HPPE),

it has extremely long chains, with a molecular mass usually between 2 and 6 million u.

The longer chain serves to transfer load more effectively to the polymer backbone by strengthening intermolecular interactions.

This results in a very tough material, with the highest impact strength of any thermoplastic presently made.[1]

from Wikipedia


Had a solid rod ( 3 inch dia.) turned at a machine shop.

Groove in centre for chain.

Black would probabhly resist UV degredation.
 
2e3c7dba53c001e30119dac1837bccde_zps949e9e7e.jpg


The width of the cheeks is 58 mm. The starboard side roller is 50 mm wide. The port side one is the hollow type. The starboard one was originally the same but broke up, as you can see the port one is also on its way.

I would not get too hung up about materials. I suspect the two older ones are probably ABS which would have been OK except for the hollow design. I don't know what the starboard one is, could also be ABS, but definitely not HMPE or nylon. It would not surprise me if one made of a decent bit of hardwood would last a couple of seasons, certainly enough for evaluation.
 
Top