The NEW tender and outboard MUD DISASTER... Got to love outboards !

[Iain C]

Back to the outboard...I had one that did the same...ran for a bit, then conked out with all the pointers of dirty fuel or a blocked carb jet at point of failure, and would then not restart. Spark plug was brown and yucky and would restart after some time and once the plug had been cleaned. Turned out to be water getting on the plug due to head gasket failure.

 

[LadyInBed]

if you are mainly using your dinghy mainly over a mud bottom, ditch the small folding grapnel and use a small Danforth / Fortress style anchor which work well in mud.
When the wind is blowing my Countess 33 on to the river bank where I moor I deploy a small Danforth across the river to pull my stern away from mooring so I can get away without fouling the prop.

 

[GregOddity]

if you are mainly using your dinghy mainly over a mud bottom, ditch the small folding grapnel and use a small Danforth / Fortress style anchor which work well in mud.
When the wind is blowing my Countess 33 on to the river bank where I moor I deploy a small Danforth across the river to pull my stern away from mooring so I can get away without fouling the prop.

I've been looking at a few today, not decided yet but I seem to be leaning that way. I am going to use that grapnel as a paper weight or deco on a flower pot.

 

[Gunfleet]

I've been looking at a few today, not decided yet but I seem to be leaning that way. I am going to use that grapnel as a paper weight or deco on a flower pot.

I had a very similar incident before Christmas and like you was equally well equipped. Thumbing through this thread the experience seems more common than I thought. I had managed to beach myself on mud a few yards from the bottom of a hard in the middle of nowhere. It may as well have been a mile. I ended up sitting in the inflatable freezing for a couple of hours in the dark waiting for the tide to return. No other sailors, no nothing. Eventually my wife turned u in the car and wondered very reasonably why I couldn't just walk across the few yards of mud to the hard. I had some extra clothing - I put it all on - and I had a largish danforth in the bottom of the dinghy with 30 metres or so of rope on it. I think it might be the next most important thing after outboard and oars . After using the danforth in earnest I don't think I would use an inflatable without one now. I might consider an aluminium one as it's a fair old lump.

 

[GregOddity]

I had a very similar incident before Christmas and like you was equally well equipped. Thumbing through this thread the experience seems more common than I thought. I had managed to beach myself on mud a few yards from the bottom of a hard in the middle of nowhere. It may as well have been a mile. I ended up sitting in the inflatable freezing for a couple of hours in the dark waiting for the tide to return. No other sailors, no nothing. Eventually my wife turned u in the car and wondered very reasonably why I couldn't just walk across the few yards of mud to the hard. I had some extra clothing - I put it all on - and I had a largish danforth in the bottom of the dinghy with 30 metres or so of rope on it. I think it might be the next most important thing after outboard and oars . After using the danforth in earnest I don't think I would use an inflatable without one now. I might consider an aluminium one as it's a fair old lump.

It seems it's way more common then I also thought possible. I'm actually starting to wonder about having a small sea anchor on board. I'm tempted to test out if I can stop the dinghy against wind and tide with an anchor for the current and a sea anchor for wind. Both need to be practical and small. no one needs a lump in an inflatable.
I just keep wondering if this had happened close to Chichester harbour how would I ever be able to stop the drift to open water. There have been quite a few deaths by dinghy and some that lead me to wonder if it is a good idea not having the possibility of stopping the damned thing when the wind wants to park you across the pond.

 

[Gunfleet]

Yes - like you I had ventured on to the mud. I had to get back in the inflatable boat. The big difference between us is you threw out the clothes and I washed them. It took days and I had to wash every single thing, boots up. I’ve not been that cold for years - could hardly think straight. I believe it’s a very dangerous situation.

 

[GregOddity]

Yes - like you I had ventured on to the mud. I had to get back in the inflatable boat. The big difference between us is you threw out the clothes and I washed them. It took days and I had to wash every single thing, boots up. I’ve not been that cold for years - could hardly think straight. I believe it’s a very dangerous situation.

It is. We were not wearing sailing pants and we both had gotten splashed a good bit as the wind picked up. We lost temperature VERY fast. Phil would never have made it out alone with a weight of 146 kg, the first step he took, he sunk to his waist. I had to drag the dinghy close to him for him to lean on and get back on the dinghy. I crossed the mud to go get some plywood for him to get out and by the time I made it to shore I had to spend 20 m or so under the hot shower in the marina as I could not feel my toes. My jeans ripped open by that time. I still had to go back for him and we still had the problem of nowhere to tie up and that anchor is not fit even as a paperweight. In the video you can see the night shots trembling like crazy. I could hardly talk or feel my hands and legs. We would not have made it through a night in those conditions. Had I not been able to get Phil to move with the help of the plywood I would have called the Coasties pronto. You also get into a state in which your decisions start to suffer due to fatigue and loss of temperature. THAT is when it gets real dangerous.
I’m really not impressed with Mariner at the moment.

 

[Daydream believer]

No body has suggested thinking laterally. Carry a long line , tie that to the outboard & chuck that over & use it as a weight:encouragement:
There are a few seagull owners out there who have sometimes wanted to !!
But they always do start-- when they get back to shore

 

[PhilOddity]

Yes - like you I had ventured on to the mud. I had to get back in the inflatable boat. The big difference between us is you threw out the clothes and I washed them. It took days and I had to wash every single thing, boots up. I’ve not been that cold for years - could hardly think straight. I believe it’s a very dangerous situation.

For someone who's never been in that situation before I was shocked and stunned at how quickly things went south. as soon as i sank to my waist in the mud ( a matter of a metre or two) i had to do all i could not to panic as i was virtually immobile in a matter of minutes and unable to move my legs. . I had to use all of my upper body strength to pull myself back into the tender......It runs a shiver through me wondering how things had turned out if Greg was'nt as experienced as he is.

 

[JohnGC]

I was considering buying a grapnel anchor to use with my new inflatable. I shan't do that now as my main reason for having it would be extracting myself from a similar situation to the OP's. (Thanks for sharing and I'm glad to hear it ended without injury.)

I'm now wondering about alternatives. Does anyone have experience of a small anchor that works in muddy river bottoms? Some possible contenders are;

1. A mud weight of some sort. Pros: no sharp bits, quick to deploy. Cons: heavy, less useful in sand, would need to be heavy for kedging?
2. Danforth style. Pros: good for mud and sand, light. Cons: sharp bits, slower to deploy if packed.
3. Bruce style. Pros: Fewer sharp bits and quicker to deploy than a Danforth. Cons: Possibly heavier than a Danforth for the same holding?

John

 

[GregOddity]

I was considering buying a grapnel anchor to use with my new inflatable. I shan't do that now as my main reason for having it would be extracting myself from a similar situation to the OP's. (Thanks for sharing and I'm glad to hear it ended without injury.)

I'm now wondering about alternatives. Does anyone have experience of a small anchor that works in muddy river bottoms? Some possible contenders are;

1. A mud weight of some sort. Pros: no sharp bits, quick to deploy. Cons: heavy, less useful in sand, would need to be heavy for kedging?
2. Danforth style. Pros: good for mud and sand, light. Cons: sharp bits, slower to deploy if packed.
3. Bruce style. Pros: Fewer sharp bits and quicker to deploy than a Danforth. Cons: Possibly heavier than a Danforth for the same holding?

John

Personally, I’m tending towards the Danforth, but I’m actually thinking of testing a few and see what they ACTUALLY do in real conditions. Like throwing it overboard and expecting it to stop the dinghy.

 

[prv]

1. A mud weight of some sort. Pros: no sharp bits, quick to deploy. Cons: heavy, less useful in sand, would need to be heavy for kedging?

Con: surely the holding can't be any good for anything of a size you'd plausibly carry in a dinghy? I thought these were only used for undemanding situations on inland waterways.

2. Danforth style. Pros: good for mud and sand, light. Cons: sharp bits, slower to deploy if packed.

Sharp bits will be covered/protected if dismantled and packed.
Fortress is very light but very effective. Also somewhat expensive.
Most generic Danforths can't be dismantled. They do at least stow reasonably flat.

3. Bruce style. Pros: Fewer sharp bits and quicker to deploy than a Danforth. Cons: Possibly heavier than a Danforth for the same holding?

Also the most bulky given its fixed three-dimensional shape. Reputed not to work as well in small sizes as it does in the normal yacht range.
Will be a lot heavier than a Fortress, not sure compared to a generic steel Danforth.

I'm not rushing to replace my folding grapnel, but if I were I would probably choose a small Fortress, stow it dismantled in a special bag, and accept that it will take a minute to get ready for use.

Pete

 

[GregOddity]

No body has suggested thinking laterally. Carry a long line , tie that to the outboard & chuck that over & use it as a weight:encouragement:
There are a few seagull owners out there who have sometimes wanted to !!
But they always do start-- when they get back to shore

Trust me when I say that it had occurred to me. I also had other thoughts concerning the engine and meteor showers of flaming engines around the Mariner factory. I may have had other thoughts concerning the engine and the engineers that designed it…

 

[GregOddity]

Con: surely the holding can't be any good for anything of a size you'd plausibly carry in a dinghy? I thought these were only used for undemanding situations on inland waterways.



Sharp bits will be covered/protected if dismantled and packed.
Fortress is very light but very effective. Also somewhat expensive.
Most generic Danforths can't be dismantled. They do at least stow reasonably flat.



Also the most bulky given its fixed three-dimensional shape. Reputed not to work as well in small sizes as it does in the normal yacht range.
Will be a lot heavier than a Fortress, not sure compared to a generic steel Danforth.

I'm not rushing to replace my folding grapnel, but if I were I would probably choose a small Fortress, stow it dismantled in a special bag, and accept that it will take a minute to get ready for use.

Pete

It's actually a good question, which anchor for a dinghy. I'm just going to have to test them. (i'm gonna need large amounts of explosives and pyrotechnics)

 

[JohnGC]

Con: surely the holding can't be any good for anything of a size you'd plausibly carry in a dinghy? I thought these were only used for undemanding situations on inland waterways.



Sharp bits will be covered/protected if dismantled and packed.
Fortress is very light but very effective. Also somewhat expensive.
Most generic Danforths can't be dismantled. They do at least stow reasonably flat.



Also the most bulky given its fixed three-dimensional shape. Reputed not to work as well in small sizes as it does in the normal yacht range.
Will be a lot heavier than a Fortress, not sure compared to a generic steel Danforth.

I'm not rushing to replace my folding grapnel, but if I were I would probably choose a small Fortress, stow it dismantled in a special bag, and accept that it will take a minute to get ready for use.

Pete

That was also my thinking but the thing is, a 2kg Bruce type is circa £15 while the 1.8kg Fortress FX7 is 10x that. At that price differential it's worth asking if the Bruce types have been used successfully or otherwise by our fellow forumites.

John

 

[JohnGC]

Con: surely the holding can't be any good for anything of a size you'd plausibly carry in a dinghy? I thought these were only used for undemanding situations on inland waterways.

...................
Pete

I think the idea is that the weight slowly sinks into the mud and suction becomes a significant part of the holding capability. Rapid tugging doesn't have much effect, a slow steady pull is required to release. I'm not speaking from experience through and clearly this effect won't happen on sand.

John

 

[prv]

That was also my thinking but the thing is, a 2kg Bruce type is circa £15 while the 1.8kg Fortress FX7 is 10x that.

Yep.

Worth noting that comparing by weight is not like-for-like because the fortress is aluminium and relies entirely on shape rather than weight. A 2kg steel anchor is not equivalent in holding to a 2kg fortress. But however you look at it, a fortress is expensive.

Pete

 

[NormanS]

I think my 4.5lb Danforth cost 25/-, which seemed a lot at the time.

 

[JohnGC]

I think my 4.5lb Danforth cost 25/-, which seemed a lot at the time.

What sort of tender do you have and does the Danforth hold it in soft mud against the current?

John

 

[GregOddity]

What sort of tender do you have and does the Danforth hold it in soft mud against the current?

John

I was looking at a few today and the same questions kept running through my mind. I'm actually thinking of doing a real test with a few models in real conditions.