What's the worst anchor?

[Roberto]

The 'Best Anchor Beggars' are at it again, sneaking back in to swerve and subvert us back into their cult. Don't stand for it!

Ok you anchor haters, anyone bashing the Bulwagga? I had made drawings to try and duplicate one as I think it's stimulatingly different from most other designs. Would I be wasting my time building the worst anchor ever?
Real life bashers only need reply please (possibly with some indication of experience extent), no interest in test results

Just googled, sales seem now to be based in Turkey (?)

 

[KevinV]

Ok you anchor haters, anyone bashing the Bulwagga? I had made drawings to try and duplicate one as I think it's stimulatingly different from most other designs. Would I be wasting my time building the worst anchor ever?
Real life bashers only need reply please (possibly with some indication of experience extent), no interest in test results
View attachment 182819
Just googled, sales seem now to be based in Turkey (?)

That thing is awesome - no more colregs with that on the bowroller!

 

[Dogone]

We also carry a grapnel for our dinghy. Holding in sand is well demonstrated by the one time we forgot to retrieve the anchor. We carried the boat some twenty meters into the water, not even noticing we were dragging the anchor behind

So, inspired by this thread we now invoke the roman gods to ensure better holding:
View attachment 182740

I’ve got one. Two actually, I pulled one up snagged on my main anchor recently. They are indeed a bad anchor.

I’ve also got a mini stockless anchor for the dinghy. That’s awful too, yet for reasons that are unfathomable to me it is what all big ships use.

 

[Dogone]

These comments are spot on.

A genuine Bruce anchor has some complex twists in the geometry of the flukes (see photo below). Unfortunately, copies are usually simplified designs and these work less well, often much less well.

Don’t buy a Bruce copy.

View attachment 182791

I’ve got a Trefoil - Bruce copy. It’s crap, but not, by far the worst.

 

[Neeves]

Ok you anchor haters, anyone bashing the Bulwagga? I had made drawings to try and duplicate one as I think it's stimulatingly different from most other designs. Would I be wasting my time building the worst anchor ever?
Real life bashers only need reply please (possibly with some indication of experience extent), no interest in test results
View attachment 182819
Just googled, sales seem now to be based in Turkey (?)

Sales are based in Turkey - because that is where they are fabricated.

I had noticed that as one moved east through the Med Bugels became more common and of varied designs. I had assume, based on no background at all, that Turkey might be a country with some innovative marine fabricators all trying to improve the original Bugel.

Other than on bow rollers in the Med I have almost no experience of the design.

They are dead simple, no disrespect to the original designer - and enjoy little mention - anywhere.

Jonathan

 

[noelex]

I’ve got a Trefoil - Bruce copy. It’s crap, but not, by far the worst.

Agreed. The Bruce copies are often very poor, but the Trefoil at least makes some attempt at reproducing the geometry of the original Bruce.

Here is a photo of a Trefoil branded model I came across. It has not at this stage had enough setting force to properly assess its performance, but at least it has managed to roll upright and is starting to engage in a light weed substrate.

It is at a pretty anchor so I am sure you could sell it to one of the boats that travel from marina to marina and anchor rarely .

 

[bergie]

Agreed. The Bruce copies are often very poor, but the Trefoil at least makes some attempt at reproducing the geometry of the original Bruce.

Our boat came with a stainless Bruce clone. Here's my only photo of it in action, providing us with a steady supply of waterlogged lumber:

We still keep it as a stern anchor, because for Scandinavian mooring probably an Egyptian carved rock would work as well. Usually you anchor in a place with zero wind and waves.

On historical poor anchors, here is a lovely collection. Including this quite action oriented picture of a minoan ship about to drop anchor:

 

[AntarcticPilot]

If we're looking for the "worst" ground tackle, wasn't there one contributor here who reckoned that the chain alone provided most of the holding power? No need for an anchor!

 

[zoidberg]

Yes. He pops up elsewhere, too, from time to time.
Something of an evangelist for anchorless anchoring....

 

[KevinV]

Our boat came with a stainless Bruce clone. Here's my only photo of it in action, providing us with a steady supply of waterlogged lumber:
View attachment 182843
We still keep it as a stern anchor, because for Scandinavian mooring probably an Egyptian carved rock would work as well. Usually you anchor in a place with zero wind and waves.

On historical poor anchors, here is a lovely collection. Including this quite action oriented picture of a minoan ship about to drop anchor:
View attachment 182844

Who knew that copyright law went back so far?

 

[bergie]

If we're looking for the "worst" ground tackle, wasn't there one contributor here who reckoned that the chain alone provided most of the holding power? No need for an anchor!

Probably not even wrong. A few hundred meters of this chain (co-skipper for scale) in the seabed would likely hold our boat in typical conditions...

As to how much chain would be needed? I think this old ChatGPT answer on anchor sizing would work well here:
For boats up to 30' in length: A anchor weight of approximately 10-15% of the weight of your boat is generally sufficient. For example, a 30' boat weighing 10,000 lbs should use an anchor weighing 1,000-1,500 lbs.

 

[Humblebee]

Our boat came with a stainless Bruce clone. Here's my only photo of it in action, providing us with a steady supply of waterlogged lumber:
View attachment 182843
We still keep it as a stern anchor, because for Scandinavian mooring probably an Egyptian carved rock would work as well. Usually you anchor in a place with zero wind and waves.

On historical poor anchors, here is a lovely collection. Including this quite action oriented picture of a minoan ship about to drop anchor:
View attachment 182844

Interesting link bergie, thanks.

 

[srm]

If we're looking for the "worst" ground tackle, wasn't there one contributor here who reckoned that the chain alone provided most of the holding power? No need for an anchor!

One winter in Shetland I laid a temporary mooring for a 42ft sloop from a 16ft inflatable: 50kg Bruce patent anchor and 15 fm of 1 inch studded link chain to a buoy in around 4 to 5 fm of water. From time to time I would get a phone call to say the boat had dragged, she had but only taking the full scope from north to south or back again. The anchor was lifted in the spring by a friendly fishing boat crew and judging by the marine growth the anchor had spent the winter on its side with just a bit of the side fluke buried. Perhaps in a calmer location the chain would suffice, but I would not like to try.

When anchoring wave monitoring buoys (Waverider) we just used a clump of heavy chain, but the buoy was spherical and less than 1 metre diameter. The largest wave I measured at the north end of Yell Sound was around 10.5 metres, off the scale top and bottom on the paper trace.

 

[boomerangben]

There’s no such thing as a worst anchor. It’s just that you have the wrong bottom.

I do have a fake Bruce that requires a JCB to dig a hole deep enough for it hold more than a few kg

 

[KevinV]

It’s just that you have the wrong bottom.

No need to get personal!

 

[Seven Spades]

I think the serious answer to this question is the "Sou'Wester" it was a cheap CQR knockoff and would usually lie on its side and drag along the bottom. Unless you were lucky there was nothing in the geometry to make the tip break through the surface of the sand to grip the bottom.

 

[NormanS]

I think the serious answer to this question is the "Sou'Wester" it was a cheap CQR knockoff and would usually lie on its side and drag along the bottom. Unless you were lucky there was nothing in the geometry to make the tip break through the surface of the sand to grip the bottom.

Exactly. The reputation of several perfectly good anchors has been destroyed by poorly performing copies.

 

[Cariadco]

CQR....my new Delta is a revelation.

 

[awol]

Facebook has just sent me this, no idea why!

 

[noelex]

CQR....my new Delta is a revelation.

I see you are very gradually working your way up the anchor performance scale .