12 replies to this topic

[Randy Jones]

I like the idea of adding a bow roller to my CS17.  What do others do to prevent the anchor chain from abusing the deck?  Also, do you remove the achor while trailering? 

[tom151]

I like the idea of adding a bow roller to my CS17.  What do others do to prevent the anchor chain from abusing the deck?  Also, do you remove the achor while trailering?

On a small boat, I only use a chock at the bow for the anchor line. The anchor & chain are launched and retrieved from the cockpit (having the line already run from the cockpit, over the deck & forward thru the chock, then returning outside of any rigging/lifelines etc. to the cockpit where the remaining rode/chain and the anchor are kept). I prefer to use plastic laundry baskets (of appropriate size/shape to fit the cockpit lockers) to hold the rode, chain, and anchor - in that order (anchor on top). Always make the bitter end (out the bottom of the basket) permanently fastened to a hard point somewhere - every boat is different, YMMV. Rig it up before you leave the dock/ramp for your trip - and you can easily launch/retrieve from the cockpit (well, easier than going to the bow I think).

Cheers,
TomH

[Hirilonde]

I don't even use a bow roller on my 27' Renegade.  It is a nice feature, but I don't like having a battering ram on my bow and I can still manhandle my anchor easily enough.  When I have installed windlasses on boats I add an unfinished teak plate to the deck under the path of the rode as a chafe protector.  It looks good, works, can be sanded when worn and replaced when needed (which is a really, really long time.

[ecgossett]

I found a SS bow roller for under $50 on ebay that matched the dimensions that graham recommended in the plans. With a simple bowsprit made of mahogany from an old dresser drawer front, and then bolted on it's a decent setup. I store the rope and anchor in the forward hatch, and the end is tied to the PVC tubes for rowing handles in bottom. Usually when I run out whatever amount of rode that I want I simple tie it off around my main mast.

 

The longer SS assembly keeps the chain from messing anything up. A simple quick release rope and make it easy to release the anchor. I've only used that method twice, its really not hard to get the anchor out and throw it out.

 

To get the bowsprit to fit I wound up carving the underside to match the deck better, and in the end covered the bottom of the mahogany in plastic and made a bed of thickened epoxy, then set the plastic covered sprit onto it to make a decent mold.

 

Options that I have considered are a PVC pipe coming up from the stowage compartment right behind the SS bow roller, so I can auto feed out the line. Problems with that are sealing the opening, and those times that you dip the bow under the waves. I can say with multiple dippings under waves last year, I never got any water in the forward compartment, and besides epoxying the bolt holes to seal the wood, I didn't use any caulk or anything on bolts. I think the thickened epoxy bedding created a decent watertight seal even though its not attached to the bow sprit.

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[PAR]

I fail to see the need for this type of arrangement on such a small boat. The last thing you want is a bunch of weight up in the eyes of the boat. Most simply use a leader from a bow cleat and toss the anchor over the side, from the cockpit. This makes dropping and hoisting easy, keeps weight off the bow and anchor and rode are stored midship, where the weight doesn't hurt anything. That setup looks like it belongs on 30' powerboat, not a 17' day sailor.

[Hirilonde]

This forum needs a "like" feature, as facebook uses.  You're as grumpy as I am Paul  

 

[ecgossett]

That roller has handled superbly in rough conditions. when the boat is getting bounced around. The wood and roller are not that heavy. Most of the time I heave the anchor over the side, then set the line up on the roller. Sleep comes much easier, I've never had any problems worrying about a battering ram.

 

I based my roller upon Wes's which I really liked. http://www.roguepaddler.com/cs20r.htm

 

PAR when the 17' day sailer get's subjected to a lot of overnight use, and other fun its nice to feel secure when sleeping on the boat, or somewhere comfortable on an island. With a rope running to shore I don't worry about much except during this last camping trip the hard rain that came down all night was keeping me awake in the wee hours wondering how full of water the boat was.

[Joe Anderson]

All weather beaten curmudgeons should bear in mind that "we are such stuff as dreams are made on." 

 

Further a man's boat is his castle and he should be allowed anything aboard her this side of a portcullis.

 

I look forward to the variety of approaches presented on this forum from the stripped down nothing aboard that does not contribute to safe and efficient passage to the fanciful boat of dreams. 

[Chick Ludwig]

I've used a bow roller on several of my boats and really love the convenience for storage and the quick deployment and retreival of the anchor. The durn thing comes up from the bottom packed with mud most of the time in the gunkholes I anchor in, and the roller keeps it out of the boat. As for the weight forward, i've got a cranky old outboard hanging way vback there on the transom to balance it. And as for not allowing the boat to pitch with the waves---if it's that bumpy out there, I ain't going out anyway. Besides, it looks kinda shippy hangin' up there...

[Tom Lathrop]

OK I belong in the grumpy old curmudgeon camp too.  One thing that is really great about boating is that each skipper is the king in his domain.  That is as long as the USCG or a band of  pirates are not aboard.  As seldom as an anchor is used aboard Lapwing, it is stored in the forepeak and secured to the samson post on the bow when in use.  Have never used any chain on such a small boat either and the anchors don't drag in shallow water.  If water was deeper or the bottom less forgiving, a bit of chain would be used.

 

Edited to say that when Graham and I had Southern Skimmer and Lapwing in Maine for the Small Reach Regatta, we used my 9# Danforth with the usual 6' of chain from my 22', 3000# sailboat for anchoring both boats overnight in tandem.  Common sense is always good, rather than dogma for any situation.

[PAR]

I don't use chain leaders on small craft either, though this may be the bottom type I'm accustomed to. I have sailed small boats  with a fair bit of ground tackle and equipment, in their noses and have to admit I can feel the difference it makes. on the boat's handling, which I don't like, especially in a necessary, rough slosh to windward. My comments weren't intended as a Jack Lemon interpretation, but just a bit of over kill on an easily handled boating chore. I've found a leader from the bow cleat, take I can loop the rode too, makes things very simple. The anchor is handled from the comfort of a seated position in the cockpit, the leader used to place the rode anywhere in the forward portion of the boat and for initial recovery of the rode. Tom is correct, each skipper develops his own rigging personality, be it ground tackle, sheets or self steering. No two the same and none better for each owner than any other.

[Scott Dunsworth]

The Belhaven is a heaver boat than the ones being discussed on this thread, but I always wished I would have designed a bow roller set up while building her from the beginning. I like them being built in from the get-go instead of looking like and add on. It was always hard on my back to retrieve the anchor and boats length of chain trying to hold it all out far enough not to bang the hull up. On my new 28 it will be built in and self storing. Haven't decided on a windlass as of yet, they are heavy and expensive. But I will frame and wire the boat up to accept one, so if needed it won't be a major undertaking to install one.

 

Scott

[Howard]

At some point you do cross the threshold where having an anchor an anchor at the ready on the bow makes sense (vs. having it stowed below). It may be a matter of how its used vs. size of boat. The attached picture is of a really nice anchor setup a guy built for a Montgomery 15. That might be a 9# Delta, which is what I have for my Montgomery 17. That whole setup would seem to be overkill for a boat of that size. Nice though.......very nice. I have experienced the same thing bringing my anchor up on the M17.........trying to hold the chain and anchor far enough away from the topsides to keep the mud off and the metal from dinging up the topsides. Getting it out is not the issue. Getting it in is.

 

What is also lost in the discussion is what Paul and Tom were alluding to and that is the wisdom of hanging that much weight that high up on a small boat and in the ends. On sailing boats of this size, the weight is much better off in the bottom of the boat and as close to amidships as you can get it. It's not until you get a boat with some size on it and one that is being cruised and anchored a lot that having an anchor sprit mounted up there pays off. Of course a 4# Danforth is not as big an issue as a 30# CQR would be.

 

I've also heard that 22# is about as much anchor as the average man can horse aboard without the benefit of a windlass. It's not just the weight of the anchor, but it may also include the chain rode and maybe 50# of mud. So if the anchor is properly sized to the boat, somewhere around 30' is the length limit for boats that do not have a windlass.

 

Once upon a time, Lewmar made a manual windlass that closely resembled a sheet winch. It had the rope and chain gypsy, but was cranked horizontally with a sheet winch handle. They are no longer available. Either they didn't sell, or didn't work. But as far as a tidy package, they were it.

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