Recovering an Anchor

[Hightower]

I'm interested in how you guys recover Anchors.

I Haven't acually used an Anchor for Solent Viper yet but in my previous boats I've always just hauld them up by hand.

I've been on other boats to include charter fishing boats that recover the anchor by attaching a bouy to the anchor line via a large diameter hoop. Then driving off with anchor rope attached to the boat somewhere and trolling the anchor though the water untill the chain goes though the hoop and the weight of chain keeps the anchor in place till recovery. In one charter boat, this method was employed and the anchor didn't break away from the sea bed causing the bow to turn abruptly and ripping the stainless bow grab rails from the deck.

Is this method safe to use and practical on a RIB if rope was attached to the transom?

[Pete7]

Andy, it's called an Alderney Ring, however if it went pear shaped you might be in touble, there is an awful lot of stuff on the bottom of the Solent to snag.

Try this:

http://www.ybw.com/forums/showflat.php?Number=2022750

Pete

[Hightower]

Originally Posted by Pete7

Andy, it's called an Alderney Ring, however if it went pear shaped you might be in touble, there is an awful lot of stuff on the bottom of the Solent to snag.
Pete

Yes I know Pete. I would only employ this method where I was assured of a flattish bottom. Fishing Bembridge would be a no no with this method and might even consider a couple of welded steel reinforcement stays as the anchor.

[BruceB]

I use a slightly modified rig that is easier to store. It consists of a bouy, a carabiner and a small piece of climbing kit.
The little bit of kit is an ascender but, although usually alloy and having moving parts, there is a version that isn't from Petzl. It consists of a chrome plated bent piece of steel with spikes.
I clip the krab to the bouy, put the rope around the rope and clip the krab through the ascender. Then use as normal like an alderney rig.
The anchor comes up and stays up suspended under the bouy when you stop and you simply pull the surface rope into the boat and lift the anchor in.
I also us the same system with a weighted grapnel hooked into wrecks although you need to take up the slack until taught before giving it welly to bend the hooks and release the grapnel. It you just bombed away when it caught it would probably do some damage!
This has worked for me for many years and once you start driving away the anchor lifts straight up so little chance of catching it on the sea bed! As I said I lift grapnels straight out of wrecks using this so the anchor/grapnel is in mid water immediately as long as you take up the slack first.

[Hightower]

Yes, so the secret to sing the Alderney Rig is to take up the slack first. Where do you tie of on a RIB? Off the transom?

[BruceB]

I just use the U bolt on the transom, the strngest point on the boat as the motor is pushing right beside it.
When using grapnels I pull in all slack then give a little bit of throttle till you fell the "ping" and then open her up till you see the bouy suddenly start moving through the water. Once it does this you know the grapnel/anchor it right below it and the ascender jams it there till you get it all in the boat.

[biffer]

on a bruce or like wise try using a trip, basic enough connect the chain not to the stock but to the shoulder end and then cable tie the chain to the stock end, if it gets stuck give it a good yank or motor under tension and the ties break and inverts the anchor, get it back on board and fit new cable ties

[Hightower]

Yes I use cable ties already, but great tip

[jwalker]

If you use this cable tie method, how do you prevent them breaking and releasing the anchor after it is buried and the wind changes direction?

[Hightower]

You seen the size of my cable ties

[codprawn]

Originally Posted by jwalker

If you use this cable tie method, how do you prevent them breaking and releasing the anchor after it is buried and the wind changes direction?

If you have enough scope out the pull should be fairly horizontal - even more so if you use an angel.

[Poly]

Originally Posted by codprawn

If you have enough scope out the pull should be fairly horizontal - even more so if you use an angel.

are you not assuming that the anchor is actually pretty free to move. If the anchor is well dug in will the chain not just drift over the the top of it?

IF THE ANCHOR IS NOT SET HARD:
With a shackle at the stock this might break the anchor out but you then expect it to reset in the opposite direction. Likewise with some really tough cable ties.

BUT IF THE ANCHOR IS STUCK HARD:
With a shackle on the stock you just stay where you were - but with cable ties you risk them breaking which moves the load on the anchor to the "head" and breaks it out - but it is then unable to reset itself as the pull is not on the stock.

[codprawn]

I agree I wouldn't use cable ties in bad conditions but for day to day use they are fine.

[PeterM]

I tend to just pull it by hand . Only one occasion when this was bloody hard work was when I had the full length out & no one to nudge the boat forward to take the pressure off the line.

By the end of the whole effort I was knackered , wet & could only just get to the throttle in time to stop me going backwards !

On my 4m its easy as its a light boat & anchore - 7.5 is alot harder !

[biffer]

not arguing with anybody today, done it with cable ties or light rope for nearly 40 years and my dad was doing before me and this method has never let me down and i have never lost an anchor, just lucky i guess

[no excuses]

been using cable ties for years, but I use several cable ties also

[jyasaki]

hightower;

I pull by hand. Start motor, idle forward while pulling in slack. You'll feel when you start to pick up chain, then you quicken the recovery (pulling) pace a bit, and hopefully pick the anchor up out whetever it was set in just as you cross over it. Set the motor back to neutral, and pull the hook the rest of the way up.

You generally do not want to try and pull the anchor without motoring forward, lest the hook short-scope and drag into something that you would have a tough time releasing from.

I've seen a couple of guys use the buoy method; it never seemed all that much easier to me.

jky

[Hightower]

Originally Posted by jyasaki

hightower;

I pull by hand. Start motor, idle forward while pulling in slack. You'll feel when you start to pick up chain, then you quicken the recovery (pulling) pace a bit, and hopefully pick the anchor up out whetever it was set in just as you cross over it. Set the motor back to neutral, and pull the hook the rest of the way up.

You generally do not want to try and pull the anchor without motoring forward, lest the hook short-scope and drag into something that you would have a tough time releasing from.

I've seen a couple of guys use the buoy method; it never seemed all that much easier to me.

jky

To be honest if I were anchored in 10m or so of water I would pull in by hand. However I am going to try some deeper marks 30 meters or more and the thought of pulling an anchor and chain up that distance makes my muscles quiver.

[BruceB]

My grapnel is a piece of 2" solid bar with 10m of chain attached, the anchor is a 7.5kg Bruce with 10m of chain attached. You do not want to hand lift this from 50m plus
Also when lifting shots after trimix dives, or any other for that matter, you don't want to exert yourself.
Using an Aldernoy rig or something similiar like the system I use is muuch easier although if it is just a lunch stop in a few metres I tend to pull the few meters up by hand myself........

[Gentiana]

Yes, Alderney ring ( home made ), chain and cable ties. I , however, always anchor off the bow eye. Two reasons, transome tying call pull the boat's rear too low when on a hard pull and rope near prop can be bad news. All FWIIW.