Gogarty wrote:
In article ,
says...
* Rosalie B. wrote, On 4/24/2007 8:43 PM:
Jeff wrote:
* Rosalie B. wrote, On 4/24/2007 11:00 AM:
Jeff wrote:
...
We have an all chain rode so I can't answer the question about the
combination rode, but we have the old S-L manual windlass and it works
just fine for us. We got it second hand at Bacons
After he wakes up, Bob goes up on deck and pulls the slack out of the
rode, and then goes and shaves and then comes up and pulls out some
more slack, and then cooks his bacon and gets some more slack out and
then eats his bacon, and by that time I'm up too, and we start the
engine and motor up to the anchor and pull it the rest of the way. He
washes off the chain as he pulls it, and when it is clear of the
bottom, I motor off while he finishes stowing the anchor.
I think you just proved my point about how tedious the S/L manual
windlass can be!
You may think of it as tedious. We think of it as relaxing. We are
not in a hurry. We don't have to be anywhere. If the weather is bad,
we can just stay there.
When I had an all chain/manual windlass setup I was frustrated when I
found I wasn't happy with the location. Perhaps the conditions
changed, or a newcomer arrived, or perhaps I just missed or
miscalculated my intended spot. The hassles of raising the anchor
meant that I generally didn't bother and thus ended up being unhappy
about the spot. Now, with lighter gear plus the electric windlass, I
reset the anchor about a third of the time, and I'm always happy.
This is a valid point, but happens very seldom to us. First, if you
are there first, and someone else anchors there and there is a
problem, it is up to them to move, and not you. It happened to us
once in St. Augustine where a little light boat on a rope rode swung
more widely and quickly than we did, and we had to move.
Anchoring in Mile Hammock Bay, we kept drifting back out of the
dredged area, and then someone came in and anchored over our anchor.
But they left very early, and we were only there for overnight, so no
biggie.
Bob is pretty anal about where he anchors, and possibly we don't
anchor as much as you do.
The advantages to a manual windlass are -- you don't have to have a
battery set up to run it with either long cables to the engine and
main battery setup, or long cables from the main battery bank to the
bow.
Well yes, an electric windlass means electricity. I always thought
the extra battery was a bit silly, but running the wire is no big deal.
Bob just didn't want to do it. He felt that a long cable would have
unacceptably high losses over the run of the cable.
You don't need an extra battery and you certainly don't need to put one way
up in the bow. Batteries wear out. Just run the cable to where the
batteries are and install a good 100 amp (or greater) circuit breaker next
to the batteries. The cable will never go bad. The batteries will in due
course.
We have two fairly large battery banks instead of a bank and a starter
battery.
On another point, not all electric windlasses have manual override. On our
Lewmar, you can launch the anchor if the battery is dead or the motor
burned out but you can't get it back except by man-handling it. Our motor
did die after five years. Local automotive elctrical shop rebuilt it.
But you have a point that the electric windlass is one more
complication to worry about. Of course, most have manual backup.
There's less chance of trying to use the windlass motor to pull the
anchor up and burning it out.
This is a weird reason. I would think that after cooking four or five
you might figure it out.
Never have had one, so there was nothing for me to figure out - it
just seems like all the anchoring directions caution about this so it
must be a problem for someone.
We've been on a boat like ours with an electric windlass and thought
it was a little dangerous.
I admit I came close to having a finger sucked up a gypsy once. That
was a harsh lesson that fortunately only cost a bandaid! But I also
through my back out on a manual once, so I'd guess they're about even.
It just made me nervous to see that chain zipping through. But I am
NOT a strong person, and I can operate the S/L without straining my
back. We have a long (home made) handle because our second hand
windlass did not come with one. So we can stand upright and work the
handle back and forth. What were you doing to throw out your back?
We do NEED a windlass with all chain and a fairly big anchor.
There's certainly no doubt about that. I've come to the conclusion
that I can anchor just as reliably with lighter gear - a mixed
rope/chain rode plus lighter Delta (or maybe Spade) rather than a
heavy CQR or Bruce. But that's a different discussion.
I don't know what you call a lighter anchor for our boat. We have a
45# CQR, but have never used it. Considering the weight of our boat,
our anchor (which is a #55 SuperMax) isn't very large. There's a
couple of people in our group who have #75 anchors. We also have a
big Danforth on the stern.
We got all chain because we intended to be in the Caribbean with a lot
of rock and coral. And of course with all chain, we don't have to
worry with a mixed rode on the windlass g
grandma Rosalie
S/V RosalieAnn, Leonardtown, MD
CSY 44 WO #156
http://home.mindspring.com/~gmbeasley/id1.html