Messages

1) Use the correct size hole saw & mandrel from either Starrett or Lennox.
2) Use a 1/2 drill that has some power! Drilling through fiberglass is tough work on a 3/8 drill.
3) To avoid chips tape the surface with blue tape then drill the center pilot hole.
4) When starting the hole start the hole saw in REVERSE and keep it in reverse until you get through the gelcoat layer!

#4 Is a little trick I learned from one of the workers at Hinckley Yachts! Starting in reverse will minimize any gelcoat chips and with the tape you'll be fine! This "reverse" trick works with any size hole saw and also works of fabric headliners etc..

Tip #5 Buy a standard size marine speaker like A 5 1/4 or 6 1/2. You will eventually need to replace them and want a standard size! Consult the manufacturer for the proper hole saw size as a 5 1/4 or 6 1/2 inch speaker does not use a 5 1/4 or 6 1/2 inch hole saw etc...

I like Sikaflex 291 LOT. I have no idea what the LOT means but the stuff is great. It's a polyurethane & bonds similarly to 4000 UV or 4200 but retains 700% elongation before break where 5200 and 4200 are roughly 300 to 350% elongation at break. Most of the top quality boat yards here in Maine use Sikaflex..

[In my 37 years of boating I've NEVER had an anchor set so definitively and abruptly as the Manson Supreme or hold as well!]

Hi All,

Even though I don't own a 34 I do watch your forums because there are a lot of similarities between the C-310 and the 34's. Unfortunately the C-310 assoc is lacking so I frequent the C-36 and 34 sites regularly.

[Added bu Stu Sept.1, 2014:  the C310 skippers can be found here:  http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/forumdisplay.php?f=111]

I would recommend seriously looking at a Manson Supreme, Rocna or a Steel Spade (not the aluminum version I have one and it stinks compared to the steel version I also have). I've owned just about every anchor made and still own them. My CQR never even gets dusted off any more and my Bruce is on loan to a buddy who never anchors. The Delta is not a bad anchor but also nowhere as good as either a Rocna, Spade or Manson Supreme. I anchor out a lot and my Manson Supreme is now my primary anchor. I actually physically test my anchors and put them through the paces and compare them to each other. I also keep an anchor log book with scope, wind, depth, bottom type and anchor used for each anchoring. The Bruce and CQR were good anchors a long time ago, and still are, but when compared to some of the newer designs they just don't compete in the same arena.

Below is a video of my Manson Supreme in a very hard, intertidal zone showing off how well it penetrates hard bottom types. I drive my truck on this intertidal zone to launch my brothers Boston Whaler! When I tested My CQR here it wouldn't even bite even after four tries. I have no affiliation to Manson or any other manufacturer & these tests were done for my own piece of mind and to get a better understanding of how an anchor works on the bottom.. In the picture below you can see why the Manson sets and holds so well. The cross section of this anchor is sharpened like an arrow head. In my 37 years of boating I've NEVER had an anchor set so definitively and abruptly as the Manson Supreme or hold as well! I can literally drag my CQR 25 around a cove with upwards of a 10:1 scope, and my boat in reverse, at 80% throttle. My 33# Bruce is similar but does finally set and hold.

Home Made Mason Supreme Video
http://www.dropshots.com/day.php?userid=86200&cdate=20060313&ctime=160000


I'm not trying to slam the CQR, Delta or Bruce as they are all ok anchors. It's just that the Spade's, Manson Supreme's and Rocna's are excellent anchors and after driving a BMW I could never see going back to a Pontiac if you know what I mean.. I can't tell you how many CQR's I dove on, over the years, that were basically being used as a rock connected to chain. Probably 60% of the CQR & Bruce anchors I have witnessed on the bottom, in coves or anchorages, have been sitting on their side with about three inches of the tip barely caught in the bottom. I'm not saying CQR's  can't be set, they can & I used one for 6 years, they just require more skill and patience to set, & set properly, than the newer designs. From my musings over the years I would have to say that close to 50% of boaters, both power and sail, but mostly power don't even know how to set an anchor or attempt to! I've witnessed lots of catastrophic, vacation ending, dragings leading to serious hull damage over the years and every one still haunts me. Perhaps I take anchoring a little to seriously but the cost of an anchor is small compared to a six figure boat. This picture http://www.rocna.com/press/press_0612_wm_ym_testing.pdf is exactly why NOT to use a CQR. When diving on mine this was the set more often than not even after multiple attempts at getting it to set. Click on the link and look at the picture of the CQR. It's laying on it's side and is NOT set. For a CQR to be properly set it must be vertical like a plow!!!!!! This picture typifies the "rock on a rope" most sailors experience, but never realize, due to the relatively benign summer conditions we mostly encounter. The funny thing is this was a picture that was displayed in Sail Magazine representing anchor tests! Usually the rock on the rope holds till morning giving a false sense of security until a breeze pops up.

I use my Fortress as a dedicated stern anchor a job for which this anchor is perfect. It's very light, to set out in the dinghy with, and holds like pit bull in one direction. It can be tough to set on a hard bottom due mostly to its weight but I have never not been able to not get it to set after a few tries. The anchors on my boat are a Fortress (stern), Manson Supreme (primary) and Spade S-80 (backup). The CQR collects dust in my shed, the Bruce is on loan to a friend with a power boat and the Delta I let go with one of my boats I sold.

Both the Manson and the Spade cost less than the CQR but the Manson has much more surface are per pound than the Delta, CQR, Bruce or Spade because it does not need added lead "tip weight" like the Delta, Spade or CQR.

The anchors pictured below are my CQR 25 lb, Manson Supreme 24 lb & a Spade 35 lb. Look at the surface area of these anchors and you'll see that a Manson has as much surface area as most 35lb anchors yet it only weighs 24 pounds! The sharpened tip also penetrates eel grass and weeds far better than any anchor I have ever used.

Picking the right ground tackle is only half the battle. You also need good technique, proper scope and you MUST set your anchor by either back winding the sails or using the full reverse power of your motor other wise you have a rock on a rope and might as well be using a cinder block.



-Maine Sail
http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising