Dear all,

i m currently renewing the windlass and chain on my boat , Danú.
boat is 17.3 tonnes , 13m , steel.
looking at various information i have read it seems that given the weight and length that 10 mm g40 calibrated chain would be suitable . I am thinking of putting in 80 m chain.

does any one have any advice on whether to go to 12 mm or 10mm ?

Regarding the windlass, I like keeping with the manual anchor idea yet most windlasses available are electric.
There is a company still producing simpson lawrence seatiger 555 windlasses (SLSPARES UK) which seem to have a good reputation.

has anyone seen these in action ?

great to hear your suggestions / opinions on this.

thanks

Peter Owens , Galway , Ireland

Hi Peter – am taking another stab at a reply, using Dick’s suggestion of drafting offline. That failed, so I will post it in sections – apologies for this.

First of all I do concur with all of Dick 's & Simon 's comments & suggestions.

As to the Vulcan (we have one), as I mentioned when we spoke, it is indeed an excellent anchor. Like all scoop type anchors it sets and holds very well. It was designed by Peter Smith for boats that cannot handle a roll bar – powerboats for the most part. It did fit ok on our bow roller, but our boat is old and quite pointy. It would not work on boats with plumb bows, unless they have bow rollers.

As to your comment re cost, please consider what you think your life is worth, plus what your boat and its contents are worth. Then consider what might be willing to spend on insuring these. If your anchor fails in a storm, there is a pretty good chance you will die – particularly when sailing hi high latitudes.