Anchor advise

[pabs]

Hello all
I have a Honwave t40 sib with a 20hp.
I am a novice to the sibbing world.
Much of my time has been spent on a kayak fishing rivers and the south coast. I found that a divers reel loaded with 100m of 3mm para cord and a grapnel anchor was ample for my needs.
Now I have the sib with the obvious increas in size and weight I feel the need to upgrade. The new larger anchor that came with the sib will be fine but I need to know what rope I will need.
I have a huge reel of 6mm polypropylene that I intend to use left over from a builing job.
Can anyone advise me if this will be suitable or will the 3mm para cord still work.
Also how do you guys store your rope on the sib.
Many thanks
Pabs

[The Gurnard]

Hi Paps..I can only answer what works for me..but Im sure that will give you pointers to your requirements.

I long ago gave up grapnel anchors in favour of a bruce type anchor. Grapnel can be unreliable and fold when you don’t want them. Bruce are great for most places I stop. So saying..I still use a small grapnel as a second anchor..and use it for anchoring my SIB on beaches or piers etc..where I can physically set it by hand.

I do leave my 4.3m SIB plus 25 HP engine anchored in bays etc..unattended during overnight camping trips..so want to make sure its there when I go back in the morning. I don’t anchor in deep water..but I have an aux engine..if my main engine breaks down in deep water.

I keep around ..100 ft of 8 mm rope on an old electric cable extension reel.. (for no other reason than I had it to hand). Anchors and reel sit in part of an old fish box that I keep up front. I made a few compartments in the fishbox..and keep another 150 feet of rope in the middle watertight box..housed in the fishbox (all storage materials were found on the beach..as jetsome...so cost me hee haw) The extra rope if for the second anchor..or if required for deeper water

If the 3mm cord you have is strong enough ?..and doesn’t hurt your hands pulling it in..I see no reason not to use it ? SIBS are not that heavy or draggy that they need major ropes.. but then again..more strain is on it if you anchor in fast flowing tidal waters...so you will know better than me what suits you. Personally .. I prefer thicker softer rope... . as its easier on my hands when retrieving. A lump of chain is needed..it helps set the anchor and softens the pull when the SIB is buffeted by waves. I have around 3 m of chain attached to the bruce anchor

Hope that helps some

My fish box furniture up front in 4.3m SIB

My rope and anchors in their compartment of the fishbox.

[chris moody]

I believe polypropylene rope floats, so it would not work very well as anchor warp. It is also advisable to have a length of chain between the anchor and the anchor rope, otherwise the anchor will not lie flat on the seabed and is likely to pull free and drag. I would go with a 1kg or 2kg Bruce anchor, about 4 metres of chain, and then maybe 6mm non floating rope

[Tony1267]

hi I have a seapro340 and parsun 9.9 engine I'm still using my kayak style anchor with diving reel bouy and chain and anchor I find its still up for the job plus I can still ditch it and go back if anchor jams up :-)

[pabs]

Thanks for all the advice guys.
Tony, do you use para cord(3mm) on your divers reel for the anchore rope??.

[philpot]

I still use my kayak anchor and divers reel for my F-Rib 330 on the Humber and it works fine however the anchor size had to be increased to 1.5kg which to be honest makes the divers reel a bit small to wind the anchor warp back in. As The Gurnard says, the thicker rope is easier to haul than thin parachord. It is really down to the conditions that you anchor up in and how strong the flow is which will really determine the warp/anchor size you use.

I did make a large reel from a plastic cable spool from Wicks which I scrounged as it was empty and fitted a door knob on each side, one on the right leading edge and one on the left trailing edge so it worked like a bike pedal but never really did much with it to be honest as most of my use is on fresh water nowadays so I threw it away.

The blue poly rope used on building sites can be very rough to your hands when hauling the anchor with cold conditions.

Phil

[chris moody]

Why not get one of those flexible plastic buckets with moulded handles in the sides (found in garden centres) and just flake the anchor warp and chain into that. Bitter end of anchor warp just ties to the handle, then flake in the rope (warp) first, followed by the chain, and then lay the anchor on the top. It's then all ready to deploy. You will need to drill or burn a few holes in the bottom of the bucket to drain any water.

[mattswan2512]

I had mine in a crate from B&skew that cost about £3 lasted a season before not lasting anylonger as its not very sturdy (well it was 3 squids) but has handles and being a crate lots of drainage for water run off and did the job. Just spend a bit more and it will last alot longer. Flaking the rope into the crate is simple and i never once had a tangle even when in a rush anchoring up at different points i just bunged the warp and chain in the crate and anchor on top simples. My boat now has an anchor locker but i dont spend ages laying the line in perfectly and no problems pabs.