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Rocna anchors


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Been a plough man all my years with out any issues , but with a furler and fitting a anchor winch I see the plough will damage on its way over the deck , I watched a rocna winch home very neat up over the paw under the furler and with no effort , will be wanting 10 kg size , any issues found with these , seam very light compared to the plough,

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There is a large amount of all purpose fixed shank anchors.

In essence you can divide them up into two groups. (Not including Danforth or Bruce for good reason)

The flukes go up, and the flukes go down.

Most of them have similar shank lengths and angles, compared with an old school CQR or plough anchor which has a longer shank, and that annoying floppy bit.

 

There is so much "information" about anchors.....

They are crap if the boat has dragged....and amazing if the boat has survived a severe blow...

A million variations and permutations....(including personal pride and prejudice and a need to sell the product) are involved.

 

Of the above mentioned group, claims of vastly different performance between them is simply not founded in reasonable science or proof (unless they simply break or bend).

 

There is a small amount of physics that says that the flukes go up type, have slightly more burying and therefore resetting ability compared to the flukes go down (plough head shape) In sea bottom that an anchor will actually bury in....

 

These are the Rocna and manson supreme plus a few others and now a great many well built home versions.

 

The flukes go down are the Sarca and delta type plus a few others and a great many well built home versions.

 

Even within the well known , most vocal, brand names, there has been variation in manufacturing and material specifications...

 

All things being equal, science dictates that a smaller , lighter anchor cannot hold better than a heavy, larger one.

So...given that most fixed shank anchors will probably sit and set better than a CQR on your bow and bottom...

...that 'as big as can be safely managed and stowed"...

Dont be to worried about your choice...

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If you are dead set on a rocna buy a shovel. Same design with 2 small improvements, constructed with same materials, same country of manufacture, 1/2 the price.

Interesting, the current "Boating and Outdoors" catalogue says the Shovel is "NZ Made", has Rocna returned to NZ manufacture?
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Excel.

I’m on my 3rd.

Best option in NZ.

 

 

I'd listen to Km on anchors all day long+.

Love my Excel.

 

Just  not so much on conservation.....haha!

I can't speak highly enough of my Excel.

I make sure the kids are sitting down now before backing down on the Excel. Like backing into a brick wall. It sets and stays set.

 

PS, I had a plough / CQR, was never sure if it set. I'll find my test photos.

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Photos kind of say it all really. Arkles Bay at low tide. Similar bottom to lots of spots around where I am in the Gulf.

I towed the plough up and down the beach in a figure 8. Didn't matter what I did, I couldn't get it to set.

Excel set immediately.Excel.jpgPlough.jpg

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Have had a Rocna and now on an Excel. I find the Excel a better anchor for a wider range of situations, but, as SM has said, you do need to use good technique/practise when deploying it. But then, ought we not be doing that all the time anyway?

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Yes my 25 llb plough is great and trustworthy, the rocna has a unique edge on the bottom of the shaft if you study it when it rides up in the paw it elevates , then when let loose it slides off with out any assistance to a point where it tips off the boat So when the chain is released the anchor is off it was that I was interested in where’s the plough on my boat you have to give it a shove The comments are all interesting even from the designer

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I changed from 25 years of plough and Danforth use to a Rocna 10 years ago, it's performance has been nothing short of stellar, totally trustworthy , and it's on the small side of the size threshold for my boat.

It's the last of the kiwi ones as I understand it, I haven't been able to bend it. I know there was a bad batch of sub standard steel when the manufacture went to China first, but I haven't heard any bad things recently once that was addressed.

Like Steve says , the new generation anchors were a breakthrough and became much easier to set, you don't need to finesse them in like the old cqr, I'd still trust a plough as long as I knew it was in properly.

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Thanks KM. Rare common sense comments from within the trade. We've used everything from the old fishermans pick, good but needs heavy chain and impossible to stow, thru danforth(great but hard to stow ),plough,delta,grapnel,rocna and from experience a lot depends on how you set it. The Jaffa method of roaring into the bay at 7 knots and letting it go makes it hard for any anchor to set.Rocna suits as a good all round easy to use example and hasn't let go...yet.

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I changed years ago from a Manson CQR to a NZ Rocna.

The main reason was a single event with the Manson.

We were anchored in a bay with smooth, firm sand. The Manson was well dug in, been on it overnight. About 10am next morning, we could see a front approaching, and had a 180 deg wind shift, coming in at about 25 knots. The Manson pulled out, then simply slid on its side over the sand for 100 odd meters, while I watched it.

The Rocna would never do that unless snagged. Its dragged 4 x in over 1000 nights at anchor. Three times it was fouled in rubbish, once in weed. Modern anchors are a huge step forward.

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Various anchors used, and the range of variables in anchoring makes comparisons hard.  But moving form a CQR to a Rocna while often anchoring in the same spots was pretty compelling proof of the difference.  I would never buy a CQR again.

 

Had an Excel and only negative was that it slowly but surely moved through light sand where other anchors didn't. Don't know why.  Dived on it, no wiser.

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