Stern anchor

M

Marcus E

New Member
Dec 14, 2010
97
Chesapeake Bay
Boat Info
340 Sundancer
Engines
8.1 Mercruisers
I plan to buy a stern anchor for my 2002 340. Not sure what type and size. I want the smallest possible (yet one that works) in order to store it under the cockpit bench seat. Also want to avoid speanding a lot of $$.
Thoughts?
 
If you want to save size and weight, then get a Fortress anchor. They are not cheap, but I use an FX-11 (11 lb) on a 30,000 boat and it have yet to pull loose, so you might be able to use a smaller one than that.

I understand the "avoid spending a lot of money" thing, but the most expensive money you will ever save is to cheap out on an anchor. All it takes is one pretty Fall day, the water temps in the 50's, a breeze off the beach and when you have to swim to retreive your boat that has swung to 180 degrees off the beach when the stern anchor pulls loose .........or to get caught in a thunderstorm and your stern anchor pulls loose and you are doing bumper boats with other boat owners where you WERE anchored.......and you will understand the wisdom of buying the best anchor you can find.
 
Exactly what I have, but I use it so rarely (never) that it stays under the sofa. I wouldn't want it in the cockpit.

Don
 
I solidly recommend the Fortress anchors for sterns. There are cheaper short term solutions, however ask yourself how much it'll cost to repair the running gear or to get a tow off that sandbar.

We have an FX-16, carry-over from the previous boat and an FX-23. The FX-23 has save our ass-ets on several occasions during wind or thunderstorms (so much so that we've dubbed the anchor "Sir Grabbsalot"), including once only a couple of weeks ago when a severe thunderstorm whipped up in the middle of the night. We had three boats rafted off of the dock at a friend's cottage and all agree that we would have swung into the seasonal dock without the anchor deployed. How much would that alone have collectively set us back? Probably much more than the $500 the anchor cost. We only deploy Sir Grabbsalot when we think he'll be needed, as it grabs so well that it's a pain to haul up in the morning. Probably overkill for your application.

Bonus is that the Fortress is very light, and if you're only using intermittantly, you can disassemble and store in a storage bag.

Paul
 
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I have the Fortress FX-11, it weighs 7 lbs, can be disassembled with a 7/16th wrench and nut driver in 2 minutes, and rolls up in a case or towel. (Frank likely has the 10 lbs FX-16) I like the collapsible setup for easy storage along with the mentioned light weight, and hold, wow it will hold. All this in a stern anchor. MM
 
fwebster said:
If you want to save size and weight, then get a Fortress anchor. They are not cheap, but I use an FX-11 (11 lb) on a 30,000 boat and it have yet to pull loose, so you might be able to use a smaller one than that.
Click to expand...

Frank, can you confirm you use an FX-11? Fortress's site claims it's a 7lb anchor. I would love to use this one as it would be easy to handle and store but I'm wondering if you may have the FX-16 instead which is 10lbs.

Currently I'm using an old 26lb steel anchor off my old 400EC but it's unweildly and prone to banging into stuff. I want it off the boat before it hurts something. I also had an 11lb PVC(?) coated anchor but it twisted and broke in a moderately heavy wind one weekend and I trashed it.
 
No.........I use the FX-11 as a stern anchor; I was mistaken about its weight.

In fact, I use 2 FX-11's with the lines crossed when we end up anchored with a lot of other boats . It seems that on weekends or holidays, as the day goes on, everyone seems to think "there has to be room for me in there somewhere". The result is that any wind or wake can put you on top of your neighbor so 2 Fortress anchors stops that completely.

I also use a Fortress FX-37 as a bow anchor. I have never had any of them slip or fail to set and I don't use chain on any of them....I just let out enough scope to handle the loads.
 
fwebster said:
No.........I use the FX-11 as a stern anchor; I was mistaken about its weight.
Click to expand...


Thanks Frank.

Let me get one more clarification. If there were no other boats around which would make you use two anchors, you would use just the one FX-11 and it sufficiently holds your boat even in a moderate to firm crosswind?

If so, that's awesome and worth every penny you pay for them.
 
I only need one FX-11 to hold the stern.

I use 2 in crowded conditions for 2 reasons........to eliminate any side-ways motion of the stern at anchor and I set the stern anchors far enough apart that they tend to keep people from trying to anchor right on top of me. There is something about a big, well cared for older boat that draws idiots and my fiberglass is too expensive to put it at any risk I can avoid.

To further clarify, this area is an all sand bottom with some sea grass. We have a barrier island that we all back up to on the bay side since it is protected. We do get sea breezes across the island from the Gulf and they can be 25 to 30 kts or more in storms/squalls. Most days, its a gentle 10-15 kts. I have never needed but one FX-11 to hold the boat in any conditions. I do not use chain on the stern anchor because it doesn't make sense to carry a 7 lb anchor and 50 lbs of chain to the beach to anchor. I just use a long scope. With a Fortress, the anchor is so well designed that the anchor's weight is only to get the anchor to the bottom. Once there the anchor sets itself and keep going deeper and deeper as pull is applied. On a windy day, I've had to pull the anchor out of 3 ft of sand to get it up. It is hard to explain how well these little guys do until you experience one first hand.
 
I use a plow style anchor and I keep it stored in the stern locker. Fits good and it's out of the way. Between the Gulf, Tampa Bay and and the ICW we could anchor is sand, mud or anything in between.
 
All the praise of fortress anchors is well deserved, I used the FX-11 on my 260DA and was impressed how easy it set and how well it held, even in storm conditions.

I also carried a guardian G-11 as a stern / back-up anchor. If you are looking to save a few dollars, this is a utility version of the Fortress that has most of the same great features and holding power, they are just not as pretty.
 
Fortress has a g series, much cheaper than the f series and they work great
 
Just a note to those who may have previously read the thread. I had thought my larger stern anchor was an FX-37 (working off diminishing memory...), when in fact it is an FX-23 (working off solid anchor). I also updated my original post. The FX-23 has solidly maintained its position, holding three boats (including my 560DB with lots of weight and windage) in a raft in a lightening storm when the winds switched around and whipped up. Any bigger and there's no way we'd be able to pull the thing out by hand...

Paul
 
Looked at several of my friends anchors this weekend and the vast majority were FX-23's. Several of them have 50+ boats. In the end I opted to split the recommendations down the middle and ordered a FX-16 for my 42' boat.

I can't wait for it to get here because the 25lb monster I've been using nearly drowned me this weekend when I was on my own leaving an anchorage in a stiff wind and no deckhand.
 
http://www.fortressanchors.com/guardian_anchors.html

As mentioned above the G series is the Guardian series which is what I use as a stern anchor. It is a high quality anchor that holds just as well as the F series and is somewhat cheaper especially for a seldom used stern anchor. I did get one big enough to be used as a backup main anchor if the need arises.

John
 
I also use a Fortress FX-11 but include a length of chain and keep it in the lazarette. I originally purchased this for a 22.5' to reduce the weight for manually launching the anchor (no windlass) and found it didn't hold the boat well at all on the champlain bottom composition (including chain). When I sold that boat I kept the anchor as a secondary for later boats. For a stern anchor, I find it does well and keeps me in one place. I see some here have good experience with these as a main anchor, but my experience on Champlain differs pretty dramatically.
 
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