More Anchor Testing

 It finally got warm enough to spend a day on the water, in-and-out of a kayak, and generally getting wet.

My modular testing system provides for over 100 possible combinations, but thankfully, many were eliminated early on as dead-ends. The convex fore-aft and convex toe-to-heel flukes disappointed; they did not penetrate the firm base layer well. Small differences in angle matter, but testing can be confined to combinations that showed promise. The Claw, Guardian (pivoting fluke), and Mantus anchors were tested as known reference points, since we have tested these at the same locations before.

So which combination is showing the most promise in layered Chesapeake mud? 

• The Guardian is VERY strong (>200 pounds, probably 500 pounds but we stopped at 200 pounds) when it reaches the firm layer, but in mucky areas it set less than half the time and never reset.
• The Claw never achieved anything we could call a "set." typically holding was 15-25 pounds, or less.
• The Mantus did well when it reached the firm layer, which was about 75% of the time. Holding was typically 80-120 pounds. If it did not reach the firm layer, holding was 35-45 pounds. 
• The odd looking split toe, no-roll bar anchor to the right is the winner so far. It set over 90% of the time, and holding was 120 to >200 pounds when it did. Getting it out of the bottom was a chore.  When it didn't reach the firm layer, it still held more than any other combination.

Why? I'm guessing at these things, based on testing in other configurations:

• The high shank helped it get deeper, through the muck. The Mantus penetrated a little more reliably with this shank too.  No-roll-bar seems to be an asset in muck.
• The roll bar did have a small advantage resetting in sand.  Let's not throw the baby out with the bath--except for very deep muck, it is likely the superior design. 
• Sharp toe. The split reduces the angle of the point. The Knox anchor (also split toe) is sharpened to a chisel instead of a point, and that is what we tested first, and it did well, about the same as the Mantus. Then we welded on a point and performance increased dramatically. 
• Angle. The fluke angle is a few degrees greater than the Mantus. We tested the Mantus with a greater angle, but it did not penetrate as well. We  tested the split-toe with the same angle as the Mantus, and it did well, but when we increased the angle it did better. The exceptional penitrating properties of the slit toe better tolerate the steeper (stronger) angle.
• They all set like lightning and securely in sand. The hold is over 50x the anchor weight (except for the Claw). All reset reliably except for the Guardian. If sized for mud, sand is not a problem.  

 

There are many more fine points. There will be a long (series?) of article in Practical Sailor covering all of this, but that is the gist of it.  

 The next step is to make a full-size version and test that all over this summer.  

  

 

Soil Types

I'm often told the Cheaspeake mud is like clay, but it's not clay. Mostly, it's fine sand and silt, with 10-25% organic content. The samples I have examined have relatively few particles small enough to be considered "clay," the shapes are wrong, and the mud lacks plasticity (you can't form it, for example, roll a snake between your hands). Mostly, it is a high-organic sandy loam. The high organic load makes it sticky when wet.

The beach areas are in the fine to medium sand range, with low silt and organic levels, but considerably higher than ocean beaches. The sand particles are intermediate in angularity and sphericity, with typically better holding than mid-Atlantic ocean sand, and better holding than coral sand. The only bite is that the sand can be thin, over impenetrable mudstone (set your anchor HARD to find out).

 Locations vary, of course. 

 

 

Mud Buckets

 

The Excel always came up clean, and the Hybrid MKI  did better than the scoops most of the time ...

  

 

... But not always (The Mantus was cleaned off--they were about the same). The crown is lower than the Excel (120 degrees vs. 90 degrees), which may increase fouling. The edge flange is wider, which improves setting and penetration of layered soils, but increases fouling. I'm thinking the next trial may be closer to the Excel crown angle (maybe 100 degrees) and an intermediate flange width. Both have a similar toe downturn. 

 

 

 

 The Knox set and held well, but it always came up clogged. The wings are as bad as a roll bar, and it seems that the high shank merely creates more space for mud and trash to accumulate. The split toe certainly does not improve release.

 

 

Anchor Testing

rev. 3-17-2026

 But different this time.

 Since I have become a competent welder, I've decided to break anchor performance down, one component at a time. Yes, they are interrelated, but it's where you start. The idea was spawned by having a number of Mantus M1 Dinghy anchors left over from testing. They are modular, coming apart quickly for storage under the seat of your jet ski. But even larger anchors, of many brands, have transitioned to bolt-together constructions to reduce shipping costs.  

I've started testing:

• Multiple sizes, from 4" to 9" fluke length.
• High, medium, and low shanks (Delta vs. Bugel vs. Oden).
• Multiple roll bar and wing options. 
• Multiple fluke shapes, including curves side-to-side and front-to-back. 
• Multiple fluke angles.
• Multiple crown (the joint between the shank and fluke) positions. 
• Shaping (streamlining) of edges on flukes and shanks.
• Fluke point angles. Down-turned toes.
• Split toe flukes (like Fortress and Knox).
• Sand and typical Chesapeake layered mud.

 

A whole fleet, with more than 100 possible combinations. 3-17-2026

 

What have I learned so far? A few things. 

• The most important variable, by far, is the fluke angle. A few degrees steeper, and it doesn't set at all in firm bottoms. A few degrees less, and it sets easily but doesn't hold as much.  The usable range is probably as narrow as 24-32 degrees.
• Shank shape and height, attachment method, crown position, and fluke shape, within a surprisingly wide range, make very little difference, as long as the fluke angle is correct. Some room for optimization. Balance can matter with a roll bar, and is vital without.
•  Chesapeake mud is more complicated than I thought. In open areas, exposed to tides, the loose stuff is washed away, and the bottom is more uniform (unless it is slate washed free of all sediment). However, in the creeks, leaves and detritus from run-off lay down a compost layer every fall, resulting in a mushy even semi-liquid layer that is too light to consolidate. Then comes the underlying clay, which is covered with oyster shells from centuries ago back when the Chesapeake was perhaps the most productive oyster grounds in the world. The challenge is super soft mud, which won't hold beans, over a layer that can be hard to penetrate without the right anchor and technique. Traditional answers have been either a really, really big anchor, or to let the anchor "soak" for 20 minutes,  sinking down through the soft stuff, followed by careful setting into the underlayer, which may or may not work, depending on the anchor type and setting method details (it's not just drop and back down).

Time to make some more models! 

 

 

 

 

If the step is too far (icy decks become a problem this time of year and my knees are getting older) add a railing. A pull-in line also helps.

The railing is welded from 1 1/4-inch square tube. It is attached with lag bolts, and the top is reinforced with a 1 1/2-inch steel strap around the piling. The paint has a non-skid finish. About 2 hours of cutting and welding, followed by painting and installation. 

 

Why You Don't Inject Epoxy into a Wet Deck to Effect a Fake Fix

 I tried to explain this over and over, but the editors always wanted articles on short cuts to fixing a wet deck. Well, injecting epoxy into mush is not a way to fix anything. It's not going to bond, doing a proper repair is more difficult, and now you have all of these holes.

 

Looked at another way, this is why smearing the surface to be bonded with mud and then working in the rain is not a good way to work with epoxy. It's not OCD to get things clean and dry, it's just ... obvious.

Telltail Locations

 Add enough and your sails will look like something from a wind tunnel lab. Yes, you can do well through experience and looking at the shape of the cloth, but they do remove some of the guesswork from sail trim. I've been doing this for over 40 years and I still appreciate a full set.

 The main leach tell tales can suck around behind the sail intermittently at the top when trimmed for peak power. The jib telltails should never suck back. Jib stall is worse than main stall since it will reduce the flow over the main.

 The  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tying Up a Wide Boat

 Tying up a wide boat can be complicated. I can only reach one piling from the dock.  The slip does not fit the boat.Currently, I use the black lines in the illustration, but as my legs get old I wish I could tie it nearer to the dock (a big step). But I must tie it well off to allow for tides.

I'm considering putting a pulley or low friction ring on the port bow line piling and lead the tail back to a cleat on the dock so I can adjust it from there. But I worry about chafe. The strong winds and wakes come from aft, so I can probably just keep an eye on it.

Gulls and Halyards

 Some attest they love the sound of gulls. It reminds them where they are. I think they havn't been around the water long enough to get sick of the screaming vandals. All the noise tells me is that I'm in a messy harbor. The Little Mermaid had it right.

"Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine, mine, mine ...."

As for halyards, I have no problem with stepping on an unoccupied boat and tying them off. They left a nuisance behind, so they have no reasonable expectation that someone board to fix it. When they see it tied off they might learn from that. 

[Once 40 years ago someone tied mine off. When I came back I saw the string and I was immediately chastened. It never happened again, not because I'm a great guy, but because it was an embarrassing lesson I didn't want to repeat.] 

 

Line Hangers

Whether halyard tails or docklines, sailors always have ropes to hang. A few ideas. Bags are good to, when there is room (the lines will grow more algae in a bag).

 Button Line Holders from United Yacht Manufacturing are my favorites for halyard tails. Easy to adjust or replace the string. Nothing snags on them. Comfortable to lean against.

 

 

For dock lines and other spares, I like these DIY aluminum non-snagging holders installed in a locker. I can hang multiple lines on one hook by slinging the coils. I've used them on several boats without a failure. Strong and light.

 

 

 

 

 Need a more heavy duty bender? Shif the spacing in the vice to adjust the radius. A bolt between them can help (home made).

 

 

Or really heavy duty. This is good up to 1/2-inch rebar and is what I used to make some of the yard art.  Home made, but you can buy them (mostly lighter duty). Very handy.