I am frustrated!!!!!!

I am an avid layout hunter and am having trouble with keeping my layouts tight when we make transfers with the tender. Sometimes, we aren't efficient in getting the transfer quickly, and then the wind catches the 24' tender. It will move the layout out of position. It is a pain in the a$$ to then re-set the layout when the decoys are out; difficult to get the anchor to hold.

I have tried a river anchor, which is a 20 pound V-anchor, and that will not hold in current, let alone tugging by the tender. I have just tried a Danforth anchor (for a 28' boat thinking that it would hold the tender), with 4 feet of 5/8" chain. That seems to hold when I first drop it and then set, but then the tender will pull it out on a transfer of hunters.

The bottom where we hunt is mud/clay, so I believe the Danforth would be the best choice. We typically hunt 3 - 6 feet of water, and running about 25 feet of line off the back of the layout boat.

Do I need more anchor line? (If so, is there a weighted line to make it sink?)
Do I need more chain?
Do I need a different anchor?

HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLP

Steve

I'm guessing a 10 Lb danforth? 25' in 6' of water should be about right.

Try setting the anchor with the tender and backing down under power. If you get the anchor to dig in you will know it even in a tender...

If wind and current change you may have to reset the anchor.
The only reason to shoot a 10 Ga...
Eights ain't Legal!

Have a Good Day
Bob

I have a homemade grappling anchor made out of 3 sections of 1/2 rebarb welded together. It's about 16 inches long.
I also have a Richter anchor but it's a l14lb I need the 18 lbs.
I use 6 feet of chain on all my anchors. I anchor in the Delaware river and the Susky which both are rocking ripping rivers.

If you didn't throw in that muddy/clay bottom part I had the answer for you.

Here in the Chesapeake I use a Mighty Mite anchor. It's just a weighted grapple anchor. Add 8-10' of chain and I almost never have a problem holding on most bottoms...sand, mud, oyster beds...etc.


The biggest problem with danforths is the lack of weight. That's your problem. The soils can't support the force of the boats and such without help from some weight. Add 20 lbs of lead to that sucker and see what happens. Use twice as much chain as you think.

or just find one of these puppies on e-bay.



Let's see some pics of that beautiful rig of yours too!!!!

-D

OK Bob,

Thus far, I drop the anchor and then drift, take up the slack, and then pull it hard into place.

Should I drop, go in reverse, and pull it hard in gear?????

Thanks,
Steve

Yikes,

Dave,

I am getting used to the new forum!!

I think that is the problem; lack of weight. For my tender, I use a 36 pound mushroom anchor and that baby holds! I thought I could use a different anchor system for the layouts, but I think I need to go up in weight.

Thanks,
Steve

Yep add some weight.

Drop that sucker, cleat it off to the bow and back away from it under power. Nothing crazy, but enough to really set it well. When it's tight deploy the layout and start setting the rig.

I must say I really like this new forum. Much less typing to post pictures, hence the rediculous anchor.:-)

-D

More weight will help some, but I think you need adanforth with longer ears..or one of those things that look like a plow. Set it well with the tender in reverse. You may never get enough anchor to hold the tender in a big wind..it's pulling the layout anchor sideways....Are you hunting with just one other guy? On windy days try to find a third so the helm isn't empty while changing out shooters and have your switchout on the downwind side of the layout .Getting any ducks?

Yea back down under power! My best guess with a danforth / weight / chain/ and scope you were saying in a 24 footer w/ outboard 115 hp? If its a good bottom it should hold your tender in the conditions I'd want to be out in... If you got a gale or storm warning heck I don't go in a big boat let alone a tender not to even think about a layout boat..

The NICE thing about this fourm is the Knolegable people that will share what they know to keep others out of trouble and from having to reinvent the wheel.
The only reason to shoot a 10 Ga...
Eights ain't Legal!

Have a Good Day
Bob

Thanks all!!

I will try some new things this weekend.

Lee, the hunting has been slow!

Best,
Steve

try a bigger anchor and dig it in.

ok maybe med anchor compared to the earlier one shown :)




Death and taxes may be the only things certain in life, but at least death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets.

Support waterfowls future and take a kid duck hunting!

important part. Rough water recommendation for anchor tactics is four to seven times the depth of the water for scope of rope and then chain before the anchor. The best is a med. size link (say 3/8") for ten feet or more and then a heavier link to finish at the anchor (say 5/8") for at least ten feet. The idea behind the chain is to keep the anchor down and digging in. If you are in any kind of mud a prop. rigged danforth is your best bet and will not pull if you have enough rope and chain.
Caution: if rigged prop. you may need a ball and loop to safely get it out of the mud if you don't have a windlass on your tender.

If you can't get the danforth to work an eelhead or kedge might work.

Steve......Sometimes in hard clay and mud a Danforth will not set properly by just the weight and pull of a small Layout....Then when you do a transfer the stress of the Tender...particularly when sideways to the wind pulls the Anchor.....Try making sure it is set with the tender before hooking up to the layout.

I personally like a big Navy Anchor for the Layout...and again big enough to hold the tender. At Long Point Danforths will weed up before setting properly.

25ft of line is probably a bit short.....I use close to 50ft of anchor line...I find it actually takes a bit of the swing out of the layout as compared to a short Length.

Hope this helps

Gar
Make Mine a Canvasback

We use 20 lb. or heavier Navy anchors, at least 4' of chain, and at least 40' of line for just about everything, everywhere, including river currents, tides, mud, rocks, sand, clay, weeds, fresh, salt, etc. Waters deeper than 10-12', we run as much as 100 feet of rope.

The extra weight (vs. a 15 lb. danforth or similar) is a little bit of a pain but it's a lot better than having to reset everything all the time. Everything gets set with motor power from the big boat.

fwiw I like the galvanized ones a lot more than the coated ones, especially when hunting over rock bottoms.
********************

Chippin' away...

If the bottom is as you say, set it under power as BOB says and a Danforth that size shoudl hold anyting you have. Drop the anchor, pay out the right amount of line or more, cleat it off and slowly drag until it catches, then increase power. Once it is actually set it will hold the boat at 1/4-1/2 throttle or more.

One thing is that with a Danforth once set they aren't the most resistant to forces applied sideways against the set direction. So if the anchor isn't set upwind and the tender is applying a tangential force the anchor can slip. I really like the claw anchors for that reason.

T

Sent you a PM Steve. I had a post here but it got blown out when I tried to add a link, so I'm not gonna take the chance again. I'll walk ya through everything in email or on the phone.

Steve I would agree with a lot of the above advice.

7:1 ratio for your scope.
Chain the length of the layout
set the anchor with tender under power before dropping layout in water
Danforth should work but if you want to go crazy I know this one will work for you.
http://www.rocna.com/home.php?region=na

Good Luck

Dear Steve,

You have got some great advice already. Since you have 2 MLB Supermags, and since I am familiar with your location, here is what I use to set an even bigger boat (MLBII), and hold it in place, even when I am alongside with my 21' tender.

For water depths that you deal with, run your big Danforth with chain, attached to 50' of good nylon rope. At the end, attach a Size 1 Stainless Steel snap (we sell them, as do many hardware sources). Purchase a 10# mushroom anchor, and attach another 1/2" diam. nylon rope, 50 feet in length. Tie a bowline knot to that mushroom anchor, leaving a loop in the knot, about the size of a man's fist, where the anchor line will pass through the mushroom anchor. You will also need another Size 1 S/S heavy duty snap, as mentioned above.

Either make, or purchase boat bridles for your Supermags from us.

Here is the method for setting this anchor system;

Attach the boat bridle to the S/S eyebolts on your Supermag/s.

When ready to deploy the boat, first pitch off the Danforth, allowing the line to pay out. When it has done so, attach the S/S snap on that same anchor line, to the loop in the second anchor rope... the one attached to the 10# mushroom weight. Allow that second line to pay out, and attach it's S/S snap to the hog ring on the boat bridle.

Now, you have 100' of anchor rope upwind of your layout, with nearly zero degrees of scope from the Danforth style to the mushroom weight.

I travel a lot, and am fortunate to hunt a lot of big water. This system, regardless of the bottom of the body of water, has held my MLBII in sometimes, very rough, very windy conditions.

Hope this helps.

God Bless you and yours, this Christmas Season.

Mark Rongers
Mark Rongers

I have read the posts referring to your anchor question with interest find no recommendations for a Bruce or Plow. Both accepted anchors and the first two choices of the Trawler Crowd. I have a 5lb bruce knock-off holding my heavy 18' old Starcraft very well. Trick is, stay with the rules of 7-1 anchor rode to water depth. One more gotta do---get plenty of line ready, about 10 feet heavy chain maybe 2"links and set the anchor a resonable distance from the front of your rig--back down on it then let out the line needed-to drift back to the layout boat--I used to do a lot of layout hunting and that was the first rule of thumb. Only once in like thirty years did we have a problem. My cruising buddy has a 36 Albin Trawler--total weight in the tons----one 25lb plow normally does the job in all the Bahamas trips I've been on. PM me if you need more info---I am leaving for FL and will be about 15 minutes from Capt. and he is the first person I ask any boating questions of. Merry Christmas Jerry.
Jerry Priebe

Jerry,
Plows and CQR's are nice but very heavy and not as easy to store/stow as a danforth. If the bottom is mud then chain will help more than anything else esp. when used with the scope mentioned above. Fortress makes an aluminum version that is light and still works well if rigged right. The first two will have the same problems if the scope is not long enough.