Windlass anchor systems

[Lowlysubaruguy]

my almost new 26 foot boat ( it was new now it’s not) came with a quick windlass that requires there specific rode that is crimped with this tiny ring.

Quick told me that A normal spliced rode would work however that is not the case.

my desire is to have 600 feet of line 30 feet of chain. Having Quick make this is absurdly priced which I can wrap my head around but I cannot wrap my head around the two to three weeks to get one. Fact is I could just order up another windlass for the cost of two rodes and chain from quick so long term it’s cheaper to just change now. There could be an occasion where I have to replace my anchor and waiting three weeks for one would kill my vacation. I want to be able to have one made on the spot or faster than three weeks without paying special fees and shipping.

Any advice or maybe someone can point me to someone who can make them for me.

What is really stupid was the 60 foot of rode that came with my boat were they that cheap or thinking I was going to anchor in the marina. They should have just saved me the money and not installed one to begin with. But at least it’s wired for one and has plenty of storage space.

 

[tpenfield]

Got any info on the QuickUSA model and any pictures of the special rode/ring?

 

[JoLin]

Something you need to consider... is your anchor locker deep enough to accommodate that much rode? With all the rode down in the locker, you need a good 12-18" of "free fall" depth left beneath the windlass. Otherwise the rode will pile up instead of pulling itself down. The result is constant jams at the gypsy. No fun when you're trying to retrieve the anchor.

I started with 180' of rope and 20' of chain. I gradually had to whittle the rope down to about 140' before it stopped backing up.

My .02

 

[Lowlysubaruguy]

I have room for quite a bit of rope 300 feet in there right now with a lot more space to go. Its made to hold 500 to 600 feet of rope I bet.

My tablets not link friendly at times I cannot get the link to move from Quick but a search for Quick anchor rode and chain will pull up a link that shows a picture of the crimp. Its a thin ring thats crimped and possibly glued right at the chain link. Its a very thin collar ends up being the equivilant of one link of chain I think.

 

[JoLin]

Was curious, so I did a little research, including a discussion thread on another forum. Also looked at the "crimp" you were talking about. Appears Quick uses that thin metal clampy thing instead of making the usual rope-chain backsplice, which is thicker and is a common hang-up point where passes through the gypsy. One post I read stated that his backspliced rode sometimes hangs up at the gypsy on his Quick.

I can tell you from experience that having the rode hang up during retrieval on a breezy day can get exciting, unless you have a lot of room to drift while you straighten things out. I for one don't anchor when I'm boating single-handed. I need the admiral at the bow and locker in case anything jams up.

No easy answer here. Sorry.

 

[tpenfield]

Here is a picture that I found on the web for the QuickUSA rode splice . . .


Not sure what the pull rating is on the rode, but I assume that is the crimp that the arrow points to . . .

Lowlysubaruguy I assume you tried the rode with a regular rope/chain splice. Just wondering why you would need/want 600 feet of rode. The deeper you go the less scope you tend to need. If you can get by with less, then your cost may be more manageable.

Anyway, with a crimp like what is shown, I'd want to make sure it was done right . . . not much extra rope beyond the crimp for any slippage. So, maybe you can get a shorter length from retailer stock.

 

[Lowlysubaruguy]

I will anchor in 100 to 120 feet of water in the ocean. 300 to 400 feet is probably Ok given that I will only purposely be anchoring at this depth when the winds moderately low and the current is predictable that being said Ive returned to the surface from a dive to find everything up top had changed drastically in in that hour regardless of what the forecast was. But none the less even a 300 to 400 foot custom made rode and chain is big money and hard to come up with from Quick.

Next the river I live on is one of the fastest large rivers in the world if I needed to anchor here in an emergency in fast current and happened to be in deep water it would take it all to do so. I do not want to drift ashore here it is all huge jagged rocks. Mid Columbia River is no matter to take lightly. My small boat I use 80 pounds of anchor and chain a rubber cushion an 100 foot of rope to hold me in 25 feet of water to give you an idea what it is like and the waves wind and current still create conditions I cant hold in and my anchor is fierce. I will not normally anchor the new boat in deep water here but a mechanical failure in some stretches of this river can require me to anchor and quickly I wont be able to paddle this boat away from the rocks in some of these areas.

I have tried a woven rode and it will not feed unless you stop and hand feed it past the weaved section. This is a pain if alone and defeats the whole reason for having a windlass to begin with.

Its why I am thinking about changing to another brand or type of windlass before I shell out the money on a custom made rode and chain from Quick. They really dont sell any pre made rode and chain in any configuration id want. I may try to have a section of rope spliced on the opposite end and see if that will feed through well enough to just buy one pre made and have another section of rode attached to it. But that still doesnt solve the time line to get a replacement if I need it. If I were to loose an anchor on a vacation and had to wait for a replacement it would alter my trip in a way id rather not. I would like to be able to walk into a boat shop and buy one or have one made in a day or two.

And Im a little leery of that crimp to begin with maybe its fine but whats it going to be like after a great deal of use. Will I regret it some day when my anchor breaks away and i surface and my boats gone? A pair of my buddies anchor broke a couple years ago and they got to swim for the boat fortunately the sea was calm and the current was low that day.

The real question if no one knows who can build me something that can work for quite a bit less is what windlass would you replace it with. I think the Quick is probably fine for some people its just not ideal for my needs. And Id rather fix that sooner than later right now its almost new and I can recoupe some of my money by selling it. Whole boats only got 28 hours use on it right now. Its only made one retrieval.

 

[JoLin]

Tough decision. You mighr want to talk directly with a Quick rep. It actually could be that they've found a "better way" of reducing jams. Get an explanation of how that rope/chain connection is made and how you would know if the crimp was getting ready to fail. You can also ask them about making a custom rode for you. When I ordered my GOOD rope/chain windlass they were happy to add 10 more feet of chain to the pre-packaged 200'/10' rode. No sweat. They'd make whatever I wanted.

As for alternative recommendations, I like my GOOD. It's very quiet and pulls like a tractor. In addition to the usual rope-grabbing ridges on the gypsy, it has a cogged wheel that positively engages the links in the chain. However, they are NOT cheap.

 

[Lowlysubaruguy]

Quick is happy to make me a custom rode and chain theres a time lag and the price of this is almost triple what a normal rode and chain runs. I can buy a different windlass for the price of two rodes. Quick told me a normal woven rode should work but it will not. This is probably a great windlass for somone needing 200 feet or less rode. Im remote there’s not a place to just go look at options for its replacement.