What anchor to get

[Russ]

The 17 lb Bulwagga is correct and is the one I have is well. There is no 15-lb Bulwagga, or at least there was none when I bought mine in '02.

The Bulwagga is a great anchor and I recommend it, but it is a serious pita to store, deploy and retrieve.

Okay, I was this close to ordering a 17# Bulwagga until I read your post.

I understand the shape is hard to store. There are creative solutions to that problem.

Why is it a PITA to deploy and retrieve?

Actually the shank slides in when pulled backwards, so that looks appealing if it gets caught on a rock (or cable like my old Danforth did).

[Catigale]

Not a PITA if you dont mind a bow roller (another 100 bucks or so)

A PITA without the bow roller though.

[craigsmith]

There is independent testing and feedback to help you in your search.

You don't need to worry too much about your specific bottom types, as modern anchors are intended to work just about anywhere. The Bulwagga was designed originally to solve the problems of older anchors in grass and weed, but it also works very well in sand and mud.

Whatever you do, just don't go with an outdated CQR, Bruce, or Danforth

The 10kg Manson Supreme (or even better maybe is the Rocna). This anchor grabs and holds extremely well. It has a roll bar to turn it up and digs in deep in just a couple of feet and it retrieves easily. It is a bit of a storage issue but we sleep well. I don't think you'll go wrong woth one of these.

The Supreme performs well (but not quite as well as) because it's a copy of the Rocna - but it's a rather poor knock-off in terms of build quality. Go for the genuine item.

***

SAIL's 06 anchor test includes most types available today:
www.rocna.com/press/press_0610_wm_sail_testing.pdf

West Marine 07 catalog summary comments (they sell some of these but at the time of publication not the ones they give the better comments to):

[James V]

There is a long discussion about anchor test on the SSCA forum. The anchors that tested were advertise or sold by the companies making the test. That does not mean that these are not good anchors but anybody canNOT set an anchor right.

[dreamer]

I was at the Toronto boatshow yesterday looking for a primary anchor for the 26M I ordered on Friday. Found a nice stainless Bruce style. I thought I would need a 17lb according to charts I've read for a 26 ft boat but mac dealer said I only need 11lb because the mac is a light boat. I've searched the archives but couldnt find specific weight recommendations of a Bruce. Tailking to some people at the show and they recommend the 17lb. I do plan to overnight. My secondary would probably be a 15 pound danforth. What do you guys think?

[Divecoz]

I was at the Toronto boatshow yesterday looking for a primary anchor for the 26M I ordered on Friday. Found a nice stainless Bruce style. I thought I would need a 17lb according to charts I've read for a 26 ft boat but mac dealer said I only need 11lb because the mac is a light boat. I've searched the archives but couldn't find specific weight recommendations of a Bruce. Talking to some people at the show and they recommend the 17lb. I do plan to overnight. My secondary would probably be a 15 pound danforth. What do you guys think?

Dreamer dont follow in my foot steps. I have both those K.O.'s Bruce/Claw. . . Danforth/Happyhooker. . . . . I bought what I thought was good equipment it now sounds to be less than that.
I . . . 3 years later have yet to really test it. The Claw/ Bruce K.O. really fits nowhere well / nicely, so if I ever really do need it I hope it works better than it stores.
Here I found this 25% off on the hydrobubble and it appears to rank as high as the rocna
http://www.hydrobubble.com/

[ChrisP and Pam]

Hey Craigsmith,
I like your anchor, I really do. But whenever I have seen your postings, you always seem to be selling instead of posting. Do you ever talk about anything other than the Rocna and the Supreme 'knock-off'? I gave my credit card to one of your distributors in Miami and he dropped the ball. After that I had to buy from an outfit in Canada and the shipping and taxes pushed the price to around $380 with a 6 week wait time. Anyway it was too much and too long so I went with the Supreme from West which I had that week for over $100 less.
You are each avoiding some good features because of patent infringements. The two anchors are so close in design already that you both are looking like down-under head-cases with a double-identity. Please, stop with the negative advertising and take the best of both anchors and combine them and sell in volume at a reasonable price. That's the way to serve the boating public and plenty of money for everyone. You could outsell them all and rise to the top of the pack!

Sorry to be so blunt but that's what I see.

Chris