Mantus Anchors

Any anchor is better than none.

jeffnick said:

Any anchor is better than none.

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Not necessarily. If you don't have an anchor at all, you won't anchor in situations that could get you in trouble at 0300 when the wind kicks up and your anchor lets go. You'll be safely tied up at a marina or a well anchored (hopefully) mooring buoy.

Marin said:

Not necessarily. If you don't have an anchor at all, you won't anchor in situations that could get you in trouble at 0300 when the wind kicks up and your anchor lets go. You'll be safely tied up at a marina or a well anchored (hopefully) mooring buoy.

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That's a great point. Also, having an undersized anchor makes the worse sense to me. My friend had a 52 Santa Cruz and it's anchor was sized for a 30' boat. He did transpac's and the usual Newport to Ensenada races and never anchored until one time in Ensenada. That was a disaster for him.

Marin said:

So I know from trying to get a boat out of danger more than once that holding is WAY more important than ease of setting. That's not an armchair theory, that's reality.

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So an anchor that does both would be really good, right...?

Peter B said:

So an anchor that does both would be really good, right...?

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Absolutely. Which is why we bought the Rolls Royce (or Bugatti Veyron if you're more inclined in that direction, or Kenworth if you're more inclined in that direction) of anchors.

Marin said:

Absolutely. Which is why we bought the Rolls Royce (or Bugatti Veyron if you're more inclined in that direction, or Kenworth if you're more inclined in that direction) of anchors.

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In those terms, I sort of think of my anchor as the Range Rover of anchors, myself...oh sorry...for the uninitiated it's a Super Sarca..shoulda mentioned that 'spose.

This is all well and good, but I'm waiting for the video of the empty dog food can anchor!

-d

Sent from my iPad using Trawler

We had a party boat in our marina and it was used by several brothers and cousins. They were heavy beer drinkers and they loved cracking the beer can open when they finished it and tossing it over board. The boat never left the slip. Over the course of a few years they had tossed enough empties to ground the boat at low tide.

That was a Budweiser Anchor.

Guys its Greg with Mantus, I just joined the forum and found this thread. I would love to answer any questions.
greg

I'm building a new anchor pulpit for my boat and will probably buy a new anchor or two. I am still a long way from any purchase as I'm replacing the deck now first.

Greg,
Very interesting new roll bar anchor. Of course the roll bar is better off not there after the anchor sets just like the ballast in most other anchors but at least the RB presents some resistance ... not as efficiently as most flukes but everything is a compromise.

I do like the "ears" at the ends of the roll bar on your Mantus.. The Rocna and Manson Supreme have a sort of sled skid that positions the aft end of the anchor up a bit to induce a bit of "down angle" to the fluke tip for better setting. But your Mantus has an "ear" that provides considerable drag and helps (considerably I suppose) to force the fluke tip into the bottom. The skids on Danforths raise the back of the anchor for a better angle but offer little resistance or/for rotating power to force the flukes down. Nice design I think.

The Mantus dosn't look as strong or robust as the Supreme or Rocna but I don't doubt it's performance by just looking.

Compared to the Rocna, Delta and Supreme what is the throat angle of your Mantus? Anchors of this general type frequently (but not always) run out of holding power at short scope. I think it's related to the throat angle that I suspect is kept low to insure setting performance.

The anchor I now think will probably have the greatest holding power per pound is the new Manson Boss. I should probably get one but I already have 5 or 6 anchors and haven't dragged w any of them. Dragging stories are rare and that indicates most all anchors perform well enough and the reason I have so many is that anchors are a bit of a micro hobby. And in my experience with holding has never been a problem but setting has frequently been troublesome ... probably related mostly to the greatest variable of them all ... the bottom. Finding a good bottom (and most bottoms seem good enough) seems to be the best route to successful anchoring.

Mantus Anchors said:

Guys its Greg with Mantus, I just joined the forum and found this thread. I would love to answer any questions.
greg

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Judging from how passionate people on Internet forums can get over their choice of anchor & rode combination compared to all others, you must have a hide as tough as a rhino's!

Welcome aboard!

If I ever buy another anchor Mantus would be at or near the top of my list, so far the FX-37 Fortress has done a excellent job of setting & holding on the mud & sand of the Mississippi River.

Found some interesting stuff on the Mantus anchor.

Mantus Anchor Taken out for a Cruise

and what seems to be very good general info re anchor development....

A Brief History of the (Pleasure) Boat Anchor

On the left of the above link see "For more information on anchoring".

Eric, it's easy to see how and why it works, but I thought my Sarca was agricultural looking, that thing is plain ugly, and looks like it was made from bits disassembled from an old suit of armour...but that's just me...
Actually, for an example of a great anchor that does disassemble, Anchorright Rex's alloy Sarca Excel comes apart in a brilliant way, but is totally secure once assembled. Benn has one now. It's a tragedy you guys still can't readily access these. I wonder where Rex is up to re that issue..?
SARCA in Action - anchorright.com.au

Fortress Anchor holds to 350x its weight

manyboats said:

The anchor I now think will probably have the greatest holding power per pound is the new Manson Boss.

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Eric,

I have to humbly take exception to that comment. Over the past 25 years, our anchors have repeatedly held to over 200x their weight, even 300x+, during independent anchor testing conducted around the world.

Please find below a link to a short video from Voile, a French sailing magazine, aboard their test boat while they pulled a Fortress FX-23, which weighs 15 lbs (about 7 kg). It held to 2,510 kg before the test was stopped.....or about 350x its weight. No other anchor was close during this 2012 test.

Hopefully no one will be offended by the French profanity that was mixed in with their superlatives.

Regards,
Brian

Fortress Marine Anchors

Hi Peter,
I mostly put up those links for Murray. He's very interested in the Mantus.

I don't think it's ugly. Ain't no Swan either. Seems to get the job done but I'm not very impressed w the company. They seem too desperate to penetrate the anchor market.

I don't really see anything wrong w it except it has no history and the people making it are unknown. Anchors are almost a hobby w me so I could see me buying a Mantus ... it looks interesting. But I don't see what the average guy has to gain from buying a Mantus over the many proven anchors available. And since it isn't a swan like your SARCA I would think there must be some other motivational factor present to bring someone to buy a Mantus.

I like it but then .. I have an anchor even more strange looking than the Mantus.

Mantis anchor

Don't know anything about the mantus anchor, but using mantis mooring hook with the mantus bridle. The hook stays on and easy to take off chain when used on anchor chain Check it out on their website. Randal

New member here and new Trawler owner. 48' Kadey Krogen. Question about anchors. Bought the boat used and she came with a Navy type anchor, don't know Lb's it's not listed on the anchor anywhere, but it is big!. All chain rode. Wondering about changing the anchor to a "new generation" anchor like a Rocna. Any advice? I see some conversation about Mantus, but Rocna comes recommended by another Krogen owner.

Brian,
I missed your post and I stand humbly corrected. Your Fortress is the highest holding power anchor in the world as far as I know. I'd like to hear more from people using the Fortress as their primary anchor. I see them on some Coast Guard boats and I think that speaks well of them. Perhaps I should interview a CG Bosun's Mate?

Since tidal directions change several times a day here, my highest priority is an anchor that stays set by swiveling within the water's bottom material or resets with the greatest reliability. Secondarily, an anchor that doesn't bring up a mass of material/muck or have moving parts attempting to pinch my hand/fingers. So far, the Claw has worked well for me.

Sarca anchors in the U.S.of A.

Hi Peter, Eric and others,I have just noticed the Question from some of you quering the supply of our product into the U.S.

We would really like to have a distributor in your part of the world, unfortunately the large distributors demand something like fifty precent of wholesale, now this would be manageable if I were manufacturing in China.

There are a Number of reasons I won’t Manufacture in other countries, one is we have been manufacturing here in Australia now for twenty years; this allows us to continue to develop and keep a constant eye on quality. Most of the other reasons are discussed on your and other forums from time to time and are pretty accurate.

Please understand I am not saying what comes from these counties is rubbish; it’s just not for Anchor Right Australia.

We have found the smaller distributors simply don’t have the capital and are probably by now confused and discouraged given the amount of new generation anchors flooding the market.

Since my last entry on your forum we have been selling an ongoing chain of anchors not only into the U.S. but also France, recently 8 No 9 Sarca 143kg anchors went to Canada to a company for oil spill booms. Quite a number of Excels are now there

The way we have been doing this is I cannot disclose on your forum as it would probably be pulled because of advertising, at the moment I am just answering the question.

Anyone of you can send me a PM then I can fill you in but landed costs internationally one anchor, we have now managed to land at very similar prices to that here in Australia.

Never the Less anchor Right Australia have an excellent reputation over twenty years here in Australia and New Zealand, it is unfortunate that it misses the history books in its achievement’s but never the less the company continues to grow of which keeps us very busy.

Regards Rex.
CEO of Anchor Right Australia.

manyboats said:

Brian,
I missed your post and I stand humbly corrected. Your Fortress is the highest holding power anchor in the world as far as I know. I'd like to hear more from people using the Fortress as their primary anchor. I see them on some Coast Guard boats and I think that speaks well of them. Perhaps I should interview a CG Bosun's Mate?

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Hi Eric,

That's a good idea. I talk with "Coasties" on occasion and always ask about the performance of our product. You can Google the following USCG boats and you should be able to find a listing of the ports where they are located:

47' Motor Lifeboat (MLB) - uses Fortress model FX-37 as their primary anchor
87' Coastal Patrol Boat (WPB) - FX-85
110' Patrol Boat (WPB) - FX-125

Newer boats
45' Response Boat Medium (RB-M) - FX-37
154' Fast Response Cutter (FRC) - FX-125

The FRC (images below, one a close-up of the bow) displaces 353 long tons, almost 800k lbs. I don't know of any 70 lb anchor (FX-125) in the world that would have the remote possibility of being approved for use aboard a boat that size. They have (2) FX-125, one is for back up.

Regards,
Brian

Using the USCG as an example for anchors is a bad one.

Look at the way they anchor their vessels...well in fact...when was the last time you saw a USCG vessel anchored? Thought so...I was in the USCG for 23 years flying operationally for around 20 and I'm not sure I ever saw one anchored except for their ships in remote areas.

They tend to think of anchors for emergencies or a lunch hook.

Not to take anything away from Fortress and what they are...but don't use the Coasties as a yardstick...I was in their procurement and naval Engineering section long enough to see how/why they end up with "equipment".

And a final comment...a lot of seasoned, intelligent cruisers fiercely defend their anchor and anchoring style/system...a lot of time because it works for them and their boat but doesn't mean it's the right set up for all cruisers and all boats...thus using the Coasties as a yardstick is a mistake unless you "cruise" like them (doubtful).

psneeld said:

Not to take anything away from Fortress and what they are...but don't use the Coasties as a yardstick...I was in their procurement and naval Engineering section long enough to see how/why they end up with "equipment".

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Thanks for your input. I don't really have a clear sense of how often our anchors are used aboard which boats. I have made it a point to try and talk with the Coasties when they call in to order replacement parts or a new anchor, and I would venture to say that their 87' patrol boat is the one which uses and abuses their anchors most often.

Awhile back I spoke with a crewmmate from the Gulf area in Texas and he wanted to order a new anchor. I asked why and he said that the Gulf waters were too rough for their patrols, and so they had anchored out for 3 days. When it came time to leave, they could not retrieve the anchor and so they had to cut it loose.

Typically when they call to order replacement parts, it is because they got the anchor stuck (sometimes in rocks), and they had to mangle it to break it free.

A few years ago, Bollinger Shipyards contacted us to ask for help in getting the FX-125 approved aboard the new 154' FRC that they were building for the USCG. Bollinger had built the 110' model many years back with the FX-125 aboard, and when they proposed this anchor for the much larger & heavier FRC, the USCG challenged them.

The USCG had calculated that the anchor aboard the FRC had to provide 13,000+ lbs of holding power, which was the force of 70 knots winds and 3 knots of current, as I recall. After much discussion about the bottom conditions for which this holding power had to be achieved (good holding bottom, not soft mud), we were able to get their approval after we showed them the US Navy and our own independently verified holding power test data.

So for a manufacturer to get their anchors approved aboard these boats, you must have indisputable high holding power numbers by or from very creditable independent sources, regardless of whether the USCG expects to use the anchors regularly or not.

Much appreciated,
Brian

psneeld said:

Look at the way they anchor their vessels...well in fact...when was the last time you saw a USCG vessel anchored?

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As a matter of fact, I see them anchoring often in my back yard...San Diego, Bay.

I made an inquiry to mantus and received. A phone call from. Greg. As a result i drove to the annopolis boat show and purchased. 105lb from Greg. I have to say. He was very helpful. And accommodating. Mantus customer service is very good. I will report back in 2 months how the actually. Works

SeaHorse II said:

As a matter of fact, I see them anchoring often in my back yard...San Diego, Bay.

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Same boat....night after night, month after month?

....yes they anchor for events, practice and occasionally when visiting ports that can't provide services/slip space (rare)....

they don't do it like cruisers......

psneeld said:

Same boat....night after night, month after month?

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Probably! (The Bay, however, can't tell the difference and they are anchored. )

>our Fortress is the highest holding power anchor in the world as far as I know<

Perhaps by the pound , but todays anchors hold because of their shape not mere weight.

I would love a side by side of a 60 year old Danforth H series with a same AREA , not weight ,aluminum Fortress

Would be interesting to see if the steel version broke before the aluminum copy.