Rocna on Mainship 40

Looking for a spare anchor before headin up to Desolation Sound. Thinking about a Rocna based on online research but not sure if the anchor cage on our Mainship 40 will accommodate the rollbar.

I don't know what the pulpit looks like on a Mainship. If it's like the one on our boat there are no problems fitting a Rocna except.... the anchor bail or keeper on the front that keeps the anchor and rode from jumping out of the pulpit channel might be too short to accomodate the height of the anchor shank. This was our problem. The Rocna 20 fit but the bail held it too tight to lie down in the channel. We lived with it for awhile and then we made a new, taller bail.

Photo is of the original setup with the anchor shank being held up in the air by the stock bail.

If your pulpit is the Bayliner-style slotted " designer" pulpit, then you may have a bit of a problem. I've seen setups with this style of pulpit where the anchor was held in a partially deployed position with the top of the rollbar hard up against the underside of the pulpit. Not the prettiest setup but it apparently works just fine.

For a 40' boat I would not get a Rocna any smaller than a Rocna 20 and a Rocna 25 would be better. If you believe in really big anchors then get a Rocna 30. (The model numbers are the weight of the anchor in kilograms. So a Rocna 20 is 44 pounds).

Rocna recently realized that that the use of the designer pulpit on a number of boat makes was limiting their market. So they designed a non-rollbar anchor to specifically fit this style of pulpit. It's called the Vulcan. It's not a Rocna without a rollbar, it's a totally different design. In essence it's a spade or scoop anchor. As we are not in the market for a new anchor I have read nothing credible about the effectiveness of this anchor. There's been speculation on this forum about its performance based on what it looks like that's not something you want to base a purchase decision on.

If you want to spend a fair amount of money you can also order a Sarca Excel from Australia. This is a plow-type design from the same people that make the Super Sarca, an excellent rollbar anchor. The Excel does not have a rollbar and so will fit a slotted pulpit. Kevin up in Alaska bought an Excel and from his reports he is very happy with his choice.

As Marin indicated Rocna recently introduced a non rollbar anchor. When I researched anchors I could not find any testing data, and I did not want to be a guinnea pig for their new anchor.

I did find posiitive testing data and good comments about the Sarca Excel, and can say that my estimated 20-25 anchoring experiences this season have been very positive.

Here are some pictures from a friends 40' Mainship with a 20 kg Rocna.

The Manson Supreme is a better anchor.

But not much better. It's superiority is in flexability. Performs over a wider range of circumstances but the fan club isn't as hyped so if you like anchor bragg'in rights the Rocna is the better choice.

This thread has already shown that. If you like to brag about your anchor nothing comes close to the Rocna.

manyboats said:

The Manson Supreme is a better anchor.

But not much better. It's superiority is in flexability. Performs over a wider range of circumstances but the fan club isn't as hyped so if you like anchor bragg'in rights the Rocna is the better choice.

This thread has already shown that. If you like to brag about your anchor nothing comes close to the Rocna.

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Eric, here we go with that bragging thing. VERY few people do anything to Brag. There are definitely braggarts out there but none on this forum. Get over it, and Rocna is an equally good or better anchor.

Come on guys. The OP, IslandSeeker, asked if a Rocna would fit his Mainship.

Larry that pulpit on your friends boat looks truncated.

Is it the standard fare? Looks like it was modified to fit roll bar anchors. Most trawlers that may want a roll bar anchor already have their anchor pulpit structures intact so most will either need to buy another type of anchor or change the structure on their bows. The future may exclude roll bar anchors as the market seems quite limited. And it could be saturated soon if it's not. Also many of the pulpits that do fit the roll bar anchors already have one. But not long ago I talked to a sales person at Fisheries Supply and he said they sell more Rocnas than all else put together. I think I'll ask them how it goes next time I'm down there. Perhaps a lot of boaters are buying the anchors w/o knowing if it will fit.

Something you're overlooking Eric is the popularity of rollbar anchors with sailboaters. I see as many if not more sailboats in our harbor or in the Seaview North yard with rollbar anchors as powerboats. And rollbar anchors fit just fine on a sailboat.

So the market for this type of anchor is huge. While some very popular makes of boat-- Bayliner comes to mind as the most numerous I've seen--- use the slotted pulpit, in the overall scheme of things it does not seem to be the most dominant kind of pulpit around. And that's just in our harbor. Expand this to the world (and there are more outfits that sell rollbar anchors on the planet than just Fisheries Supply) and the market is massive.

And, as I noted in my initial post, people have figured out how to carry rollbar anchors on their slotted pulpits. There have been photos of this posted to threads on this forum in the past.

Perhaps a lot of boaters are buying the anchors w/o knowing if it will fit

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I suspect not. A boater who is interested enough in getting an effective anchor is most likely going to be smart enough to figure out what fits and what doesn't before buying or ordering anything.

When we decided to learn more about the Rocna they were almost unknown in this region. While the company had a website it did not have the information on it that it does now. When I called Rocna in New Zealand to talk to them about their product I asked if they thought it would fit our pulpit. They e-mailed me a diagram of the anchor with the key dimensions called out in a table containing all their then-current models so I could determine the fit. I believe this sizing table or a similar one is now included on the company's website.

For us the big question was the pulpit bail. From the sizing diagram we were sent we knew it was going to be a very tight fit, which it turned out to be. But we figured if we had to we could make a taller one, which we ultimately did.

So I don't think people are buying these things without knowing beforehand if they will work on their boat. The OP in this thread is a good example. He's not simply going out and buying an anchor and then crossing his fingers that it will fit when he gets it home. He's asking the question first.

Eric: John did not modify his Mainship to accept a Rocna, I can guarantee that. Not his style. Here's a picture of when he bought the new Rocna. The other picture is of another 2005 Mainship's bow listed on Yachtworld. Same as John's. Mainship was in business from the 70's till 200? Maybe they changed anchor roller configurations. I'm just posting the information that I have trying to help the OP.

You could be right Marin.

Larry it's amazing how similar the shanks are on the Delta and Rocna.

Islandseeker shame on you! You said the "A" word. Look what you started. Besides which, the Vulcan is the coolest anchor.

"coolest anchor" ..... Butt ugly IMO. As anchors go the Rocna is quite attractive and it's hard to belive they came from the same source.

There's only one anchor that really looks cool ... Ultra. I saw several at North Harbor Diesel the other day and I don't see how any other can ever outdo the Ultra for bling and Beautiful lines.

Debating which anchor is the prettiest ("Beautiful lines," Eric???) strikes me as sort of like arguing over which dinosaur had the best-smelling poop. There might be a winner but it would be the best of a bad lot.

From a design point of view, every anchor looks like (s)crap to me. Functional, sure. But pretty? That's quite a stretch. Boats would look a lot nicer without that ugly, angular piece of rubbish hanging off the front.

This is a bad reproduction of just about my all-time favorite maritime photo. Taken by Alfred Beken in 1935, the boat is Tommy Sopwith's J-Class America's Cup challenger Endeavour. Imagine how crappy it would have looked to have a jagged piece of bent steel hanging off the bow.

You guys are so easy. I knew that comment would get you guys stirred up.

HopCar said:

You guys are so easy. I knew that comment would get you guys stirred up.

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Your "cool anchor" is okay. It was the "beautiful lines" that got me laughing so hard.

Marin, it's a sure bet that if anyone mentions anchors, Eric will get poetic on us.
That man do love anchors. He even gives us useful information sometimes. But it's easy to pull his chain. "Chain" get it?

So since the Rocna has lines, what is it, a displacement anchor or semi planning? Also if you attach a trawl to the tag Line hole, in the shank would it be considered a trawler?

So many questions, and so many unanswered....

Oliver, you are a trouble maker.

Oliver.

Now you will open this post up to Twin anchors, Petrol / Diesel ans so on.

But it was funny.

Manly Q. said:

Oliver.

Now you will open this post up to Twin anchors, Petrol / Diesel ans so on.

But it was funny.

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Didn't even think of that!

Oliver the only anchor that I said had "lines" was the Ultra. Not Rocna.

Marin I like your post #14. But I wasn't debating which anchor was the prettiest. There's only one that's pretty and I called it out .. the Ultra. No mention of others but the Claw cold be a distant runner up. Spade is good looking too but I said the Rocna wasn't that hard to look at as well. But someone will want to dismiss it as the "eye of the beholder" crap so I'll stop.

And HopCar the Vulcan would be one of your products .. right?
Good one about the chain though.

IslandSeeker said:

Looking for a spare anchor before headin up to Desolation Sound. Thinking about a Rocna based on online research but not sure if the anchor cage on our Mainship 40 will accommodate the rollbar.

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It may help to know whether you're meaning a 40' Double Cabin model from the '80s, or a 40' planing boat from the '90s, or a newer 40' Mainship from the 2000's.

And maybe a pic or description of your pulpit would help. Some generic pulpits have a slot through which the anchor fits, some mount the anchor over the end...

-Chris

I think the OP received his answer with the nice pic of the 40 with a Rocna, one thing we did was download the print of the model we were interested (need to piece together a bunch of printed pages) and then looked at it on place on the bow, the print was accurate and represented the real thing when mounted. Just a little FYI.

N4712 said:

So since the Rocna has lines, what is it, a displacement anchor or semi planning? Also if you attach a trawl to the tag Line hole, in the shank would it be considered a trawler?

So many questions, and so many unanswered....

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For the record, the Rocna's tag line hole (I assume this is the same as a trip line?) is not in the shank. The hole in the shank is for a tandem anchor, not for backing the anchor out.

I saw the Ultra anchor demo at the TrawlerFest in FL this past spring and it looked good (as all demos are supposed to). Has anyone actually pulled on one to see it set in anything other than sandy bottoms?

The polished stainless version of the Ultra anchor surely is boat bling, but will it keep you where you put it?

stubones99 said:

I saw the Ultra anchor demo at the TrawlerFest in FL this past spring and it looked good (as all demos are supposed to). Has anyone actually pulled on one to see it set in anything other than sandy bottoms?



The polished stainless version of the Ultra anchor surely is boat bling, but will it keep you where you put it?

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They only make them in stainless.

Bones,
Per Oliver I've not seen non-stainless either.

eyshulman (Ed) has one on his 48' Devlin coastal cruiser.

Eric, yes the Vulcan is one of my products. I'd love to say it's a great anchor but I don't know anybody who has tried one. I just think it looks cool. I'm going to replace my rusty old Delta with one but I won't get to try it for many months. I'm about to start a long redo project on Possum.

I'll give you that the Ultra is pretty cool looking too. It kind of looks to me that Canada Metal " borrowed" the Ultra blade design and that Ultra "borrowed" the shank design from the Delta.

Parks,
Looks like the upper part of the "tractor seat" is supposed to do the job of the roll bar. But it's way bigger and probably heavier. As a conversation pice it may be cool though. I haven't heard anything about the Vulcans performance either. I'll bet the Rocna is better though. There was a thread on the Vulcan some time ago. I thought by now we'd know all about it. Re the shanks perhaps Rocna snitched the shank from Delta. It's hard to find an anchor that dosn't resemble another anchor.

I cut the roll bar off of my Supreme but haven't used it yet.