Nomad Willy
Guru
I bought a new and exotic anchor four years ago and it did'nt set very often. Not much good but I did manage to get it to set just before a gale in Alllison Anchorage on our way up to Alaska w Willy (our boat). It blew over 50 knots for a day and a half and held fast the whole time. That anchor weighs 14lbs. This spring XYZ came out w a new version of the XYZ Extreme anchor. The first attached pic is of the original and the second and third is of the new version. On my recent trip to Petersburg and Wrangell I used the new XYZ 3 or 4 times and tried it out once before leaving on the trip here in Thorne Bay. The Thorne Bay anchor test was done without any chain. At a scope of 1-1 the anchor bounced along and produced little tension on the line. At 2-1 it dug in a bit twice but pulled out both times. At 3-1 the anchor set and pulled out and set again. On the trip I used 3' of 1/2" chain and 10' of 3/8" chain. The XYZ set every time w the chain at 3-1 scope and generated lots of tension on the line at 1200rpm in reverse. Using the same method of laying out the anchor my Manson Supreme (both my XYZ and Manson are 18lbs) set less decisively. The Manson never developed the tension in the line that the XYZ or even my 13lb Danforth consistently did. I suspect the Manson would do better if given 5 or 6-1 scope as it always ranks high in the anchor tests. Now when I expect rocky bottoms I use the Manson and otherwise use the XYZ. All the XYZ stuff can be seen on the XYZ web page and I see they have newer versions than mine. I have'nt used the new anchor in extreme conditions but if (IF) it holds like the original this could be the worlds present highest performing anchor. Theman behinnd the XYZ (Dragomir) wants me to find a big fishing boat and pull fwd at high throttle on my set XYZ. Have'nt done that but if I experience extreme high performance or problems I shall report.