Sometimes Bigger Is Better

It’s been a busy couple of weeks out here on Vacilando – in preparation for our departure, which will be here before we know it, we’ve been making repairs, changing out parts, upgrading our batteries and other odd jobs which end up turning boating into a full-time job.One of the “bigger” changes we’ve made to the boat is our anchor. Until now we’ve been using a 35 lb. CQR  on about 40 ft. of 3/8 chain and 250 ft. of rope rode. We never had a problem with this set-up but we weren’t anchoring in anything crazy either. That is until we entered Charleston Harbor and had to anchor in a strong current with a short rode, with tons of boats, all which swung in different directions. No fun and no sleep!Luckily our CQR held up just fine, but after that experience we knew we wanted a little more holding up front. I liked the new design of the roll-bar type anchors and wanted to try one. We looked at Rocna and Manson as possible options but we also discovered a new company called Mantus Anchors whose anchors are designed by a Doctor and a former Nasa Engineer and we really liked what we saw. The concept closely aligns with the previously mentioned anchors but what sets the Mantus apart is first, there are no cast parts on this anchor and secondly, you have the ability to disassemble the anchor and stow it flat.

I did have questions about the strength and integrity of the bolts and the possible crevice corrosion issue that might arise but I spoke to one of the designers and he explained that each of the 4 bolts that hold the shaft to the fluke has been overly engineered to take the entire load of the anchor. There’s a special grease they send (which you see on all the bolts in the photos…that’s not rust!) that you apply to the bolts to help seat them correctly.  They also have a pretty cool YouTube channel with several videos that demonstrate their holding power underwater in various conditions which we watched extensively before making our choice.

We received our new 45 lb. Mantus a couple of weeks ago and it is impressive. I was going to upgrade the chain and rode but I want to see how our new Mantus does with the same set-up we had when we came down the ICW in September. We leave in May for our journey back up the East Coast. Our first leg of the trip will be off-shore to good ole’ Charleston Harbor and those derelict boats all swinging to their own wind. We’ll let you know how it goes.*** Disclosure: Once we decided to go with a Mantus anchor, we received a discount on our anchor in exchange for an honest review of their product. They have asked us to be completely honest when speaking of their product, which we plan to do.