Refit & Repairs: Anchoring System

Anchors

When we purchased our 1985 Tayana 37 in 2005, it had a 35-pound CQR anchor mounted in a roller on the bow sprit, and a secondary Danforth-style anchor mounted on the bow pulpit.  The secondary anchor was too rusty to be relied upon, so we gave it away.  We replaced it with a 35 pound Delta anchor, a style of anchor we liked on our previous boat.  During our winter trip down the ICW, we noticed that one of the flukes was bent.  We contacted Simpson Lawrence, the manufacturer, but they were not willing to honor a warranty claim.  Oddly enough, the anchor rests in the bow roller better now, and so far, we haven't noticed any reduction in performance (see photo below).

It wasn't until we arrived in Florida several months later that we discovered the hinge on the CQR was almost completely worn through.  Although we briefly contemplated getting a larger, 45-pound CQR, we decided to replace it with a new one the same size.  We contacted the manufacturer, and they did honor a warranty claim, but since we were not the original purchasers of the product, they agreed to replace the anchor at cost (see photo below).

While refitting in St. Augustine, Florida in 2006, we purchased a new anchor rode with 100' of chain for the primary anchor (the Delta), and we changed-over the previous rode with 25' of chain to the secondary anchor (the CQR).

Windlass

Despite the surprised looks we get while weighing anchor with a manual windlass, we have kept this sturdy piece of equipment for now.  In 2006, we removed the windlass from its bracket on the bowsprit, took it apart, cleaned and greased it, and then re-painted it.  It is slow, but worked very well up until 2008 when the double-action mechanism took a powder.  We thought that it was just a matter of TLC, or perhaps this previously reliable piece of equipment has overheard our "wish list" discussions about an electric windlass, an upgrade which is very high on the list.  Before the 2009 sailing season, we removed the windlass for repairs, and without doing a thing, the double-action mechanism started working again -- we'll chalk it up to one of life's mysteries.  We'll continue to use it for now.

	Anchoring system: We faced windy and challenging anchoring conditions on the trip down the ICW in January 2006.  In North Carolina, an inspection of our new Delta anchor revealed that one of the flukes was bent.  This is now on the list of repairs.
	Old CQR Anchor: We discovered that the hinge area of the 35-pound CQR had almost completely worn through.  We contacted the manufacturer, and they agreed to replace the anchor at cost.

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