Anchor Advice

  • gonzo50613
    Cedar Falls, Iowa
    Posts: 170
    October 19, 2011 at 8:47 pm #1238663

    I have a 15lb Digger Anchor that works very well for holding my 17′ Lund in mud and sand, even in extremely windy conditions. However, I have had trouble getting it to catch in a gravel bottom. Another issue is the large amount of rope I have to let out to get the anchor to stay makes it very difficult to determine where to deploy the anchor so that the boat ends up in the right spot. Any suggestions for an anchor or an alternative? Will the spot lock on a Minn Kota IPilot hold in a river current? How long will the battery last?

    trumar
    Rochester, Mn
    Posts: 5967
    October 19, 2011 at 9:27 pm #1002688

    Quote:

    Water spike

    X2

    trophy19
    Maple Grove, MN
    Posts: 1206
    October 19, 2011 at 9:32 pm #1002690

    Have a few feet of heavy chain attached to the anchor? Makes a huge difference.

    jon_wbl
    Posts: 289
    October 19, 2011 at 10:17 pm #1002714

    Had the same digger anchor on my 17.5′ Crestliner with the exact same issues, although it was nice for dumping off the weeds on the way up. Went to a 18# Richter anchor and a 4′ coated chain. No problems anchoring anywhere now.

    icenutz
    Aniwa, WI
    Posts: 2540
    October 19, 2011 at 11:53 pm #1002750

    Quote:

    Had the same digger anchor on my 17.5′ Crestliner with the exact same issues, although it was nice for dumping off the weeds on the way up. Went to a 18# Richter anchor and a 4′ coated chain. No problems anchoring anywhere now.

    This is the setup that you and add a Drop N Stay. You will have to make your own Drop N Stay since they no longer make them.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWJMmGjD5Tc

    http://www.drop-n-stay.com/

    Mike W
    MN/Anoka/Ham lake
    Posts: 13310
    October 20, 2011 at 12:06 am #1002754

    Dont think a water spike is going to do much better in gravel. Not enough weight for the flukes to dig into the gravel. Same issue you are having now. You need weight to push those flukes in. Maybe a bigger ricter or something similar. How deep of water are you trying to anchor in. To set a anchor properly takes a lot more rope than most people realize. My main rope is 100′ with a extra 50 just in case.

    Denny O
    Central IOWA
    Posts: 5827
    October 20, 2011 at 3:03 am #1002810

    Quote:

    Quote:

    Had the same digger anchor on my 17.5′ Crestliner with the exact same issues, although it was nice for dumping off the weeds on the way up. Went to a 18# Richter anchor and a 4′ coated chain. No problems anchoring anywhere now.

    This is the setup that you and add a Drop N Stay. You will have to make your own Drop N Stay since they no longer make them.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWJMmGjD5Tc

    http://www.drop-n-stay.com/

    Crap! I was starting ot think about getting a couple! Out of business? Product issue?

    tom_gursky
    Michigan's Upper Peninsula(Iron Mountain)
    Posts: 4751
    October 20, 2011 at 3:12 am #1002812

    I have a 1750 Crestliner and have used both anchors quite a bit on the Mississippi and other fast spring rivers. The large (14#) Waterspike works a lot better in sand, rock, and gravel than the 18# Richter… Per the old formula, in a strong current or wind you may need 3.5X the length of your boat plus the water depth…so in 20 fow I need about 81 feet of rope out.

    gonzo50613
    Cedar Falls, Iowa
    Posts: 170
    October 20, 2011 at 6:50 pm #1002978

    I have plenty of rope (have 250′). I think the digger anchor recommends 5′ of rope per foot of depth. If I am fishing a vast flat then it is not much of a problem. But over the weekend I was trying to anchor over specific areas in a river and had a very difficult time determining where to drop the anchor so that I could end up where I wanted to fish. That along with the anchor not holding well in gravel made for alot of frustration.

    Denny O
    Central IOWA
    Posts: 5827
    October 21, 2011 at 2:00 am #1003058

    Thanks James, I saw this post but missed the first part of it seems.

    I’ve seen some very heavy rubber dog bone cords up at Mille Lacs this past year and wonder where they got them! Same thinking, but made of different materials.

    A double looped rubber cord that had a safety loop of anchor rope tied thru it in case it failed to salvage the anchor.

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