Best anchor for ranger 621?

[Chadlineman]

Just wondering what anchor you guys have had the best luck with holding 21ft boats?
Mainly for the rainy river sterg fishing.

[Fishoil]

It depends on the current and the bottom content, if there are rocks for the anchor to hook onto it won't take much weight. I carry two 18# river anchors and a 28# navy anchor in my 621 and usually don't have any problems getting hooked up on the rivers I fish.

[REW]

When anchoring, have at least two anchors in the boat. Many times when using only one anchor, the boat is nothing more than a pendulum, swinging back and forth. At times that it perfect - other times, not so much.

Pick up two of the large water spike anchors, with 4 foot of 1/2 inch chain for each of the anchors. Use a chain splice to attach each chain permanently to each anchor.
Then, have at least 2- 100 foot 3/8th or 1/2 inch anchor ropes. If ou want to use 4- 50 foot ropes with the ability to hook them together, just fine as well.

Have a loop woven in each end of each rope so that you can always keep one end of the rope hooked through a cleat, so even on a short anchor, you never lose the rope if the rope slips during a retrieval or drop.

Also, do not use snaps to hook the rope to the anchor chain. Rather, use an anchor clevis and a bolt through the clevis to attach the ropes loop to the chain. If you need to get added length on an anchor rope, just run an anchor clevis around a ropes end loop and then drop the bolt through the clevis with the next rope connected.

Snaps and knots that come loose lose anchors.

It is also a good idea to have one more anchor of a heavier sort like a Richter, or navy anchor for the times when you are hooking hard bottom and a water spike doesn't hook.
But the water spike anchors will hook up in most lake and river bottoms.

If you can use a bungee style anchor attachment - like the now discontinued drop and stay - so much the better. The drop and stay is not so much help in current like the Rainy, but it is certainly a great deal of help in bodies of water which experience large waves. With a stretch in the anchor system, a wave will simply stretch the system, and when the wave goes away will pull the boat back to its original position.
This, in contrast to a non stretch system, where the wave can exert tremendous force to pull the anchor free from the bottom on a big wave.

The coast guard recommends a minimum of a 3:1 anchor length to water depth. i.e. if you are in 20 feet of water, you want to have the ability to let out at least 60 feet of line. This ratio is for relatively calm water.
For mixed weather, the coast guard recommends a 5:1 ratio. So, for 20 feet deep water, let out 100 feet of line.

But for storm conditions, the coast guard recommends at least a 7:1 rope to depth ratio. So the 20 foot depth would require 140 feet of anchor rope.

Bottom line, the rougher the water, the more line is required to keep the hook up angle low to insure a solid anchor hook to the bottom.

Good luck
REW

An example of an anchor clevis or anchor shackle:
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...&cm_ite=anchor shackle&mkwid=sLSE8V7KO&pcrid=8375073431&mt=b

An example of a nylon anchor rope with a metal thimble in the end to prevent rope wear from the anchor clevis and anchor:
http://www.fleetfarm.com/catalog/pro...on-anchor-line

The water spike anchor:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...r+spike+anchor

The Richter anchor:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...richter+anchor

The navy anchor:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...ds=navy+anchor

Danforth anchor:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...anforth+anchor

[Chadlineman]

Thanks for all the info. Were do you store them? Do you put them I'm anything to protect the boat? Thanks

[Fishoil]

I have anchors that are coated in a rubber like material and just set them in one of my compartments. I used to keep them in the one right behind the driver's seat until I changed motors and needed more weight up front. Now I keep them in the one in front of the baitwell/livewell ahead of the driver's console.

[DavidKuhlmann]

Truth about anchors and proper anchoring methods

4' of chain is in no way enough to properly function any anchor. There are two schools of thought on proper chain length the most common is 1/2' per foot of boat length. Here is an excerpt from the link provided.

Chain Length

There are two schools of thought on figuring the proper chain length. Chapman’s suggests using one half foot of chain for each foot of boat length. But Earl Hinz, a former aeronautical engineer and inveterate Pacific Ocean sailor, in his work The Complete Book of Anchoring and Mooring, says “the chain lead should weigh at least as much as the anchor whose weight it is supplementing”. From his experience, he has determined that the length of the chain lead has nothing to do with the depth of the water or the length of the boat. He suggests using the following formula to help you determine the minimum
length of chain lead you will need:

Minimum Anchor weight in lbs. Anchor materials factor =
length of = x Anchor materials factor 1 for steel and
chain lead Unit weight of chain, 1.6 for aluminum
lbs./ft.
For example: If you have a 7-lb. Fortress aluminum anchor with a 1/2” twisted three-strand nylon rode, you would need to use at least 11.2 lbs. of 5/16” proof coil chain, which weighs 1.15 lbs. per foot. Therefore, you will need at least 9’8” of chain.

Anchor "rope" is called rode and the amount of rode let out to properly set an anchor is called scope. Here is proper scope when anchoring from the link:

Determining Scope

The amount of anchor rode paid out depends on the type of rode you're using and the weather and bottom conditions. Scope is the ratio of rode paid out to the depth of the water. The proper scope for all-rope rode in average conditions is between 7:1 or 8:1; as noted before, you can be comfortable with a mere 3:1 or 4:1 if you're using all-chain rode. The key is to keep the angle of pull as close to horizontal as possible. Heavy weather or adverse anchoring conditions demand longer scope; however, keep in mind how you'll swing in relation to your neighbors.

Also choosing anchor type has nothing to do with the boat brand or type as much as it has to do with the weight of the boat and more importantly the bottom content. All anchor types and their applications are listed in the link provided.

http://www.boatus.com/boattech/anchorin.htm

So for a 621, you'd need about eleven feet of chain? lol.

I've used four feet of chain on mine, with a Waterspike anchor for years in everything from fast flowing rivers to perch fishing Lake Erie in five footers. Never had a problem.

[DavidKuhlmann]

Originally Posted by Ranger Dood

So for a 621, you'd need about eleven feet of chain? lol.

I've used four feet of chain on mine, with a Waterspike anchor for years in everything from fast flowing rivers to perch fishing Lake Erie in five footers. Never had a problem.

Please notice that I said "proper" anchoring. People are always able to do what they wish. I find it best to give information that is proper and correct.

[REW]

Ranger,
X2 on your experience.
REW

[Tim Ellis]

Originally Posted by Chadlineman

Just wondering what anchor you guys have had the best luck with holding 21ft boats?
Mainly for the rainy river sterg fishing.

Water Spike with plenty of rope and 5' of chain between rope and anchor. Best I've found and will hold in any current.