We need an anchor upgrade – Sarca or Rockner?
When we purchased the boat our main anchor was a 32kg Bruce linked to 8mm chain. To my mind 8mm chain seemed a little light on and our muir cheetah windlass could accommodate 10mm chain by replacing the gypsy. This was carried out shortly after purchase in Langkawi. This was no mean feat as Langkawi is a small island off peninsula Malaysia where the chandlery consists of a room with a West Marine catalogue.
There’s an abundance of information available on the internet as to the type of anchor chain that could/should be used. This choice was made easy for us as we could only buy what was available. 120m of 10mm short anchor chain.
As for the Bruce, we were never really comfortable with it and now it has been relegated to the reserves bench.
My research into anchors lead me two names and a cross Tasman contest, Rockner (NZ) vs Sarca (AUS). The duel was neck and neck with Sarca winning by a short shank. It was doubtful that the Rockner would fit the anchor bay. The distance between the roller and capstan was marginal, so Sarca won by a few millimetres.
We settled on a 45kg Sarca which is slight overkill for our 24 tonne boat, but as the saying goes, bigger is always better.
To date, we are extremely happy with the holding of the Sarca. It grabs and you know you aren’t going to move. The only reservation I have with the sarca is that it does not always come up the correct way, even with a swivel. It requires a flip with the boat hook to encourage it to face correctly.
