Anchor, Chain Locker, and Anchor Roller, Part 14, Marking the Anchor Rode and Anchoring

Oystercatcher at anchor in the Cooper River on an outgoing tide

Having completed the installation of the chain locker panel, and having completed what seemed like a million other tasks, I finally was able to launch Oystercatcher and put her to good use. Along the way, I of course found the opportunity to anchor her and thus try out her new anchoring system that I had labored so long to complete. My anchoring of Oystercatcher and some of the final tasks that I undertook in the months after her first launching are the subject of this posting.

One of the first things I noticed about Oystercatcher after I had docked her in her slip was that the 33 pound Lewmar claw anchor did not look out of proportion. That was good.

In fact, I thought the anchor, the anchor roller, and the anchor platform all looked quite nice together on this boat.

Here's how the mahogany anchor platform appeared from the starboard side of the boat. Please pay no attention to the bow line running athwart it and athwart the blue furling line. This was but a temporary thing.

The mahogany anchor platform, sitting as it was on the centerline of the deck, did a nice job at distracting attention from the offset anchor roller. You'll recall from my earliest postings that this was one of my concerns.

There was plenty of room in this set-up for the 5/16 inch chain.

One task that I had not completed before the launching of the boat was the painting of the epoxy in the old navigation light holes. You'll remember that I had removed these old lights and filled the holes with thickened epoxy. Now I needed to get some paint on them before the sun started to break down the epoxy.

Ideally, I would have used gelcoat for this job, and I would have tried to get a perfect match with the existing gelcoat. It was, though, difficult to work in these conditions. It was hot, it was hard to reach this area from the dock, and the boat was moving up and down. Besides, I had plenty of other more pressing jobs to complete now that the boat was sitting in the water.

For this little project I used Blue Water Marine Mega Gloss one-part polyurethane paint. I had purchased a quart of this economy grade paint from RAKA Epoxy for miscellaneous touch-up work.

Working from the dock was so much more difficult than working on the boat under the tarp back home. It's easy to see why there are so many bad looking boats in so many marinas, especially in this part of the country - where you can leave your boat in the water year round. Up north, you have no choice but to haul the boat out every autumn.

This made me all the more glad that I had purchased this trailerable Ericson 25. I could haul the boat out free of charge, and I could work on her in my own boatyard - i.e., the yard beside my house - without having to pay a boatyard for haulout and storage fees.

Some of my neighbors at the marina do everything they can to avoid these fees - sometimes to the point of what appears to me to be folly. Is it better to pull the prop shaft while the boat still sits in the water, or is it better to do this work while the boat sits on the hard? "Better work fast to hammer that wooden plug into that hole; that water comes through there faster than you'd ever think." "You don't have to worry about that plug while you're working on that prop shaft. It'll stay put." These are the sorts of things I've heard from two different people in my area of the marina alone.

After I had applied two coats of this polyurethane paint to the old nav light holes, I focused on the marking of the anchor rode. My friend and I had experienced some mild frustration in our initial anchoring, because it was impossible for us to determine how much rode we had paid out. We both talked about our experience with this issue, he from his Coast Guard experience, and I from my experience of sailing aboard tall ships, where it's common to mark the rode in shots, with one shot equaling 90 feet (15 fathoms). Since I only had 230 feet of rode with which to work - 200 feet of rope and 30 feet of chain) - the shot approach was not practical. I opted instead for markings at every 50 feet.

I used seine twine for these markings. I had earlier purchased a one pound spool of #36 twine from Sgt. Knots in North Carolina. Seine twine is a common sight on tall ships, where it's used for all sorts of things, especially for the mousing of shackle pins and the whipping of the ends of lines.

Starting at the point where the chain joined the anchor, I measured out 50 foot segments of the rode. I marked the 50 foot mark with one lashing, the 100 foot mark with two, and the 150 mark with three. Below, we see the 150 foot mark.

The 200 foot mark, of course, received four lashings.

In terms of the anchoring process itself, I should note that the technique that I had envisioned and that I had incorporated into the design worked well. The chock and the port side cleat were of great assistance to me in the paying out of the rode by hand. Likewise, the chock and the cleat worked well in the securing of the rode while setting the hook.

As far as the anchor roller itself was concerned. As you see in the pictures above and below, despite the fact that the roller was canted to the port side, the boat still sat centered relative to the anchor itself. Moreover, it did so with a fair lead on the rode. There was no biding or chafing of the rode on account of the width of the Garhauer anchor roller and its flared side pieces on its forward end.

All in all, this was a satisfying set-up - one that was both practical and aesthetically pleasing - and I was glad that I had expended the time and effort to make it a reality.

This ends this multi-part article on my creation of a new anchoring system for Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25.

Anchor, Chain Locker, and Anchor Roller, Part 9, Anchor Roller Platform and Hardware, Installation

The anchor platform, fully installed

Ten months had passed since I had constructed the mahogany anchor platform for Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25. In the interim, I had varnished the platform (along with many other pieces of mahogany), I had modified the chain locker panel, and I had restored the deck of the boat to something of its original glory by compounding the gelcoat with an electric buffer and then waxing it. Additionally, I had polished the original stainless steel hardware (such as the stemhead and pulpit) on a bench grinder with a buffing wheel attached. Oystercatcher was now ready, at long last, to receive her varnished mahogany anchor platform and the hardware for it. How I carried out this installation is the subject of this posting.

The first thing I needed to do was to redrill the holes that I had filled with epoxy (so as to protect the balsa core within the deck). For this this I had to use a long drill bit to make it all the way through some of this material. Afterward, I dry-fitted the bolts to make sure that everything lined up just right.

For the anchor roller, there were five carriage bolts, 5/16 inch in diameter.

For the mahogany, there were two 1/4 inch hex-head bolts.

After I had determined that all the hardware fit into these holes, I made small reference marks on the deck around the perimeter of the anchor platform. Then I removed the platform and thoroughly cleaned the appropriate area of the deck with xylene. This solvent would remove the wax that I had earlier applied to the deck.

In lieu of using a polyurethane, such as Sikaflex, or polysulfide, such as Boatlife Lifecaulk, in my installation of the anchor platform, I used butyl tape. This was the same material that I had used in my reinstallation of the many different pieces of deck hardware that I had removed. You can buy butyl tape at your local hardware store or at an RV store, but I opted to buy mine from Maine Sail on his Compass Marine website (see the link on the homepage of this blog of mine that you're reading). Maine Sail's attention to detail and his love of quality in all things related to the refitting and maintenance of sailboat led me to trust his words on the quality of his traditional-style, long-lasting butyl tape. I should note that in the refitting of Oystercatcher I used almost six full rolls of his tape.

I applied butyl tape not only to the underside of the mahogany but also to the fiberglass shelf at the peak of the bow. This was where two of the five carriage bolts for the anchor roller would pass through the deck. I wanted the butyl tape to seal the holes. I also wanted it to serve as a flexible foundation of sorts for the roller. On account of the camber of the deck, the anchor roller would not be entirely flush with the deck, especially along the port side. The butyl tape would thus serve as a shim to fill the gap on this side.

After I had dropped the anchor platform into place and inserted the two 1/4 inch hex head bolts to hold it in place, I applied some butyl tape to the mahogany itself. This would seal the three holes for the three carriage bolts in this area, and it would help to raise the aft end of the anchor roller up just slightly. This was necessary because the mahogany was about 1/16 inch lower than the fiberglass shelf at the peak of the bow.

I then crammed butyl tape down into the small gap between the mahogany and the fiberglass shelf. I did not want any water to accumulate in this gap.

Now it was time for me to install the anchor roller with the five carriage bolts. If you click on the picture below and look closely, you'll see that I wrapped the heads of all the bolts with butyl tape before I installed them. I had done the same thing with the 1/4 inch hex head bolts in the mahogany. I used a helper for my installation of the hex head bolts. A helper wasn't necessary, of course, for the carriage bolts, since they, by their design, do not spin when you tighten down their nuts.

After this I used a putty knife to cram butyl tape into any crack I might find along the edge of the mahogany.

I filled the small crack along the forward edge. The crack in the picture below looks larger than it actually was because of the slight bevel that I had given to the forward edge of the mahogany.

I also filled some small cracks here and there along the starboard side . . .

and the port side.

The following weekend I installed the remaining pieces of hardware. I began by cleaning the surface of the mahogany with acetone.

I also cleaned the hardware.

Additionally, I cleaned the screws, just I had earlier cleaned the carriage bolts and hex head bolts.

Then I applied the butyl tape.

In keeping with the advice of Maine Sail, I also applied butyl tape to the screws after I had inserted them through the hardware. This ensured that the butyl tape would form a gasket of sorts in the beveled hole in the mahogany.

After I had installed this hardware I could, at last, call this part of the project complete. I could not, however, call this entire project complete. There still remained several tasks to complete before this new anchoring system was ready for use. My work on those tasks is the subject of my final postings.

This ends this posting on how I installed the anchor platform and the hardware for it on Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25.

Anchor, Chain Locker, and Anchor Roller, Part 6, Anchor Roller Platform, Construction, Part II

The anchor platform, fully shaped and fully drilled

Having filled some holes and protected some holes in the deck with thickened epoxy in and around the bow of the boat, I could now complete the work I had started on the mahogany anchor platform. I had created its basic shape, but I stilled needed to drill some holes and give some final form to this piece of wood. How I carried out these tasks for Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25, is the subject of this posting.

In the picture below, we see the anchor platform as it existed before I went off on my epoxy-work digression.

This piece of wood was 2 inches thick. In the lumber business in the United States this is called an 8/4 inch piece of wood.

I had purchased this 8/4 inch mahogany at Southern Lumber in Charleston, South Carolina. Most of the exotic woods at this business are sold in a rough-sawn condition. This means that you need to plane it down yourself after you purchase it.

I wanted to plane this piece down as little as possible - just enough to remove the rough saw marks.

I needed this piece to be as thick as possible so that it would correspond to the two inch thick shelf at the stem of the bow.

After a few passes through the planer, this piece was cleaned up and ready to go.

I had determined that my routed cutouts for the flanges of the pulpit bases were not quite as large as they needed to be.

Therefore, I marked the mahogany and broke out the router once again.

That did the trick.

Now I needed to do something to the mahogany to account for the camber of the deck. You see in the picture below, the mahogany was not flush with the shelf of the stemhead.

There was a gap underneath the mahogany, at least on its forward end.

I checked and double-checked the cutouts for the pulpit bases. These were not presenting any problems.

The aft end of the mahogany sat flush on the deck, with the exception of the extremes of the port and starboard sides.

From what I could tell, I needed to do something to the forward end of the mahogany so that it would sit just as flush to the deck as the aft end. At issue was the camber of the deck. It was obviously more pronounced on the forward end.

This was where my angle grinder once again came in handy. It enabled me to remove small amounts of material in a smooth and consistent way from the forward end of the mahogany.

I started small, making sure that I did not remove too much material from this centerline area of the forward end.

A straight edge confirmed my observations that the deck was more cambered at the forward end than at the aft end.

I ground and I ground and I ground, repeatedly stopping along the way to see how the mahogany fit in this space.

The more curvature I gave to the mahogany the more flush it sat with the shelf of the stemhead. This changed the way it sat on the deck, which meant that it changed the way that it sat relative to the pulpit bases. Therefore, I had to make some slight adjustments to them with the grinder.

Eventually, the mahogany sat flush or nearly flush in all areas.

The curvature of the underside of the mahogany was obvious when you viewed it head-on from the forward end.

With this job out of the way I could focus the holes for the hardware. The chain pipe hole was first.

Using several reference lines on the deck and on the mahogany, I marked the mahogany with an oval shape using the chain pipe as a guide. This hole had to be just right. Otherwise, I would have to throw away this piece of mahogany and start all over again.

Knowing that a jigsaw blade can easily walk, especially when cutting thick and dense material along an arc, I decided to use a hole saw to remove most of the material for this oval shape.

After I had partially cut the two holes, I turned the mahogany upside down and started to cut two more holes exactly opposite the other two.

I did this to prevent tear-out on the bottom side. I also did it to ensure that the cuts were as plumb as possible, all the way through this thick material.

The first hole was nice and smooth and appeared perfectly plumb.

After I had removed the plug from the first hole, it was impossible for me to use the hole saw to complete the cut for the second hole. Therefore, I had no choice but to use my Makita jigsaw for this purpose. There was very little material left, so the jigsaw blade did not give me any problems.

Afterwards, I cleaned up the friction marks with the Dremel.

The chain pipe fit perfect in the cutout with just a little wiggle room to account for the movement of the wood in different temperature and humidity conditions.

Out on the boat, I was happy to discover that my measurements had been accurate, for the most part.

The oval in the mahogany and the oval in the deck corresponded to each other, fore and aft. That was good. On the starboard side, however, there was some excess mahogany that needed to be removed. I could live with that.

I marked the mahogany to give myself some idea of how much material I needed to remove.

I then slowly removed it, a pass or two at a time, with the Dremel.

Eventually, the two holes lined up just right.

Now I could mark the mahogany for the holes I needed to drill for the anchor roller. I have no pictures of all my work with the anchor roller, because I needed two hands for this work. I measured and remeasured this area many times, checking the chain locker to ensure that the bolts for the holes that I wanted to drill would not interfere with the hardware for the pulpit bases. I also had to take into account the G-10 backing plates that I was installing behind all of this hardware. While I was doing all of this I was ever-vigilant regarding the alignment of the oval in the mahogany with the oval in the deck. There was little room for error.

On the subject of hardware, now was a good time for me to dry-fit the new cleats, because this would help me determine where I needed to locate the chock and the chain stop on the mahogany anchor platform. Earlier, as you will recall, I had filled the cleat holes with epoxy. Now I needed to drill them out. I began by using a countersink bit.

The bevel in the epoxy then allowed me to line up the straight drill bit in the center of each hole.

These new cleats were Schaefer brand stainless steel cleats, 8 inches in length. The screws for these cleats were 5/16 inch in diameter. These replaced the old 7 inch aluminum cleats with 1/4 inch screws. You'll recall from my earlier posting that the stainless steel screws were hopelessly corroded within the aluminum cleats.

Now that I had the new cleats dry-fitted into place, I could get a better idea of where I needed to locate the chock on the mahogany anchor platform.

I decided that I would install the chock on the port side and the chain stop on the starboard.

This would allow me to use the starboard cleat for the paying out of the nylon anchor rode. When the weather was benign, I would use the port side cleat to secure the rode. When the weather was malevolent, I would still use the port side cleat to secure the rode, but before setting the anchor I would reach up beyond the roller and pull the nylon rode abaft to the starboard cleat where I would make it fast. This would reduce the chances of the nylon rode getting snagged by the anchor roller on the port side, since the boat would be anchored from the starboard cleat, not the roller itself.

When I had figured out exactly where I wanted to locate the chock, I marked the mahogany with a center hole punch

Afterwards, I drilled the holes for the two long 1/4 inch hex head bolts that would secure the mahogany anchor platform to the deck. The carriage bolts for the anchor roller would secure the mahogany on the forward end. In terms of the aft end, I could have installed two bolts on that end, but the washers and nuts for these bolts would have been in the V-berth instead of the chain locker. I did not want them in the V-berth, since this was a finished space not a utilitarian space.

I flirted with the idea of installing a large pad eye (that I had salvaged from an abandoned Hunter 27) on the aft end of the mahogany, but I decided to leave this space open in the event that I wanted to install some other piece of hardware in this space.

In terms of the chock, it was clear that the edge of the 2 inch thick mahogany presented an obstruction in terms of a fair lead from the chock to the cleat on the port side of the bow. Therefore, I decided that I needed to chisel out a portion of the mahogany to allow for a fair lead.

In order to determine where I should install the chain stop, I temporarily installed the anchor and the 30 foot chain rode. I wanted the stop to be far enough aft to hold the anchor as securely as possible in the roller. I have no idea why I had the chain wrapped around the cleat when I took this picture.

Now it was time to mark the holes for the chain stop with the center hole punch and install the chain stop temporarily.

The last thing I did was to install the screws for the chain pipe.

Having installed these pieces of hardware temporarily in the mahogany anchor platform, I removed the platform and used the countersink bit to bevel the holes for the bolts that would secure the platform to the deck. I would use butyl tape to seal the underside of the mahogany to the deck. The bevels would allow the butyl tape to form a gasket of sorts around each of the holes.

I drilled out the top side of the 1/4 inch bolt holes for the bolts on the aft end of the mahogany with a 5/16 inch bit.

This allowed me to insert the 5/16 inch router bit into the holes. This also allowed me to rout out the balsa core. Soon afterward, I would fill these holes with epoxy, just like I would fill the holes for the anchor roller with epoxy. This would seal the balsa core and thus prevent water intrusion into the core.

Back at my work table, I began to focus on the cutout in the mahogany for the fair lead from the chock to the cleat.

I used a chisel and a dead blow hammer to create the cutout.

My initial cuts with the chisel were not very attractive.

As time went along, however, the cutout started to look a lot better.

I would chisel a little and then sand a little.

I paused from work with the chisel and began to bevel the bolt holes and screw holes. These holes, just like those in the deck of the boat, would allow the butyl tape to create a gasket of sorts when I tightened everything down.

After I had finished beveling the holes, I pulled out the quarter-sheet sander and began softening the hard edges of the mahogany.

I remembered that my work with the cutout for the nylon rode was not complete.

Therefore, I returned to it and made it deeper and more pronounced.

The forward end of the mahogany was sort of rough looking, so I smoothed it up with the quarter-sheet sander.

All the burn marks from the saw blade were now gone.

I softened the forward edge of the mahogany just a little, but not much. I wanted it to be nice and crisp where it joined the fiberglass shelf at the bow.

I used the Dremel to smooth up the pulpit base cutouts.

This was the easy way to get rid of all those burn marks.

I did the same thing to the cutouts for the pulpit base flanges on the bottom side of the mahogany.

I also softened up the edges on the port and starboard sides of the mahogany.

The last thing I did was to sand the face of the mahogany to remove all evidence that I had passed this piece of wood through the planer.

Now, at last, I could call this mahogany anchor platform construction project complete, and now I could begin to think about staining and varnishing this beautiful piece of wood.

This ends this posting on how I constructed the anchor roller platform for Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25.