don't make this mistake

[phatdaddy]

my daughter came home this weekend for her annual birthday/red snapper fishing trip. we were heading across the bay and heard a "clunk" like we had hit something. i stopped the boat and we looked in the water but saw nothing. i got back up on plane and was heading toward the pass, when i noticed the anchor was missing. it had fell off the pulpit, but the shackle and chain were still there,the clevis pin had come unscrewed. i pulled into the shallows to check out the hull & foot. and this is what the prop looked like

http://i377.photobucket.com/albums/oo214/gls216/DSCF0539.jpg


i remember commenting to someone this winter about saftey wiring a shackle, this is why you do it.

[Hedge]

Ouch...

[aussie]

well looks like you are shopping fpr a new anchor and prop could of been worse and done more damage to the leg . i keep my anchor in the boat butam thinking of a electric winch set up . I bet all the guys are checking there shakles now

[phatdaddy]

right about that aussie, could have been a lot worse. we stayed in the water for 3 or 4 more hours before we came home.(had a spare prop) i am going to drain the foot oil tomorrow and check for water.

[nipper]

Yikes. I recall reading something about a year ago (and submitting a post about it) where an anchor came loose like that, caught the bottom and when the line played out, the anchor shot back into the boat and killed a passenger. Glad all you need to do is replace a relatively inexpensive aluminum prop.

[aussie]

right about that aussie, could have been a lot worse. we stayed in the water for 3 or 4 more hours before we came home.(had a spare prop) i am going to drain the foot oil tomorrow and check for water. Hey sounds strange it didnt vibrate and if it didnt thats good then no chance of the shaft in the leg being bent

[phatdaddy]

i think the shaft is ok,

nipper, i am more upset about the $180 fortress anchor than the prop

[Bygracealone]

Phat,

I'm glad to hear you and your daughter got home safe and sound.

Last time he visited, my ol' man was on my butt to wrap some wire through the hole in the clevis pin and I never did. I'll be looking for some wire tomorrow...

[Skools Out]

lol where was the location go back and look for your anchor.

[phatdaddy]

BGA, go outside and start wrapping, i had been going to get around to mine for about 2 months

skool, in 45' right in the channel heading out and i ran about 30 -40 yards before i realized it was missing & fathers day is coming up, so i bet i'll be getting an anchor & some safety wire.

[Hedge]

get in touch with awthacker from the spear fishing video, He's got the gear needed.

[nymack66]

Ouch , thank God all is well and no one got hurt. As a backup I use a heavy duty bungee cord to secure mine, my biggest fear was if it falls off during my trailering trip and wreck havoc on the road. I now know it can cause damage on the water also. Thanks for this tip I will now make it a habit to check it before and after Boating.

[Destroyer]

And there's a reason it's called safety wire............

Also, for those that don't know, there's a proper and an improper way to safety wire items. The improper way is to just put the wire thru the hole and twist the wires together....it works, but it's not the proper way (according to the Navy). The proper way is to run the wire thru the part being secured and around the secure part twice, then take the ends of the wire and twist them together equally so that the twists look like the twists in rope.. nice and equally spaced... 5 twists minimum. Do not just twist one wire around the other like a haywire twist. (God, who would ever have thought that being a Boatswain's Mate in the Navy would ever have civilian applications?) LOL

[awthacker]

That was me you guys were coaching about the safety wire. The not so funny thing is that I used all the knots recommended, but never got around to the safety wire. Second trip out, the pin came loose and we lost the anchor as we drifted off the spot, which we didn't have marked and never did retrieve. Oh well... there's a small zip-tie on it now for temporary measure.

Between your prop and the possibility of my boat losing anchor while I'm underwater, I should have the motivation I need to get it done right.

[phatdaddy]

actually i use a small zip tie, easier to get undone in an emergency, but the sun tends to break them down and you have to check & change often. i just never got around to the zip tie...

[reelapeelin]

Wow, Phat...REEL glad nobody got hurt as coulda happened...lesson learned the easy way...Murphy's Law works overtime on boats...

[phatdaddy]

i'm with ya reel, murphy was definately a boater. nothin hurt but my pride & boat budget. she's coming back this weekend for a "do over" maybe we'll break someting else and i can get her to come home the following week.

[steplift20]

nobody got hurt and you made it back safe, thats all that matters
you can replace an anchor and prop

[reelapeelin]

Pretty sure some of you guys saw the story about the retired sheriff off on fishin' trip....the captain did not secure or stow the anchor, left it laying on the bow....rope attached and tied off at about 20'...up on plane, the anchor slides off the bow, catches the water and snaps back toward the boat and stuck the pin across the bottom of the anchor right into the side of the sheriff's head just behind his right ear...I saw video of the guy walking off the dock, holding the anchor in place and into the back of an ambulance...wouldn't let anybody else touch it...gruesome sight, but he actually was OK(relatively speaking of course) following surgery to remove the anchor...gave me a new respect for anything not secured on the boat...

[nipper]

That's what I was thinking of. You are right, the anchor did not kill the guy but stuck in his head. Nasty stuff.

[gofish]

phatdaddy, I just saw this thread for the first time.
Hope you haven't bought an anchor yet, I have a barely used fortress that I pulled off the jetties a couple years ago that has been sitting in my garage ever since. It's yours if you still need it.

R

[wellcraftv20step]

yikes