Anchor Winch

[rrweather]

Anyone know of an anchor winch that is made for boats smaller than ocean-going yachts but larger than small bass boats? I am tired of dealing with anchor line. I don't mind hoisting the anchor in by hand but the line is a pain. Most of the smaller winches I've found only hold 100 ft of line. Some of the lakes and a few areas of the delta require more than 100ft of line, especially when the tides are strong. I am trying to come up with a solution. If nothing else, I'd like to find a way to storing the line in a neat manner. Any ideas? Thanks.

[cagrove]

Originally Posted by rrweather

If nothing else, I'd like to find a way to storing the line in a neat manner. Any ideas? Thanks.

I currently use one of my front fish boxes on my 170CC. I have used a 5 gallon bucket that I fed the line into when raising the anchor. I would lay the anchor on top of the line and it's ready to go the next time I need it. A bungee cord keeps the bucket where I need it. If the bucket doesn't hold enough line for you, you may try a plastic storage tote with a couple of holes drilled into it for drainage. Just some thoughts. Let us know what you come up with.

[MolarBoater]

I bought a 300' spool of anchor line and use an anchor ball and ss hoop clip (@$40) to float the anchor up. It is so easy to pull in line if your anchor is floating...low tech but works well for my 190 Bay in the Gulf of Mexico. The Bay 190 has two large bow lockers but I too use a 5 gallon bucket when I take the rope and anchor out of the boat.

A windless would be great, I have seen some fitted on Bay 190's and 210's. Did you check out BoatersWorld, they had a good selection in last years book if recall.