Anchor Locker
Printed From: myHanse.com
Category: Hints & Tips
Forum Name: 400
Forum Description: 400 Hints, Tips and News
URL: https://www.myhanse.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=4110
Printed Date: 27 March 2026 at 03:51
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.06 - https://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Anchor Locker
Posted By: walterkruk
Subject: Anchor Locker
Date Posted: 13 June 2010 at 22:47
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I use my Hanse 400 for bareboat charter and that means that everything had to be monkey proof. At the moment the windlass and the anchor chain locker are not working at all I basically have to pull the chain true constantly. With 65 meter of anchor chain and a very shallow anchor locker I need a better solution. One solution I am considering is raising the windlass with around 15 cm and maybe place it a little more forward and install a inox slide. A second solution involves using the big empty space below the anchor locker (now uses as a collision buffer). Has anyone considered making the locker deeper as there is more then enough unused space? What would be the negative results of doing this on sailing performance? ------------- Have fun! |
Replies:
Posted By: MYTHOS NIKOS
Date Posted: 13 June 2010 at 23:34
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HI WALTER !! COME TO HALKIDA AND CHECK MY MODIFICATION !! I HAVE USED THE SPACE UNDER THE LOCKER AND IT WORKS GREAT !! ------------- GREEK MYTHOS 400e#498 [URL=http//www.mythos-sailing.com |
Posted By: AnnSea
Date Posted: 13 June 2010 at 23:41
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Hi Walter, I'm just going through this process right now. I've glassed in a plywood shelf in the forward half of the locker, and will be moving the windlass onto the shelf this week. I've got 60 metres of chain, and am hoping this will solve my problem. I would think that using the space below the locker would not be satifactory especially in a charter situation - unless you glassed in a new floor above the waterline. ------------- Tim AnnSea 370e #418 |
Posted By: walterkruk
Date Posted: 14 June 2010 at 07:43
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I would like to see you solution. Will you be there 2day? I need to be back in Athens around 17:00 so I have to leave from Halkida at 16:00 the latest.
------------- Have fun! |
Posted By: walterkruk
Date Posted: 14 June 2010 at 07:44
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Any photo's?
------------- Have fun! |
Posted By: Rubato
Date Posted: 15 June 2010 at 05:44
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Walter,
If you do a search this has been discussed a fair amount in the past. In particular, landlocked (hanse 400, Kerkyra) posted some pics of a slide that he added and works quite well.
http://myhanse.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1009 - http://myhanse.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1009
There are a few other solutions described throughout the forum as well
Steve
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Posted By: walterkruk
Date Posted: 15 June 2010 at 07:00
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Steve, Yes the first option has been discussed, but I am mostly interested in the second option, opening up the locker. I am really wondering why this was not done from the yard as I have seen photo's from the 430 and the 370 where it seems to be a standard solution. Bringing the anchor winch up and front will not solve the whole problem, as making the locker deeper will. ------------- Have fun! |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 23 June 2010 at 06:50
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The "slide" under the windlass helped a bit but it is still a frustrating arrangement.
I'm going to try moving the windlass forward as some others have done. I just dropped off the attached drawing at an aluminum fabricator and will fit this plate to the forward part of the locker, as high as it can go, using two pieces of aluminum angle-iron on either side (attached with screws and adhesive to the sides of the locker and then bolting the plate down on the angle iron).
I will probably finish the plate with white powdercoat for mostly cosmetic reasons. On our boat (2006 400e) Hanse used an aluminum piece to mount the windlass so I plan to take it out and regain the space in the back of the locker that I'll be giving up at the front.
It seems to me that this forward location should give enough free-fall for the windlass to operate properly and should have enough volume below it to accumulate all the chain.
Feedback is appreciated (especially before I start drilling holes!)
   ------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: AnnSea
Date Posted: 23 June 2010 at 23:08
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Hi Landlocked, I've moved my windlass into much the same position as you, except I glassed in a plywood shelf. I considered just using screws into the side of the well but on my model the side panels are only a couple of mm thick. I haven't actually tested it yet - will be doing so in the next few days. I'll try to get a picture at the same time. ------------- Tim AnnSea 370e #418 |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 24 June 2010 at 05:06
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Thanks Tim: It would be good to see your photos and find out about your results. I have some fairly large aluminum angle-iron so I'm thinking it will serve as both an attachment method and a stiffener. I won't be installing it for a couple of weeks at the earliest but will take some photos too.
------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: walterkruk
Date Posted: 24 June 2010 at 07:53
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I will also put in plywood and glass this. I have seen this on other yachts in the charter business, like Bavaria's, and this seems to be more then sufficient for the strength. Please let me know if the space below the plate will be sufficient for the chain to fall in without toughing it. As I have a anchor winch control in the cockpit it would be nice to be using it raising the anchor as well. Love to see foto's! ------------- Have fun! |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 07 July 2010 at 06:19
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I've moved my windlass forward, using the bracket design that I posted earlier in this thread. Here are some photos:
The "before" photo:
 "L" brackets (aluminum):
 Bracket closeup (screwed and glued with 3-M 5200 adhesive):
 Mounting Plate (1/4 inch aluminum, bolted to angle iron):
 Finished job (windlass bolted from below, wiring re-routed and hidden under bracket):
  So far it is working fine, with much less work keeping the chain from jamming. I think it is sufficient to screw and glue the angle iron to the sides of the locker because the forces on these joints are all "shear" forces. The plate is attached with carriage bolts and I made slots in the angle iron to make sure that the plate does not pull the angle irons inward when it is bolted down.
Our original windlass mount was an aluminum part so I was able to remove it (had to heat it to release the glue) and regain some space in the locker. ------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: alettaenmarcel
Date Posted: 07 July 2010 at 11:37
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looks good
But how deep is it in your surrounding .... 1000 mtr?
How many meters of chain do you have.
 greetings Marcel ------------- Kids Dingys 72-79 ,Several Windsurfboards 79-86 OK dingy competitions 86-92 , Trotter Pandora Race 92-98, Friendship 28 Sport 98-05, Hanse 370 06-...... |
Posted By: Rubato
Date Posted: 07 July 2010 at 18:51
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landlocked (Owen). That doesn't look anything like your anchor locker that I viewed on the weekend! LOL Seriously though, you did an excellent job on the design and installation. Much better than the original... Steve |
Posted By: walterkruk
Date Posted: 07 July 2010 at 18:52
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Nice and thanks for the pictures. I'm thinking of putting some plywood with epoxy/glass though but am thinking of the same solution. Unfortunately my box is made of GRP so not that easy to remove. I will put a nice cleat there so that I can take the load of the anchor winch. Ps. I like your thought on the number of meters of chain! That's safety when on anchor in a storm! ------------- Have fun! |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 09 July 2010 at 01:43
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Yes, I have a lot of chain. 300 feet I think. I've never used the whole length but it seemed like a good idea at the time (7:1 scope in 40 feet in a strong wind?).
How much chain/rode do other people have? If I get a good offer for some chain some time, how much should I sell? ------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 09 July 2010 at 03:21
Here's what it normally looks like:
 The chain doesn't look so long now does it? ------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Rubato wrote:Posted By: alettaenmarcel
Date Posted: 09 July 2010 at 06:14
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@ landlocked , I think your shower drain will work perfect.
I gues the chain is 8 mm wich is aprox. 3 kg / mtr wich will say you cary 300 kg extra wieght in the bow!
Maybe I make a mistake in the weight but is is a lot , so wenn you also fill up your water tank there is about 600 kg pushing on the bow , looks to me it will sail well in light wetter , but in strong winds with a lot off waves , I have my doubt.
greetings Marcel
------------- Kids Dingys 72-79 ,Several Windsurfboards 79-86 OK dingy competitions 86-92 , Trotter Pandora Race 92-98, Friendship 28 Sport 98-05, Hanse 370 06-...... |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 09 July 2010 at 06:42
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Ah yes, but I have another 400 feet of chain in the lazarette so it balances out.
Just kidding.
I think the chain is about 1 lb per foot, so about 300 lb or 150 kg in all. I remove it all for racing, but I'm curious how much most people carry for cruising? ------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: JofB
Date Posted: 09 July 2010 at 09:39
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We carry 60 metres (c. 200 feet) and yet hardly ever anchor at the moment. The plan is for that to change when we go long-term cruising in a year or two, however, and the anchor will then be used much more so it is an investment for the future. In the meantime, I guess I should really take half of it out and save the weight! ------------- Jof 400e #31 - Grey Goose |
Posted By: AnnSea
Date Posted: 16 July 2010 at 00:41
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Landlocked and others - Attached is a photo of my glassed in windlass shelf. Having seen how LandLocked did it was quite annoying, because it looks like a much easier solution than the one I chose! The hardest bit was glassing in the underside of the shelf - you need to be bit of a contortionist, and extracting yourself afterwards is a bit tricky. In the photo you can see I haven't tidied up the power cables yet - I'll finish that with some sticky back cable tie mounts. In my case (as opposed to Landlock's job) I ran the power cable back to the old windlass mounting point, and that's why there is a an inspection port there. To remove the windlass from the original position was quite tedious as well. I used a 2inch holesaw to make a couple of holes under the windlass and then used a hacksaw to expand the hole. It was still very poky trying to get a spanner in there. I've since reglued the cut out pieces back in place and given it a sand and paint job, and you'd never know the windlass had ever been there!    ------------- Tim AnnSea 370e #418 |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 16 July 2010 at 06:14
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It does look like more work, but the end result looks very nice! My problem is that I live 1000 km away from my boat so I wanted to arrive with something I could install during a weekend cruise.
My old factory windlass mount was difficult to remove due to the use of adhesives between the aluminum and fibreglass. Finally I tried heating the aluminum with a torch and suddenly it literally popped off. Next time I'll start with the heat. Do you plan to cut away the rest of the old mount platform now that it is cut open?
Mine will be put to the test during an upcoming 2 week holiday so I'll see if any flaws show up.
Thanks for the photos!
------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: AnnSea
Date Posted: 16 July 2010 at 23:25
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Hi Landlocked, no, I don't plan on removing the old windlass mount - it seems like too much effort for too little gain. I'm not very good at fibreglassing. 1000 km's is a long way! Just to make you jealous I'll let you know that I can leave home, get to the dock, have the sails up and be out of the harbour on the open sea in less than 15 minutes! I'm also lucky enough to be able to do this 3-5 times a week all year round. ------------- Tim AnnSea 370e #418 |
Posted By: Mark P
Date Posted: 17 September 2010 at 08:13
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I have the fibreglass foundation for the windlass - I am hoping to move the windlass this weekend, fitting it on a pre-fabricated stainless steel shelf. MOST IMPORTANTLY Does anybody know how to access the bolts under the windlass without cutting the top or removing the trim from the underside? I might cut access holes port and starboard of the locker and use ss bolts not screws. How easy was it to re-route the cables from stbd side to port side? Any feedback is appreciated as always. |
Posted By: walterkruk
Date Posted: 17 September 2010 at 08:47
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To access the cables and the anchor winch bolts I have installed a inspection hatch in the forward bedroom (I did not wanted to remove the trip either). I found it very odd that there was no other way of reaching this as it is not very maintenance friendly.
------------- Have fun! |
Posted By: AnnSea
Date Posted: 17 September 2010 at 22:16
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Hi Mark, I didn't install an access port in the forward cabin, but in hindsight I think that's the best way to get access to the bolts. I solderered an extra 3 feet of cable - seems to work fine. ------------- Tim AnnSea 370e #418 |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 18 September 2010 at 07:15
I already had an access port at the end of the V-berth. I'm guessing my dealer put this in when they installed the windlass.
 I didn't have much trouble moving the cables. The factory-installed wiring was visible through the access port and I was able to pull them until I had the loose ends. Then I dropped some string down through the new holes with some screws attached for weight and taped the string to the wire to pull it up and out through the new holes on the port side of the locker under my new windlass mounting plate. I was very pleased to see that Hanse had run very heavy guage wire to the anchor locker, which had then been crimped to the windlass wire.
My boat (2006) had an aluminum windlass plate so there was no problem reaching underneath to remove the bolts.
I don't think you need to use bolts and nuts to mount the plate if it is similar to my installation. The forces are all shear forces and the angle-iron brackets have a fair bit of surface area with adhesive. If there was any force normal to the fiberglass surface then I think it would need a good backing plate. ------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: Mark P
Date Posted: 18 September 2010 at 21:30
| Thanks for the feedback - my shelf wasn't ready this weekend so I'll have a good root around tomorrow through the access hatch to prepare for next weekend. |
Posted By: landlocked
Date Posted: 18 September 2010 at 23:23
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By the way, I have since added some features (screws) to the aft edge of my mounting plate from which I hang my gloves and windlass control - it is a perfect spot for these. The new mount has been working nicely - I really like being able to see underneath the windlass while operating and the mounting plate also makes an excellent step (with anti-skid tape) for when you are looking over the bow of the boat to hook up a snubber or pin the anchor in place etc. ------------- "Kerkyra" 400e #042 |
Posted By: Mark P
Date Posted: 06 October 2010 at 15:41
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I finished the job! Hurray - the biggest design flaw on the Hanse 400 (IMHO) has been solved. Finally I removed the trim in the forecabin underneath the old windlass (as the boat has the glassed in windlass foundation) - it was not so difficult in the end - I just cut the silicon mastic, cut 2 screws on the forward lower front edge (in way of a wooden batten stuck on the lining) and then pivoted the trim down and forwards. It did not come out from behind the deck lining but I could still work behind it easily enough. Also, as others have suggested I fitted a cleat in way of 2 of the old holes of the windlass and filled the others with sikaflex. Will take photos and post them, but I think it was an excellent, clean easy to install solution. |