Goldfinch
19-08-2013, 04:57 PM
For those who wish to hear my feedback on these two anchors, here's my story.
I lost my sarca anchor just over a year ago on a wreck in my previous boat (dumb mistake on my behalf) and a couple of locals advised me to get a Mooloolaba pick so I decided to try one. I looked online to see which size was suitable for my boat (9lb - 4.2m to 6.8m) and proceeded to order one from an online supplier. When I received the anchor I thought it looked pretty small to hold a 5.8m glass boat but who am I to question the manufacturers recommendations. So I followed the instructions on the best way to set it up for my size boat and after a few attempts realised it was pathetic. It wouldn't even hold in 25-30 metres of reef. The guys I fished with said "it's too small, you should have got the next size up". I said that I had followed the recommendations from the manufacturer. So I decided to give it a second chance and buy a bigger model. I went two sizes bigger to the 20lb model, suitable for boats 8.4 to 10.8m and once again, followed the instructions to a tee. It would hold sometimes, drag other times, hold for a while, then drag if the wind picked up a few knots, especially on coffee rock or rubble patches. I put more chain on, put more rope out and I seriously considered giving up anchoring all together as it was just getting too hard to get anywhere near the spots I wanted to fish on. I was convinced that I just had no idea when it came to anchoring. I would do some drifts, adjust my line to get it spot on before dropping anchor and I just couldn't get near the spots, especially in 35-50m which is where I fish the most. It would only hold when there was around 5 knots and minimal swell which is rare in Noosa. In the end I'd had enough so I reluctantly spend another $250 on a Manson Sarca No.2 to see if it was me or the Mooloolaba pick that was the problem. I headed out to the usual mark I had been having troubles anchoring on, I did the same drifts to get my line and then I dropped anchor. The sacra held first time, kept the boat on the correct line with less rope in 15 knots and did not budge. The wind shifted from an Easterly to a Noreaster and it swung but did not budge. It also came up way easier on retrieval. Happy days !!!! So now I have two Mooloolaba picks to sell on ebay to someone I hope isn't fishing any deeper than 20meters in a tinny on serious reef. I am definitely no "pro" when it comes to anchoring so hopefully now I can improve my skills by having a decent tool to start with. I'm sure the M Pick works fine for many people, it just didn't work for me or my boat.
Cheers
Dave
I lost my sarca anchor just over a year ago on a wreck in my previous boat (dumb mistake on my behalf) and a couple of locals advised me to get a Mooloolaba pick so I decided to try one. I looked online to see which size was suitable for my boat (9lb - 4.2m to 6.8m) and proceeded to order one from an online supplier. When I received the anchor I thought it looked pretty small to hold a 5.8m glass boat but who am I to question the manufacturers recommendations. So I followed the instructions on the best way to set it up for my size boat and after a few attempts realised it was pathetic. It wouldn't even hold in 25-30 metres of reef. The guys I fished with said "it's too small, you should have got the next size up". I said that I had followed the recommendations from the manufacturer. So I decided to give it a second chance and buy a bigger model. I went two sizes bigger to the 20lb model, suitable for boats 8.4 to 10.8m and once again, followed the instructions to a tee. It would hold sometimes, drag other times, hold for a while, then drag if the wind picked up a few knots, especially on coffee rock or rubble patches. I put more chain on, put more rope out and I seriously considered giving up anchoring all together as it was just getting too hard to get anywhere near the spots I wanted to fish on. I was convinced that I just had no idea when it came to anchoring. I would do some drifts, adjust my line to get it spot on before dropping anchor and I just couldn't get near the spots, especially in 35-50m which is where I fish the most. It would only hold when there was around 5 knots and minimal swell which is rare in Noosa. In the end I'd had enough so I reluctantly spend another $250 on a Manson Sarca No.2 to see if it was me or the Mooloolaba pick that was the problem. I headed out to the usual mark I had been having troubles anchoring on, I did the same drifts to get my line and then I dropped anchor. The sacra held first time, kept the boat on the correct line with less rope in 15 knots and did not budge. The wind shifted from an Easterly to a Noreaster and it swung but did not budge. It also came up way easier on retrieval. Happy days !!!! So now I have two Mooloolaba picks to sell on ebay to someone I hope isn't fishing any deeper than 20meters in a tinny on serious reef. I am definitely no "pro" when it comes to anchoring so hopefully now I can improve my skills by having a decent tool to start with. I'm sure the M Pick works fine for many people, it just didn't work for me or my boat.
Cheers
Dave