Galvanized Anchor Refinishing

[Vitesse473]

Is it possible to grind a galvanized anchor down to its bare metal and refinish it? If so, what do you refinish it with to protect from rust?

[brak]

but why? these old galvanized anchors are dime a dozen? I have two for sale at Bacons, that haven't sold in two years, they could be both had for like $20.

[mazzy]

Could be an interesting and inexpensive way to dress it up.

There's industrial galvanized metal primers suitable for an epoxy topcoating, which could be any color. Don't bother grinding away the galvanized. One brand I'm familiar with is Insl-X.

[sailingdog]

Vitesse-

If the anchor is in otherwise good shape, you can have it professionally regalvanized using a hot-dip galvanization process. This is far more durable than any spray coating. The company will prep the metal, removing the surface rust and re-galvanize the anchor.

However, it depends on what kind of anchor it is. Some of the smaller, older designs are probably not worth re-galvanizing, as getting a new one would be not much more money than getting it re-galvanized.

[bubb2]

CRC makes "instant galvanize" in a spray can.

[sailingdog]

The spray-on finishes are nowhere near as durable as hot-dip galvanization would be—especially given the equipment in question. Anchors get dragged and buried in sand, mud, gravel, rocks, etc. That kind of abuse requires a very durable coating, which spray-on coatings don't qualify as IMHO.

[bubb2]

I agree with you Dog, I do know guys that just had the tips of the flukes of their anchors starting to rust where the galvanize was worn away and the spray stuff touched it up nicely.

[sailingdog]

True... but this sounds a bit more extensive than that if he's looking at grinding the rust away.

Originally Posted by bubb2

I agree with you Dog, I do know guys that just had the tips of the flukes of their anchors starting to rust where the galvanize was worn away and the spray stuff touched it up nicely.

[Vitesse473]

Thanks everyone for the advice. The anchor is a fortress style, 3' in length and about 50lbs. It's a major eye soar sitting on the bow, as it has rust spots and old dried up fused on algae splotches. I don't use it all that often, as most of the key locations we cruise too either have docks or moorings. However, we're heading south to Cabo in the '08 Ha Ha and then up to La Paz for the winter, so it will start to get used quite a bit.

Not to start another anchor opinion thread, but given my 25,000lbs displacement at 47', what are your suggested anchor types for the Baja peninsula specifically?

[sailingdog]

Vitesse-
I'd recommend getting a next generation anchor, like a Rocna or Manson Supreme. They have significantly better setting and holding characteristics than older anchors. A 33 kg model (72.6 lbs) would be a good choice for you.