[Bene505]

Awhile back I bought 450' of nice 1" anchor line to use with our FX-125 Fortress storm anchor. It looks just like normal, 3-strand, stiff anchor line. It got some use during hurricane Sandy.

The only problen is that it floats. It must have a polypropylene core or something. I can't use a floating anchor line, it's just asking to foul someone's prop, while sitting on the surface for 7 times the depth of the water & anchor roller height.

Fortunately, during Sandy, the wind clocked around and the it stayed right next to the boat, since we were then lying on a different anchor. And there wasn't much boat traffic that morning. (I was on the boat, worried more about the line and other boats than the 3 big anchors holding. I was on "anchor line" watch, and hoisted that achor in the morning.)

I need to get rid of it or do something else with it, now that I'm fixing up the bow cabin where it's kept. http://www.sailnet.com/forums/gear-maintenance/131730-foam-backed-vinyl-ok-use-glue.html#post1700194

I do need new docklines. Will it work for that? I hate to cut a rope though. (Now that it has no purpose, it's back to being called a rope, right?)

Should I give in to my desire to not cut a rope, sell it, and buy proper docklines? Or ignore all that and chop away at it. That would seem a shame. I do need 1" docklines, but it might be better to have the stretch of pure nylon.

What do you do with 1.5 football fields of floating line?

Regards,
Brad

 

[cruisingdream]

wrap your pilings and anything else you find unattractive for that nautical look

 

[Skipper Jer]

Could always use it for a tow line.

 

[Alex W]

It sounds a little big, but it could be useful for stern ties. You want a floating line for those and that is a useful length for a stern tie line (enough to go to shore and back to your boat).

 

[justified]

You could always go to the local lobster pot supplier and get line weight. Put them every ten or twenty feet, they will also act as length markers.

 

[Minnewaska]

Lifetime supply of fresh mooring pickup lines. We use 30ft of 1" 3-strand line to run through the eye on a transient mooring and back to the each foredeck cleat. They typically show too much chafe after a few years and we replace them (this year I actually added chafe guard, but I'm not sure it will work)

I have to admit I keep way too many old lines around. I literally have a spare for everything aboard! Feels good to purge once in a while.

 

[killarney_sailor]

Is it a greyish colour? When we were in South Africa we needed additional dock lines and we used a stiff , greyish coloured rope that is an industrial form of polypro line. They make it up to about 3" diameter for ships. We found that with exposure to sun, ours were out for a whole winter, that it gets quite stiff.

I would be inclined to cut it up and use for dock lines.

 

[Bene505]

Is it a greyish colour? When we were in South Africa we needed additional dock lines and we used a stiff , greyish coloured rope that is an industrial form of polypro line. They make it up to about 3" diameter for ships. We found that with exposure to sun, ours were out for a whole winter, that it gets quite stiff.

I would be inclined to cut it up and use for dock lines.

It's a slightly greyish beige. I'll see if I can get a picture of it this weekend. I have the genoa laying on top of it, so I'll need to dig it out of the crew's quarters.

Regards,
Brad

 

[Yorksailor]

Make two or three Jordan Drogues and sell them.

Series Drogue Cone Kit - 100 Cones

Providing that line is suitable for the drogue system.

Phil

 

[christian.hess]

send them down here! thanks

ps. are you completely dismissing it as an anchor rode? have you tried a simple catenary weight or are your anchoring grounds still to crowded for this?

 

[MarkSF]

Cut in into two 200ft lengths, and keep it in case you ever need to more at the mooring balls here at Ayala Cove (or anywhere else with mooring balls 200ft apart!)

 

[Jeff_H]

I would suggest that you use it for tug of wars across 375 foot wide rivers.

 

[Bene505]

Just checking for fresh ideas. Haven't sold it yet but will probably put it on eBay soon.
Of course, when I bought it off eBay, the listing didn't say it floated. I will definitely include that fact, and will probably lose money on the deal.

Can you imagine? How would you know to ask if an anchor line floated or not? Well, now we know.

Regards,
Brad

 

[mitiempo]

Just checking for fresh ideas. Haven't sold it yet but will probably put it on eBay soon.
Of course, when I bought it off eBay, the listing didn't say it floated. I will definitely include that fact, and will probably lose money on the deal.

Can you imagine? How would you know to ask if an anchor line floated or not? Well, now we know.

Regards,
Brad

When you purchased it what did the listing describe it as?

 

[capta]

You might want to contact your local commercial assist towers and see if they will take it off your hands. They always need tow lines.

 

[Capt Len]

Dress up your dock with a really big Flemish coil mat. or maybe huge thump mats. Or king Kong fists (bigger than monkey fists.

 

[Multihullgirl]

I don't know where you are, but here in Hurricane Alley, we keep coils of line stored against the need to bind up the boat in a hurricane hole...

 

[Group9]

I don't know where you are, but here in Hurricane Alley, we keep coils of line stored against the need to bind up the boat in a hurricane hole...

That's what I would do with it, too.

 

[SVAuspicious]

Good for towline and for stern ties (as noted earlier). I'd be interested in it if you want to sell before going to eBay.

 

[svHyLyte]

Just checking for fresh ideas. Haven't sold it yet but will probably put it on eBay soon.
Of course, when I bought it off eBay, the listing didn't say it floated. I will definitely include that fact, and will probably lose money on the deal.

Can you imagine? How would you know to ask if an anchor line floated or not? Well, now we know.

Regards,
Brad

Brad--

Save a couple of pieces twice the length of your boat for warping/spring lines. In adverse wind conditions, you can double the lines back to the boat around a piling and use them to "spring" your bow or stern out into the adverse wind/stream. Once oriented, you can cast one end off and haul in from the working side as you power away without fear that the line will foul your prop/rudder. You'll find floating warps/springs, quite valuable.