Anchors and Anchoring have always been a controversial topic among those who boat "
seriously".
The
Danforth anchor was developed before and during WWII. They were used on LSTs (Landing Ship Tank) during beach landings during invasions. They were dropped off the stern of the ship as they approached the beach, and were used to haul the ship Back OFF the beach after they had discharged their cargo of trucks, tanks, and other heavy equipment.
They were made of Forged Steel. The Danforth
"Hi-Tensile" is still made of forged steel. Before Danforth gave up the patent, they were the only show in town that actually worked.
IMHO... Most of the anchors sold to "boaters" today are merely pretenders. An alternative for use in coastal or offshore cruising, would be the CQR Plow anchor. I carried both on my salt water boats (Sail) and I have a Danforth on my 20' sportboat.
NB
BTW: There is no single anchor that is good for ALL anchoring and bottom conditions. You pick the anchor that suits the conditions you will
most likely anchor in. Danforth types don't like rocky bottoms.
http://www.defender.com/category.jsp...10391&id=33872