Auckland-headquartered Maxwell Marine has launched the BH8, a concealed anchor windlass built to mount below deck in either the bow or the stern, giving boatbuilders more say over where they put their ground tackle.
The BH8 is aimed at the kind of contemporary yacht where a bare foredeck matters as much as the ground tackle underneath it. Rather than the usual above-deck horizontal or vertical unit, the BH8 mounts to a bulkhead completely out of sight, with a bracket flip design that lets installers switch it between bow and stern configurations without extra hardware.
At the core of the unit is Maxwell's patented Wave Design chainwheel, engineered for jam-free retrieval of both rope/chain combinations and all-chain rodes. It'll run 6mm, 7mm (1/4 inch) or 8mm (5/16 inch) chain, plus 12mm to 16mm nylon rope depending on configuration, and Maxwell's optional Roller Panel accessory guides the rode cleanly through a bulkhead or stern opening to cut down on wear.
The BH8 is available in 12V, 24V and 48V configurations, with a pulling capacity up to 900kg and static holding capacity up to 1200kg. A sealed oil bath gearbox, built from marine-grade hard-anodized alloy with a precision worm and worm wheel drive, is meant to keep it running in harsh conditions, and automatic free-fall technology handles rapid anchor deployment.
"The BH8 represents a significant step forward in concealed anchoring technology," says Thijs Boegheim, sales director EMEA for VETUS and Maxwell. "We've combined the flexibility designers and builders need with the robust performance and reliability Maxwell is known for, creating a solution that integrates seamlessly into modern vessels without compromise."
