I just bought an anchor trolley system but have no idea which kind of anchor to get. I will be fishing mainly lakes and small waters, weigh 250lbs, and I will be fishing out of an FS12T. I don't know whether to get a bruce style, or a grapple style, and what weight range should I go for? Also, I am limited to 1 anchor so I can't buy them all!

If you are fishing a muddy or sandy bottom I'd go with the bruce claw.
I've tried just about all the others and the bruce has been the bomb so far for me.

2.2lb bruce claw. Be sure to get enough rope!!! Maybe 4-5x the depth you'll be at.

I have an 8 pound mushroom for my canoe. Kind of digs into the mud and holds on good and unlike the hook style it doesn't get hung on underwater trees or anything. Something to think about before having to cut a brand new anchor loose. Get whatever is best for the environment you'll be fishing.

I was thinking about the bruce, will it also work for hard bottoms?

I've used it on a hard rocky bottom and it will slip a little until it grabs and isn't ideal but it will work. One thing you want to do is tie the anchor rope to the hole on the anchor shank at the bottom or claw end of the anchor and at the top of the shank of the anchor tie with a zip tie. This way if you hang it up and can't get loose you can pull up with enough force to break the zip tie. Use a smaller zip tie and carry extras in your tackle box. Too heavy a zip tie and it may not break.
A good anchor I've found for rocky areas where you are most likely to hang up is use a dumbell gym weight of 5# to 8#. They have that shape that rarely hangs up in rocks. Not saying it won't, but it usually comes free unless it gets wedged between some bolders and then any kind of anchor will do that.
What's nice about the dumb bells is they don't take up much room and don't tend to hang up on everything in your boat.

Only time I used one it got hung up, if I hadn't cut the line I would have been in trouble. It was a really windy day.

I like a drag chain anchor, I use about 5lbs worth of thick chain inside of a bicycle inner tube.

There is no such thing as an anchor that won't ever get hung up, and blaming an anchor after using it one time for being in trouble wasn't the anchors fault. People fish in varying terrain and various structures, and there isn't one anchor that works well everywhere, so If you haven't lost an anchor of some sort at some time, you haven't been fishing long enough.
Being smart is being prepared in poor conditions, and always carrying a sharp knife in easy reach which you did.

I use a 1kg bruce claw anchor. It has held me and tow or three other yaks with no problem. Its light and holds strong.

ive heard that many have moved to the bruce & like them over others.
im still using my old callapsable claw 7# anchors without chains. All anchors work by 2 methods. shear weight & or design to stick to bottom. for any anchor to work by design it must lay over on its side. if the bottom is hard n smooth youll have to rely on weight. If u dont have enough line out, its not gonna lay over n stick. I believe the #1 reason why anchors dont hold for folks is they dont attach enough line to their anchor. i use 50' for my claw. when that doesnt hold Its prob too windy to be out there or need more line. there is a chart that shows and explains all this out there somewhere. also some very interesting discussion on this subject in this forum.

http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/anchorsteps.htm

This chart says 5 to 1 which is right. Conditions make a big difference in how much to line to let out. If it's calm you don't want to have much line out just to hold you in place.
I have about 50' of anchor rope attached to my anchor and I carry another 50' in my crate just in case I want to anchor in deeper water.

The collapsible claw type anchor works great just have to rigem right. You tie the rope to the bottom of anchor , run rope to the top main hole an use a medium zip tie. That way if you get hung by the claw on a root or stump , give a hard tug and zip tie breaks having you pull from bottom and un snag. Works great , but there will always be a day down the road where you just cut your losses.

the drawback to the bruce is its size. there may be a collapsable one out though. BTB guys like them a lot for sandy bottoms.

the amount of rope to depth & how u have an anchor set up is most important IMO.
there are several sizes too. the bigger the more weight

these 2 styles r set up properly. notice the small plastic ziptie at the top of the anchors?


deep or shallow, very light to no wind, just about anything will hold u.
low wind situation ill hold the claw shut with a bungee n drag it slowly.
7-11bs will hold position well IMO. adding a bit of chain will increase "holdability"

The way I stow my bruce claw is the float goes into the crate and I'll shove the shank part of the bruce claw into a rod holder. Keeps it out of the way until needed.