Tested: Pragmasis Torc ground anchor review (Maxi and Mega)

Date reviewed: August 2020 | Tested by: John Milbank | Price: £54.95 / £64.95 | https://securityforbikes.com

There’s no point in having a tough chain and lock if you don’t use the best possible ground anchor. Redesigned for 2020, the Pragmasis Torc is now available as the ‘Maxi’ for £54.95 and the ‘Mega’ for £64.95.

Both are bolt-in anchors and come with all the fastenings – and most of the tools – required for fitting.

The Mega has a larger base plate and shackle, though both will take a 22mm chain

Features and capacity

The Torc is an extremely simple design – a thick one-piece base holds a continuous loop shackle, which folds flat when not in use. While of course not flush with the ground, it makes for an extremely compact design that takes up little space.

Both anchors have a 22mm-thick shackle, and both of them will accept a 22mm chain, but the larger Mega will easily take several chains, even if one of them is a 22mm.

Both anchors have excellent capacity, but you can easily fit several locks through the Mega

Several fitting kits are available to choose from when buying a Pragmasis Torc anchor:

You can also choose between the straight shank drill bit that’s included in the kit or pay an additional £2 for an SDS drill bit.

Several fitting kits are available, allowing you to securely fasten the Pragmasis Torc anchors to a variety of surfaces, including a van floor

Fitting

I opted for resin cartridges for one anchor and the cartridge application for the other, to get a feel for how they both work. I could of course have used expanding bolts to fit the anchors, which is how many are fastened down, but as I was putting these towards the outside edges of my shed base, I needed to be careful that the bolts wouldn’t crack the concrete and potentially blow a piece off the side.

A very thorough instruction book is included with your anchor, written specifically to suit the fitting kit you have. Along with a drill bit, a brush and blow tube are also supplied; beside a power drill and a hammer, you really do get all you need.

The drill bit already has a piece of tape on, marked to the depth you need to drill – another nod to the incredible attention to detail this small company puts into its products – and with resin fittings you can drill the holes straight through the anchor. This makes it far less likely that you’ll get one out of place; all four of mine went in with ease.

The resin capsules are very simple to use

Once the holes are drilled it’s important to thoroughly clean them with the brush and blower tube. I also used a vacuum cleaner, and would stress that you really don’t want to breath back in through the tube while it’s down in the hole!

With the anchor in place, the glass capsules of resin are popped into the holes, then the bolts – which have angled ends – are spun down using the hammer function on your drill at the lowest speed. It doesn’t need long at all – the glass breaks in the hole then the bolt quickly drops down. And that’s it.

If you’ve never used resin fasteners, it can seem strange having what appear to be unsecured bolts, but after an hour or two it’s completely set and there’s no way those bolts are moving. Ideally, leave it overnight, but as soon as the bolts are down you also need to hammer the supplied ball bearings into the bolt heads (a sacrificial bolt that’s to be used as a drift is even included), lay the washer on top (this keeps the cover plates flat and stops them twisting on the bearing if attacked), then tap the cover plates in, which are specially cut to dig into the base of the anchor.

These metal plates seal off the bolt heads, which also have ball-bearings driven into them

Using the resin injection system is basically the same, but at the stage where you’d drop the capsules into the cleaned-out holes, you instead use the twist plunger to inject the two-part epoxy into the holes (it mixes as it comes out of the nozzle).

The injection system is designed for when there could be small voids in the concrete, or where the hole reaches a loose base, like sand or hardcore. I did find it a little tricky to work out how much resin I should put in – I would have liked a larger tube – but I still ended up with an extremely solid fixing.

If you’re fixing into a good base that you know is thicker than the depth of the holes required (95mm), I’d opt for the capsules as they’re very easy to use. Going into a standard concrete floor, I’d probably go for expanding bolts as I just feel a little less panicky about messing it up – get an expanding bolt wrong and you can get it back out again, even if it’s damaged in the process and you need to pick up another; once you start with the resin, you’re committed. Maybe I’m just a bit over-cautious.

Ultimately, Pragmasis has done a great job of ensuring you can fit these anchors to almost any good surface (like any anchor, you can’t bolt them to paving slabs of course), and having the option of a van fitting kit is genius.

The instructions are very concise and easy to follow

Ease of use

You should always tuck a ground anchor out of reach – ideally into a corner behind the bike – to make it as hard as possible for a thief to get at, but that can make it awkward to get some larger chains through the anchor. Fortunately, it’s really easy to pass even the biggest chains through the Torc, and when not in use, the shackle drops neatly to the ground.

For the best chains and locks to use with this ground anchor, read our reviews of the best motorcycle and scooter security.

Resistance to attack

Thanks to some very thoughtful design, this thing is very, very tough. Attacking it with bolt croppers is pointless, and a sledge-hammer attack does little more than chip the paint; you’re more likely to damage the concrete, and thanks to the deep fixings, that’s not going to help a thief.

Cutting through the hardened steel shackle takes a long time, and because it’s a continuous loop of metal, you have to make two cuts to get the chain out (some anchors of this design only require one cut). Cutting the Torc’s shackle twice takes significantly longer than the two cuts needed to separate the links of any of the biggest locks I’ve tested, so while this is a neat, compact solution, it’s no less tough for it.

To see how this compares with other ground anchors, see our reviews of the best garage and home security.

The pair of Torc anchors I bought, fitted to the shed base

Pragmasis Torc Maxi and Mega ground anchor review: Verdict

The design of the Pragmasis Torc makes it incredibly strong; for something so simple, it’s clear that a lot of thought has gone into it. And that’s reflected in all that’s included in the kit and the in-depth instructions.

I test a lot of motorcycle security gear, but it’s testament to how impressed I am with the Torc Maxi and Mega that I bought them for myself. Even before the 10% discount that Bennetts Rewards members can get on Pragmasis products (and others), these anchors offer outstanding value for money.

Without hesitation, I would thoroughly recommend these.

To find the best motorcycle security, including chains and lock, disc locks, alarms, trackers and more, check out our destruction test reviews.

Fitting the Pragmasis Torc anchors

See the Torc anchors going in with our shed build video