Having capitulated, here’s how to raise the waterl...
September 25, 2026
Here’s a rigging project you can do yourself Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 My best friend Adam’s new-to-him Tartan 37, Audentia, had never left the dock with him at the helm. He’d purchased her in February,...
. . . with two other husky, seaworthy cruisers Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 Selecting designs to compare to the feature boat is never easy; it often boils down to finding similar yachts of the same length....
A tall-ship captain sails a petite Dana 24 Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 Minstrel is the perfect name for Karen Sullivan’s Dana 24. Karen has done a fair amount of wandering from coast to coast and beyond a...
Of foils, fins, ballast, and bulbs Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 In the previous issue, in “All About Keels; Part 1,” Bob Perry discussed the terminology and the compromises inherent in keel design. In this...
A solid, spacious cruiser with good performance Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 A young and growing family does not fit well into a 26-foot trailerable sailboat. That was the situation facing Rich and Brandi ...
The triumph of the do-it-yourselfer Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 The thing that separates the hard-core do-it-yourselfer from other sailors is just this: no fear. We were replacing a vinyl window in our 17...
Is it really good for the soul? Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 I have a confession to make. I have booked a passage to Alaska on a cruise ship. I’m confessing because for years I’ve been saying to anyone wit...
Self-adhesive Velcro offers improvement Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 I was surprised to see the article about Velcro turnbuckle locks in the March 2010 issue. Perhaps, in the rough waters of Erie off Presq...
Vegetable oil fixed one, the other remains Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 My usual motto, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” has served me well in many life experiences but has never been the best strategy t...
Ascertain their state of charge the eBay way Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 I suspect most good old boats are used infrequently and, when they’re used, the engine is run just long enough to get to and from t...
Employ virtual dock hands to control your boat’s bow Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 At our marina, the finger piers are aligned north and south but the winds are generally easterly or westerly. On most days,...
Creating confidence through a safe boarding experience Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 Few things complement the pleasure of boating like a proper boarding ladder. For children, parents, and grandparents alik...
A seagoing ketch gets a brand-new steering system Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 Over the past nine years, my partner, Magali, and I have been steadily modifying our ketch, Sigfrid, to turn her into a practi...
Installation, operation, and maintenance Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 In the May/June issue of Good Old Boat, Randy Baker described how to build an inexpensive reverse-osmosis watermaker. In this second an...
A Bristol 30 restoration takes its sweet and proper time Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 Every night for four years, when I came in from the yard after working on my 30-foot sailboat, I heard the same questio...
Cruisers pull together for the dear departed Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 The brassy summer sun beat down on the tiny Turkish port of Marmaris. Tom, the crusty old Brit, sat sweating under his cockpit awni...
Integrating lazy-jacks with a sailcover Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 I love my mainsail when it’s doing what it’s supposed to do: powering my boat. But since I am often a singlehanded sailor, there are tim...
Mainsail control for less than $100 Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 The previous owner of our Catalina 30 had installed lazy-jacks to handle the fully-battened mainsail. The system was rigged so the lazy-jack...
Dedicated downwind headsails offer better control Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 The twin-headsail rig, once commonly seen on boats running in the trade winds, has become a dinosaur in today’s fleet of rolle...
The ins and outs and aftermath Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 Flash — BANG! My eyes flew open. I had been sound asleep, so it took me a second to orient myself. I was sleeping in the V-berth, the hatch above...
What advertising and operating manuals don’t tell you Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 Retrofitting your good old boat with a new GPS receiver? A GPS chart plotter? Beware. Whatever the salesman told you, what...
How the holes in your hull can take your boat down Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 Although fiberglass, steel, and aluminum are not naturally buoyant, they can be fabricated into a shape like a boat hull that...
Listening to the lovely sound of no engine Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 “If you don’t mind, let’s not start the engine yet,” Jim said as we sailed across a tide rip between Sucia Island and Patos Island St...
Comparing three light-displacement cruiser/racers Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 I would hardly call any one of these three beamy designs a good old boat, since two of them are still in production today and ...
They’ve stuck together through thick and thin Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 Durkee Richards found the girl of his dreams at age 18 and became a one-woman man. He and Mary Jeanne hit all the expected stops a...
Examining what lies beneath and behind Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 If you go through the various texts on yacht design, you will find the section on rudders to be relatively anemic. Rudder design is trick...
A Euro-style racer with few concessions to cruising Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 When viewed from dockside, our review boat, Amoretto, a 30-foot Jeanneau Arcadia, appeared to be a solidly built, no-nonsens...
The point of going is to be gone Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 This summer — for the first time in my adult life — I will have a 12-week vacation. By the time you read this issue, Jerry and I will have just...
It doesn’t get any better than this Issue 74 : Sept/Oct 2010 Like most boats in the north, mine spends the winter hauled out and bundled up, gathering snowdrifts and growing icicles. To feed my sailin...
A large PVC pipe eliminates odors Issue 74 : Sept/Oct 2010 During a recent trip to southern Florida, I spent two enjoyable afternoons walking the docks. I use these opportunities to chat with sailors ...
