Having capitulated, here’s how to raise the waterl...
September 25, 2026
A short but joyful respite from the long, frustrating idleness Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 Breaking out of the low gray winter clouds for the first time in days, the sun illuminates only brown grass and l...
An elegant solution to the dropboard problem Issue 34: Jan/Feb 2004 VERN ALLEN IS A retired pilot. He spent many years in Alaska, flying helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft for charters, sightseeing, ...
A patient sailor learns the hard way how to bulletproof his ports Issue 34: Jan/Feb 2004 I DO NOT RECALL READING ABOUT A DETAIL I encountered while replacing the ports on my Allied Seawind, Zvirbulis ...
A little attention takes your trailer a long way Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 One of the biggest advantages of trailersailing is that you are not limited to one sailing area in a single sailing season; you...
Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 It was not all America’s Cup and 5.5-Meter yachts in my years at Luders, as the yard still had its regular work maintaining and repairing clients’ boats, and I was kept b...
Sheathed wreck of the wooden Ulysses still going strong Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 Since becoming a subscriber to Good Old Boat in 1999, I have enjoyed two articles on the subject of sheathing wooden boa...
A talented aristocrat Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 A Contessa 32 named Assent was fated to go down in nautical history when she was the only yacht in her class to finish a race marred by a storm so bad tha...
Ten lessons one woman singlehander learned during 20 years of offshore cruising Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 A singular disadvantage of the sea lies in the fact that having successfully surmounted one wave...
Boating writer’s circuitous voyage to the Pacific Northwest Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 Spend a day with John Vigor (pronounced VIGH-gor) and you’ll soon be creating Turk’s Head knots and delving into lon...
This famous builder of mahogany runabouts and cabin cruisers also built fiberglass sailboats Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 Tell someone your sailboat is a Chris-Craft and the usual response is, “Chris-Craft...
Thinking of a rewiring job? Here’s what you need to know Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 There re a few fundamental principles you need to understand before you do any boat wiring. They are derived from Ohm’s...
Even the worst-case scenario is a pretty straightforward repair Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 When I discovered the weeping portlights on our Pearson 28, my first thought was: “Caulk ’em.” So, not knowing a...
Twins are good, says noted yacht designer. Just don’t call them keels Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 First, I’d like to clear up the terms I use. Every dictionary I’ve seen agrees that the maritime “keel” is...
This compatible couple makes mainsail handling a snap Issue 34: Jan/Feb 2004 WHEN SAILBOAT OWNERS UPGRADE their sail-handling systems, the first thing they usually do is add a jib roller-furler system...
A quick look at the complicated business of finding the right propeller Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 Nearly all cruising and most racing sailboats have an auxiliary engine and an associated propeller. Apar...
Issue 34: Jan/Feb 2004 I REMEMBER EXACTLY WHEN IT ALL started. I was standing on a dock in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, looking at a lonely sailboat. A light breeze tapped the halyards against the mast and g...
This fast, versatile, trailersailer is easy to launch, rig, and maintain Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 Rob Anderson is one of those larger-than-life, overgrown kids who’s always up to his neck in some type ...
Issue 29 : Mar/Apr 2003 The Slate Islands are a place of beginnings. The concept for Good Old Boat magazine was born there. Five years later, we were back looking for more inspiration. Once the hooks ...
A boating author falls in love with “an exceedingly odd boat” Issue 34: Jan/ Feb 2004 PUBLISHERS ARE PUPPETEERS. Writers are marionettes. On a summer day in 2001, I had a call from Doug Gibson, of McC...
One splash, and “them” turns into “us” Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 Today, we crossed over. We are no longer one of “them,” and now are part of the larger “us.” The “us” that have more fun because our boat...
Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 My wife, Marilyn, began singlehanding our 25-foot sloop in the mid-1980s. One problem she had at that time was hoisting our outboard up and into the stowed position. I made a d...
From aluminum ports to weathered bronze: a clever fraud Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 Although we love our boat, we’ve never had any particular affection for her fixed aluminum ports. Plans to retrofi...
An interview with the first U.S. woman to sail solo around the world Issue 34: Jan/Feb 2004 WHEN KAREN THORNDIKE SAILED into Hobart, Tasmania, in the late 1990s she was greeted as a hero. She’d just c...
A neat and simple way to store the anchor line Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 One of the most convenient features found on many newer boats is a dedicated anchor locker on the foredeck. My O’Day 222 lacks th...
An architect crunches the numbers to compare performance Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 The Montgomery 23 and the two similar small cruisers in this review are classed as “trailersailers.” The problem with a...
A neglected Lyle Hess classic receives royal treatment Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 Serendipity brought a cherished cult boat into the hands of Bob and Sylvia Mann, and remarkable good fortune will bring t...
Oars: How to choose ’em and use ’em Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 Although some dinghies can handle outboards and some have sailing rigs, every dinghy has a set of oars. The ease and pleasure of rowing a sm...
A labor of love makes a tired old 27-footer better than new Issue 30 : May/Jun 2003 “Chrysler? Are you sure? I didn’t know Chrysler made sailboats!” The words of our friends echoed our thoughts ...
A little tender loving care brings longer trouble-free life Issue 34: Jan/Feb 2004 DIESEL ENGINES ARE NOW THE ENGINES OF CHOICE FOR auxiliary sailboats, and with good reason. They have a superior reco...
