Having capitulated, here’s how to raise the waterl...
September 25, 2026
Impermanent illumination for impromptu parties Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Every once in a while, although the Vera May is really not a party boat, her cockpit is the venue for a small evening gathering. ...
Tragedy underscores propane’s dark side Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 A sailing friend called with stunning news: an explosion had just destroyed a boat moored in the marina where our good old boat, Sirius,...
An author prevails against life’s headwinds Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Before dawn each day, William C. Hammond makes his way to the writing studio of his rambling colonial house near downtown Minneapoli...
Under its dull, chalky finish lies a shiny boat Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Believe it or not, it is possible to bring the shine back to a good old boat. Most of the thousands of aging fiberglass boats ou...
Drawn to the irresistible rhythm of Polynesia Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 We pull into Hanavave Bay on Fatu Hiva after a long afternoon of sailing. The jagged mountains and deep valleys of the Marquesas I...
An inexpensive boat proves to be a treasure Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Many times in my life I have found more than I was looking for. That was the case with the boat my wife, Sharon, and I are now cruis...
A confirmed tinkerer adds muscle to his foredeck Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 After a difficult anchor retrieval, the first mate and I decided it was time to bring another deckhand aboard Prime Time, our 2...
Cruisers rediscover sailing on home waters in a small boat Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 It is a lovely summer day in the Gulf Islands off Canada’s west coast as our 25-footer pokes her bow out of the marin...
Big Bobber marks the spot Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 As your boat swings around in a tight or crowded anchorage, it’s helpful if you can see where your anchor is lying. An anchor buoy enables you to do t...
A nifty boat-cover support that packs to nothing Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 As I drove slowly by this boat, the thought flashed through my mind that it sure would be easy to store this winter-cover frame...
Close it with a cord and a cleat hitch Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 In situations where more-normal people ask, “How can I fix this?” we on board Eurisko tend to think, “How can I use string to fix this?” ...
A spiffy new look for regulation flotation Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 They’re bright yellow, anonymous, and everywhere. New ones are expensive but they become faded eyesores after a few years in the sun....
The answer is to baffle it Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Everyone else on the shopping bus was bleary-eyed and commiserating about how many times during the night they had gotten up to close hatches. It had...
A family of four dreams big, goes small Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 On a cold November night in 2010, my husband and I attended a liveaboard brunch at a nearby marina. There the seed of an old dream germi...
An internal transducer eliminates a through-hull Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Signals from a depth sounder will pass through a fiberglass hull that is not too thick and has no delamination problems. The ow...
A sturdy club racer and coastal cruiser Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 Humphrey Bogart’s sleek and much-loved yacht, Santana — a contraction of “Santa Ana” — was named for the katabatic winds that blow throu...
Tips for taking photos that “pop” Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 The difference between a snap-shot and a beautiful photo is in the details, not in the cost of the camera it’s taken with or the advanced proc...
Partners approach it from different directions Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 When we mess about in boats, most of us enjoy the company of others. When I sail, my preference is to meander about, exploring th...
Bet on it before you bet on luck Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Many boat projects require a reasonable amount of skill, but for the most part it’s your determination and vision that become the most importan...
Matt Rutherford’s most excellent vertical circumnavigation Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 The last three weeks were the worst — cold air, boarding seas, and stubborn winds on the nose. He was in a beat-up bo...
A little lumber and a little labor is all it took Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 The hatch on my new good old boat, a 1972 Balboa 20, was not in the best of shape. The wooden pieces that enclosed the edges o...
An innovative and popular design from the early 1980s Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Warren Luhrs founded Hunter Marine in 1972 and within a year introduced his first sailboat, the Hunter 25. For his initial...
The bottom line in mainsail trim Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Outhauls have been in use since the days of the square rigger. An outhaul is part of the running rigging, specifically a line fastened to the c...
Why American sailors stuck with a movable appendage Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 First, let me say it’s a humbling experience to take over the design comparisons in Good Old Boat from someone with the brea...
Good Old Boat welcomes aboard a new contributing editor Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 If you own a C&C yacht, Rob Mazza probably had a hand in its construction, design, or engineering. If you own a boat...
. . . and CCA centerboard contemporaries Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 First built in 1960, and rigged as either a yawl or a sloop, the Mercer 44 goes back to the dawn of fiberglass boat-building. That made...
Years of devotion and labor lifted Spirit Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 Coincidence, destiny, serendipity — call it what you will, chance must play a strong hand in matching aging boats with their rightful ...
A passel of pocket cruisers put on a show Issue 85 : Jul/Aug 2012 The C&C Mega 30 project boat in our backyard doesn’t fit the true definition of a pocket cruiser, but she will be trailerable once...
Or store those moments for memories? Issue 87 : Nov/Dec 2012 What does it mean, to “live in the moment?” It sounds laudable. It implies a mind focused on the business at hand and not easily distracted...
Nail polish helps an anode stay attached Issue 87 : Nov/Dec 2012 Without trying to revisit political skirmishes involving lipstick and pigs, what good old boat wouldn’t benefit from a little nail poli...
