Steps in the process of measuring progress Issue 8...
June 26, 2026
A clean look at the “dirty” half dozen Pros and cons of the six main fuels for galley stoves When it comes to choosing a marine stove fuel there is rarely anyone completely happy with the choice. All ...
Building your own (leakproof!) classic hatch When Mary and I bought our 1965 Alberg 30 we knew that replacing the forward hatch was going to be one of many projects. Down below there was no indication...
At an age when many sailors retire, sell the house, move aboard, and go cruising, my wife, Dee, and I built a house, sold the boat, moved ashore for the first time in 25 years, and started a business....
Catalina Yachts: One big family Call the Woodland Hills headquarters of Catalina Yachts in California, and one thing strikes you right away about the choices the telephone answering system offers you....
Planning for an unplanned inversion Capsize: how it happens, and what you can do to survive it When Isabelle Autissier’s 60-foot racer capsized in the Southern Ocean, it sent a chill of fear thr...
Swap your old plastic windows for salty new ports After buying our old 1965 Alberg 30, Mary and I knew that part of the renovation program would be the replacement of the old fixed windows with operat...
What’s the meaning of all those numbers used by yacht designers? The terms and ratios that follow are used by all yacht designers, so it’s a good idea to have an understanding of them if y...
Tried and trusted old fittings give character to modern yachts If you remember when all sailboats had wooden spars, manila lines, galvanized fittings, and cotton sails, chances are you have problems w...
Whether a cosmetic or structural issue, a thorough investigation of any blister problem is warranted People often ask whether gelcoat osmosis problems – generically called “blisters”...
A bad case of blisters made the boat affordable; upgrades were the expensive part. It all started innocently enough. It was mid-October of 1990, and we were going to Texas anyway to visit cousins in S...
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water … Why is it that some sailors go quietly about their business, consistently making quick, safe, and satisfying passages, while others lurch er...
Despite the popular notion today, fiberglass and plastic resins were not “new” technology in the mid-1950s, nor was Clinton Pearson the first person to use them to build sailboats. This be...
Don’t wait until it happens; get your boat ready now My first memory, as a small child, was being in the middle of a hurricane in the North Atlantic. It was the 1930s. Our family was returning b...
Spoil yourselves and get a really good night’s sleep while aboard Have you ever wondered what you have to do to get a boat with a decent-size bed? My wife, Cheryl, and I searched for six years f...
“The shock of discovering bubbles on your boat’s bottom is merely the prelude to a prolonged pain in the assets.” Boat pox, osmosis, or blisters . . . call it what you will. Most fib...
Diesel envy? Take another look at the gasoline engine that came with your good old boat If you own a sailboat, there is a good chance that you recognize the Atomic 4 engine by name, even if you don...
The wind had shifted overnight. A sea was starting to run into the anchorage from the exposed direction, so we decided to leave. We finished the breakfast dishes and pulled in the “off-duty hook...
Dogwatch (n): For sailors, either of the 2-hour watch periods between 1600 and 2000; For journalists, the period after going to press when staff stand by in case breaking news warrants a...
CARIBBEAN EXPLOSION I wonder if any sailor readers in the Caribbean saw this on June 22: earthsky.org –Gregg Bruff, Good Old Boat contributor and reader Thanks Gregg. We didn’t see this but found read...
Fourth of July weekend, all the family gathered at Grandpa’s cottage on Harsens Island in Little Muscamoot Bay. The cousins caught fish off the seawall while the uncles grilled burgers and the aunts s...
Reading 200,000 Miles: A life of adventure, I had the sense of sitting over a cup of tea, below deck, with a sailing legend, while he enthusiastically told me everything I ever wanted to know about of...
Father and son answer a long-dormant desire for coastal cruising Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 Since buying back Quelle Vie, the Grampian Classic 31-foot sloop my father bought new in 1966 and I sold in 19...
… and two more proper little yachts Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 The McCurdy & Rhodes-designed Seafarer 26 is a proper little yacht, with full standing head-room, an enclosed head, a full galley...
Leave the weight in the lake and tow a lighter boat Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 Water can be used in various ways to increase a boat’s stability. One method is as old as yachting itself. Æmilius Jarvis r...
Set fasteners to the right tightness with a wrench torque Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 “Remember, Eddie, one hand on the socket end of the wrench and your other hand perpendicular to the end of the handle...
The ClampTite alternative is more effective and less injurious Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 When most sailors think of hose clamps they think of the ubiquitous worm-drive steel clamp. Worm-drive clamps ar...
It gets a new look and loses its fishhooks Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 We were in the middle of a race and Sam was up front, jibing the spinnaker pole over to the other side of the boat. “Ouch! Dammit!” ...
Rebuilding an Atomic 4 on a mooring far from home Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 Although I lived in Michigan, I bought my 1967 Morgan 34 with a trip south in mind. I thought she would be a good boat for th...
They quell fear of the unknown with caution and careful planning Issue 127: July/Aug 2019 Many old nautical charts bore the warning “Here Be Dragons” scribed across uncharted regions. When my husband,...
