It’s a versatile and invaluable tool Issue 87 : Nov/Dec 2012 The hand-bearing compass, or sighting compass, is a portable compass used to take a bearing or azimuth. This type of compass has been in us...
Simplifying the water supply led to galley efficiencies Issue 88 : Jan/Feb 2013 Our 1976 Tanzer 26 served us very well for several years as a cruising boat on Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba, but on such a ...
Parts boxes no longer slip, slide, or spill Issue 89 : Mar/Apr 2013 Over the years, I’ve tried all types of containers for storing my tools, fasteners, spare parts, and so on. I finally settled on cle...
Getting a horseshoe buoy to accept a boat’s name Issue 89 : Mar/Apr 2013 It was time to replace the ratty, decades-old yellow (now almost white) throwable horseshoe buoy on Wind-Borne, my 1985 Hunter ...
Decorative work occupies a quiet sea passage Issue 89 : Mar/Apr 2013 On a passage from French Polynesia to the Cook Islands a couple of years ago, nothing major had broken, the weather was benign, and...
Take the helm while taking in the view Issue 89 : Mar/Apr 2013 My Catalina 28 has elevated catbird seats in the aft corners of the cockpit that are wonderful places to sit when we’re under sail. I oft...
Tame slippery laces with push-button ease Issue 91 : Jul/Aug 2013 They say necessity is the mother of invention. If that’s so, then Spinnaker, my cocker spaniel puppy, is the father. I’d been getting ...
You can’t take all of them with you . . . Issue 91 : Jul/Aug 2013 One of the things I knew I’d miss most, once we cast off the docklines and went cruising on the 31-foot Cape George cutter I’d built f...
Big-box carabiners are the ultimate clip-ons Issue 92 : Sept/Oct 2013 I’ve tried a number of arrangements for connecting the fenders to Wind-Borne, my 1985 Hunter 28.5, but none have been all that sat...
New life for a good old boat’s wheels Issue 98: Sept/Oct 2014 Three times we went to look at the Catalina 22. Under the grime and moss she seemed to be in overall good shape, if just a little neglecte...
An old-time rope trick saves the docklines Issue 93 : Nov/Dec 2013 Not until our family spent our third winter aboard while cruising on Ganymede — our home-finished Cape George 31 cutter — did we have...
Adapting a boathook to do double duty Issue 93 : Nov/Dec 2013 To make my own whisker pole, I developed an alternative approach to that described by Clarence Jones (“An Inexpensive Whisker Pole,” May 2...
Bridge the gap twixt dock and deck Issue 93 : Nov/Dec 2013 My wife and I have been the proud owners of Anastasis, an Islander 28, for seven years. She was very well equipped when we bought her, truly ...
Channeling old masters through metal tubing Issue 93 : Nov/Dec 2013 When Jennifer and I bought Phoenix, a Hans Christian 33, we had the luxury of being able to install some systems from scratch and th...
Wire leashes tame hardware wanderlust Issue 98: Sept/Oct 2014 The tack of the mainsail on Ternabout, our 20-foot Matilda sloop, was clipped to the gooseneck with a big cotter pin. It did its job well,...
Wheels take the weight off a paddler’s shoulders Issue 94 : Jan/Feb 2014 It’s not easy for a sailor to stay occupied with boat-oriented projects when snow covers the ground. Building a cart that simpl...
Hush those tapping halyards Issue 95 : Mar/Apr 2014 A halyard slapping on an aluminum mast is probably the most annoying noise on the water. It’s bad enough if it’s on someone else’s boat, but if your...
Safer egress from dinghy and water Issue 95 : Mar/Apr 2014 A few years ago, we had friends out on our O’Day 32 Center Cockpit for a lovely warm summer daysail off San Diego’s Point Loma. The Pacific w...
Adapting a boat to a lightweight crew Issue 96 : May/Jun 2014 At the age of 55, I decided it was time for me to have my own boat so I could do what I wanted . . . in my own way. Although I’d been livi...
Easy on the eyes and warm to the touch Issue 97 : Jul/Aug 2014 The stainless-steel steering wheel on our 1978 Islander Bahama 30 was always cold on the hands and the eyes. I wasn’t a fan of expensive ...
Open and close a sun flap from below Issue 100: Jan/Feb 2015 Home waters for my 1980 Hunter 30, Summer Wind, are Lake Pontchartrain and the central Gulf Coast, where a generously sized Bimini over the...
Clever clamps made of rubber hose Issue 101 : Mar/Apr 2015 I like my boat to be visible in a dark anchorage, but I prefer to use cockpit and deck lighting that doesn’t use precious stored energy. Sola...
Hand-sewn cargo boosters that stow flat Issue 101 : Mar/Apr 2015 A pair of saddlebags, or panniers as they are often called in the biking world, add capacity and convenience when we make shopping trip...
A single digit now does a two-person job Issue 101 : Mar/Apr 2015 It’s slightly more than 8 feet from the water to the head of the davits on the raised aft deck of my Down East 45 schooner, Britannia....
Where there’s no wheel, there’s still a way Issue 101 : Mar/Apr 2015 Numerous dining tables have been designed to fit on the binnacle consoles on sailboats with wheel steering, but on a tiller-steered...
They are more than a buffer twixt butt and deck Issue 102 : May/Jun 2015 Closed-cell-foam seat cushions are available at home centers. I found ours at Menards under their house name Guidesman (SKU 175...
An elder-care product updates a good old boat Issue 102 : May/Jun 2015 My 1983 Catalina 36, Tao, was a great choice at a great price, but I’ve often looked with longing at those cool open transoms on ...
A fun factor with a bonus safety feature Issue 102 : May/Jun 2015 A boarding ladder not only gives sailors an easy way to get in and out of the water, but can also be a lifesaver after an accidental f...
