Basic insights into how they work Issue 71 : Mar/Apr 2010 Much complicated mathematics lies behind the deceptively simple appearance of a boat’s propeller, but it can be described and specified with a...
Crucial dials and controls go under cover Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 Scrambling around my boat’s cockpit, or watching someone else (especially kids) doing the same, has usually left me wondering when, no...
Meticulous planning ensures a perfect anchor platform Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 When Bruce King designed the Ericson Cruising 31, he gave it a sharp entry. As a result, the deck at the stemhead is rathe...
A weatherproof housing for cockpit electronics Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 I recently swapped out my 22-year-old, obsolete Autohelm 3000 wheel pilot. Neither original nor aftermarket parts were available ...
Ensure your first line of safety really is safe Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 Lifelines are designed to reduce the chances of your going overboard. On many boats, however, these systems are poorly designed ...
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...
An inflatable dinghy gets a homemade upgrade Issue 74 : Sept/Oct 2010 Before my partner, Magali, and I left England on Joass, our 32-foot wooden gaff cutter, in the spring of 1998, we bought ourselves...
Protect your investment from weather and covetous knaves Issue 75 : Nov/Dec 2010 Many GPS chart plotters are designed for bulkhead mounting but, if they’re visible, thieves love them. With that in min...
An in-line valve eliminates the on-dock sprint Issue 75 : Nov/Dec 2010 Upon coming into a marina, our first priority is what we like to call “watering the boat.” The procedure begins with filling her ...
Habitual tinkering comes up trumps Issue 75 : Nov/Dec 2010 Self-steering is the elusive silent partner of every singlehander. Dozens of commercial products have been devised to deliver this blessed gr...
Flat, yes; horizontal, no Issue 76 : Jan/Feb 2011 Finding charts we’d stored on board our 34-foot Creekmore, Eurisko, used to be a constant game of hide and seek. When we put charts on the navigation ...
A hard dinghy becomes a rigid inflatable Issue 76 : Jan/Feb 2011 Twenty years, two kids, and a dog later, I finally had to face facts — the family dinghy no longer fit the family. My wife and I had ac...
A little pram dinghy is a workhorse and a comfort Issue 76 : Jan/Feb 2011 We wouldn’t cast off without our 8-foot pram in tow. It’s convenient to have her in the water and ready to go when we finally ...
Recycle shrinkwrap and save time and money Issue 77 : Mar/Apr 2011 It was the worst of times: I didn’t know if I would launch our beloved 33-foot Cape Dory, Femme du Nord, in spring. I didn’t know if ...
Two-axis mounts make solar panels adjustable for greater gain Issue 77 : Mar/Apr 2011 Having cruised through the South Pacific twice, we knew the value of solar panels for keeping our batteries charge...
Cooling the cost of a warm cabin Issue 77 : Mar/Apr 2011 A warm boat is a great comfort in the rainy Pacific Northwest. Boats stay in the water year-round here and the shoulder cruising seasons have a...
Pressing pure water out of the sea Issue 77 : Mar/Apr 2011 Osmosis is a natural process in which molecules of a liquid spontaneously pass through a semi-permeable membrane. The direction of fl ow acro...
Thinking beyond the pail Issue 78 : May/Jun 2011 Aboard Mystic the “ship’s bucket” is an important piece of gear. When it’s inactive, it holds the vacuum cleaner and is buried deep in the port cockpit...
Secure electrical wiring against chafe Issue 78 : May/Jun 2011 While preparing to run the AC and DC electrical wiring in the refi t of my 33-foot Hallberg-Rassy Mistral, Vera May, I found few products...
A custom box at the helm was the answer Issue 79: July/Aug 2011 After making the decision to add radar to Olo, our 1986 O’Day 35 (see “Radar on the Level,” May 2011), I faced the challenge of where an...
A propane locker that won’t blow the budget Issue 78 : May/Jun 2011 A standard propane locker from a marine catalog seemed ridiculously expensive ($650 or more) when I was refurbishing my Cape Dory 27...
A home-built tower with manumatic leveler Issue 78 : May/Jun 2011 Several years ago, my wife, Kari, and I decided to venture beyond the relative safety of our normal cruising grounds in the Apostle Is...
A not-so-nutty way to send a messenger Issue 80 : Sept/Oct 2011 You say you lost an internal halyard? You’re scratching your head over how to reeve a messenger with which to pull through a replacement...
A system that simplifies storage and use Issue 80 : Sept/Oct 2011 Everyone knows the importance of keeping paper charts aboard as backups for our electronics. But these things can be huge, so how do y...
Old-world wisdom helps restore white vinyl Issue 81 : Nov/Dec 2011 An article of mine entitled “Simply Clean” appeared in the May 2004 issue of Good Old Boat. It detailed recipes for more than two doz...
A convenient container for small canisters Issue 81 : Nov/Dec 2011 If you have an anchor locker with a drain, here’s an easy way to store those 1-pound propane tanks used for barbecue grills. Buy a le...
A clever little box cuts projects down to size Issue 81 : Nov/Dec 2011 Many sailors do their repair projects or build additions for their boats in home workshops equipped with all the tools required f...
Peace of mind for pocket change Issue 81 : Nov/Dec 2011 The battery-operated wireless burglar alarms widely available now for doors and windows can provide an easy and inexpensive way to protect the c...
A work-around keeps the boat in service Issue 83: March/April 2012 The diesel tank on my 1968 Seafarer was in need of repair. I had to cut it open to clean it and also had to replace the fuel lines. I...
