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...
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...
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...
A Stimson shed is the ideal cover-up for a project boat Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 Just about everyone who has ever owned an old boat for any length of time has had to face a frightening word: refit. Thi...
They gnaw on metal and at your peace of mind Issue 87 : Nov/Dec 2012 When I was a child my cousin told me not to look under the bed because “there could be monsters under there.” It would be terribly ...
Clean, reliable diesel for the DIY cruiser Issue 86: Sept/Oct 2012 In our early years of cruising, we learned the hard way about how important clean fuel is. I didn’t worry about the fuel as long as t...
They block out heat, light, and prying eyes Issue 90: May/June 2013 When searching for our current boat, we developed a list of “must haves.” In addition to opening ports, we wanted more than one or t...
It prevents stray currents and preserves precious metals Issue 88 : Jan/Feb 2013 In Trinidad, a few years ago, we had just finished our annual haulout. Our zincs were shiny and the bottom paint was fr...
Simple original construction means a simple repair Issue 90: May/June 2013 I should have paid more attention to my loose rudder bearing when I put the boat in the water, but it didn’t seem any worse t...
Damp skivvies provoke an impromtu pit stop Issue 88 : Jan/Feb 2013 We put up with many inconveniences when sailing because we like to go where cell phones don’t ring. But wet underwear? That forced ou...
Low-stretch Dyneema has advantages over wire Issue 89 : Mar/Apr 2013 Our Liberty 458, Nine of Cups, just celebrated her 25th birthday. We replaced the lifelines the first year we owned her, using viny...
Give slime and scum the brush-off on the cheap Issue 91 : Jul/Aug 2013 Doesn’t every sailor yearn for another tenth of a knot? Especially when racing? I do. Lucky are those who trailer their boats and...
For taking in air with grace, nothing beats them Issue 91 : Jul/Aug 2013 The best way to keep the inside of a boat fresh and free from mildew is to ensure that it’s adequately ventilated. Dorade boxes...
Clean new bases for turning blocks Issue 98: Sept/Oct 2014 I’m slowly replacing the teak on my boat with materials that don’t need refinishing. There wasn’t a lot to begin with, so whether I choose to...
A bolt replaces a faulty valve Issue 94 : Jan/Feb 2014 Though I have never seen any of this described, I have been having terrible problems with the self-venting drain valve on 500 series Racor filter...
Limiting wear from beach landings Issue 94 : Jan/Feb 2014 The cruising life is a hard one for dinghies, especially in tidal areas where they often have to be dragged 100 feet and more up pebble beache...
Hand-crimped terminals make for easy DIY Issue 94 : Jan/Feb 2014 Rust-colored stains in the cracked vinyl-coated lifelines on Galilean, our 1984 Islander 30, signaled corrosion at work. Vinyl-coated l...
Fire hose looks the part and takes the wear Issue 95 : Mar/Apr 2014 It would be about three hours before the morning tide would turn and take me on a fast-moving flood through Rich Passage on the way ...
A friendly deterrent to feathered friends Issue 95 : Mar/Apr 2014 We recently took a marina vacation — a break from worrying about shifting winds and cold fronts while anchoring out. Since we rarely s...
A long-term problem cured Issue 96 : May/Jun 2014 Secret Water is an aging and much-loved 1965 Allied Seabreeze 35. During my stint as owner (1996 until present), she has had her share of annoying dec...
. . . replace irreplaceable windows Issue 99 : Nov/Dec 2014 When it was time to replace the deadlights in the deckhouse on my 1978 Eastward Ho 31, I ran into a problem. Replace them with . . . what? T...
Why does cleaning it require taking a bath? Issue 101 : Mar/Apr 2015 Now that we have mapped the human genome, it’s time to tackle the real technological challenge of the 21st century — foul-proofing ...
Soft barriers keep out bugs and sunbeams Issue 100: Jan/Feb 2015 I’ve had it with mosquitoes and also with the sun shining in my eyes when I’m trying to sleep. Maybe it’s about my sense of privacy too...
A mast gets a new foot to stand on Issue 101 : Mar/Apr 2015 I’ve always been in the habit of pulling my mast when I lay my boat up each fall. It adds to the annual cost, but it’s better in the long ru...
Trap dirt and sand before they get on the mother ship Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 My sailboat, Pelorus, sits on a mooring about a third of a mile offshore. I get to her by dinghy, a plywood Phil Bolger d...
Turn any flat surface into a workbench Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 What happens if you find yourself on a sailboat and need a vise for holding either wood or metal while you work on it? I have long admir...
Cleaning the mainsail track made easy Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 Some time ago, Don Launer came up with a great device for lubricating the mainsail slot (see “Sailtrack Lubricator,” March 2008) but I ha...
Thoughts about the little boat that tends the big boat Issue 108: May/June 2016 Conditions at Fire Island Inlet on the south shore of Long Island were “a bit sporty,” as they say in New England, but n...
Better backing plates restore rigidity Issue 108: May/June 2016 When a concentrated load is applied to a structure, that load must be distributed widely enough that the surrounding structure is not ov...
Obscure tools the the gymnastics out of routine jobs Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 We have owned our Pearson 386, Lakota, for more than 20 years. She is a lovely and reliable good old boat that has served ...
