A serendipitous spotting of a family’s first boat sparks a nostalgic mystery Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 I’d like to think most people have experienced déjà vu, that odd feeling that you are reexper...
How 3D printing can help create new or replacement parts aboard Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 As an engineer, I’ve been intently watching 3D printing technology develop over the last decade. At its inceptio...
A simple DIY pump system can keep your bilge dry Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 “Ask me about my E.L.D.,” my friend says. What, you are probably wondering, is an E.L.D.? Admittedly, it’s just an acronym I ca...
A satisfying solution to a difficult problem Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 Haulouts are always a somewhat anxious time. Sailors develop a plan and a list of tasks we want to accomplish to maintain or improv...
Rebedding a cabin top eyebrow to solve a pesky leak Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 Winter covers come off boats late up here in Maine, leaving a short, often cold window to get ready for launch. Last year, b...
Nasty weather provides a curtain call for a memorable cruise Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 I knew the last storm was coming. I’d been checking the forecast daily on my C. Crane pocket weather radio. My wife...
Finding a sensible solution to an alternator’s persistent overheating problem Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 Over the years, and with two different small diesels working in the tight quarters of the engine c...
How to fend off or fix an onboard termite infestation Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 “Surely it can’t be that bad,” I mumbled to myself as I tapped the hollow-sounding plywood with a screwdriver. Seconds lat...
Taking inspiration to create a more functional and gooseneck-friendly vang/preventer Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 I started sailing as an adult and honed my skills racing on San Francisco Bay aboard other ...
A fast and comfortable racer-cruiser that has stood the test of time Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 While on vacation in Mexico, Debbie Bulk dreamed of a better way to see local village life away from the re...
When it comes to sailboats, bigger isn’t always better. Issue 155: March/April 2024 “Buy a bigger boat.” That’s the refrain we’ve often heard from friends and family. The reason: Finn, our Barnstable ...
An inexpensive cure for a crowded cockpit Issue 155: March/April 2024 We are seasonal sailors on the Great Lakes, and summer is a time for having fun with our family and friends. We love having guests...
A cruise leads to a harrowing experience and an important lesson for newbie sailors. Issue 155: March/April 2024 It all started when I found an available mooring just a few yards’ walk from our beach ...
A solution for smaller boats and sensitive waters Issue 155: March/April 2024 Let’s be honest — toilets aboard small boats are tricky and can be icky. My first cruisable boat, a Stiletto 27, had a che...
A clever solution for raising a mast on a small boat Issue 155: March/April 2024 I have a renovated/repurposed 17-foot Thistle trailer-sailer named Transmogrifier for daysailing and beach cruising (se...
When the right boat proves elusive, a sailor tackles a major overhaul. Issue 155: March/April 2025 My search for the ideal beach cruiser started several years ago, when I decided to compete in the Eve...
The little boat that could Issue 155: March/April 2024 In an era of increasingly bigger boats, sometimes it’s the smaller vessels that steal the show — like our beloved Fatty Knees 8 dinghy. Despite i...
Turning the interior of a bargain trailer-sailer into a comfortable pocket cruiser Issue 155: March/April 2024 When hunting for an old fiberglass sailboat to adopt in the spring of 2022, I found many ...
A classic plastic gets a modern electric galley. Issue 155: March/April 2024 As I write this, I am about a day’s sail from American Samoa, bound for Fiji. Triteia, my 1965 Alberg 30, is running wing a...
A Montgomery 12 becomes a family project that perpetuates the love of sailing. Issue 155: March/April 2024 Restoring a 1974 Montgomery 12 sailing dinghy with my identical twin boys, Jackson and Connor...
Tips and tricks from a window replacement on a couple’s first sailboat Issue 155: March/April 2024 Window replacements rarely fall under the category of “simple,” and this job on my newly acquired 197...
From pocket cruisers to beloved classics, dying boats need to be saved. Issue 155: March/April 2024 Last spring, the yard where I store my sloop for the winter cleared out a small trove of derelict sa...
Bringing an old boat back to life provides relief in trying times. Issue 155: March/April 2024 My husband lifted the shabby dinghy off the bed of the truck, slid the decrepit 8-foot hull onto a rollin...
A Sleek Racer/Cruiser From the Mid-’80s Issue 155: March/April 2024 Jan Bednarski was introduced to the world of water sports by his father near the prairie city of Edmonton, Alberta. Over the y...
A series of bad decisions leads to a potentially fatal situation Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 Squalls were building rapidly as Jo Beth rumbled along under engine power, some 10 miles southeast of the entra...
Installing a cabin heater for cool cruising adventures in a warm boat Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 Honcho, our 1998 Beneteau 36s7, needed cabin heat. Even though we had given up cruising in the coldest mon...
