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Sailboat Reviews

Articles

Boat Review: Marshall 22 Catboat

New Boat Review: Beneteau Oceanis 41

Building a New Beneteau

Dinghy Launchers: Wheels for the Dinghy

Dinghy Roller Test Drive

Sailboat Reviews

Unbiased, detailed reports on dinghies, daysailers, racer-cruisers, cruising sailboats, and multihulls. Insights into boat construction and design. Solid advice on buying a sailboat.

Sailboat Reviews - Index
Marine Electronics

Articles

PS Reviews Cheap and Free iPad Nav Apps

PS Sea-trials the iPad and Nav Apps

Practical Sailor Reviews Iridium and Inmarsat Satphones

PS Tests the Fish-finding Factor of Compact Plotter-sounders

PS Tests Small-screen Plotter-sounders

Marine Electronics

Extensive tests of GPS chartplotters, fishfinders, VHF radios, radar, AIS, navigation software, and handheld gadgets. Professional guidance on installing and operating high-tech sailing gear.
Sails, Rigging & Deck Gear

Articles

Caring for Marine Fabrics

Build Your Own Fender Boards

Functional Fabrics

Pushing Marine Fabrics Beyond Their Limits

After-market Cordage Treatments

Sails, Rigging & Deck Gear

Independent tests of halyards, sheets, furlers, anchors, snatch blocks, shackles, ropes, winches, vangs, cleats, booms, masts, and standing rigging. Expert guidance on choosing a mainsail, jib, or spinnaker.
Systems & Propulsion

Articles

Solutions for a Stinky Holding Tank

Holding Tanks: Getting the Stink Out

Test Setup Simulates Onboard Sewage System

Avoid Plugging with Proper Vent Installation

On a Side Note: Holding Tanks

Systems & Propulsion

Comprehensive comparisons of pumps, batteries, solar panels, wind generators, inverter-chargers, watermakers, propellers, toilets, engines, and other marine systems. Tips on ship-shape installations.
Boat Maintenance

Articles

WipeOut Eraser vs. Mr. Clean Magic Eraser

Bottom Paint Test Checkup

Mailport: March 2012

Where Credit is Due: March 2012

A Look at Anchor Rodes

Boat Maintenance

Bottom paints, topside paints, varnishes, waxes, protectants, cleaners, metal polishes. If it comes in a bottle or can, PS has tested it. Proven methods to protecting your floating investment.
Belowdecks & Amenities

Articles

Bottom Paint Stripping

What’s Cooking Now?

Mailport: March 2012

Showers

Clean Bottom, Fast Bottom

Belowdecks & Amenities

Our top picks in galley stoves, cookware, cabin lights, refrigeration, and entertainment systems can help turn your cruising boat into a home. Creative solutions to the challenges of living aboard.
Personal Gear & Apparel

Articles

Lather, Rinse, and Repeat

PS Tests Padded Sailing Shorts

Testers Search for an All-star LED Spotlight

Testers Check Beam Patterns and Illumination

The Best Products for Staying Clean Onboard

Personal Gear & Apparel

Thorough test reports on binoculars, boat shoes, foul weather gear, hand-bearing compasses, sailing knives, flashlights, headlamps, sunglasses boots, and anything else that belongs in a skipper's seabag.
Safety & Seamanship

Articles

Seascoopa Revisited

Safety Lessons Learned Part 1

US Sailing Recommendations

Help Us Design a Better PFD/harness

Orion Replacing Potentially Faulty Flares

Safety & Seamanship

Our testers evaluate life jackets, flares, life rafts, harnesses, man-overboard strobes, medical kits, seasickness aids, and emergency devices. Tips on marine safety gear, boat-handling, and emergency procedures.
Mailport & PS Advisor

Mailport & PS Advisor

Insightful letters from sophisticated sailors. Do-it-yourself projects and reader feedback on a wide range of boats, marine manufacturers, and sailing products.
Inside Practical
Sailor Blog

Sailboat Reviews

New Boat Review: Beneteau Oceanis 41

Beneteau’s newest cruiser blends innovative design, stylish form, and impressive performance.

Beneteau’s new Oceanis 41 features a unique hull shape and a new cruising perspective, with a design that focuses on style, comfort, and ease of operation. After sailing the boat, Practical Sailor editors walked away impressed with the wide-body sloop. French naval architects Finot-Conq skillfully distributed the boat’s volume, placed the rig and foils exactly where they belong and revised the deck layout. A chine-like edge— affectionately known as the “kink”—interrupts the smooth curve of the topsides. Other new features on the Oceanis 41 include a transformable transom-swim platform and convertible cabin furniture.

More Sailboat Reviews

Building a New Beneteau
Subscribers Only — The building process that gives rise to the Beneteau Oceanis 41 begins in France, where digital design files stir a...
Boat Review: Marshall 22 Catboat
Subscribers Only — The stout Marshall 22, in production since 1965, rekindles the romance of shoal-water sailing. As a weekender or...
Dinghy Launchers: Wheels for the Dinghy
Subscribers Only — Getting your dinghy to the dock, across a beach, or down a boat ramp can be a real back-breaker, unless you have some...
Dinghy Roller Test Drive
Subscribers Only — We tested each product for overall quality of construction, ease of installation, and ease of use. Each model was...
Velux Race Boats Showcase Alternative Energy Options
Subscribers Only — In the recent Velux 5 Oceans Race, four solo sailors piloted their 60-foot boats some 30,000 miles around the globe,...
Can New Hydrogens Serve Cruisers?
Subscribers Only — If the recent Velux 5 Oceans Race yielded one breakthrough, it would have to be the hydrogenerators from Watt & Sea....
PS Reviews Seven Performance-sailing Dinghies
— With summer upon us, light, quick sailing dinghies that are easy to sail and easy to transport make summertime on the...
The Art of Building with Thermal-setting Plastics
Subscribers Only — One of the themes seen among the new entries is a trend toward thermal-setting rather than thermal-fixing plastic...
PS Reviews the Presto 30 Trailer-sailer
Subscribers Only — Rodger Martin’s Presto 30 is clearly a descendant of the round-bilge sharpies made famous by Ralph Munroe’s...
ebook — Life Rafts
Sailboat Reviews - Index

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March 2012

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Sailboat Reviews

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Marine Electronics

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Sails, Rigging & Deck Gear

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Boat Maintenance

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Belowdecks & Amenities

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Personal Gear & Apparel

Articles

Safety & Seamanship

Mailport & PS Advisor

Sailboat Reviews

Beneteau’s newest cruiser blends innovative design, stylish form, and impressive performance.

More Sailboat Reviews

Current Issue

March 2012

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Reader Questionnaire

Practical Sailor is gauging interest in a consumer-advice report on sailboat chartering. Please let us know how you feel about bareboat sailing charter opportunities.