Inside Practical Sailor

There’s nothing worse than getting or giving yet another ugly sweater or never-to-be-worn tie. Why not try up-cycling old boat parts to give new...

One of my biggest mistakes in life was waiting so long to sail the Great Lakes.

2025 has not been a good year for U.S. sailboat manufacturing. Com Pac Yachts closed its doors in May and, as explained in this...

How frequently do you bother removing spreader boots and taping to check the condition of the spreaders and rigging? No matter how well the spreader ends are protected, and whether you use ready-made vinyl spreader boots or conventional rigging tape, water will get through to the fittings inside. On a boat used in salt water, the atmosphere's corrosive nature can cause rapid disintegration of aluminum fittings (nevermind the fact that the spreaders might be 25 feet or more off the water). The thorough taping job you did on the spreader ends may actually accelerate the problem by holding in water.

Worldwide, freshwater lakes, rivers and waterways are currently impacted by the lack of rain and water levels, creating serious concerns for all types of...

Most rice and grain sold in western countries is fumigated, generally with phosphine. However, this often kills only the live insects, leaving the eggs able to germinate. Surely there are other ways available to the cruisers to extend the life of rice and grains.

After two years of panel and on-boat testing on the mid-Chesapeake Bay, we settled on Total Boat Krypton, one of the top performing copper-free...

When a rope is no longer fit for purpose, for example a halyard with a chafed spot, we either keep it for future might-needs...

Two weeks ago I had a good sized lump of skin cancer taken off my nose. Fresh incisions must be carefully protected from UV,...

This week we're moving onto hardware, winches in particular. If you haven't serviced your winches in a couple years, or you notice squeaks, groans or slips as you grind, it is high time to tackle this project. We like to inspect our jib-sheet winches every year, but we sail our boats hard and they are exposed to some pretty harsh freeze and thaw cycles. Fortunately, winch servicing is a pretty easy, and for the wanna-be watchmaker who marvels at moving parts, it's fun—until you start dropping parts overboard. Thus, our first bit of advice: make sure you have the right winch servicing kit, including pawls and springs, before you start pulling your winches apart.