Boat Maintenance

PS Advisor: Tank Monitor and Camera Mount Hacks

Fuel tanks typically have a mechanical gauge, but water tanks can cause corrosion and waste tanks will foul the typical mechanical flat mechanism. As...

Rebuilding a Cape Dory 36 Part IV

This is the fourth article in a five-part series describing the rebuild of our 1982 Cape Dory 36 and how we turned it into...

Bottom Paints for Brackish Water at 1 Year

For more than four decades, Practical Sailor has been testing bottom paints, although for the first few years, the topic really didn’t draw much...

Rebuilding a Cape Dory 36 Part III

This is Part III of a multi-part series describing the rebuilding of our 1982 Cape Dory 36. In Part I (PS November 2022), I...

Protecting Against Boatyard Fire

The 1666 London Fire. The 1871 Chicago Fire. The 1906 San Francisco Fire. Common factors shared by all of these disasters were inadequate spacing...

Dodging the Marine Chandlery Trap

The marine environment is demanding, so sacrificing quality is often a mistake. But marine supply stores, and even online “discount” marine retailers can feel...

Mailport: Dinghy Rollers, Prop Paints, Bosun chairs

DINGHY BEACH ROLLERS Regarding your Inside PS blog, “Building a Better Boat Fender,” inflatable dinghy beach rollers also work great as fenders. They serve two...

Rebuilding a Cape Dory 36 Part II

In Part I of this series, I described the steps we took to set our rebuild up for success. Part II describes our gutting...

Mailport: Headsets, Factory AC, Cowboy Coffee

PRAISE FOR EARTEC A few months ago we purchased the Eartec UL2S UltraLITE Wireless Microphone System. We tested them at home and detected a slight...

Rebuilding a Cape Dory 36

This is Part 1 in a multi-part series detailing the rebuilding of our then 35 year old Cape Dory 36 sailboat. The purpose of...

Hate Heeling? These Sailboats Stay More Upright

Do you—or someone you sail with—hate heeling? You’re not alone. For many sailors, excessive heel is the single biggest reason people feel uncomfortable on...

Latest Sailboat Review

Dragonfly 25-2 Boat Review

If you’ve ever dreamed of blasting across the water at 25 knots with the wind in your hair and the spray in your face...