Boat Maintenance

Each fall, Practical Sailor editors sort through the best test products of the past year to pick those deserving of a spot on our PS Editors Choice roster. To be named to the list, products must earn the Best Choice rating among their respective peers and clearly stand out above others in their field.

Our Editors Choice roster would not be complete without the top performers in our semiannual bottom paints tests (PS October 2014 and April 2015). The most recent test looked at 55 different paints from Blue Water Paints, Interlux, Epaint, Pettit, and Sea Hawk. This years hard paint standouts were Interluxs Micron Extra with Biolux and West Marines Bottomshield. Made by Pettit, the West Marine-branded PCA Gold was the top ablative paint. Micron Extra and PCA Gold tied for best performance of the bunch.

In the April 2015 issue, Practical Sailor evaluated four handheld VHF radios loaded with all the bells and whistles, including longer battery life, positive flotation, internal GPS, and digital selective calling (DSC) capabilities. Out performing VHFs from Icom, West Marine, and its own product line was the Standard Horizon HX870, which grabbed a spot on our Editors Choice list.

Most boat owners regard their boat as a living, breathing thing, but when real living things-especially the microscopic variety-move aboard and start occupying large swaths of damp real estate, its time to draw the line. Weve done a series of reports on mildew in past articles, but those black spots on the deck, lines, and canvas probably arent mildew. Mildew and mold require darkness, and even the shaded areas on deck are too well lit. Those spots are more likely black algae and lichens, the latter a symbiotic combination of algae and fungus.

For testing, we used the same abrasion rig we used to test sewn eyes and rope (see PS March 2015). A modified wood lathe sawed line samples back and forth (a 3/4-inch stroke) at seven cycles per second through a 10-millimeter test stanchion hole. We tested each sample to failure, effectively condensing months or years of wear into just minutes.

Our testing made us wonder whether we are better off with a core-and-cover lifeline with a tough cover, like New England Ropes WR2, or an uncovered rope like Samson Amsteel, which is much stronger than the smaller-diameter WR2 core. (Because of the way WR2 is spliced, the cover should not be counted toward strength.)

To see how chafe points can develop on stanchions, we ran standard steel cable through our test stanchion holes for an hour. As expected, the sawing action wore a rough-edged groove, but several other things became apparent.

The article Dissecting the Art of Staying Upright (see PS June 2015 online) was very timely for me, but I am struggling with how to apply it to real life and specific boats. How do I find information on the angle of vanishing stability for specific boats? Can you point me to other articles like yours where I can learn more?

Those who enjoyed our recent three-part special report highlighting the trends in sailboat design and construction-focusing on structure, stability, and performance - can thank PS Technical Editor Ralph Naranjo, who called upon his decades of experience as a voyager, boatyard manager, and marine safety consultant to weave those pieces together. The articles offer a peek at what youll find in his outstanding opus, The Art of Seamanship, which was published last spring and is now available in the Practical Sailor online bookstore, www.practical-sailor.com/books.

Some ports and anchorages are safer than others, but it never hurts to be cautious when it comes to boat security. When youre away from the boat, blasting a loud stereo down below can give the appearance that someone is onboard and may slow a prospective thief. (Doesnt everyone turn radios and TVs off when they leave?) Trailing a spare dinghy or kayak off the stern is also a good deterrent, as is on-deck illumination.