Varnish Exposure Update (and Coatings Recap)
Paint and varnish shouldn't be too difficult to understand: They're coatings you apply with a brush, roller or pad to protect or beautify the...
Gelcoat Repair Kits: Bondo Best
In the beginning, there was paint, and for a long time the repair of scratches and gouges was relatively simple.
Update: Honey Teak Has Staying Power
Last March, we reported the initial results of a new long-term varnish exposure test. What a difference a year makes!
Varnish Exposure Test
20 different brands are brushed on teak panels and put out to weather in the sun, rain and snow. Here’s a 6-month report.
Our 10th Annual Bottom Paint Test
Micron Optima rates best at preventing growth on hulls, but its short pot life makes runners-up Trinidad SR, ACP Ultima and Micron CSC Extra look equally good.û
Offshore Log: In Search of the Magic Finish
Most varnishes don’t last long in the tropics and, unfortunately for Nick, Calypso has a laminated captrail that requires protection.
Spring Maintenance:Smith & Co. CEPS and Honey Teak Best Gloss Teak Treatments
A trend in recent years has been the gradual elimination of exterior teak on boats. This is understandable, given the amount of time and...
Spring Maintenance: Antifouling Tests ’99
There are many rites of spring-trees bud, houses are cleaned, young mens fancies turn and boaters get ready for a new season on...
Spring Maintenance:Smith & Co. CEPS and Honey Teak Best Gloss Teak Treatments
A trend in recent years has been the gradual elimination of exterior teak on boats. This is understandable, given the amount of time and...
Antifouling Paints: Year Seven
The summer of 1997 was the seventh consecutive year weve been running tests on antifouling bottom coatings. It was a year that saw an...
Latest Logbook
Practical Sailor Logbook – September 2026
This month we tour the Hans Christian 48T — the offshore cruiser many sailors call the holy grail — walk the custom Antigua 60...
Video: Morgan 44 Review – The Catalina Cruiser Everyone Forgot
The 1989 Morgan 44 is a big center-cockpit cruising sailboat with Catalina DNA—but it may be one of the most overlooked boats of its...
Latest Sailboat Reviews
Bayfield 32 Used Boat Review
At first glance, the Bayfield 32 looks less like a fiberglass production boat from the 1980s and more like somebody shrank a traditional sailing...
