Repair, Tools & Materials

There are three basic types of transparent plastics used on boats: clear vinyls, acrylics (the best known is Plexiglas), and polycarbonates (the marine standard...

Earlier this year, reader and occasional contributor Fred Hatch found himself facing a quandary common among boat owners. The topsides of his 32-foot sloop...

It takes practice to produce a perfect, mirror finish on varnished wood, but it is not so much a difficult task as an exacting...

Without fender boards, no matter how you position and secure your boat and fenders, the movement of the tide and the boat will invariably...

Nevertheless, this safety margin does not guarantee eternal life for keelbolts. Corrosion takes its toll, sometimes more quickly than you might think. It is...

As long as the areas are small-no more than one or two square feet-repairs are quite simple and can usually be accomplished by injecting...

With resistance to weathering as its primary virtue, however, teak makes less sense for use as trim below. Nevertheless, the simplicity of finishing teak,...

The trick is to choose the right one. Some sealants get hard enough to sand or drill, and others stay supple. Some will stick...

There are many perfectly sound, watertight joints today on boats built up to 30 years ago. Then, as now, good workmanship begat durability.Still, if...

In July 1990 we bought a 1975 C & C 33 to function as a test platform for Practical Sailor. We chose it above...