Mailport: November 2020
Shredding old Classics
Ralph Naranjo broke my heart with his reference to the 31-foot Tripp Seafarer being sent off to the chipper (see PS October...
Beat Boatyard Heat with Personal AC
I first came across ice vests in industry, where I wore them under sandblasting protective suits, inside hot oil tanks, and in certain hot...
Mailport: Water Transportation
Folding Kayak
I urge you to consider the Oru folding kayaks in your next Kayak Update. They’re more expensive than the inflatables you reviewed, but...
PS Advisor: Grounding and bonding
A client sent me an excerpt from your eBook “Marine Electrical Systems,” and I was a surprised to see the following line of thought.
Use...
Mailport: Fuel Additives
Fuel Additives in Europe
It was interesting to read your fuel additive tests (see “Are Copper, Zinc, and Brass Mucking Up Our Fuel?, PS December...
Simple Tricks for When You’re Going Aloft
Early summer is about the time we notice that something needs our attention at the top of the mast—an antennae connection, faulty mast light,...
Mailport: Hull Waxing, Sea Anchors, Solent Stays
Waxing Before Storing
In the Caribbean, it is common practice to wax a boat before lay-up for hurricane season, then again after returning to the...
Return to Sailing in the Midst of COVID-19
COVID-19 is going to drag out. A vaccine and significant herd immunity are both more than a year away. We’ll flatten the curve and...
Mailport: Bird Repellants, Bilge Switches, Mini-Scuba
Alphabetical Boat Reviews?
What happened to your alphabetized boat reviews? I’m looking for a boat and can’t find the review I was looking at before....
COVID-19 Requires Sanitation Caution
Although many of our usual measures we take to keep our crew healthy are sufficient to prevent the COVID-19 from spreading, extra caution is...
Latest Logbook
Practical Sailor Logbook – September 2026
In September we tour the Hans Christian 48T — the offshore cruiser many sailors call the holy grail — walk the custom Antigua 60...
Video: The BEST Sailboat You Can Buy for $35,000 – Catalina...
If you’re searching for a mid-30-foot sailboat, affordable cruising sailboat, liveaboard sailboat, first sailboat, or a capable used sailboat for coastal cruising, the Catalina...
Latest Sailboat Reviews
Cal 2-27 Used Boat Review
Our story begins in 1970, with the introduction of the Cal 29. Looking for something similar but a bit smaller, the company asked designer Bill Lapworth for a 27-footer, which at first was the Cal 27, a fin keel, spade rudder design with a convertible pop top; another incarnation of this basic hull was the T/2. But the concept of the 29 found its full expression in the Cal 2-27, which began production in 1975 and continued to 1977, after which it was again modified and called simply the Cal 27...again. Production of it ceased in 1986.
