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...
Mailport: Boat Insurance, Respirator and Mask Safety, Dry Suits, Riv-Nuts
Insurance Stuff
Regarding your April insurance article, when I got my BoatUS/Geico renewal, I spotted an optional coverage that they referred to as a partial...
Snubber Diameter for Larger Sailboats
We recently had a letter from Teun and Chantal Bos, who were trying to determine what diameter anchor snubber to use. Practical Sailor did...
Mailport: April 2020
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....
Twist Your Way Back to Safe Harbor
Last month we looked at some get home “kludges” if your rigging fails. Here I’ll share some other quick fixes to get you home...
Mailport: March 2020
Carbon Foam Battery?
I saw your article in about Firefly batteries (carbon foam) in the May 2015 issue of Practical Sailor “Can Carbon Fiber Batteries...
Are You Ready to Kludge Your Way Home?
The first use of the word kludge is attributed to Jackson W. Granholm in 1962, describing an ugly programming solution that was “an ill-assorted...
Mailport: Check Your Policy; Routine Surveys; Drag-Free Anchoring
Check Your Policy
Regarding your recent blog post, “Boat Insurance Shopping Tips,” be sure to read the policy. I discovered, that a change in underwriting...
Before and After the Cruise Checklists
Last October, PS Editor Darrell Nicholson wrote about the importance of checklists and his inbox was inundated with mail from sailors who shared their own lists. Here are two lists I use when sailing my Corsair F-24: the pre-departure list, and the return to home list. Neither list is meant to be exhaustive-but perhaps it is enough to think about as you craft your own.
Bird repellants, solvent safety, GPS antennas
[IMGCAP(3)] Anti-Bird StrategyFlorida is hard on boats from sun damage, mildew, bottom blisters and birds. I keep the ospreys from perching on my tricolor light by fitting a clear plastic container over it with tacks on its bottom. I have sunbrella deck covers that keep poo from the smaller birds off the deck and also shade the boat to keep it cooler, the paint protected and mildew free. Then, for the pelicans that pooped on my…
Before You Buy a Beneteau Watch This First – Hanse 430E...
Thinking about buying a 40–45 foot cruising sailboat? Before you default to a Beneteau, Jeanneau, Catalina, or Hunter, this in-depth Practical Sailor review takes...
Latest Sailboat Review
Tartan 33 Used Boat Review
In 1978, Tartan brought out the Tartan Ten, a 33', fairly light, fractionally-rigged "offshore one design." The boat was a huge success: fast, easy to sail, and unencumbered by the design limitations of a rating rule. But the Tartan Ten had one big problem: limited accommodations with stooping headroom, an interior most kindly described as spartan. A hardy crew could take the Tartan Ten on a multi-day race such as the Mackinac, and you might even coax your family aboard for a weekend of camping out. But cruising or extended racing in comfort? Forget it!