DIY Engine Oil Tests
Sailors obsess over the health of their engine; it is the heart of the boat (other than the rig, sails, and through-hulls). Failure is inconvenient, expensive, and even dangerous. And sailors love their maintenance, or so it seems. Anything that promises to ease the mind for a few dollars merits investigation.
Worship Your Universal M-Series Diesel With the Marinized Kubota Block
The Universal name resonates with many of us as one of the best sailboat engines available. Despite Universal Motor Corp. no longer being in...
Prop and Shaft Check
A vessels drive train is typically defined as the components between the engine transmission coupling and the bitter end of the propeller shaft. For traditional drive trains, this includes the propeller, shaft, cutless bearing and packing gland, although the list could also be expanded to encompass ancillary items such as the rudder, engine mounts, and engine bedworks. Heres a look at two major drive train components you should know and what to look for when inspecting each. Next month well look at the components inside the boat-stuffing box, shaft, and coupler.
Breaking Point: What Can Go Wrong With Your Yanmar?
If you want to know more about the little Yanmar chugging away in your sailboat, it helps to learn about this iconic engine maker’s...
DIY Soundproofing for the Engine Compartment
As sailors, once we’ve cleared the outer markers of our club, marina or harbor, we look forward to raising our sails and we enjoy...
Rudder Mods for Low-speed Docking
Any sailor who has tried to wrestle a full-keel ketch with a barn-door rudder into a tight slip has probably wondered if they could...
Anti-Seize Coatings for Spars
If youve ever been humbled by a single impossibly stuck fastener, or plan on adding hardware to your spar, running gear, or deck, this report on anti-seize protectants is right up your alley.
Storing Diesel Fuel
When it comes to storing a gasoline powered vessel, you are generally better off keeping tanks full, adding a corrosion-inhibiting additive, and installing a...
Alternator Overheat: A Surprising Solution for Older Boats
Over the years, and with two different small diesels working in the tight quarters of the engine compartment of our 1978 Islander Bahama 30,...
Unblock Seawater Intake: Dinghy Pump Hose Hack
It was another spectacular summer day as we released the dock lines and once again escaped life ashore, the trusty diesel humming beneath our...
The $89k 55 Foot Bluewater Yacht That Got Cheap Enough to...
The Tayana 55 is one of the most tempting used bluewater cruising sailboats on the market: a 55-foot center cockpit offshore yacht with serious...
Latest Sailboat Reviews
Luders 33 Used Boat Review
The Luders 33 was designed by Bill Luders and built by Allied Yachts of Catskill, NY, from 1966 to 1974. The builder of the Luders 33, Allied Yachts, had a troubled existence, struggling for survival from the early 1970s until the firm finally succumbed for good in 1981. Throughout its nine year production run, a bit more than 100 Luders 33s were built. Still, like such similar boats as the Alberg 30, the relative scarcity and traditional styling have made it a bit of a cult object.
