Repair, Tools & Materials

Even 2020 Yielded Some Great Gear

Once more, the bulk of the past year’s testing focused on maintenance products, safety essentials, and do-it-yourself substitutes for higher priced marine gear. Part...

Online Help for Autumn

It's getting to be that time of year, when many skippers haul out or head south. Fall also heralds the beginning of boat show...

Choosing and Using Jackstands

Were guessing 90 percent of sailors have their boat hauled by a yard. A travel lift or crane plucks the boat from the water,...

Mailport: Cold Weather Suits

Regarding your recent Inside Practical Sailor blog post Drysuits vs. Survival Suits, I raft the Colorado river in Grand Canyon where water temps are...

The Get-Home Sailboat Tool Kit

The tools and materials required to maintain and repair everything on a boat will barely fit in a room. Just the kit required to...

Welds on Your Boat Require Special Care

The irregular shape of welds makes them difficult to inspect using ultrasound technology. Visual inspections can also be deceiving-especially with new welds. The prettiest...

DIY Materials Testing

While many potential failures are easy to spot, some flaws are hidden under paint or within the structure, or are so small that a...

Deft Theft: Make & Find Your Own Marine Gear

Heres a bet: Someone at the next boat show will try to sell you something you already have. With more time than money on...

The Penny-Pinching PhD Sailor

For more than 30 years, Practical Sailor has provided serious sailors and DIY boat owners an unbiased source of evaluations. We've done our best...

Anti-Corrosion Bags Live Up to Claims, But So Does Ziploc

Our test of anti-corrosion bags presented conditions far more rigorous than what one might typically encounter for equipment stored on a boat. Our testers estimated...

The Boat From True Spirit – Sparkman & Stephens

True Spirit is a 2023 Australian biographical drama film directed by Sarah Spillane and written by Spillane, Cathy Randall, and Rebecca Banner. The film...

Latest Sailboat Review

Beneteau 311, Catalina 310 and Hunter 326 Used Boat Comparison

In an ideal world, all sailors would start in prams at the age of six, then move to small, forgivingsloops, and then one-design racingboats,...