Mainsail Track Hardware
The three S's of mainsail handling get a lot of attention. Rightfully so, too. Whether it's a small family sloop or a flat-out ocean...
Do You Want a Headsail Luff-groove Device?
Unless the boat was equipped with two headstays, which adds considerable windage, the headsail change drill meant releasing the lowest hanks on the headsail...
Improve Your Catalina 30: Upgrading the Worlds Most Popular 30-Footer
While the basic boat has remained unchanged since it was introduced in 1975, there have been dozens, perhaps even hundreds, of minor developments in...
Boat Clinic: Tuning the Masthead Rig
Tuning the rig of a boat is one of the necessary -and pleasant -tasks which must be done to achieve good performance. In an...
The Multifarious Mainsheet
The mainsail is a big part of the motive power of almost every sailboat. The art of mainsail control, however, is a relatively modern...
Mast Support for Trailerable Boats
The transom support is a simple design. It is merely a 1" x 8 " board of a convenient length fastened to the rudder...
Checking and Replacing: Keelbolts, Part 1
Nevertheless, this safety margin does not guarantee eternal life for keelbolts. Corrosion takes its toll, sometimes more quickly than you might think. It is...
The Rig: Keep it Standing
When was the last time you went carefully over every detail of your boat’s rig? The chances are good that it may have been...
Tiller Taming with Two Fingers
During the past decade, Practical Sailor has looked at a number of devices designed to hold the tiller while the helmsman can attend to...
Testers Examine Running Rigging Options
The first sign of cordage use dates back about 28,000 years. Archeological findings in Europe have carbon dating confirmation of twine imprints found in...
A Rival for Island Packet, Made in China – Outbound 46...
Like Kraken Yachts and some Passport sailboats, Outbound Yachts are made in China. It's heavy like an Island Packet, but fast like a Beneteau....
Latest Sailboat Review
Pearson 303 Used Boat Review
The Pearson 303, introduced in 1983, is a fairly typical example of the kind of work Pearson was doing in the mid-1980s, continuing until...