Practical Boat Owner Magazine September 2010 issue

SPECIAL FEATURES
Pick of the tips
For handy hints on boating matters, look no further than Tip of the day on www.pbo.co.uk. Here are a few of the most popular, controversial and just plain odd postings

Boat Show preview
Plan your visit to the 2010 Southampton Boat Show with your PBO exhibitors
A-Z and standfinder, PLUS New gear at the show AND New boat selection


BOATS
The designer dozen
Many of today’s great second-hand fast cruisers were designed as out-and-out racing yachts during the boom years of the 1970s and 1980s. We spotlight 12 to take a closer look at

BayCruiser
Combining the modern and traditional in both design and construction, the jaunty BayCruiser is an unusual but highly practical 6m (20ft) weekender

Birth of a boat
With all the preparatory plugs, moulds and mouldings complete, see how the very first production model Cornish Crabber 26 begins to take shape as the components
are assembled in the factory

Reversing a trailer
Reversing a boat on a trailer can be daunting, but with some easily learned skills and a little practice you can gain confidence


PRACTICAL SECTION
Tip of the month
A simple tweak to the backstay can improve your yacht’s performance – here’s how

Fitting new instruments
With modern networked instruments offering more than their old stand-alone counterparts, PBO’s David Pugh finds out just how easy they are to install yourself

Wood in action
Knowing the most suitable wood for various marine applications will help you choose and use your timber wisely and at lower cost

Practical projects
A DIY generator, better use of a bow roller, wheeling a dinghy, easier Med boarding and putting a rig on an inflatable for fun

Mast raising and lowering
Tips from the PBO Sketchbook for easy ways
of raising and lowering a mast

Removable mainsheet track
One PBO reader devised his own removable mainsheet track – here’s how he installed it

Budget interior refit
A bargain Quarter-Tonner gets a makeover


GEAR
Going down... 6 compact dive kits on test
Many boat owners might need to work below the waterline in an emergency at some point. Mini-kits are smaller than scuba for ease of use and stowage, but how do they compare?

Security for your boat
How do you protect your boat when you leave it unattended? We test the Yacht Sentinel, one of the least expensive electronic security systems


ON THE WATER
Britain’s trickiest berths
Don’t be deceived by berths that look simple – wind and tide can easily conspire to catch you out. Queen Anne’s Battery Marina in Plymouth provides the perfect example for our experts to show how it should be done

Well and truly pooped
Battering eastward across the Atlantic in an early-season storm, a PBO reader tells of a close shave when the yacht he was helping to crew was rear-ended by a big wave

While the cat’s away...
When you want to spend your summer cruising the canals of France, what do you do with the moggie? Why, take her along for the ride! The dramas, and costs, of a boatyard kitty’s vacances

Cruising notes
Is Littlehampton the South Coast’s best-kept secret? PLUS a new face at the Cruising Association and how health and safety regulations are strangling Andalucian leisure boating


REGULARS
Waiting for the tide
News and views from the editor

News and regional news
National stories of interest to all boat owners, local news from your area and diary dates, PLUS winners of 2010’s PBO Green Awards

Bargains of the month
Special offers from our chandlery pages

Readers’ letters
Pricing for the iPad, going Greek, paint tin rage, downsizing, lights, flares and more

Dave Selby
Last but not least – don’t ever try to take a trophy from a one-time good loser

Sam Llewellyn
Facing the devil’s searchlight fails to be an illuminating experience

Andrew Simpson
Water catchment was never intended to be a bimini’s primary purpose

Ask the experts
Readers’ problems solved, including saildrive leg corrosion, French canal routes to the Med and a mystery loo

Course of the month
Spotlight on the various RYA courses
that can be taken in the easy-to-attend format of evening classes

PBO products
PBO Reeds Small Craft Almanac and Sailing around the UK and Ireland, plus PBO practical booklets and the Copy Service

Chart updates
Recent revisions from the Admiralty

Bosun’s bag
Maritime mischief as seen by readers, including your seadog of the month