Is it time to swap your boat batteries? We look at the pros and cons of lithium-ion vs standard, installation dos and don’ts, bust the…
Practical Boat Owner
May issue – out 14 March
15 fixes at sea: sailors share how to deal with a range of problems afloat from a dismasting and rudder damage to chafe, the essential…
What’s the best way to clean an outboard? Ask the experts
Graeme Robinson writes: “At the end of the sailing season I always clean up my 5hp Yamaha outboard. One exercise is to run it through with fresh water, which I…
Small boat Atlantic crossing record attempt in a Mini 6.50
Jay Thompson is preparing to sail from New York to Lizard Point in his Mini 6.50 to establish a new small boat Atlantic crossing record
“We appeared to be travelling sideways, the adrenaline had now peaked”
Crossing dangerous coastal bars asleep and sideways is certainly not a habit of mine, but strange things can happen on the water, and like many incidents they often happen slowly…
Nautical know-how: The Bernoulli principle
Andrew Morton describes the Bernoulli principle and its effect on manoeuvring in tight spaces in a motorboat
Blind navigation: how to find your way in restricted visibility
Is blind navigation a foggy notion for Yachtmasters, or a useful seamanship skill? PBO investigates
September issue – on sale 3 August
Best boats to sail around Britain, buyer’s guide to portable toilets, Jimmy Cornell's secrets to a successful voyage, how to design mods for your boat, 25 pages of boat DIY…
Chatham Alcyone II deck shoes review
I’ve always hankered after a pair of Chathams. The family-run company has made country and marine footwear in Britain for over 30 years, and has earned a reputation as the…
Red Original 50N buoyancy aid review
With buoyancy aids, it’s handy to have a pocket for a handheld radio, snack and multitool, and if you’re on a boat, maybe a spare kill-cord or engine key. I…
What to expect to learn on a boat building course
Fancy building or restoring your own boat? Ali Wood takes a tour of the Boat Building Academy in Lyme Regis
New yellow buoys mark no anchor zones in Torbay, Devon
All six seagrass beds in Torbay, Devon are now marked out for protection by the Ocean Conservation Trust's Blue Meadows Project.
Tideway 10: Gunter or Lugger?
The trailerable Tideway 10 has the benefits of her sister vessel, the Tideway 12, but is lighter and easier to launch and recover by hand
How to become a boat builder in 40 weeks
Inspired by a stunning homebuilt yacht, Ali Wood visits the Boat Building Academy to learn how any of us can become boatbuilders
Lost at sea: remembering Thomas Tangvald
Cruising pioneer Peter Tangvald’s son, Thomas, disappeared after sailing from South America in 2014. Kathy Catton recalls her memories of him
Sail boat rigs: the pros and cons of each popular design
Peter Poland looks at the history of popular rig designs and how the different types affect boat performance
Bilge pump troubleshooting: getting the float activation switch to work
Zoran Glozinic does a bit of bilge pump troubleshooting to try and work out why the float-activated switch on his automatic pump won't work
Understanding boat electrics: switches and relays
Pat Manley and Oliver Ballam demystify boat electrics, starting with switches and relays
DIY chartplotter for £200: how to build one at home
John Calton builds his own 10in touchscreen DIY chartplotter with GPS and AIS for a fraction of the cost of an off-the-shelf system
Restoring a vintage Sailor radio
Ali Wood’s Sailor radio is given the VIP treatment
Magnetic mousing for easy wire installation
Winston Collinge uses an easy and attractive way to feed a cable through the length of his mast
Whitbread race veterans invited to 50th anniversary reunion
A reunion for all Whitbread Round the World race crew and skippers is being held in the run up to the Ocean Globe Race in September