Let the summer commence! The latest issue of Practical Boat Owner extolls the virtues of buying second-hand. Ken Endean describes the way to eliminate doubt when buying and restoring a 40-year-old hull. Meanwhile, Max Liberson talks us through the process of becoming an Old Gaffer, having owned GRP boats, Ferrocement and more!
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How to buy a second-hand sailboat
Ken Endean: Why radical refits and 40-year-old GRP boats are such great value
Boats with extensive defects are commonly described as ‘projects’, with the implicit hint that they should only be taken on by madmen who prefer to spend time rebuilding rather than sailing. But this conventional approach has a drawback: even a serviceable boat will have equipment that is working but partly worn out and quite likely to give trouble before long. An alternative strategy is to
strip out all items of equipment and machinery that require attention, or may do so in the foreseeable future, and simply ditch the lot. Then replace them with brand new kit. (read more…)
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Used sailboat review: Jaguar 27 on test
Peter Poland on the US import that worked so well as a charter boat in Greece and as a UK cruiser
Designed by Frank Butler as the US-built Catalina 27, large numbers of Jaguar 27s went on to be
built and sold by various companies around the world. The UK Jaguar Yacht Owners’ Association (jaguaryachts.co.uk) says that British Jaguar 27s were built in Essex by Eric Birch from the early 1970s. To this day, buyers of old Jags get excellent back-up and information from this association. And because cruisers of this vintage tend to be of heavier displacement and solid construction, well-maintained Jaguars do as good a job today as they did when first launched. (read more…)
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How I became a Classic Boat owner: my journey from GRP to old gaffer
Owning and sailing ‘modern’ boats suddenly came to an end when Max Liberson discovered Wendy May
I don’t own Wendy May, she owns me. I’m just the custodian. She was built for an army officer in 1936 by Williams & Parkinson in North Wales. Their brief was to ‘build a boat that can sail around Brittany and dry out on legs’. She has a frame or rib every 6in and is fantastically strong – so she easily meets that brief. It’s the most magical thing you can do, sailing an old classic boat – but I’ve I’ve owned many boats beforehand. (read more…)
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Cruising across the North Sea: Shetland to Norway and Lofoten Islands
Marsali Taylor crosses a windy North Sea to enjoy a few endless summer days north of the Arctic Circle
Sailing across to Norway is something Shetland yachts do almost as regularly as South Coast ones go to France, so when Joe said “How about Lofoten?” I said yes straightaway. (read more…)
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Working with NMEA 2000
Electronics expert Andy Haines untangles connectivity protocols
QUESTION: ‘Why are there competing different electronic buses on boating instruments? Surely USB is ubiquitous; faster and effective and ‘universal’?
That’s a very good question and it’s not the first time I’ve been asked to explain the different interface protocols used in the marine industry… (read more…)
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How to save a Bembridge Scow
John Rogers recalls how his judicious use of epoxy saved a lovely sailing dinghy
Few things can be more satisfying than saving an old wooden boat from the chainsaw and bringing her back to life. But this can be a very expensive exercise as I found out when I rescued my 1959 classic, Essex Melody (bit.ly/essexmelody). It was therefore with some trepidation that I agreed to restore the Bembridge Scow Tinkerbell, which was given to me by a family member. (read more…)
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Preserving aluminium portlight frames aboard a Morgan Giles
Richard Rogers on why it’s worth restoring 50-year-old aluminium frames
We decided to rescue four of the six portlights that came with Aurora, our Morgan Giles 30 rebuild project. Brave decision, we hear you say. Don’t most people throw them away and do something with Perspex instead? Indeed they do! But we want make the case for rescuing those tired, beaten up, very old portlights – and show you how we went about it. (read more…)
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Biodiesel and the bug
Alex Blackwell explains how to avoid diesel bug in boat fuel
Biodiesel refers to a vegetable oil – or animal fat-based diesel fuel – consisting of long-chain alkyl (methyl, ethyl, or propyl) esters. Biodiesel is typically made by chemically reacting lipids such as vegetable oil, soybean oil and animal fat (tallow) with an alcohol (methanol), to produce fatty acid esters. (read more…)
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How to improve the fuel filters on a small sailboat
Preventing fuel problems is key to a reliable engine
We’ve become accustomed to marine diesel engines being generally reliable, but they’re still a long way from being infallible. With clogged fuel filters being a common source of engine failure, improving your boat’s fuel filtering is an easy step towards better reliability. (read more…)
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How to install a brand new engine in a Moody 31 sailboat
How to enjoy the challenges of installing a new engine
You’d assume that the natural replacement for the 28hp Volvo Penta 2003 would be the D1-30, but there are alternatives. I’d previously owned a boat with a Beta engine, so I was also focussed on a Beta 30. But did it need to be such a powerful unit? (read more…)
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It’s never too late to learn to sail or become an instructor
How one reader went from novice to senior instructor
I was working as a lab technician at Highcliffe School in the late 1980s and one of the teachers asked if I’d help him on a regular basis with his group of pupils that he was teaching to sail at Hengistbury Head Outdoor Education Centre. I thought he was mad, as I was from landlocked Manchester and had hardly ever been in a boat. I certainly couldn’t sail but I agreed anyway. (read more…)
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Sailing from the Azores solo with whooping cough
When ill health strikes at sea what should you do?
What could be safer than being alone in the middle of the ocean during a pandemic? I think people are just trying to be funny, but as someone who once spent nine days alone at sea with a respiratory infection, I can tell you it’s no laughing matter. (read more…)
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Dismasted off Bermuda! A blessing in disguise
The test sail that went wrong for all the right reasons
Suddenly, there was a bang and the mast buckled sideways close to the spreaders, folded and fell to leeward and into the sea. The mast, which was stepped on the cabin roof was now mostly over the
side, sails and all, but held by the stays and the tightly sheeted in boom. (read more…)
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Lockdown in Lefkas
One couple’s extended winter stay due to coronavirus
Thanks to coronavirus this was no ordinary winter aboard Nita, our Beneteau Oceanis 36CC, but the community of boaters and locals at Lefkas in the Greek Ionian made up for the long lockdown.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic meant that all Greek ports, marinas and harbours were closed. No boats allowed in and only allowed to relocate with permission of the Port Police and agreement from the receiving destination. With the whole of Greece and most European ports closed, only the brave considered moving on, especially as once gone, there’d be no return allowed. So, it was lockdown in Lefkas Marina for us all (read more…)