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…
BottleBuoy flotation device trialled in sea off Cromer
A potentially lifesaving rescue device fashioned from the unlikely source materials of empty plastic bottles will be trialled in the UK for the first time by the RNLI.
The great UK antifouling test for cruising yachts
20 antifouling paints tested in 13 UK locations: which works best where you keep your boat?
PBO Tested: 4 rig tension gauges
It’s vitally important to ensure that the tension of your boat’s rigging is within the correct limits: Alex Bell tests four rig tension gauges to assess their accuracy
Mills, Clark and Lange named World Sailors of the Year
Olympic Champions Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark have won the female Rolex World Sailor of the Year award; Argentina's Santiago Lange took the men's accolade.
PBO Tested: B&G Vulcan 5 chart plotter
Ben Meakins takes B&G’s new compact 5in multifunction display for a trial sail
PBO Tested: Meaco DD8L Zambezi dehumidifier
In PBO’s dehumidifiers group test, the Meaco DD8L Junior won the best buy award – and Meaco have now produced an additional model with improved features, writes Alex Bell.
PBO Tested: Chilly’s Bottle
Using double-wall vacuum technology, the Chilly’s Bottle is a reusable bottle that is promised to keep your drink cold for up to 24 hours (or hot for 12 hours) whatever…
PBO Tested: Habitent Sirocco
David Pugh welcomes the opportunity to test Habitent’s new, narrower Sirocco boat tent
PBO Tested: 12 mooring snubbers
David Pugh tests 12 readily-available snubbers to find out which one best absorbs a snatch load
Man airlifted in gale force weather after boat runs aground
A boatsman who ran aground in gale-force weather was airlifted to safety by the UK Coastguard search and rescue helicopter from Walpole Bay, Kent yesterday morning.
Engine fire prompts motorboat rescue in the Solent
Rescuers were tasked to assist the crew of a 36ft motor boat yesterday after it caught fire in the Solent yesterday.
Jet-skier shouted ‘Oh no!’ before crashing into Red Jet ferry
‘Oh no!’ What the jet-skier said just before hitting the Red Jet ferry, reveals the man who captured the moment on camera
December 2016
In the December 2016 issue of Practical Boat Owner...
PBO’s BIG Christmas giveaway – win £2,700-worth of boat kit
Our pick of Practical Boat Owner magazine's best on test over the past year is up for grabs as one cracking prize – worth more than £2,700!
Editor’s welcome to the December issue – on sale today!
Here’s to a learning environment. Editor David Pugh welcomes you to the latest issue of Practical Boat Owner magazine.
Mission accomplished – Dave Selby’s Mad about the Boat
‘Where’s Bart?’ That’s the question I was asked more than any other after my epic 338-mile two-month voyage to Southampton, writes PBO columnist Dave Selby.
PBO tested: Henri Lloyd Elite Racer Smock and Salopettes
One immediate thing that jumps out is the light weight of the oilskins. They are by far the lightest oilskins I’ve ever owned – and thus the least constrictive to…
PBO Tested: 10 handheld VHF radios
A vital piece of kit in any boat cockpit, Alex Bell and a PBO test team check out popular handheld radios for effectiveness and ease of use
Great progress on PBO’s new project boat!
PBO's Secret 20 kit-boat starts to look boat-shaped in short order
Jeanne Socrates returns to Victoria after surviving a big ‘blow’
"I packed my grab bag with passport etc at one point... to be ready for the worst but Nereida rode the big seas well despite a lot of shaking and…