Boat electrics made easy; Restoring a £1 boat; Easy ways to revive your canopy; How to find the perfect crew; How to lower your mast…
Practical Boat Owner
February 2026 issue – out 18 December
Outboard SOS: how to fix common engine problems; How to set up and get the most out of your chartplotter; The build of the 100cm…
The best boats for Scandinavian cruising, from the Albin Ballad to the Hallberg Rassy 36
There’s a lot to love about Scandinavian cruising. It’s said that Stockholm sailors rarely venture outside home waters themselves– and with 30,000 islands on their doorstep, who can blame them?…
Craig Wood shares his biggest takeaways from his record-setting solo Pacific crossing
Before I set off on my solo sailing challenge, my wife suggested I take yeast. I remember saying, ‘Am I really gonna make bread when I’m out at the sea…
Using sawdust to plug leaks on wooden boats
Sawdust can be used to stem leaks between the wooden planks of a boat that’s been out of the water for some time. Richard Johnstone-Bryden explains how it’s done…
PVC gunwale fitting: How to replace rotten teak with a sustainable synthetic alternative
Fitting a PVC gunwale strip to your boat is a sustainable, maintenance-free alternative to traditional teak that any competent DIYer can master, as Jake Kavanagh explains
First prosecution under new watercraft safety laws
A motorboater who injured a teen kayaker in a “completely avoidable” collision is the first to be sentenced under new watercraft safety laws.
Fitting reefing points and luff slides to a sail
While restoring his bargain £900 Quarter Tonner, Rupert Holmes shows how he added luff slides and two reefs to a second-hand mainsail
Your complete guide to what to wear dinghy sailing
From base layers to life jackets to your hands and feet, this helpful guide from PBO's Ali Wood explains what to wear dinghy sailing so you can stay warm and…
Cut your boating costs: The surprising benefits of ‘downsizing’ from motor to sail
Many sailors like to switch from a yacht to a motorboat as they get older – yet Debbie and Jeremy White did the opposite and saved a small fortune in…
The Flying Fifteen: the spirit of sailing
Clive Marsh sings the praises of the Flying Fifteen – an attractive, self-righting and popular fixed-keel dinghy that sails brilliantly
Boat windscreen wiper motor repair: how one boat owner fixed the seized motor
Richard Stone mends his deck saloon's windscreen wiper motor
March 2026 issue – out 15 January
Boat electrics made easy; Restoring a £1 boat; Easy ways to revive your canopy; How to find the perfect crew; How to lower your mast while afloat; Upgrade your windlass;…
Latest lithium-ion battery installation advice that every boat owner needs to know
Marine engineer and surveyor Marcus Jones unpicks the confusion surrounding the use of lithium batteries and what you should consider if installing them on board your boat
Finalists for the YJA 2025 Yachtsman of the Year & Young Sailor of the Year announced
The winners will be decided by members of the Yachting Journalists' Association
DIY automated fog horn for £30
Nick Tyler takes the guesswork out of broadcasting fog signals
Clare Allcard, Rozelle Raynes & Peter Gerard: how these three sailors found independence through their wooden boats
When I was a child, reading on board Peter Duck, I became obsessed with Ten Small Yachts, Maurice Griffiths’s second book, published in 1933 following the success of Magic of…
Time to change the Beaufort Scale?
John Savage argues that the Beaufort Scale needs an update to make it more simple
How to patch flowcoat to protect a corroded stern tube
Ken Fawell asks: This is a picture (above) taken inside my yacht. Apparently, the coating on the stern tube has been worn away by the black vibrating water hose. Can…
Your ultimate checklist to prepare your yacht’s systems for an ocean crossing
Completing an ocean crossing, such as the traditional transatlantic passage from the Canaries to the Caribbean, is a bucket list item for many. It’s both a fantastic experience and a…
How I refit my own Volvo Saildrive propeller
Prevailing winds in the UK blow from the west, so why is it then, that whenever you want to travel east, the winds will relentlessly blow from that direction for…
Last leg of the Mini Globe Race: Harris breaks records, Stitelmann still keeps the lead
With less than 6,000 miles to the finish, the Mini Globe Race fleet of homebuilt 19ft plywood yachts is drawing closer to Antigua, and to end of this world-first adventure.…