Upgrades

Murray Winches

by Charles J. Doane, Posted February 21, 2011

If putting new winches on your boat is one of the items on this year’s punch list, I urge you to check out these bottom-action Murray winches from New Zealand. I put a pair on my old Golden Hind 31 several years ago and absolutely fell in love with them.They look great on traditional boats, of course, but are also extremely functional. With the handle on the bottom of the winch, you never

Paint Your Bottom

by Mark Corke, Posted April 11, 2011

Sailors early on recognized the importance of keeping the bottom of their craft free of fouling, as they discovered that a hull covered with barnacles and weeds performs poorly. They used sheets of copper to protect the underbellies of their boats, and this practice is still used on some large sailing vessels.Fortunately for modern sailors, we can now use paint with similar properties to

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

by Peter Nielsen, Posted April 12, 2011

Not all boats are created equal. Some are built to high standards by people who care about what they’re doing. Others are not. This is as true today as it was half a century ago, when boatbuilders took their first tentative steps along the untrodden path of fiberglass construction.Because their builders erred on the side of caution with this new and strange material, those early fiberglass

Lash Down Your Deck Gear

by Adam Cort, Posted April 12, 2011

Stainless steel tie-down fittings from Accon Marine ensure that loose gear on deck stays in place, keeping things safe and well organized when underway.The fittings are available in a large size (3.5in by 3.5in) and a small size (2in by 2in). These two sizes can be used for securing a wide range of items, including everything from scuba gear to fenders. Each tie-down is comprised of

Light Fantastic

by Nigel Calder, Posted April 25, 2011

Not long ago I was bemoaning the fact that so many boatbuilders are still using highly inefficient incandescent and halogen lights, even though fluorescent lights have long been available and LEDs are now viable for most marine lighting applications. Since then, Neil Harrison, a reader from the UK, has pointed out that the next revolution in lighting may already be on the horizon—Organic

Electrically organized

by Chip Lawson, Posted March 11, 2009

This article assumes a 12-volt negative-ground DC electrical system, which is the most common system found on today’s production sailboats. It also assumes that all wiring is properly sized for the length (run) and load of the boat’s various electrical devices. The concepts described can be applied to most DC electrical systems but should be modified in some instances. The

Deck gear

by Sail Staff, Posted December 23, 2008

Upgrading the deck gear on your boat can seriously enhance your sailing pleasure. Once you’ve sailed a boat set up with low-friction blocks, good rope clutches and jammers, and genoa-sheet cars that are quick and easy to adjust, it’s hard to go back to the creaky, friction-riddled 30- or 40-year-old deck gear that so many older boats are still saddled with.We had always planned to replace