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Nigel Calder

Nigel Calder’s Holy Grail of Sailing

My first exposure to Nigel Calder, same as most people, was through reading his great marine technical bible, The Boatowner’s Mechanical and Electrical Manual. I

Ask SAIL: Using Fuel After it’s Been Stored

I have an 8hp two-stroke outboard engine on my sailboat. I use a 5-gallon portable gas tank and always mix water-absorbing additives and the required lube oil into my fuel. The problem is at the end of last sailing season, I had about four gallons of fuel left in the tank. Is it okay to use this fuel after it has been stored on the boat over the winter, or should I dispose of it and get fresh gas instead?

Water Power Generators

My last two columns discussed the high cost of generating electricity with a diesel engine and the relatively short payback period for solar panels on liveaboard cruising boats. The problem with solar is that it requires a lot of surface area to produce significant amounts of power. This is relatively easy to find on catamarans, but not so on monohulls.Coincidentally, I received an email

Tahiti Revisited

After a long absence, one sailor finds herself sailing the waters of her youth and contemplating years of change in all its forms.

May Issue Preview

Spring is in the air and warmer weather is right around the corner. Get ready for the season with SAIL’s adventure issue! Through the Eyes

Caught in a Squall on a Daysail

When several members of our Florida sailing club, the West Coast Trailer Sailors Squadron, decided to get together for a group daysail on a recent

DIY: Fixing a Diesel Engine

The morning our diesel engine experienced a runaway started like any other. We were headed out of Monterey Harbor on our 1979 Cheoy Lee 41,

Part 2: The Doldrums to Belém

Editor’s note—This is the second installment of a story that began in the March 2026 issue.Click here for part one. I’m dimly aware of the

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