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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

Eight Bells-Garry Hoyt

In 2001, SAIL’s then executive editor, Charles Mason, awarded Garry Hoyt the magazine’s Industry Award for Leadership, noting his “insatiable desire to make sailing simpler,”

a sailboat on the water

Rigging: Low Friction Rings

Adding low friction rings to your boat’s rigging repertoire can be a lighter, more affordable alternative to line management.

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