DIY: Replacing Track
August 21, 2016
Here is a sad truth relating to older boats: the more desirable the piece of equipment you want to install, the harder it is to remove its predecessor.
Here is a sad truth relating to older boats: the more desirable the piece of equipment you want to install, the harder it is to remove its predecessor.
After purchasing new sails last year and installing a Tides Marine mainsail track, we decided it was time to upgrade the 45-year-old roller-reefing boom on our Allied Seabreeze 35 project boat Keewaydin.
The last thing you want from your furling gear is for it to jam up in a rising breeze—or ever. I must be some kind of roller-reefing Jonah, because it’s happened a few times on boats I’ve been sailing aboard. On two of those occasions, halyard wrap was to blame.Halyard wrap sounds like something you’d tear off a new piece of rope, but it’s actually the most common cause of
Every boat, no matter how big or small, is the sum of its parts, and even on the smallest boat there are plenty of parts.
I have always liked lazyjacks in theory, but in practice I’ve found them to be a total pain in the backside. Even so mundane a
When I bought my aft-cockpit ketch, Silverheels, she had no bimini top at all. While I attended to other upgrades in preparation for tropical cruising, I pondered how I might have full-time shade in the cockpit and still get at the mizzen sail to furl and reef it.
Undoubtedly because of the Cup, which made wingsails a common sight, there is now more understanding of the concept among sailors. Inefficient triangle sails might see some competition in the future where sporting one or two elliptical wings will be a common sight for cruising boats.
Seamanship: “All of the arts and skills of boathandling, ranging from maintenance and repairs, to piloting, sail handling, marlinspike work, rigging and all aspects of boat operation.”
I’d always dreamed of using a spinnaker to propel our Tartan 31, Solace, along on a light-air summer’s day, but the thought of wrestling with an unruly kite (prior to running it over, of course!) was never appealing. Then one day I read about the benefits of rope-luff sails and their ease of handling in the January 2012 issue of SAIL magazine and decided, “I can do this!”
Traditionally, all sailboat mainsails were reefed by simply pulling down the reefing lines through cringles in the luff and leech of the mainsail, then securing the reefing pennants—often permanently attached to the mainsail—to the boom to tidy the sail up.
A recent post titled Why I Cringe Over Female-Only Sailing Events caused a stir online. After sailing in last week’s Boston Harbor Ladies Challenge, Editor-in-Chief Lydia Mullan weighs in.
250 boats squared off last week on Lake Michigan’s famous 333-mile course and found the full spectrum of race conditions awaiting them.
After the 4th of July festivities in New York City, the international tallship fleet continued its tour of the eastern seaboard, heading up to Boston.
In the days of e-readers, one wonders how long the pulpy pleasure of the boatyard book swap will last.
Concern over the implementation of Forecast-Time Correction Factor (F-TCF) scoring rocked this year’s Newport Bermuda Race after it was discovered that rating discrepancies impacted the
You climb from your berth and start the stove for coffee, warming the cabin. You check your position, looking out the ports as the sun
You may have noticed that you’ve heard from us less frequently this week. SAIL’s editor Lydia Mullan discusses changes to the newsletter.
Twenty countries sent tallships to participate in a parade of sail celebrating America’s 250th birthday. Here’s a look at the sights as New York City welcomed these iconic vessels.
From evaluating condition to pricepoint, Alan Glos shares everything you need to know to buy a used dinghy.
Contributing Editor Christopher Birch’s much anticipated “maintenance manual that should have come with your boat, but didn’t,” is available now.
