Skills to make you more confident sailing short-handed; Rudder types and how they affect performance; How to enhance your cockpit; The must-have tools for every…
Practical Boat Owner
August issue – out on 3 July
Everything you need to know about trailer-sailing; How to spray gelcoat; Improvements on the continuous splice; Retrofitting a £1 mast; Tips for avoiding collisions; Enduring…
PBO Secret 20 Project Boat update: Spars, partitions and trims
The Secret 20 is a beautifully-shaped wooden sailing yacht designed by Derek Ellard and available to the DIY enthusiast in a pre-cut kit. The brochure describes the boat as ‘the…
September 2019
Engine maintenance and reliability is a pipedream for many sailors – hopefully we can help in this issue, plus the launch of Nigel Irens designed 14ft skiff and plenty of…
Restore and revive faded gelcoat: Three different methods to try
Few things irk me more than dirty, chalky and stained gelcoat. Like an engine that is corroded – or lines that are chafed – worn gelcoat is a sure sign…
Build your own Western skiff – part 5: launch day at last
What a difference five months makes. It was the end of January in Build your own Western Skiff – Part 1 when the revamped Western Skiff kit was delivered by…
August 2019
This month we concentrate on small boats in a big way, plus 30 pages of practical content and some great ideas for getting your children reading nautical fiction over the
PBO Project Boat Secret 20 update: Bulkheads and beams
Designed in Australia and built by enthusiasts all over the world, the Secret 20 packs grace and pace into her streamlined hull. The kit is supplied as a series of…
Smallest yacht wins top trophy at Round the Island Race
An 18ft yacht with a three-man crew won the Golden Roman Bowl at the Round the Island Race on Saturday. The prize went to Eeyore, an Alacrity 18, skippered by…
Summer 2019
An epic GRP motorboat restoration plus one couple's summer trip around Scotland and the final instalment of decade-defining yachts
Project Boat update: Secret 20 completes deck fit-out stage
The Secret 20 is a beautifully designed classic sailing yacht that can be built from a kit, one of which was delivered to PBO in 2016. Regular readers may well…
Build your own Western skiff – part 4: Finishing touches
It was always going to be a tall order: trying to turn a ‘quick ‘n’ dirty’ epoxy ply kit into a beautifully crafted family heirloom. Not quite as difficult as…
How to service a windscreen washer pump
Spares for an engine water pump, namely an impeller, are one of those ‘must have items’ most boat owners would probably label as essential. Also when it comes to general…
July 2019
This month sees the return of the PBO Project Boat, 24 pages of practicals and a chance to get inside the mind of a surveyor as he reports on two…
Build your own Western Skiff – part 3: Interior fitting and finish
The filleting on the inside took much, much longer than expected,” said a slightly weary-looking Jeremy Butler as he described the latest progress on building his 14ft Western Skiff. In…
PBO project boat – the Secret 20 kit – is back in build
Like many boat projects Harvey, the PBO Secret 20, has been the victim of circumstance. This unique, classic-style performance weekender that arrived as a flat-pack kit and took shape in…
PBO magazine covers of the 1990s
The final decade of the 20th Century: as told on the covers of Practical Boat Owner magazine! Note: There are two missing images (March 90 and 91) – get in…
PBO Small Craft Almanac corrections April 2019
You can download the pdf file of corrections for April 2019 here. Alternatively, if you don’t have a copy: Click here to buy a copy online from Bookharbour.com
June 2019
The best boats of the 1990s and a 60-year-old 25-footer that still feels solid as a rock
Off track and into trouble off Portland Bill
David Sloan discovers the simple navigational error that turned his parents’ Channel hop into a near disaster
Build your own Western Skiff – Part 2: Sheathing and filleting the hull
Boatbuilding can be a lonely business, especially if you’re stuck on your own in a cold garage trying to figure out how to hang your garboards. Download your own set…
The Outer Hebrides welcome
Charmian Entwistle tests new facilities at Tarbert, Harris and Scalpay