After 11 years under the harsh Australian sun John Tylor’s mainsail cover was falling apart. Here’s how he brought it back to life...
sail
How important is headsail trim?
PBO reader Jenny Spear wants advice on how to improv the performance of her boat's headsail. Ian Brown has this brief guide to headsail trim
Should I move the mainsheet traveller?
What should you consider if you want to move the mainsheet traveller? OneSails' Wilf Chaplin and surveyor Ben Sutcliffe-Davies share their thoughts
Sail cleaning the DIY way
Mike Attree shows how he spruced up his genoa in the garden
How to choose the right roller furling system for your boat
With a plethora of furlers on the market, Stan Cockeram weighs up a number of factors to help you decide which is best for your boat
How to make a spinnaker snuffer
John Connell keeps his spinnaker in check by devising and constructing a home-made spinnaker snuffer
Trysail trimming: a guide for sailors
Ben Meakins explains how to set and deploy trysails to improve boat control in high-wind conditions
Hoisting and lowering the mainsail: troubleshooting problems
What can you do if your mainsail is hard to hoist or reluctant to drop? David Harding offers some advice
How to rig a spinnaker on a small yacht – what you need and where to fit it
If you want a spinnaker, but don’t have the necessary fittings or equipment on your boat, where do you start?
How to make a DIY boom brake for £8.95
David Holmes reflects on the success of his simple boom brake
Cruising chute or spinnaker? We compare both sails on the same boat on different points of sail
Many cruising sailors favour a cruising chute over a spinnaker – but how do the two sails compare on different points of sail? David Harding tried both on the same
What difference do new sails make?
New sails are a big investment – but are they worth it? The PBO team compared the old with the new on a Snapdragon 23
Offshore sails: what you need to cross the Atlantic
Sailmaker Daryl Morgan gives some expert advice on ocean sails, while Neil Smith explains how his family coped with delaminating sails
Spinnaker recycling now available in Cornwall
Spinnakers can now be saved from landfill and repurposed in Cornwall, as part of Clean Sailors' ReSail initiative
Spinnaker repair: how to do it yourself
Andy Pag saves thousands of pounds on a replacement by mending his shredded sail himself using a domestic sewing machine