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Read more: Q&A: Issues With Teak Deck Replacement On A Metal BoatQuestion: We are hoping to draw on your experience with teak deck replacement on our steel sailboat…Despite our initial plan of just stemming the leaks for the short term until we sailed somewhere fun, they are just too bad and the deck has to go next spring/summer. While going through the process of finding someone […]
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Read more: Self-Sufficiency In PowerWhen building their OVNI, Colin and Louise remained true to their commitment to renewable power after so many years of both working in the environmental field by designing a power generation system that balances wind and solar.
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Read more: Q&A: Tef-Gel Versus Never-Seez
Question: I am intrigued by your high praise for Tef-Gel. I have not heard of it before, and in the past I have used ‘anti-seize’ for mooring shackles and installing stainless steel fasteners in aluminum. I am curious about your experience with ‘anti-seize’ versus Tef-Gel. In addition, I have had good luck using BP Blaster […]
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Read more: Q&A: Sailboat Stability Contradiction
Question: I recently had an interesting discussion about stability with a cruising yacht owner, and I thought this topic would be of real interest to any high latitude sailor. And I also suspect that you would have traversed this terrain long ago and have an opinion. After the 1979 Fastnet race, the Joint Committee on […]
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Read more: Back on BoardOur last extended cruise ended in the fall of 2003 when John and I hauled Morgan’s Cloud in Maine so that we could spend the winter at our house in Bermuda. We had a big decision to make: If we wanted to refit Morgan’s Cloud and keep on cruising, the house would have to be […]
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Read more: Q&A: Risk Management, Hurricanes
Question [received July 11, 2008]: We’re in St. John’s, Newfoundland, waiting to cross to Scotland. We’re just about ready to go and the weather forcast is good for leaving. However, Hurricane Bertha is just south of Bermuda. The current forecast is for her to weaken to 55 knots within four to five days, and stay […]
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Read more: The "S" Word—StabilityColin checks stability numbers for his OVNI 435 and is reassured. But there is more to sailboat capsize safety than the numbers.
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Read more: How To Home Build a Hard Dodger For an Offshore SailboatAfter reading about our hard dodger, very experienced liveaboard voyagers Lane and Kay Finley sent along a detailed description of their hard dodger, complete with photographs. The advantage of theirs over ours is that it is all hard with glass windows; much stronger and pretty much maintenance free. On the other hand, I like the larger expanse of window, fewer blind spots and curved shape of ours.
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Read more: The Real Hard MenLobster fishermen in the Bay of Fundy, man are they tough!
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Read more: The Gulfstream, Everything You Wanted To Know
A friend of ours, who is a cruise ship captain, sent along the following list of links to everything, and I do mean everything, you have always wanted to know about the Gulf Stream. Some interesting stuff.
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Read more: A Practical Cruising RigA sloop rig might be fine in sunny sheltered waters with an army of gorillas as crew, but it is less than ideal for shorthanded crews sailing in windy and exposed seas. This is when the ability to reef swiftly and safely is far more important, and the true cutter rig comes in to its own.
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Read more: Q&A: Diamonds Are A Woman’s Best Friend!Question: Three friends and I are outfitting my Skye 51′ for a five-year circumnavigation and we are replacing the old teak decks…I have heard many more pros than cons to Treadmaster and I would like to know your honest opinion on installation, upkeep, durability and general contentment with the product. Any input that you care […]
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Read more: Cockpit Dodger For an Offshore SailboatPhyllis and John share what they have learned after three iterations of dodger design and build finally produced a perfect result on Morgan’s Cloud.
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Read more: Q&A: On Being A NewbieQuestion: I’m planning a five-year circumnavigation. While I grew up as a live aboard cruiser, two of my crew have limited sailing experience. We have cruised the Chesapeake Bay extensively together and both are becoming good seamen but neither has been on a blue water passage. Phyllis, I understand that you had little or no […]
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Read more: Q&A: PVC For PlumbingQuestion: Currently tackling the plumbing system and would like to know if you have any other photos of how you use PVC piping. I’m very interested in using this as often as possible. How do you make the connection between the rigid pipe and the fitting that may be on your holding tank or other […]
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Read more: Q&A: Which Charts For Greenland’s West Coast?
Question: I’m planning a cruise of the west coast of Greenland. For charts I have the choice between C-MAP electronic charts running on Furuno Navnet with Maxsea on a PC and Danish paper charts. Which would you recommend?
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Read more: WeatherFax 2000We are long time users of WeatherFax 2000, from Xaxero Marine Software Engineering Ltd in New Zealand, for the reception of weather faxes on a Windows PC.
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Read more: PVC PipeWe’re amazed that more boats are not plumbed with ordinary PVC pipe, but then again we never thought of using it either until we bought Morgan’s Cloud 16 years ago and found that her builder had used PVC pipe for almost all of her plumbing.
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Q&A: Picking A Weather Window For A West To East Atlantic Crossing
8 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesFree
Read more: Q&A: Picking A Weather Window For A West To East Atlantic CrossingQuestion: I’m planning an Atlantic Crossing from Boston to Scotland. How can I recognize the best moment weather wise to leave for the safest crossing?
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Q&A: Picking A Sailing Route Across The North Atlantic, West To East
21 CommentsReading Time: 4 minutesFree
Read more: Q&A: Picking A Sailing Route Across The North Atlantic, West To EastQuestion: We’re planning to sail from New York to Falmouth (UK) leaving around May 18th. Our plan is to sail WSW out from New York till we hit the Gulf Stream and then attempt to sail the great circle to Falmouth. We’re debating whether to consider a more southerly route to stay clear of weather […]
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Read more: Are Spade Rudders Suitable For Ocean Crossings?As I mentioned in a previous posting, one of the most attractive features of our new OVNI is the protected rudder, which we think is an essential feature for a long distance boat.
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Read more: Why We Wrote This BookFREE introductory chapter. So why should you learn how to receive and interpret weather information? Surely all we need to do is employ a weather router and/or use one of the cool weather forecast tools available, perhaps including routing software? All good stuff, but we also need basic understanding. Here’s why.
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Q&A: Staysail Stay: Roller Furling And Fixed Vs Hanks And Removable
8 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
Read more: Q&A: Staysail Stay: Roller Furling And Fixed Vs Hanks And RemovableWhich is better for the staysail stay? Roller furling and fixed or hanks and removable? John says it depends.
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Read more: Q&A: Best Time For A West To East Atlantic CrossingQuestion: I will be sailing to Gibraltar from the Chesapeake via the Azores. When would be the best time to leave and when would be the earliest I could/should leave?
