Good Old Boat magazine is for sailors who own, maintain, sail, and love terrific boats which are 10, 20, 30, or more years old. Good Old Boat is now available at newsstands.
€ Boat review: Pacific Seacraft Flicka, by John Vigor
€ Boat feature: Bayfield 40, by Ken Miller and Ted Brewer
€ Repowering: Preparing to replace your diesel engine, by Don Casey
€ History retold: The Pearson Era and birth of fiberglass boats, by Steve Mitchell
€ Small wonders: Moving immovable objects, by Ken Textor
€ Cooking under pressure, by Theresa Fort
€ Holding tanks, by Mark Parker, Norman Ralph, and John Kowalczyk
€ Helm balance (Part Two of Brewer¹s ratios/ designers¹ formulas), by Ted Brewer
€ Picture spread, by Scott Kennedy
€ Why? by Bill Sandifer
€ Welcome news for Bristol Yacht sailors, by Hope Beecher Wright
€ Simple solutions: Pushpit seats, by Bill Dimmitt
€ Christmas Eve on Kinery Rock, by Don Launer
€ Vessel in the fog, by Larry Carpenter
€ Reflections, by Brian Backstrand
The September/October issue of Good Old Boat includes articles on climbing the mast, re-doing the standing rigging, adding chafing gear, repairing blisters, replacing ports, and making a valve spring compressor for use with the Atomic 4. The feature boat is a Nicholson 35, and the review boat is the Contessa 26 (also known as the Taylor 26). Feature articles include love for a special boat dog, a photo essay by Mary Jane Hayes, a look at whether sailboats are really just RVs on the water, and a profile of Joe Palmer who offers parts and customer service for Tartans and other good old boats. And finally, the Pardeys take a look at why we tell "sea-fearing tales" of storms at sea, rather than speaking of the good times we've had out there.
Our July/August first-year anniversary issue looks at the advantages and disadvantages of aluminum and steel boats, focuses on when and why to buy new sails, talks about what the sailor's medical bag should include and how to handle medical emergencies at sea, and includes a short how-to on building a mast. It includes a Cal 20 boat review, and a Block Island 40 as the feature boat. Ted Brewer writes about the formulas used by yacht designers, Don Casey gets sentimental about staying aboard during a gentle summer rain, artist Dave Chase tells of his "poor man's windlass" in comic-book style, Roy Kiesling explains how GPS works, and John Vigor writes about a new $400 dinghy and allows us to reprint a couple of Vigor favorites: a ceremony for renaming your boat and what he calls the "Black Box Theory." We also include a beautiful photo essay and a cruising memory that will bring a smile to your face.
The May/June issue focuses on tuning your standing rigging, appreciating your tiller, buying an affordable boat, restoring a Bristol 27, keeping the motion at anchor under control when there's surge, and fighting mildew. The Pearson Commander is our feature boat, and the Bristol Channel Cutter is the boat reviewed in this issue. There is a feature on two men who choose to preserve classic sailboats and a small wonders feature on the use of chip logs and lead lines. We also feature the sailor who designed the duffel bags which are part of our giveaway prize drawing for subscribers. First prize is a custombuilt boat model and second and third prizes are wonderful customized duffel bags. The drawing will be in June. This issue is huge -- 96 pages -- in part because we rerun the entire list of sailboat associations and contacts, a list of more than 500 names and growing . . .
The March/April issue discusses blister repair on a Valient, fuel and water filters, a review of the Albin Vega and a feature on the Baba 30 and her sailors, a look at oars for dinghies, anchoring with two anchors, safe shorepower, how to anodize your boat parts, and much more. This issue introduces a subscriber sweepstakes. In mid-June three paid subscribers will be selected to win a handmade model of their boat (first place) or a very nice personalized duffel bag (second and third places).
The January/February issue includes a technical look at various ways to repair fuel and water tanks, the fine art of vacationing without an icebox or refrigerator, a feature on the Blackwatch 19, a look at when and how to fly flags at sea and at anchor, a vendor profile on Don Moyer of Moyer Marine, a thorough look at dinghies, the history of the Allied Boat Company, and more.
The November/December issue includes a collection of articles on buying, financing, insuring, and upgrading your good old boat and a look at tax considerations for boaters. It has a profile of designer Ted Brewer by John Vigor and a look at fiberglass boats by Sven Donaldson (what can go wrong and how to determine whether an older boat is worth the investment of time and money). It includes a feature on the Niagara 35 and her sailors in Canada's North Channel and Georgian Bay. A chapter of Roland Barth's new book, Cruising Rules, pokes fun at macho types who don't reef. Bill Sandifer shows us how he repaired extensive deck delamination in his Pearson Ariel, and Jerry Powlas talks about the vang/preventer system that works on his C&C. Sailrite's Matt Grant discusses pros and cons of roller furling and hanked-on jibs, and Bob Wood lists names and phone numbers for resources for sailors.
The September/October issue includes a technical look at exhaust systems, a supplier feature on Sailrite, a discussion about buying sails through sail brokers, a great article on what to look for when buying an older boat, a feature on an Ericson 35, a "walk down memory lane" with the birth of the Valiant, an article by Lin Pardey on onboard communication, a review of sailing listservers and newsgroups on the 'Net, and more. This issue features a number of new authors we like and think you'll like. Take a look at it and then tell us about articles you'd like to see. The first issue, which came out in June, included an in-depth look at seacocks and thru-hulls with an article by Nigel Calder, a companion piece on marine metals by marine architect Dave Gerr, and a discussion of some controversies that have popped up on the subject recently in Practical Sailor. Don Casey had a guest editorial extolling the virtues of good old boats. The issue also focused on the Atomic 4 engine, featured a Cape Dory 30 and her good old sailors, and presented a way to restore your rubrails by John Vigor. We had a centerfold of good old boat photos by Mary Jane Hayes. And we included a list of sailboat associations and owners' groups. (We continue to gather information for that list on this website. It's been creating a lot of interest!).
The July/August issue includes an in-depth look at seacocks and thru-hull fittings and the issue of dissimilar marine metals, focuses on the Atomic 4, features a Cape Dory 30 and her sailors, and introduces a vast list of associations and contacts for sailors with specific questions about their boats. (This list has doubled in size and will be reprinted in the 1999 May/June issue.)