Boatbuilding & Boating

In Herman Wouks wonderful Caribbean escape novel Don't Stop the Carnival there is a rogue character who describes himself as "just an old truth teller." I like that. It is a self-assessment worth living up to. The current truth about boating is that it gets harder to afford from year to year. In the nearly twenty years since This Old Boat was originally published, the waterways and shorelines have gotten markedly less boat friendly (unless you are lucky to own a megayacht).

Do-it-yourself boatyards continue to give way to condominium developments. Marinas have succumbed to the immediate return of converting to high-priced dockominiums. Both gasoline and diesel fuel have increased from less than SI per gallon to more than $4. The price of a new offshore 35-foot sailboat has risen from an already astonishing S100,000 plus in 1991 to an astronomical $300,000 plus today and still rising. The cost of insurance also rising. Storage costs are up. Haulout costs are up. What bought a gallon of bottom paint in the '90s buys a quart today. Hell, even the cost of this book has increased (but not so much)...

The author himself combines about thirty years of sailing experience, an excellent sense of humor and a perfect writing style to deliver reliable and simple advice to the boaters.

Here is the twenty-first century update of the world popular book written by the professional yacht designer to serve as a sort of guide to the safe and efficient offshore cruising yachts. It has been loaded with detailed technical information covering the design theory, construction and outfitting of the yachts. This book will be very useful to all people who are in the boat design and construction.

The publication has gained the popularity because of the author's approach to the important questions - he is actually looking at them at a slightly different angle, That is why the book is treated as a really great read for all boat and yacht designers and constructors. The style of writing used by the author has made this book very easy and interesting to read.

The way he explains the various design features of yachts and boats enables the readers to better understand the theoretical principles that are usually considered quite difficult. In his book, the author has covered the hull shapes, machinery, propulsion arrangements, sails, decks and actually all aspects one needs to be aware of in order to understand all design matters. Very informative and opinionated publication and a must-have for every boater due to a wealth of information provided.

This history of this book started almost a century ago. The very first release of this publication is dated about 1923. The present contemporary edition of the book continues the tradition of representing a perfect reproduction of the most important historical works while maintaining the perfect format of the original publication.

We believe that this work is culturally important in the original form and therefore did not utilize the optical character recognition technique when preparing the electronic release of the book. In our opinion, it may lead to the sub-optimal results, such as improper characters, typo errors and confusing formatting results. The authors of the original publication included numerous data diagrams and images, as well as detailed working plans and drawings of various model yachts and various small ships that would be suitable even for the amateur builders.

It does not, however, even pretend to be a specific treatise on naval architecture or yachting; it would be rather addressed to that portion of the yachting world which is interested in the small crafts and boats that can be constructed by amateurs and not professional builders. The author of the book touched the most important and interesting aspects of the design, construction and sails, with some underlying theoretical principles...  

I adore secondhand bookshops—the smell, the atmosphere, and the low prices. In my time, I've found lots of great books about building small boats on their dusty shelves. Because many aspects of boating remain the same over generations and even centuries, older books on the subject can often be as relevant today as newer editions, and there's much indeed to learn from them.

However, I have come to dislike certain types of older books, particularly the ones on boat carpentry that are more discouraging than helpful. They usually start with an anecdote about how the author tried building a boat at a young age and failed. In some versions, the author's father, in a fit of misplaced and misguided rage, destroys the original boat with an ax because it's both shameful and unsafe; in others he burns it. Usually the experience leaves the fledgling boat-builder in tears but determined to win the father's approval. Stories like this make me angry because when I see them I know it's more than likely that the author, deliberately or not, is replaying the part of the angry father and making readers feel inadequate, as if they were kids unable to build a proper small boat. In contrast, the present book is meant to make readers feel confident about building small boats. It will explain them how to make the project go smoothly and efficiently, bearing in mind that mistakes are not the end of the world.

You can correct many with the help of good old cousin Poly Urethane, Uncle Epoxy, and Auntie Filler, so there's no need to fear potential blunders along the way. Thankfully, the bad old boat-chopping and boat-burning days are long gone. The methods I'm presenting here are tried, tested, and known to work. Over the years I've noticed beginners often wonder whether alternative cheaper materials and methods might work just as well as the ones I have included in this book. The answer is some will, some won't, and some will only to a point. If you have a slightly wacky idea about building a boat from expanded foam or using water-resistant (rather than waterproof) glue, ask about it on the Internet discussion groups...

This is the second edition of the nice and world popular book prepared by Frank Sargeant and released to serve as the comprehensive overview of both sailing and power boating, covering all the techniques shared by both. It includes all necessary materials that any boater needs to know when buying a boat; it also addresses the cost of ownership, marine power, motors, weather and technology matters, safe navigation and seamanship techniques, and other boat handling issues; in addition, this new edition of the book contains a separate chapter dedicated solely to the personal watercraft.

You will get the expert advice on nearly every aspect of launching, anchoring, docking, repair and maintenance of the boat. All info on the marine equipment and technology contained in the book is up-to-date and reflects the very latest breakthroughs in the industry. As it is entailed by the name of this book, it will be extremely useful to novices willing to get some basic knowledge on boating and sailing, for the perfect start.

There is a Glossary at the end of the book explaining the most popular definitions and abbreviations the boater may need to use. The list of guide books and online resources is also there for easy reference. Highly recommended for both newcomers and professionals of the boating, since there is always some room for the improvement of your skills.

For some people preparing a wiring diagram for their boats is treated as the headache and the result of such activity performed by such sort of guys leaves much to be desired, obviously. However, it they have a look into this publication, this task may seem much easier for them, since this book contains a huge number of very simple instructions - plain, easy-to-follow and supplemented with the sketches and images detailing every single detail.

The Handbook is really world popular and the present edition has been thoroughly revised and updated with a lot of new and very actual information, making this classical publication even better. The book provides readers with a very understandable and useful guidance for the troubleshooting of the electrical systems, covering but not limited to the engine instruments, various alarms, lightning protection etc. The section dealing with the troubleshooting has been subjected to the most thorough revision.

This is a truly invaluable and practical source of information for people willing to be able to fix any type of electrical problems they might face board their boats, by themselves, without having to involve someone else; in fact, it will be good to any person wishing to understand the basics of electricity.

Well, it goes without saying that a name plays a very important role in the whole destiny of the ship, up to the very last day of the service. A well-designed one will be a finishing touch in the long-lasting process of building the boat and it will form the first impression of the boat. The name of a boat or a ship is referred to as a visible clue to the owner's sensibilities and interests.

Regardless of whether the chosen name is mythical, irreverent, romantic, classical or, say, whimsical, it will not be able to communicate such message without a good and effective design. The title of this book fully reflects the content. The readers will get to know how to choose the graphic style and lettering expressing their personality and boating aspiration the best way, how to work with various techniques of lettering, how to properly communicate their choices to a designer, or a letterer.

They will be offered a nice visual tour through the history of naming the boats and will be given a good opportunity to browse thousand and a half boat names and also explore the various resources for expanded search. Take some time reading this book and you will see how interesting the process of choosing the name and designing it can be.

Here is a truly perfect and must-have guide for all newcomers to dinghy sailing who are willing to learn the basics as well as to those who are experienced but still intent to improve their sailing skills and get the techniques developed. The Guide is very easy to follow and provides step-by-step instructions supplemented with so many illustrations and photos - it contains everything the dinghy sailor needs to know - the book is divided into four big parts, namely Basic Principles, providing the very basic information on the dinghy boat, Preparing to Sail, First Sail - addressing the preparation and the process of sailing, and Basics of racing - for a bit more advanced sailors.

The Glossary of the terms is also there. We would say that it is one of the most comprehensive sailing books available at the market today. You will definitely enjoy reading it and will find so much of useful and practical information inside. It will be useful even for the people who do not sail dinghy boats - the author of the book did include the large separate section dedicated to the larger boats like yachts and sloops. It contains all necessary basics of the sailing and navigation. The images and graphs are included in the book for illustration of the text.