How To Choose The Right Solar Panel
If your sailboat’s battery runs out of a charge before you run out of the need for it, installing a solar panel might be a good option for you. It might be the only option for you to recharge the battery if you normally moor without access to shore power so that you can use a conventional charger. Solar technology has progressed a lot in recent years and you have more options than ever.
This is a guest post submitted by the folks at PowerScout, a company that strives to bring the best solar technology within easy reach of the average homeowner. Their mission is to help people go solar, however they do it—in their homes, in their cars, or even in their sailboats. They don’t have a dog in the fight for your solar purchase so their advise can help you make a more informed decision, whatever products you choose. Continue reading “How To Choose The Right Solar Panel”
Top 10 Gift Ideas for 2017
If you’re looking for gifts for that stingy sailor on your gift list or even if you ARE that stingy sailor and you need some hint-dropping ideas, let me help you out. Following are my top 10 gift ideas this year.
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Put That Lazy Sheet to Work and Point Higher
It’s the holy grail of sailing, the one thing that is denied every sailor, yet they yearn and struggle for it anyway. I’m talking about pointing higher upwind. No matter how good of a sailboat you have or how good you are at trimming its sails, there’s a limit to how close into the wind you can sail and that limit can affect your course whether you’re cruising or racing. On a short course, it can mean the difference between one tack and two tacks to reach your destination or between 8 tacks and 12 tacks on a longer course. Every tack you make, you lose speed and time. Sometimes it doesn’t matter, sometimes it does. Continue reading “Put That Lazy Sheet to Work and Point Higher”
15 Perished in US Sailing Tragedies in 2016
Every year, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the United States Coast Guard, and the Office of Auxiliary and Boating Safety publish a report of statistics about recreational boating accidents. The 2016 report was just published and although there were fewer sailing deaths than last year, the numbers of general boating deaths, accidents, injuries, and property damage are up sharply. Continue reading “15 Perished in US Sailing Tragedies in 2016”
How to Reproduce a Class Insignia on a Sail
This project is a companion to my previous project, How to Add Numbers to a Sail. If you need to add or replace your sail numbers, you might also need to add or replace the class insignia too. Or maybe you want to add a company logo to your sail or a graphic that illustrates the sailboat’s name. Whatever shape you want to add to your sail, the basic process is the same. In this post, I’ll describe how to make the classic Catalina 22 mainsail class insignia for half the cost of retail. Continue reading “How to Reproduce a Class Insignia on a Sail”
2017 Stingy Sailor DIY Project Contest Winners
The entries for the 2nd annual Stingy Sailor DIY Project Contest have all been received and scored. I’m very pleased that there were 50% more project entries this year than last. And I’m humbled that some of the entries were projects that debuted … Continue reading 2017 Stingy Sailor DIY Project Contest Winners
Tour the $tingy Sailor Workshop
Judging from the email that I get from readers, the number one challenge you have to working on your sailboat is making the time. The number two challenge is the workspace and tools to do some of the projects here.
Trust me, I know what you mean. For many years, I didn’t even have a garage to work in and all the tools I owned could fit in a suitcase.
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Enter the 2017 Stingy Sailor DIY Project Contest
Did you do a project on your sailboat last year that you’re particularly proud of? Or did you make an ingenious improvement that you’d like to share with other skippers? I’ve received comments and emails from many of you who rolled up your sleeves and took on DIY projects large and small, simple and complex. Now’s your turn to show off some of your hard work for a chance to win prizes and worldwide acclaim!
Top 10 DIY Projects of 2016
2016 was another stellar year here at The $tingy Sailor!
We’ve seen incredible growth in the number of pages viewed every day—up more than 200% from last year to over 650,000 views from 176 countries. Continue reading “Top 10 DIY Projects of 2016”
The $tingy Sailor 