Practical Boat Owner

Published by TI Media Limited Practical Boat Owner is Britain's biggest-selling boating magazine, trusted and respected by all its readers. A source of useful and helpful information for both power and sail boat owners, PBO helps you get the most from your boat acting as a forum for interacting with like-minded individuals.

Practical Boat Owner

Just do it

boatfolk acquisition makes Premier Marinas the UK’s biggest marina group

Electronic navigation systems wake-up

Tackling poorly marked fishing gear

New podcast

Training path

GRP innovators give hope for old sails

Royal boost to ‘Protect our Playground’

RYA says ‘Man Overboard’ is still on board

British sailor missing in Gran Canaria

Excitement for Golden Globe Race 2026

DIARY DATES

Gaffling dinghies unite on Ullswater

Regional news • News from your cruising area

Letters • Sharing your boating thoughts and opinions

Channel hopping • Essential monthly highlights from the world of online sailing channels with Kass Schmitt

Bacon butties ruled the waves • The brief golden era of British offshore racing when we went F1 racing in campervans

The Swiss Navy Knife • Multitools are getting out of control

Going round the very top • Mizzle can’t dampen the thrill of lunching on tatties at the northernmost point of Britain

Small Westerly yachts • Roomy 10ft to 26ft family cruisers that can be found at dinghy prices

Hanse 360 • Theo Stocker takes Hanse’s new big little cruiser out in a Force 5 to see whether she is as easily driven as her predecessors

Boats for the Dutch inland seas • In the first article of a new series, Phil Clandillon looks at the best second-hand yachts for sailing popular cruising grounds; this month, the Dutch inland seas and waterways

Great trading ketch • HE Ross looks at the importance of the Garlandstone and why it needs protection

Preparing your yacht’s systems • Will Spencer explains how to prepare your boat for sailing offshore and the regular checks all sailors should make

Book reviews • Katy Stickland shares our recommended maritime reads

New gear • Rupert Holmes previews the latest marine products

Tried & tested • PBO tests an offshore jacket and men’s sailing trousers

Displacement theory • What does your boat’s measurements say about the way it handles? It’s not as straightforward as you’d think, as Ali Wood discovers

WHAT DOES A SQUALL FEEL LIKE?

‘I bought the boat and lived the dream’ • After nine years of circumnavigating the globe, the ‘old Seadog’ tells Laura Hodgetts he’s home to get patched up and a pension

Onboard essentials

SAVE 50%!* WHEN YOU SUBSCRIBE • Expert advice and step-by-step guides to every hands-on boating job, impartial in-depth gear and boat reviews, practical cruising tips… and more!

Mizzen making • Woodbridge Boatyard’s Matt Lis explains how he replaced a mizzen mast on the ketch Peter Duck

Fit your own Saildrive propeller • Mark Ryan learns mid-family cruise the importance of having a secure attachment for his Volvo Saildrive propeller

Propeller removal to change an anode

Propeller cleaning and refitting

Anchoring single-handed • Alastair Buchan explains how to anchor a boat when sailing solo

Entering an anchorage

The working anchor

Top-end engine rebuild • After years of searching for his dream boat, Drew Maglio explains how he fixed the V8 engine on his new to him Chaparral 2550 SX

Diesel engine fluids • John Payne explains the critical importance of lubricating oil for your boat’s engine, and how and when to change it

Practical...