ON SALE NOW! The UK's biggest selling yachting magazine features prizes galore, including the £1,300 Harken Battcar mainsail system and a selection of fancy fenders in our 'mystery photo' competition. Also in this month, read our Westerly Buyer's guide 'The all-time best-sellers' from just £999, plus David Harding's new boat test on Select Yachts' one-design sports cruiser, the Hunter Link. With four more pages of new gear previews and new six new boats on display at Southampton Boat show, PBO is packed with practical projects, experts' opinions, cruising and real-life stories.

SPECIAL FEATURES

Sailing with SailTime
Fractional ownership: the pros, cons and costs – plus using it to build your boat skills

Return to sailing paradise
Fun in the sun on a lively beach sailing holiday at Club Colonna in the Caribbean

BOATS

Westerly buyer’s guide
First in a new series looks at the Westerly range up to 26ft (7.9m), including the Centaur, the most popular second-hand boat ever!

Hunter Link
Select Yachts’ new one-design sports cruiser fills a gap in the market

New boats at the show
A look at the latest boats to be found at the Southampton Boat Show

Bluefin: the cat is back
Historic catamaran Bluefin sets sail in Chichester Harbour after a year’s restoration

Motorboating
Saving fuel with the Nordic Tug 32, an economical displacement hull cruiser, plus boating on a budget with a Broom 30

PBO brokerage
You’ll find hundreds of new and used boats for sale in our brokerage pages

PRACTICAL

Ask the experts
An engine that’s sluggish to start, VHF licences abroad, and repairing worn oilies

Kedge anchor saved my boat
How an FOB kedge anchor saved Richard Hare’s yacht – and others – in Greece

Practical projects
Keel protection for a Cornish Shrimper, easy hot water, plus fitting an electric cooker

Hybrid power
Hybrid power is a ‘green’ engine alternative – but could you install it in your boat?

Surviving a ‘Mini Cape Horn’
One couple’s experience surviving Colombia’s ‘Mini Cape Horn’ and the lessons learned

Transformation with paint
Make your boat look like new with a fresh coat of paint – we show how it’s done

Boat owner’s sketchbook
Dick Everitt explains how he changed his bolt rope luff to one with slides

Fit an electric winch
Tired of winding by hand? We show how Harken manual winches can be converted to electric – winching at the touch of a button

CRUISING

Cruising notes
The 2012 London Olympics sailing venue at the Isle of Portland in Weymouth takes shape

Stormy weather for a wedding anniversary
Sebastian Smith and his wife, on their seventh anniversary, survive a violent gale off Spain

River Vilaine
Taking shelter, David Rainsbury discovers idyllic scenery and lovely ports in the River Vilaine – among them La Roche-Bernard, a popular place for Britons to overwinter their yachts

Chart corrections
Update your charts with PBO

GEAR

Cookers compared
Looking for a new boat cooker? PBO’s team reviews eight of the most popular brands running on gas, methylated spirits and paraffin fuels

Getting the best from your sailmaker
There’s more to buying a sail than picking one off the shelf. David Rainsbury explains how to work with your sailmaker for a perfect sail fit

REGULAR FEATURES

6 Waiting for the tide
News and views from the editor

News and regional news
The latest news from home and abroad

Readers’ letters
Readers tell of their experiences of being boarded by revenue and customs men

Competition
Win a Harken Battcar system worth £1,300

Bargains of the month
Great deals from our chandlery pages

Dave Selby
Dab some tar behind the ears and have some timeless fun with the old gaffer crowd

Andrew Simpson
Canal cruising can be so relaxing – providing you remember not to switch channels

Sam Llewellyn
Amid a maelstrom of chaos, the Minimum Boater seeks refuge aground

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Buy boat reports and previous PBO articles

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Bosun’s bag
Maritime mischief observed by the readers of Practical Boat Owner

On sale 4 September 2008