The Practical Mariner's Book of Knowledge: 420 Sea-Tested Rules of Thumb for Almost Every Boating Situation

ForewordAcknowledgmentsIntroductionAAbandoning Ship; Aground; Air Pressure, on Sails and Rigging; Albatross, Superstition Concerning; Alternators; Anchors and Anchoring; Angles, Horizontal, Estimating; Atoll Passes, Current Movement inBBalanced Helm, Factors Affecting Monohull Sailboats; Ballast and Bad Luck; Ballast Ratios, Safe, for Monohulls; Barometers; Battens, Sail, Eliminating; Batteries; Beam, Proportion to Length; Bearing, Collision; Bearing, Definition of; Berths, Dimensions of; Bilge Pumps, Minimum Requirements; Binoculars; Black Box Theory, Vigor's; Blistering of Fiberglass Hulls; Blocks, Size of; Boarding Ladder, Side for; Boat, Choosing the Right One for You; Boat, Definition of; Boom, Metal, Recommended Minimum Sizes; Bosun's Chair, Safe Use of; Bottom Painting, Golden Rule; Breakers, Spilling and Plunging; Brightwork; Bulwarks, Depth of; Buoyage; Buoys, Effect of Color; Buoyancy, Center of; Buys-Ballot LawCCapsize; Carbon Monoxide, Dangers of; Carrying Capacity, Boats Under 20 Feet Overall; Castaways, Survival Rate of; Center of Effort, Position of; Center of Lateral Resistance, Position of; Chain, Strength of; Chain Locker, Estimating Size of; Chart Table, Size of; Charts; Chartwork, Best Pencil for; Circles of Position; Circling, Accidental; Circumnavigation, Definition of; Cockpit, Self-Draining; Color and Distance, Assistance in Judging; Color Blindness, Frequency Among Crew; Colors, Unlucky; Companionway Ladder, Proportions of; Compass; Coral Reefs, Navigating by Eye; Course Correction for Variation and Deviation; Crew Overboard Routine; Cruisers, Success Rate Among; Cruising, Cost of; Currents; Currents and Tidal Streams, Face-Saving FactsDDangers, Keeping Clear of; Decks, Teak; Delivery Trips, Documentation for; Depth Sounders, Choices; Design, of New Yachts; Diesels; Dinghies; Direction, Measurement of; Displacement, Definition of; Displacement-to-Length Ration; Distance Off, Estimating by Eye; Distress Signals, Reliability of; Dock Lines, Length of; Dock Lines, Size of Splices; Dockage, Cost ofEEar Infections, from Sea Water; Echo Pilotage; Electrical Bonding; Electrical Grounding; Electrical Wiring; Engines; Exhaust Line, Pitch ofFFathom, Derivation of; Fear, Experience of; Fear, Widespread, Occurrence of; Fiberglass Construction; Fiddles, Height of; Figureheads, Derivation of; Fire; First Aid; Fishing, Definition of; Flags; Flotation, Requirements for Ballasted Hulls; Flotsam and Jetsam, Definitions of; Fog; Foresail Sheets, Fouling of; Foresails, Headsails, and Jibs; Freeboard in Sailboats, Classic Proportions of; Friday, Sailing on; Fuel; Fuel Tanks, Shape ofGGaff Mainsail, Proportions of; Gales, Frequency of; Galley, Placement of; Galley Stove, How to Gimbal; Global Positioning System (GPS), Limitations of; Green Flash, at Sunset; Griping, Causes ofHHallucinations, Occurrence of; Halyards, Types of; Hatches, Dimensions of; Headroom, Definitions of; Height of Eye, for Sextant Navigation; Hobbyhorsing, Causes of; Hooks, Shackles, and Rings, Strength of; Horsepower; Horses, Live, Provisions for; Hull Color, Best of Resale; Hull, Cost of; Hull, Steel, Resale Value of; Hurricanes; Hypothermia, Diagnosis and Treatment ofJJib Numbering and Naming System; Jib Sheet, Strain onKKeels and Keel Boats; KnotsLLateral Plane, as a Percentage of Sail Area; Latitude, Approximate; Lead, Sounding; Leaks, Emergency Actions to Take; Lee Helm, Effect of; Leeway, in Sailboats; Lifelines, Height of; Liferaft, Chances of Survival in; Light, Jumping; Lightning Protection, Principles of; Lights; Lines, Suggested Color Coding of; Lines of Position, Permissible Angles; Log, Patent, Overhauling of; Log, Ship's OfficialMMainsail Slides, How to Attach; Making Fast, Correct Terms; Maneuvering; Masts; Mechanical Similitude, Law of; Miles; Motions of a Sailboat at Sea; Motorsailer, Definition of; Multihulls, Speed of; Multihulls, Stability ofNName, Attracting Bad Luck with; Name, Changing of; Navigation; Navigation Lights, Specifications forOOars; Ocean; Ocean Voyaging, Size of Boat for; Oceangoing Sailboat, Basic Requirements for; Oil, Color of; Osmosis; Outboard Motors; Overhangs, Dangers of; Overloading, the Safety LimitPPaint; Passages and Gangways, Dimensions of; Performance, Human, Variation with Time of Day; Planing; Planking, Sizes of, for Wooden Boats; Plankton, As Survival Food; Plywood Decks, Spacing of Beams for; Porthole, Definition of; Position Determination, Frequency of; Pounds per Inch Immersion; Powerboats, Atkin's Suggestions for; Preventers, Manifold Uses of; Price, to Convert for Cruising; Price Apportionment, Yard-Built Yacht; Price per Pound, New Cruising Sailboat; Privacy, the Need for; Propellers; Pull, Maximum, by One Person; Purchase, Calculation of, in Block and TackleRRadar; Radar Reflector, Efficiency of; Radio; Radio Direction Finder, Emergency; Range Markers, Which One to Follow; Red Right Returning; Reefing, When to Reef; Rigging; Right of Way; Rising and Dipping of Lights; Roller Furling, Reliability of; Rope; Rudders; Rule of Thumb, the Original; Rules of the Road; Rum Punch, Caribbean, Recipe for; Running Aground, First Action to Take; Running an InletSSail Area; Sail Cloth, Weight of; Sailmaker's Palm, Care of; Salt, Spilled; Salvage Claims; Schooner Masts, Names of; Screws, Dimensions for Use in Wood; Sculling Notch, Dinghy; Scurvy, Incidence of; Seacocks; Seakindliness, Definition of; Seamanship, the Highest Order of; Seamanship, Where It Starts; Seasickness; Seawater; Seaworthiness, Definition of; She, As a Nautical Pronoun; Sheets, Headsail and Mainsail, Diameter of; Ships, Large, Stopping Distance of; Singlehanded Boats; Singlehanded Voyagers, Motivation of; Size, According to Age; Size, Down Below; Skid Fin, Size and Placing of; Sound Signals, When to Make Them; Sound, Speed of, in Water and Air; Soundings, Definition of; Speed; Spreaders, Angle of; Stability; Stainless Steel, Corrosion of; Staysail Stay, Movable; Stern Glands, Rate of Drip; Sun, Distance Away; SwiggingTTacking, Downwind, Advantages of; Tacking, to Windward, Increased Distance; Teak, Whether to Varnish; Tender, Ideal for Yacht; Through-Hull Fittings, Precautions; Thumb, Original Rule of; Thunder, Distance off; Thunderstorms, Most Likely Times of; Tidal Streams; Tides; Tiller, Ideal Handgrip; Time, Estimating; Time Signals for Navigation; Tonnage, Different Determinations of; Trade Goods, Suggestions for; Traffic Separation Schemes, Navigation of; Trysail, Area of; Twin-Screw InstallationsUUpkeep, Estimating Costs; Useless Articles on a Boat, the Three or Four MostVVarnish; Ventilation; Voices, Illusion of Hearing; Voyage, Definition ofWWatches, the Seven Parts of the Day; Water, Danger of Receding; Water, Drinking; Waterplane Area; Waterspouts, Recognition of; Waves; Weather, Forecasting; Weather Helm, Benefits of; Weatherliness, Improvements in; Weight, Crew and Stores, Estimates of; Weight-Carrying Capacity; Wheel Steering, Turns from Lock to Lock; Whistling and Bad Weather; Winch, Size of; Wind; Windlass, Definition of; Winterizing, the Main Points; Wire Terminal Connectors; Wood, as a Boatbuilding Material; Wooden Spars, Filling Cracks in; Writers, Yachting, Rules forYYacht, Definition ofZZinc, SacrificialAppendix: Useful Tables and FormulasBibliography