The Finely Fitted Yacht: The Boat Improvement Manual, Volumes 1 and 2 [Paperback]

Ferenc Máté (Author), Candace Máté (Illustrator), Ferenc Mate (Author), Candace Mate (Author)

Book Description

Series: Albatross | Publication Date: June 1, 1994

The Boat Improvement Manual: After 10 printings and 70,000 hardback copies sold, this nautical classic is finally available in trade paperback.

Ferenc Máté, author of such nautical bestsellers as From a Bare Hull, Shipshape and The World's Best Sailboats, shows how you can turn almost any sailboat into a safe, practical and beautiful yacht. The over 200 small, do-it-yourself projects, all charmingly illustrated by Candace Máté, range from cockpit-grates and miniature fireplaces to sun-awnings and skylights. The combined volumes cover both the interior and exterior with chapters dedicated to the galley, chart table, stowage, engine room, cockpit, safety gear, ground tackle, sails and canvas. Mate's writing, always authoritative, unfailingly humorous, is engaging and a joy to read. This is a major work that should be in every ship's library. 426 photos and illustrations

Editorial Reviews

Review

Brimming with clever ideas. Every boat owner should read The Finely Fitted Yacht. -- Canadian Yachting Magazine

Completely useful and entertaining. Don't leave port without it! -- Motorboating and Sailing Magazine

Masterful, straightforward, breezy and readable...Buy it. -- Sail Magazine

About the Author

Ferenc Máté is a noted photographer and the best-selling author of The Hills of Tuscany. He and his family run their vineyards and winery in Montalcino, Tuscany.

Product Details

• Paperback: 606 pages
• Publisher: Albatross; Complete edition (June 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0920256287
• ISBN-13: 978-0920256282
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #935,468 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #22 in Books > Professional & Technical > Transportation > Ships > Boat Building
  • #71 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Sailing > Instructional

More About the Author

Ferenc Máté was born in Hungary and escaped after the revolution at the age of eleven. He grew up in Vancouver, and has lived in California, Paris, the Bahamas and New York. He had worked on a railroad extra-gang and as a boatbuilder, photographer, deckhand and book editor. His many books include the nautical bestsellers "From a Bare Hull," "Shipshape," and "The World's Best Sailboats," as well as the acclaimed "Autumn," "A New England Autumn," "A Reasonable Life," "The Hills of Tuscany," "The Wisdom of Tuscany," and the Dugger/Nello series of high seas adventures. He and his family run their vineyards and winery in Montalcino, Tuscany.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cruisers Must Have!, November 7, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Finely Fitted Yacht: The Boat Improvement Manual, Volumes 1 and 2 (Paperback)

Mate's profusely illustrated volume will help you fit out your blue water cruiser to suit your needs. Interspersed with his unique humor are plans for hundreds of projects from major to mundane. If you are building or refitting a sailing yacht, you must read this essential reference. If you've purchased a finished boat this book will help you fix the armchair-sailor design flaws too often present in modern craft. You need this book!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A boat is your home, May 15, 2007

By 

Marco Pasquali "Marco Pasquali" (Roma, ITALY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Finely Fitted Yacht: The Boat Improvement Manual, Volumes 1 and 2 (Paperback)

Finely illustrated with nice drawings, the book is good both for amateur boatbuilders and professionals, and surely is based upon a long experience. Boats being narrow inside, space is to be exploited in the best way, while outer parts are to be fitted to resist to sea and sun. This book is really easy to understand and very useful even for wooden house buildes.

3.0 out of 5 stars Dated looking woodworking projects., August 11, 2011

By 

Chris - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Finely Fitted Yachts (Hardcover)

Typical Mate book but was written in the 1970s. Most of the book is about woodworking projects for a boat but it is all very dated.