Please answer a few questions.

[Paul Conrad]

1. Just how easy is trailering a MAC? How easy is putting it in water and retrieving it? Is it similar to other boats? Or do you find yourself saying, I will find a wet slip?

2. What is it like on the highway?

3. Do you find it easy to sail or do you find yourself just motoring around?

4. I would assume that if you are trailering it, you don't need to worry much about blistering. Is there a way to tell if these boats have been sitting in water?

5. Biggest concerns....the hull, the deck, other?

6. Has anyone ever pulled into a campground, hooked up to electric, and slept the night in boat?
I was thinking to install A/C and do just that.

 

[Cowpokee]

1. Just how easy is trailering a MAC? How easy is putting it in water and retrieving it? Is it similar to other boats? Or do you find yourself saying, I will find a wet slip?

Other than the 45 minutes to raise/lower the mast, launching and retrieving is not much different than any other power boat. Oh yeah, a few more minutes to let the ballast tank fill or drain.

2. What is it like on the highway?
It depends on the size of vehicle you are towing with. I pull my 26S with a one ton dually. Don't even know it is back there.

3. Do you find it easy to sail or do you find yourself just motoring around?
I rarely use the motor. Only to get in and out of the marina. It is a sailboat. I rigged mine with a spinnaker so even in light winds I can have an enjoyable sail.

4. I would assume that if you are trailering it, you don't need to worry much about blistering. Is there a way to tell if these boats have been sitting in water? Not sure about this one

5. Biggest concerns....the hull, the deck, other?
Biggest concerns would be the quality of workmanship of the mods previous owners have done to them.

6. Has anyone ever pulled into a campground, hooked up to electric, and slept the night in boat?
I was thinking to install A/C and do just that.

 

[justsomeguy]

1. Just how easy is trailering a MAC? How easy is putting it in water and retrieving it? Is it similar to other boats? Or do you find yourself saying, I will find a wet slip?

Quite easy. What's a 26 "a"?

2. What is it like on the highway?

If your tongue weight is good and the trailer's not out of kilter, no real issues whatsoever.

3. Do you find it easy to sail or do you find yourself just motoring around?

It goes in the lightest of breezes, but in those same light breezes it makes very little headway directly upwind, which seems to be where I usually wish to go. In a hurry? Motor.

4. I would assume that if you are trailering it, you don't need to worry much about blistering. Is there a way to tell if these boats have been sitting in water?

Growth on the hull from barnacles/slime/whatnot is a pretty good indicator. Mine stays in saltwater for up to 4 days at a time, and no growth happens. Seaweed that catches on the keel cable seems to be my main bugaboo.

5. Biggest concerns....the hull, the deck, other?

Deck and the various penetrations, if the PO hasn't been vigilant.

6. Has anyone ever pulled into a campground, hooked up to electric, and slept the night in boat?
I was thinking to install A/C and do just that.

Of course. But it is a Mac. Kinda small for a permanent AC install. Those portable tower jobs could work, if you don't mind stubbing your toes getting around it.

 

[Kings Gambit]

One the hardest parts of owning and using a sailboat w/ trailer very often is getting past the personal inertia of rigging and un-rigging it. It's not the difficulty of doing that, which interferes with sailing; it's the making of the decision to do it at all versus doing something else that day, etc. I call it the "hassle factor" of trailer boating. The best solution for me when I had my Hotfoot 20 was to keep it in mast-up storage close to the launch ramp. Nearly as good as having it in a slip. Needed only to make sure I had the Bronco II that day. Eventually, I also found I had to dry-slip (High & Dry) my 20' Grady White rather than launch/recover it from its trailer if I wished to use it often (e.g., two or three times a week).

 

[RussC]

It goes in the lightest of breezes, but in those same light breezes it makes very little headway directly upwind, which seems to be where I usually wish to go.

so it's not just me then.

I believe the "a" is actually what most now call a "d" (daggerboard keel). the first 26 version.
We have a Mac 25 (similar to the 26 in many ways), and I haven't seen a trailerable sailboat that would work any better for us. Once you get it figured out it will take most of an hour to set up, and again to break down, which is the biggest hassle of any trailer sailor. you just have to leave home a little earlier is all . trailering is super easy, and yes, folks do use them as a house trailer on dry land wile traveling. just don't forget your ladder . I bought an old aluminum 6' step ladder at the pawn shop for $5 and removed the back legs. it's now a very light ladder that's the perfect size, stable, and doesn't take up much room in the pickup bed. the 26/25 is very easy to single hand sail. if the hull is solid and you can pick it up for a reasonable price, go for it. you won't be disappointed in any 26 (except maybe a motor sailor version )

 

[justsomeguy]

personal inertia

so it's not just me then.

 

[Paul Conrad]

OK, so an hour to set it up and an hour to take it down. Got it. This is the kind of real life info. I was looking for. Versus paying slip fees and dealing with hull issues. Have seen online where some do install little a/c units.

Thanks for the time you have taken to answer. Oh, I have a V8 Silverado 2015. Will that pull a 26 OK???

 

[RussC]

Oh, I have a V8 Silverado 2015. Will that pull a 26 OK???

~2800 lb. oh ya. should be no problem at all. LS motors are great!

 

[Paul Conrad]

What is a Motor Sailor version?

 

[BudGates]

Several people have already answered your questions but I would like to add that the water ballasted boats trailer quite well. The older models, with the steel or iron keels are a bit heavier but still not a problem as long as the weight is distributed properly. My F-250 towed my 26D plus a couple of thousand extra pounds (we were moving) from California to Minnesota without any issues at all. My Denali towed my V-222 well as long as I removed the outboard and made sure the boat was as far forward as I could get it. If the weight was too far aft she would fishtail above 65 mph..

 

[BudGates]

What is a Motor Sailor version?

That would be a Mac-26X or 26M. They are called a Motor-Sailor because they can carry a large engine and reach speeds of 20+ knots.

 

[Paul Conrad]

Thanks. Great information. A lot of them scattered all over the USA for sale on craigslist. Should I follow nada guides to determine what to offer? Should I add into the price any modifications that were made or extra equipment. Honestly have never purchased a boat before. Any advice on where to shop and how to determine fair price.

 

[Meriachee]

Paul,
We trailered ours all over the place, regularly spent time in campgrounds, could launch and retrieve it in a roadside puddle, started with a Chevy S10, and migrated to a v6 Astro van.
The only downside that I ever saw on the highway was the tendency for the boat to want to change lanes in the vortex behind a semi box trailer going the other way.
There are literally thousands of these things out there, and the owners tend to be very passionate about them, there are not many unknowns, but then again, there are probably no two alike much anymore.

 

[Paul Conrad]

I found answers to my last set of qs. so I am good. I just don't see any other options for my situation. I am not paying $300 for a slip per month. I don't like idea of fouling the hull with blisters that will cost me a lot of money. I like the idea of pulling the boat out of water within a day or so. This will be a step up from sailing smaller boats. Later if I want to cruise open ocean I will trade in for a different type boat. Saw where someone was taking a Mac to the Bahamas.

 

[justsomeguy]

OK, so an hour to set it up and an hour to take it down.

Yeah, get back to us on the actual time.

Saw where someone was taking a Mac to the Bahamas.

That would be @Sumner .

 

[RussC]

Yeah, get back to us on the actual time.

an hour +/- is consistently what my M25 takes me (90% by myself) from ramp to sailing. does it take you more/less?

 

[justsomeguy]

does it take you more/less?

Yep. Maybe it's the heat. Or the beer, lDK.

 

[Meriachee]

26c, best ever was 20 minutes. We're not that young anymore.

 

[walt]

Depends on how you have things setup also. Configurations that make things easier on the water like a jib roller furler and lazy jacks add time in setup. Do you have to install the jib sail on the furler or was it just left there. Main sail already on the boom, just insert the slugs or a complete install. The more control lines that you have that have to be rigged/threaded add time. Do you have to install a gin pole and baby stays (mast raising/ lowering) or are they already on the boat - just quick clip. Mast crutch always on or removed each time.

My setup and take down time is in the 30 to 40 minute range and that is not being in any hurry. Used to be a little faster when I had a hank on jib. Gin pole with quick connect and crutch always on the boat. Roller furler with sail on the furler and the main already on the boom. My minimum stay on the water now is at least two nights as even with a relatively quick setup, its just a hassle I dont really look forward to.

But.. you never need to use a trailer tongue extension. I had to use an trailer tongue extension on my first sailboat (not a Mac) and there must have been some trick for reducing the hassle on that but I never figured it out. Not needing a TTE.. a good thing. I have the original single axle trailer with some modifications.. tows well IF the boat is all the way forward on the trailer.

You always make some sort of compromise in a sailboat. I have the 26S and think it is exceptional at trailering and launching. It sails overall well, you will be working the sheets a little harder in higher winds with water ballast compared to a deep keel boat but it will handle as high of winds as I care to sail in and its fun to sail in all winds. Its a nice place to sit with the pop top down and a pretty good place to camp with the pop top up. I store stuff up front and the head is up front and you will be going up there on your knees unless you are about 4 foot tall. Enclosed head on this boat is more of a tiny torture box.. I cant even think about using it with the door it came with. Everything on the bottom is retractable so you can beach them either with the bow or the stern at the beach and we like the stern beaching with the boat floating but the ladder either on dry land or close = makes it easy to get the two dogs on or off the boat. Water ballast with the swing centerboard and a rudder with an auto release mechanism.. you can accidentally ground the centerboard or the rudder at any time, no problem at all.

Water ballast can be a huge hassle if your going to some place with Zebra mussel inspections. I used to keep my 26S in Colorado and you can move then around there but you need to get a tag each time you take the boat out that says the boat was removed from some non infested water to move to another non infested water. Take the boat to Lake Powell and then back to Colorado (with no tag) and you likely will have to get a decontamination which can involved filling the ballast tank full of 140F water.. YIKES..

My 26S now lives in Arizona where its easy to move around. I heard a good idea from someone each time you leave a lake and that is to put some pool or hot tub "shock" in the tank before draining to be responsible about not moving invasive species around. I have crossed into California three times now with no hassle at all. They do a quick inspection of the bottom and outboard for mussels but that is it. Usually never even a question. The "drain plug" (ballast tank valve) is supposed to be open just like on any other boat when pulled out of the water.

The 26S has been one of the highest ratios of fun per dollar spent of anything I have ever owned. The main way to de-value the boat is to start doing major modifications but on the other hand, losing a little money there on resale might be some of the most fun money you have ever lost.

 

[Cowpokee]

[QUOTE="walt, post: The main way to de-value the boat is to start doing major modifications but on the other hand, losing a little money there on resale might be some of the most fun money you have ever lost.[/QUOTE]

I'll have to agree whole heartedly with that statement! When I first started modifying my 26S, I kept track of the expenditures. Pretty quickly I realized that effort was pointless. You can't put a price on the value I've gained from the relaxation and peacefulness I had from enjoying the boat handle the way I have it set up. Weather or not the next owner appreciates my efforts wasn't part of any decisions I have made when deciding what modification to perform next.