converting Macgregor sailboat to powered pleasure craft

Billbeard · Jul 8, 2010

That is a sad thing about your Arthritis being so bad my dad is in bad shape as well even the roll of the boat is to much. He recently got an implant that blocks the pain and so far it is helping.
As to your boat modifications and engine change I’m sure there are others who know more the me but that may be to much HP. for your hull design unlike a planning hull displacement hulls have a maximum speed kind of designed in.

Ross · Jul 8, 2010

Keep the mast and the main sail for steadying the boat. Even with two reefs in the main the boat will be much more comfortable with a sail. I just had a hip replaced because of osteoarthritis. But I am getting better. The pain can knock all of the starch out of you.
Think of the metronome they use for time ticks in music, the closer the slidding weight is to the bottom the faster the thing ticks. A sailboat without a mast is snappy. keep the center board down when you can and keep the ballast tanks full.

alexco38 · Jul 8, 2010

Sell her and get a power boat

She will be happier as a sail boat. More hp doesn't go any faster. 26S is a displacement hull. It won't go faster than the hull speed no matter how big is the motor. The newer 26X and 26M has different hull shape to make it plane.

Why not just sell her and get a power boat. They are different things. Power boat planes and sail boat doesn't.

Someone said: Sail boat->Motor boat->Motor home->nursing home. That's journey of life I guess.

Sumner · Jul 8, 2010

I've seen people posting in the past that said they were going to do what you are suggesting and in a lot of ways it made some sense to me. They weren't having medical issues, just wanted a comfortable roomy cruiser and were in no hurry to get some place. If I was you I'd give it a try and keep all of the sail related equipment, but not on the boat.

I'd take it out with the mast off the boat and see how she handles. Lots of people do 300+ miles on the Erie canal with the mast down. For sure keep the centerboard and drop it some whenever possible as the S and D are very hard to keep going in a straight line on the outboard without the board down some. Also as has been mentioned keep the water ballast in for sure.

I agree with the others you don't have anything to gain with a larger motor and will only loose gas mileage, so don't go that route. We just bought an extra long shaft 9.8 HP Tohatsu for the safety feature of both of us being able to start it. We also got the extra long shaft and mounted it on a 5 inch higher motor plate attached to the transom. Now it is up closer to the lazarette and easier to reach and the same depth in the water as the long shaft Honda we had on the boat. If we venture out in the ocean some we also have the option of dropping it the 5 inches back onto the transom for more depth in the water. The 8 HP would of been plenty, but they don't offer it in the extra long shaft.

If you are in no hurry the sailboat is going to go a lot further on a gallon of gas than most powerboats. We get 10-12 mpg with our 26S or more.

Good luck and report back what you did and how you liked it. We have done a lot to make ours a cruiser that we can be aboard for long periods of time and are working on more changes now. For our needs we love the Mac.

Sum

Our Trips to Lake Powell, UT - Kootenay Lake, Canada - Priest Lake, ID

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Benny · Jul 8, 2010

We had a brief experience some years ago with such a conversion when our Starwind 223 became demasted. We continued our trip for another three days as a slow powerboat. The first things I missed were the shrouds which I use as handholds to get in and out of the boat. We had a bimini top but we missed the shade offered by the sails. We have a 9.8HP 2 stroke Nissan which hardly pushes the boat past its hull speed at around 5 knots. The constant noise becomes a little annoying after a while. Our outboard burns 1 gallon per hour so we had to carry additional fuel to insure we had enough. (Two 5 gallon cans). We had no bad weather but I could see a problem if we would have had to navigate in large waves with the propeller raising out of the water. We had to rig the anchor light with a dock pole for overnighting. You have to be more alert as them big power boats do not see you as easily and those tha do will give you long stares wondering what you are. A six hour crossing which usually can be an enjoyable sail felt more like an ordeal in that slow boat. I was apprehensive about having an engine malfunction and being stranded. I understand what you want to do but I would not recommend removing the mast unless you are trailering and do not wish to go through raising and dropping the mast every time you go out. Being in a lake perhaps the loss of stability which the sails would afford may perhaps not affect you. Regarding the engine, if your 8HP is a 4 stroke engine I would keep it as you will not go significantly faster even with a 20HP which perhaps could be too heavy for your boat. A 4 stroke engine is usually much quieter than a 2 stroke and uses less fuel so you may not have to carry as much. As an alternative I have seen some really nice potoon boats with canvas enclosures for overnighting which move pretty fast with a 25HP outboard and sell at reasonable prices. Good luck

Joe · Jul 9, 2010

barryheath said:
Due to arthritis, I am now unable to sail my Mac and am contemplating removing all items related to sailing - mast, etc., and using it as a powered pleasure craft. It now has an 8hp Honda , but I may upgrade to a 20hp
I like the idea of still having a boat with head, galley, quarters for overnights, etc. for my wife's enjoyment, whereas most pleasure boats are not as convernient or as well equipped for weekend use.
Anyone tried this before?
Any comments as to suitability for the newer purpose ?
Any comments welcome - including warnings, hints, etc

Just get a 15 hp with remote and electric start and don't figure on going over 6 kts... Taking the mast down doesn't change the boat's motoring performance. It just means you can't sail.

Besides........... it would look wierd.

If you're that restricted... I'd get a powerboat with a swim platform.. so you can get in the boat from the water should you fall overboard. A power boat will let you sit up front so you can see where you're going. Better yet, how about a pontoon boat with a barbeque and a canvas enclosure for privacy. Now you're talking.

RichBone · Jul 10, 2010

Lake Diefenbaker being a long narrow lake with lots of coves and anchorages could be suitable for what you purpose.
http://www.lakediefenbakertourism.com/index2.html
One disadvantage would be long straight stretches if there is much wind. But you already have the boat so go for it and see if you like it.
I'd stick with the smaller outboard as mentioned above because you most likely wouldn't go much faster. One with an electric start would be nice.

In the past I seriously considered getting a used large trailerable sailboat, removing the mast and rigging and cruising the East and Gulf coasts on the Intercoastal, TVA system, etc. The possibilities only limited by my imagination. A couple or three six gallon gas tanks, throttling back to a little below hull speed to increase mileage I figured I could easily cruise for several days at a time. Life intervened and the rest is history. Something about making God laugh by telling him your plans.

One more thing to think about,as mentioned above, is that by removing the weigth of the mast the motion of the boat will be quicker and might be uncomfortable. I don't know how the ballast is your boat, but if there was some way to remove some of it or maybe add some weight on the cabin top to replace the rig weight you could slow down the motion.

Heck yeah, it's doable. I'm sure there's got to be something online. I remember reading an article in Small Boat Journal a looong time ago about someone that bought a kit bare hull (Lancer 25 maybe?) and converted it to a displacement cruiser and he didn't install any ballast.
Said he had traveled quite a bit with it with no problems; rivers and mostly sheltered waters to be sure.

Rich

Sumner · Jul 10, 2010

I've seen it mentioned twice in this thread that removing the mast will make the boat more unstable. I'm having a hard time understanding how that would happen. We have ballast in the form of a keel or in the case of the boat in question water ballast. I thought that weight was there to offset the effects of the wind on the sails and thus the mast. Also it is often mentioned that the more weight aloft the more the boat is going to heel, so keep weight aloft to a minimum. The mast is aloft, so I would think removing it and keeping the ballast would make the boat even more stable not less stable.

Also we have a Mac Classic like the one in question and I would strongly caution against not filling the ballast tank regardless of if you have a mast or not. We have left the dock once forgetting to fill the ballast tank on the outboard and the boat was not stable. We figured out what was wrong within a few hundred yards of shore and filled it and got a stable boat back.

With the water ballast if you would only fill it part way then that water would be free to move side to side in the ballast tank and that would not be good.

We have been on the water with the sails down motoring in over 30 knot winds and waves and the Mac has never given us a reason so far to worry in those conditions. This was on inland lakes though. Also even though we can motor at over 6 knots the times we do we usually aren't over 5 and if you set one of these boats up for cruising only and are in no hurry you could have a great time exploring on a small budget,

Sum

Our Trips to Lake Powell, UT - Kootenay Lake, Canada - Priest Lake, ID

Our Mac Pages

Mac-Venture Links

RichBone · Jul 10, 2010

Removing the mast does not make the boat more unstable but it makes the righting motion quicker. The weight of the mast slows down this motion.

Rich

higgs · Jul 11, 2010

I think a lot depends on the size of the lake you boat on. Sailboats will roll a lot in seas if the mast is down, so they can be quite uncomfortable. If your lake is usually flat you will probably be fine.