Hi all, I have just purchased a 93 26s from a private party. They took relatively good care of the boat but did not give me much information about it (I didn’t ask either)… So I have a couple questions for the group. 1. Where is the battery? It appears that there are electrical connections under the galley sink but no battery box and the wires are just bits and pieces. I can’t find any switches for the interior lights or running lights (except for a single toggle next to the under the sink door). 2. Is there a bilge pump? Is there a drain plug for the hull? I can only find the drains for the ballast tank (sink and back deck area). I know the manual states there are no below the waterline thru-hulls but how do you get the water out of the bilge??? The last question is about hull blisters but I thought I would direct that one to MacGregor. It has some, a lot actually but they are pimple size. None are broken though the gel coat. The previous owner used the boat in freshwater only and I will be using it in salt. Therefore, I need to prep the bottom for antifouling paint but wanted to know if I need to do something about the blisters. There are too many to open and fill with marine tex so I was hoping I could coat the bottom with a coating that would retard their growth. Thanks for reading. mark
General Questions from a new owner
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Blister
First the bad news. Any blisters you don't fix now will get worse. Especially if you keep it in the water. Get a dremmel and open them up and dry them out. If you want to get it in the water ASAP, at least apply a coat of wax and plan on a big project when you pull it. I would fix the blisters now. They should dry out fairly fast, being small. Some of the barrier coats will fill and protect but I would fill with epoxy before appling the barrier coat. Fallow the directions on the barrier coat you get. Some are a lot of work to get on right, but they are all worth the money, efort and time they take. Barrier coat will save your hull, and add value to the boat.
First the bad news. Any blisters you don't fix now will get worse. Especially if you keep it in the water. Get a dremmel and open them up and dry them out. If you want to get it in the water ASAP, at least apply a coat of wax and plan on a big project when you pull it. I would fix the blisters now. They should dry out fairly fast, being small. Some of the barrier coats will fill and protect but I would fill with epoxy before appling the barrier coat. Fallow the directions on the barrier coat you get. Some are a lot of work to get on right, but they are all worth the money, efort and time they take. Barrier coat will save your hull, and add value to the boat.
Your other questions
The battery is supposed to be under the sink. Macgregor wiring absolutely stinks, though. Mine looked like it was done witrh old lamp cords. I rewired my boat and added a bunch of stuff. You can most likely get the basic lights working just by hooking up the wires under the sink to a 12V battery. There is no bilge pump. If you have water under the seats, you can by a manual pump and a bucket, or you can install a bilger pump on one side under the seat. I installed one and added a t-connection to the sink drain. I also installed a bilge pump in the lazarette in the back of the boat. The Mac is a simple boat, so don't kill yourself trying to make it better before you start sainling. Start sailing first, and then fix/ add what you want.
The battery is supposed to be under the sink. Macgregor wiring absolutely stinks, though. Mine looked like it was done witrh old lamp cords. I rewired my boat and added a bunch of stuff. You can most likely get the basic lights working just by hooking up the wires under the sink to a 12V battery. There is no bilge pump. If you have water under the seats, you can by a manual pump and a bucket, or you can install a bilger pump on one side under the seat. I installed one and added a t-connection to the sink drain. I also installed a bilge pump in the lazarette in the back of the boat. The Mac is a simple boat, so don't kill yourself trying to make it better before you start sainling. Start sailing first, and then fix/ add what you want.
Thanks
Thanks for all the responses. I do plan to rewire and add pumps as Stan had suggested. Upon very close inspection, all of the blisters are between the true waterline and the gel coat waterline. This makes me think that the PO had the boat tarped. I have had that happen when a tarp holds water against the hull and the water will work into the gel coat during winter. Thanks again for the responses. mark
Thanks for all the responses. I do plan to rewire and add pumps as Stan had suggested. Upon very close inspection, all of the blisters are between the true waterline and the gel coat waterline. This makes me think that the PO had the boat tarped. I have had that happen when a tarp holds water against the hull and the water will work into the gel coat during winter. Thanks again for the responses. mark
Mark, look again
Mark, Gel coat blistering doesn't happen from tarps. I suspect yu mean the blisters are under the boat and below the waterline, right? These will need to be opened, dried and epoxied. Then a barrier coat of epoxy paint followed by an ablative or V17 antifouling paint. Good luck Steve P.
Mark, Gel coat blistering doesn't happen from tarps. I suspect yu mean the blisters are under the boat and below the waterline, right? These will need to be opened, dried and epoxied. Then a barrier coat of epoxy paint followed by an ablative or V17 antifouling paint. Good luck Steve P.
One more thing
Blistering comes about from osmosis which ony happens when the boat is in the water for long periods of time. Not the end of the world if they're small. Steve P.
Blistering comes about from osmosis which ony happens when the boat is in the water for long periods of time. Not the end of the world if they're small. Steve P.
upon further inspection...
You are correct... I looked very closely and there are blister on the bottom as well as along the waterline. However, luckily they are very small and the boat hasn't seen water in two years (so it should be dry) so when I get the hull prepared for paint I will have it done by an experienced fiberglass hull repair shop and get it done right the first time. It also appears that the centerboard does have some end-on damage. Probably by being dragged up the ramp while being put on the trailer. Plan to get that repaired at the same time. I have done a nice amount of research since starting this post so I know what I am looking for when I have the repairs done. It is funny the more I look at the boat the more I see that needs to be fixed and the more I look at it the more I like it, so it kind of balances out. The blisters are the only major thing. The rest are things like replacing the rope rigging (probably will get a complete set off Ebay) and a broken cam cleat (which I bought two on clearance off the web). It will not take long to get it back into near new condition. I appreciate everybody’s posts they were helpful. mark
You are correct... I looked very closely and there are blister on the bottom as well as along the waterline. However, luckily they are very small and the boat hasn't seen water in two years (so it should be dry) so when I get the hull prepared for paint I will have it done by an experienced fiberglass hull repair shop and get it done right the first time. It also appears that the centerboard does have some end-on damage. Probably by being dragged up the ramp while being put on the trailer. Plan to get that repaired at the same time. I have done a nice amount of research since starting this post so I know what I am looking for when I have the repairs done. It is funny the more I look at the boat the more I see that needs to be fixed and the more I look at it the more I like it, so it kind of balances out. The blisters are the only major thing. The rest are things like replacing the rope rigging (probably will get a complete set off Ebay) and a broken cam cleat (which I bought two on clearance off the web). It will not take long to get it back into near new condition. I appreciate everybody’s posts they were helpful. mark
blister repair
I had similar problem. read all you can on this subject......... I ended up griding off all the gelcote below the bluestipe, and rolling and tipping 8 coats of west system epoxy, then 4 coats of barrier, and 2 bottom paint. its a big job. watch they dont use a sandblaster to remove the gelcote, these waterbalast boats are too thin IMHO> you could try just filling in the holes, with epoxy putty. and barrier coating. but if it doesnt work the grinding will be worse. look at sailnet articles, bill casey has a good book.
I had similar problem. read all you can on this subject......... I ended up griding off all the gelcote below the bluestipe, and rolling and tipping 8 coats of west system epoxy, then 4 coats of barrier, and 2 bottom paint. its a big job. watch they dont use a sandblaster to remove the gelcote, these waterbalast boats are too thin IMHO> you could try just filling in the holes, with epoxy putty. and barrier coating. but if it doesnt work the grinding will be worse. look at sailnet articles, bill casey has a good book.
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