MacGregor 26

[droopy]

It is a good boat and it sails well

a lot of sailing people are jealous it can go 22 MPH. Speed is a big advanage. It is nice not to have to travel at 6 knot when your going somewhere far.This is a hard boat to dock. She doen't have much weight and gets blown around the docks. The 50 HP motor on the back makes the front very light and the boat gets blown around here too!

 

[sailortonyb]

Droopy , I agree

Most people that i know that put down the Mac 26, have never actually sailed one. While admittedly not a great sailboat, it is a whole lot better than most people would ever expect. The newer 26M has had significant improvements. Although from a design point of view the changes may seem minor, but from a performance point of view, there is a vast increase. These are very light displacement boats and part of the problem with their apparent lack of performance as a sailboat is that i have seen many 26X's and have even sailed on one many times in Slidell, La. on the Gulf of Mexico and in Lake Ponchartrain, is because of the DEFFINATELY NOT RECOMMENDED 90HP engines. This added weight will put the boat out of balance as well as create many of the obvious safety issues.

 

[Rick Webb]

I've Sailed a 26X

Was even more unimpressed after than I was before I sailed it. I was intrigued at the boat and went shopping for one when I lived in Biloxi. Looked at one at a boat show and was immediately turned off. First it just looked odd, I can get over that I thought then I sat in the cabin and it reminded me of sitting in a refrigerator with nothing but plain white fiberglass. Looked at the rigging and while I am no expert I could see that the rigging on my old 12' ODay Widgeon was more substantial but still was not deterred. Talked to the sales guy and just got one of those vibes where you want to not have anything to do with the person I am sure his mother loves him but not someone I wanted to be around. Then I picked up the video they had and the price sheet. This is when I had second thoughts EVERYTHING was additional to the hull they even had the running lights prices listed and added to the base price. Now I was pretty sure I was going to look elsewhere. Came across the Hunter Dealer went to look at the 240 I immediately got a great vibe and ended up buying a used 23.5 that had never been used. Substantially cheaper than what was being asked for the 26X. I believe it to be a better boat, yes it will not motor at 22MPH but to get the 26X to do that you have to remove the mast and damn near everything in the boat. Did I mention the trailer was painted and not galvanized? That would be fine in a freshwater lake but would not last long at all in salt or brackish water.Now have I sailed one? A couple of years later a new neighbor was looking for a boat I tried to steer him to the 240 that Govert had at his brokerage in Gulfport he liked the boat but came across a 26X that a widow was selling. He got a great price on it and was excited so I bit my tongue and said nothing. Now I found what a pig of a boat it is both under sail and motor. Now I saw that the chain plates just go through a hole in the deck the thing was always leaking water through the deck into the cabin. The "enclosed" head is only enclosed when empty no where to put you legs and close the doorI am sure if you bought one you'd enjoy it and make great memories with it. I am just not sure how it will hold up over time and I know it does not sail well and motors OK 'till you want to turn especially in tight spots like docking. Compare to other boats and take you time before you decide on one. Come on out here if you want to look at a 23.5 I'll show you mine.

 

[John D3181]

OK, Rick, you don't like my boat.

But why the long rant? Those of us who own a Mac, love it. Ours is perfect for what we do. BTW, with all the rigging and sails (furled) in place, a full ballast tank, a weekend's worth of provisions, centerboard and rudders down, and four people aboard, I still make 13mph at 4000rpm. Can your Hunter do that?

 

[Rick Webb]

You Love Your Boat , Great

I understand, I just wanted to point out that many of those who are less than enthusiastic about the Mac are not ignorant or naive about the boat. I have spent a number of hours on one and am just not a big fan.No, my boat will not do 13 MPH I just get to spend twice as much time enjoying my boat.