in the market for "bluewater" liveaboard cruiser

[richandlori]

it IS blue water, with the proper equipment

i'm wondering if anyone has done a circumnavigation (through panama and suez).

First let look at insurance, and you did bring up the survey factor. You will NEVER be able to get "blue water" insurance on a Mac26M. Your policy will limit you to coastal waters not exceeding 150 miles from land ,which most standard policies do and certainly with a boat not designed for "blue water". No insurance equates to No Boat Loan.

As I said before, telling people they can't do something is an American past time, so I will resits the temptation. However, if you do take the Mac on a "blue water trip" something like a circumnavigation, please make sure you keep in touch so we can update the bet pool on how far you manage to make it before something bad happens to the boat...because she is not up to what you are talking about doing.

Buy a solid small used boat, for $20 to$25K (they are everywhere out there) then spend $10K-$20K getting her ready and travel the world in saftey still being able to two her around.

[K9Kampers]

Argo says:

I saw a long page on someones blue water experience with the 26x.

If you are refering to MURRELET, then some else can make the link...I don't feel right taking you any further there!

[Bawgy]

Madmike where are you ???? This guy can tell you the TRUTH hehehehe

[Catigale]

definitely see needing is shower, freezer, hot water, and electronics. with a few solar panels, ones on the hatch and some aft of the stern, i think you could power these.

No, you cant.

[K9Kampers]

...with the proper equipment. i mean having a navtex and a weather fax would be a must, ok maybe not radar so much and ecdis a chartplotter...

...i definitely see needing is shower, freezer, hot water, and electronics. with a few solar panels...

...mods on bicycle storage...

All this and a liveaboard as well...egads! Be spending whole time in the cockpit - no room below!

Seriously tho, good luck with your search.

Edit...there is a particular Flicka in Florida - but she isn't selling...

[James V]

Argo, The Mac is not a blue water boat. Any of them except maby the 65 footer. no matter what you do. It is just not strong enough. Take a loog look at some of the true blue water boats out of the water and compair.

Let me tell you about the M. A 40 ish pound dager board that will break if hit with enough side pressure enough times. The same for the rudders. the windows will go out as well as the hatches. If you catch a wave with the sails the mast will go. This is just going though a storm of a few hours with 40+ winds and seas of 15 to 25 feet. You would not be able to sail up wind at all. I have been in 6 to 8 foot seas under power. I did it for a few hours and would not like to do it for several days.

If you want a blue water down wind boat, get a flicka or Cape Dory or the like, not a coastal cruiser. Spend your time getting it Ocean ready.

Harbor hopping and staying on the hook in bad weather is great for the Mac. I just went through 36 hrs of 15+ winds with gust of 49 mph. Sitting nicely on my mooring with hills all around. I will go through several more. But I hope to never be caught in deep water far from safe harbor in storm conditions with my M. (unless i am told that i have to go to a retirement home, let them try to catch me)

There is some threads on this.

The people like me take the ocean serious and do not get far from land without good weather with the time to get back.

If you send me the link I will post it.
(i think that i have found them all)

[richandlori]

What you see in the above photo is what 260W of Solar panels look like...where ya gonna fit that on a Mac? These two panels combined put out about 50 to 60 amp hours per day. Now let's go on the high end and say 60AH. So....let's put that into perspective. My ice box uses 5amps when running and runs anywhere from 40% to 50% of the time...so lets go on the low end and say 40%, so that 5amps*9.6hrs/day = 48AH so now you only have (60-48=12) 12AH left. Running your 1.2AMP anchor light over night takes up (12*1.2=14.4) 14.4AMPS so you are already into the negative just running your icebox and anchor light!

Solar isn't going to really "run" anyboat unless you have lots of space and even more $ because how much did this 260W system cost? $1400 plus some misc costs lost in the receipt pile.

If we were not keeping THIRD DAY on a mooring without power, we would not have spent so much on solar, and even not...I have my doubt about if it will be worth it in the long run....but the sun IS free....I guess...or is it?
Good luck

[eric3a]

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[eric3a]

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[jackie m]

Eric,

Are those windows in the side hull of the Coronado35? If so, were they retrofitted or was it designed that way?

jackie m

[Boblee]

Can't see why you and your partner couldn't live comfortably on a Mac but am a bit doubtful about the blue water.
We lived on our for over three months last year but half of that was on land, except we had reasons for coming home I would be happy to still be living aboard but not where we were then cos theres a few big storms going round, mind you the wife is not keen on sailing.
Pretty sure there would be a or for sale somewhere that wouldn't take too much setting up for long term liveaboard.
Crikey how much room do you want, internally they are bigger than a smaller caravan and you still have the cockpit.

[Captain Jim]

i just finished school from a maritime academy and will be working on ships. naturally i want to live on one, but ships are too expensive and i dont have my own crew except my girlfriend so ill go with a boat. ive looked extensively and the macgregor just looks awesome. liveaboard + trailable is a rare thing!

now i have no experience in sailing, powerboating yes, but i need help sailing with a good school in the nyc tristate area.

Interesting, that the current curriculum at the Maritime schools does not provide training in sailing and seamanship. How things change. A Fort Schuyler guy from the sixties.

Jim

s/v BOLD VENTURE

[eric3a]

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[argo]

there is no mandatory sailing training at maritime. there is the sport but i really never had the time, unless i was going to graduate in 6 years not 4 and a half.

yes I was talking about the MURRELET and am wondering what you guys think about that boat, as he had evidence to prove its seaworthiness.

i like the boats posted here but i dont like buying used, simply because its not as good as new and sometime somewhere youre gonna find something wrong. new boats are incredibly expensive though and the mac 26 looks like the best economical choice with room for improvement, hopefully to the Murrelet's standard.
i think if you are on your toes and have a constant lookout for the weather you can avoid those situations. then again im an optimist

[James V]

You should check Madmike's post. Do a search for his post and he will tell you. He is highly trained and experience adventurer. He did stay close enough to shore to come into harbor when the weather went bad. His boat was so customized that it was no longer a MacGregor. He had asked the factory for some financing. With their response, he removed the MacGregor label.

If you want to harbor hop and not get into bad weather, Sure you can do it on a Mac. I do not call this "Blue Water" boating just because you went a few miles from land and returned when the weather got rough.