Hi from New York

[alvitdk]

Hi,

Great forum, I am lurking for a while now and just registered to get some more information about what I need.
So far I never owned a sail boat and been always on the water on a power boat. I have a Rinker 26" cruiser but given that my kids will go off to college next year and my wife always wanted to have a sail boat, I did some research and think it is time to trade (up?) and I think the MAcGregor 26M would be a perfect fit for us. So the big question is that I do not want to spend too much on it and since my wife likes the layout of the M better than the X I would go for a brand new boat. Having my twins going to college puts some burden of how much I can spend on the boat. So, my thinking is to start with the boat and get a smaller 10HP (2000.-) motor for the beginning and step up to a 50hp in a couple of years. Do you guys think it is worth it or is a big motor absolutely necessary right from the start? I rather spend 24k.- on a brand new boat with a smaller motor than 24k.- on a 5year old boat with a bigger engine, correct?

Can I even use a smaller motor with a handle steering and manual raise or does it have to be a steering column setup and motorized lift?

What else do I have to think off?

We really only used the boat to cross the Hudson to our favored beach (Croton point) and back next day, so speed does not mean much anymore since we do not water ski or tube anymore with the kids gone, and if than I can go with friends power boats.....I really would love to start sailing, seem to be much more involving and fun than cruise at high speed and pay for all that gas, even though I we did it for the last 10 Years

Thanks a lot for your help.

Tom

[NiceAft]

Tom,

Welcome

You have made a good decision by starting here, but do not purchase anything without actually going aboard for a sail. Best if done on a windy day A sailboat rides quite differently than a power boat. Some people just do not feel comfortable always leaning over twenty or thirty degrees on a windy day.

You should be able to acquire a used, well stocked M for very little. Remember, the Mac comes equipped to sail from the get go, but it is spartan. You will want to make it a lot more homey, and that cost $. So look into a used M, and then make up your mind. New, or used.

Keep exploring topics of interest to you by doing searches, and don't be afraid to ask questions.


Ray

[puggsy]

I am not sure if this advice will help, but here goes...
In my case, my experience has been with...
18 ft. clinker built rond bilge lobster boat with stumpy mast.
32 ft semi round bilge, flat stern carvel timber lobster boat, twin BMC diesel motors
36 ft. planing hull plywood , fast, lobster boat single GM diesle
18 ft. F/g runabout
12 ft. surfcat
18ft hardchine single keel yacht [ recovered from wrecker...$20]
23 ft. "Tankard" F/G sloop yacht
40 ft jarrah plank carvel ketch brought into charter condition
24ft F/glass over plank full keel hull sloop[ yacht...a real ugly duckling but lovely sailer.
20ft. "vivacity" hardchine f/Glass over ply sloop yacht...a little ship...still for sale...
And guess after all that what i chose for my LAST EVER BOAT...
A ...blue hull of course because they are faster...
Why...Because it has most of the good points of all the above...
Moderate fast, sailable, trailerable, can be used solo, can handle shallow areas, can tow toys is needed, good liveaboard setup, looks good, and can be improved beyond what Roger supplied. the only limitation being boat $$$'s
And 's in Australia cost three times what they do in the US.
Puggsy

[atzserv]

I was going to get a bare bones 26m and it sold before I could get back to the dealer selling it. He had one with alot more addons and had the 50 hp Honda. The price difference was considerable but now that I have had the boat for a while it was the best of luck for me. I have added a ton of extras since then. Lines aft , single line reefing, auto pilot, Chartplotter, the list goes on. So if you can find one loaded up, a few years old you will only have a couple dozen mods to make it the way you like it. Just my opinion. You mentioned funds being limited and it seems addons for boats go cheap once on the boat but not so even if you do the work yourself by buying everything.

Gary

[Québec 1]

Do you guys think it is worth it or is a big motor absolutely necessary right from the start?

Tom

My 2 cents worth:
The 26M is a motor sailor...I got the motor that goes with it (a 50hp honda 4 stroke). If I had a traditional sail boat I would have a 9.9hp motor on it.
My reasoning:
The M is sometimes difficult to manoeuvre around tight corners in marinas....especially when you have no ballast and your dagger board is up cause you are trying to point it toward your trailer on the ramp. What saves me every time is the ability to give a good hard push on the throttle to get the boat to point in the right direction...I don't think a 9.9 hp would do it. Also when manoeuvering against the tide and the wind and in close proximity to other boats,nothing makes a lasting seasonal marina reputation for a sailor than bumping into other boats when entering or leaving a crowded slip. A good thrust of the 50 after a bad manoevre puts me back in line and nobody seems to notice. Also at slow cruising speeds ie) 3 or 4 knots my Honda is pretty quiet and truly economical.
My conclusion: Get a 50hp 4 stroke for the power, and the quiet slow economical cruising
Q1

[alvitdk]

Thanks a lot for your feedback. I was looking a bit closer into the and was able to convince my Boss that the layout is actually quite good and that we could get an 2003 including motor for about the same as a new one without. I do like the interior of the as I am not a big fan of the color scheme in the , I do not care for tan and beige

Anyway, I have located a 2002 with a 18HP for 15k and a 2003 with a 50HP for 24k, I will look at both but I think given the difference in price, the 18HP is a much better deal and I could even use the difference in money to upgrade the motor or for many mods

What do you think?

Happy New Year BTW

[robbarnes1965]

Hi Tom,

I tend to ramble so I will make my point first: Go with the 50hp and go used rather than new.

I do not have the sailing experience that many of the members here have so I may relate a bit better to your situation. I only sailed a 14ft catamaran for a few years and windsurfers before buying my new Mac M 2 years ago.

The main selling point of a Mac is the bigger engine. It is definitely a bit of a trade off in design over a more standard sailing rig so why give up it's main advantage?

Having bought new I am constantly adding stuff that did not come with it at the dealer even though I have spent easily the price of the boat in extras over and above the base price. I ended up joining a yacht club and immediatley found a member who told me his 6 year old macX was for sale! He had a hip replacement and finds the high step to get in too much and is thinking of going to a power boat. This is not uncommon. A trade-off of the roomy interior headroom is a deck that is harder to walk around than many sailboats. There are very few flat surfaces.

Also, being a trailerable boat, many Macs see a lot less water than a used boat of a similar age and get covered so it's very possible to get a used boat in good condition.

I like my Mac but I do wish I had bought used and maybe even an X because I like the more complete head with sink and more room.

Happy new year,

Rob

[Québec 1]

I like my Mac but I do wish I had bought used and maybe even an X because I like the more complete head with sink and more room.

Happy new year,

Rob

If your looking for the roomiest interior 26 the 2003-2004 M is hard to beat:





At the beginning I found the head in the M small ...then I got used to it and sometimes even enjoy sitting rather comfortably on the closed portapotti reading an article or 2 in a sail magazine. After all Its the only room in the with a door and is does boast a sky light as well as a well positioned light for reading
Q1

[Terry]

Buy the one with the biggest engine and most modifications as it is expensive as all get out to do yourself and you will in the end do most of the needed mods anyway. I found out the hard way, bought new and still spending. Forget the anemic engines and go for 50+.

[Snyds]

Tom,
Since I just went through buying one of these bad boys I am still fresh on what they're going for... The 2003 with a 50hp seems a bit overpriced (just my opinion) unless it has some nice upgrades on it. Just looking at the link above under classifieds the first one under the is an 02 with a 50 and its $17500, understanding location is an issue, but thats a 7k difference for one year! And that one is pretty well equipped! Not telling you what to do, and not trying to offend anybody but I think there is a better deal out there for you!
Steve

[MadMacX]

Tom,

I'm not sure if I'm supposed to say this, (Mods can remove if I'm out of line) but I bought my X last spring off of Boat Trader Online and saved over $6K, compared to similar boats I looked at. I had to travel to Florida to pick it up, but the trip was cheap compared to the savings. I'm very pleased with my boat, so I'd suggest you heed Steve's advice and shop around. It took me a few months to get what I wanted, but my patience paid off, AFAIC. Good luck.

Pat

[John McDonough]

What size motor. (Whatever you can afford..)

I bought my first 26X and Instaled a Yamaha 10 HP. It would motor about 6 mph in calm water, with empty ballast tanks. Once you fill the tanks to Sail you will then lower your motoring speed to about 5 MPH, You cant get the boat moving fast enough with 10 HP to drain the ballast.

I am not positive, but you will need at least 40 hp motor to be able to drain ballast and get the Mac up on Plane.

I was out in lake Erie one day and the winds and waves were blowing in the wrong direction. I had the 10 HP at full throttle and couldnt make headway due to the high freeboard effect of the Mac. I had to use reefed main, jib and full-throttle motor to tack back in. I eventually bought a 26x with a 50 HP Honda, and was able to make headway in rough conditions, a bit rough and wet, but Confident .

PS: you mentioned your kids have grown-up and gone. You will soon have grandkids.

[pokerrick1]

you mentioned your kids have grown-up and gone. You will soon have grandkids.

Hush your mouth, John - - - they are going away to college!!!!!

Rick

[alvitdk]

John McDonough wrote: you mentioned your kids have grown-up and gone. You will soon have grandkids.



Hush your mouth, John - - - they are going away to college!!!!!

Hehe, I most certainly do not hope one of them comes back sooner than expected, making me a granddad, I'm way too young for that!

I than also would need a bigger boat again

[John Christian]

Tom, as mentioned previously, the Mac can be a handfull at slow speeds in big wind and river currents. Read all of the old posts before making a decision, and for the record the 50hp is the "small" motor. The big motors start with the 60 Etec! Happy reading!

JC