X & M Owners: How Did You Choose Which One?

[GaryMayo]

I am looking at picking an or an as our sailboat we make our water home away from home.

However, as yet, cannot make up my mind which I like better. Leaning towards an because I like the cockpit and the helm. The higher seating height is a big plus for someone six foot seven inches tall.

As I look to make a decision on what sailboat to look for in the marketplace, what features helped make up your mind?

I am a serious buyer, but before I fork out the cash, I need to figure out what I will make us the happiest in our old refound leisure. One concideration would be room. Bigger is better for someone my size. The cabin in the looks to be a lot bigger, the bed under the cockpit looks usable for someone even my size.

The cockpit looks a little larger on the but leg room looks a little smaller around the wheel.

Please chime in on what it is you like about your boats to help me make up my mind. May purchase this fall if the right deal can be found.

[captronr]

Welcome.

Trade offs with either. We opted for the X with no regrets. Ours came (used) with a larger steering wheel, like maybe 22 inches. Made it pain to walk around and move around back there. Just installed a factory wheel--much more room now.

Might want to drive to Kearney and speak with John at Super Sport Marine. If he has an X and M on his lot, you can compare head to head.

We got our X through John. Very happy dealing with them.

Ron

[GaryMayo]

I was just there yesterday. Couple things I do not understand. If I sold combines I would not do that enterprise from downtown Manhattan. Always surprises me to see a marina business with a lake no where in sight. Secondly, very small building they are operating out of. Four canoes filled the showroom. I guess he has stuff in other buildings across town. I was low on time, and did not have time to go off to far away storage lots to look at stuff in other locations across town. We did go to one other location to look at an That is where I sat in the drivers seat. He had an but i did not climb on board.

[jschrade]

I can speak to the M.

At 6' 7" you will not be able to lay "feet to stern" in the aft berth (I'm 5'10") and just barely fit if I take the panel out to put my feet under the steering rods. Laying athwart ship really doesn't work as who wants to go in the back. I'm not certain that you will fit straight across in the aft berth and may have to go diagonal.

The V-Berth isn't going to work for you as I just barely fit. You could extend the port side of the vberth.

The port side seat would be a great place for you. With the galley slid aft, you would have lots of space and I sleep there often. Not an option on the X (the galley is fixed).

Without a traveler, the X was off my list for sailing. The traveler is critical to light wind sailing.

I do like the head in the X. The cockpit in the X is larger than the M. The cabin is larger in the M.

They're both great boats and you cannot lose with either. You can certainly get an X for much less than an M, so that has to be factored in.


Jim

[Trouts Dream]

We went with the X for two (what we considered) major reasons.
1. Not having to step up to go into the cabin. Since we do a lot of overnights and dinner cruises there are a lot of trips from the cockpit into the cabin and not having to step up an extra 18 inches each time was huge.
2. Getting into the front berth. Since we are both in our 50's getting on your knees to get in or out of bed is another issue we didn't want to be bothered with. I removed the forward seat back from the table and extended the berth 18 inches. Although I am only 5' 8" there is still enough room at my feet to store our spinnaker in the front V.

I really depends what you are looking to use the boat for...the inside of an M has a cozier feel to it...the location of the head on an X makes it "much" larger...

Good luck but in the end I would look at both and go for the best deal...they both have positives.

[bscott]

I was just there yesterday. Couple things I do not understand. If I sold combines I would not do that enterprise from downtown Manhattan. Always surprises me to see a marina business with a lake no where in sight. Secondly, very small building they are operating out of. Four canoes filled the showroom. I guess he has stuff in other buildings across town. I was low on time, and did not have time to go off to far away storage lots to look at stuff in other locations across town. We did go to one other location to look at an That is where I sat in the drivers seat. He had an but i did not climb on board.

I bought my from John--excellent guy to deal with--he delivers boats everywhere--even to Denver. From what I could see, his boats were lake ported and low hours. Lake McConaughy is not far from his store (150 miles )

As far as the differences--about $20,000. I chose the CB over the DB--lots of rocky shoals where I sail, the more convenient head, the useable V birth, no DB trunk/mirror, dinette, and did I mention a low enough price that I could afford to up-grade sails, the trailer to tandems and trade off the 40 HP Tohatsu for an E-tec 60?

I also raised the port bench to the V birth height which extended the V birth sleeping to at least 8 ft.
The works for me and I'm able sail with respectable speeds in relative safety.

Bob

[Laika 26X]

A very personal choice that in the end only you can answer.

I love my for reasons I can't begin to explain.
I hope, God willing, she's the last boat I'll ever need to purchase.

Hey, let's start a pool going on which boat Gary actually purchases!

"Sub" Ed

[Tomfoolery]

I would think that what Trouts Dream suggested would be a no-brainer for someone who has serious height issues. You could conceivably have a gigantic berth with the table down and the forward seat back removed. I believe the seat back cushions are supposed to be used as filler cushions on the table when it's down, which would make a 12 ft long berth (guessing at the length) if you include the v-berth length on that side, with loads of width for a single person.

[mastreb]

I went with the simply because I bought new. I have a friend here in town who has an and I've been aboard his a number of times when we're both at the public docks at the same time. I'm 6'5, so I can probably speak to the size issue pretty well although I'm 245 lbs so not very bulky.

Firstly, I sleep in the aft berth on the starboard side. There's just barely enough room for me, but I put a pillow over the liner where my head is, which works just fine but I am longer than the berth. I sleep fully stretched out on both the port side seats with the galley slid aft or on the dinette berth, both of which are literally big enough for anyone. The dinette berth can accommodate anyone who can enter the cabin, it's 7'6" long and 4' wide.

The cockpit of the is cramped with six aboard. I've had up to 11 people on board which is about one more than the absolute limit in my opinion, but that's five adults and six kids so kind of the equivalent of eight. Kids have no problem with the limited cockpit space as they get around like monkeys, but it's a clear annoyance to big groups to have to have everyone shift around every time you tack. For just my family (2 adults 3 kids) the cockpit is exactly the right size. If you're going to have larger groups aboard, you'll appreciate the bigger cockpit of the , if it's just going to be you and the wife and maybe another couple on occasion, you'll appreciate the smaller cockpit of the . I don't mind the step over the cockpit into the companion way at all--frankly I don't even notice it. I becomes very automatic very quickly.

I prefer the interior layout of the however, the cabin does seem to be much lower and it's frankly more difficult for me to get around inside for that reason. The difference may be only an inch or two, but it's a pretty critical few inches at my size. I'm slouched way farther over on the when moving around inside. I think I would also prefer the flatter stern hull of the for planing as my (usually heavily loaded) seems to "plow" more than "plane". I get the same speeds as everyone else under power with my motor so it clearly is planing, it's just very wet.

All in all, we need the larger cabin of the and all things considered, it's the better boat for us. But if my criteria were even slightly different (such as if I was shorter), I'd likely get the for the better interior layout and the flatter stern hull.

[bwygirl]

When choosing between an X or an M there are other things to consider beyond the layout. The M has a different hull shape that allows for a better entrance to choppy water, meaning that the M takes the rough water easier without pounding. The M has a taller mast, by 2', and it rotates for better air flow on the mainsail. The mainsail is more powerfull than the X mainsail and this allows you to be able to fly a jib instead of a genoa. Now, you might say "why would I want to do that"! A jib will allow you to point higher, and tack faster and easier. The difference is fewer tacks if you are going upwind because you are pointing higher. Downwind you might want the genoa, but only if you really want to go as fast as you can and you do not want to put up a spinnaker. The M has a double row of windows so you can see out better. The M can have the stern rail seats which will make it easier to have a crew on board. Remember, if anyone comes to Seattle we keep a boat on the water and our office is on the water. We do free demonstration rides. Happy to help with your decision. But...the X is a fine boat too! Cheryl

[DaveC426913]

I spent a long time deciding between and . For us, X was the clear winner.

Mostly it was based on cabin arrangement. Didn't like seating in the M, leaves one bench facing the head. Hate that big panel cutting the cabin in half. Also the V-berth is blocked off by the head.

Also wanted the lower cabin entry - and larger transom entry, to spare my wife's bad knees. (However, so far, we do not use the stern entry. We are at a mooring so she boards and debarks when I bring it to the club dock.) And stern berth ladder flips up. Not so in the M.

Here's a straight up comparison:
http://www.luffshack.com/Mac26Comparison/

[pokerrick1]

I looked at Macs for 15 years before I pulled the trigger, so I looked at 's and 's. I liked alot about the when it came out except I DID NOT like the cabin color schemes - - - looked like a circus tent to me. Two reasons I finally bought a 2006 M in Dec 2005 (my Christmas present)(I treat myself as well as I can). First the colors inside toned down and I thought the cabin was finally presentable to guests. Second, I had a bad stroke (CVA) on 9/5/05, and after 3 months of Physical Therapy, I needed a way to continue improving. The M seemed perfect - - - we thought it would eith kill me or cure me - - - and it did a lot to cure me - - - improving balance and hand and arm strength significantly - - - I owe a lot to my M.

You can fit yout 6'7" frame in the aft berth of an M, it just won't be feet to stern - - - you'll have to curl your feet around the end of the berth. Wifey, or whomever , will probably fit in the space left for her. Two suggestions: obtain (from the factory or whereever - - do not use an outside uoholsterer; too expensive) another set of cushions for the aft berth. They will fit perfectly and make the berth much firmer. Also, it is truly a PITA to make up the aft berth - - - there is no room to work and the cabin roof will get you! I made up the berth with sheets and top blankets and then I never got into that bed so I didn't have to make it every time I slept in it. I put a sleeping bag on top of the made berth and slept in that, making it MUCH easier to remake the berth in the AM.

Also, as stated above, the Traveler, IMHO, as well as the rotating mast, are must have items and more reason to buy the M over the X. The X's are fine, but the M's are better, again IMHO!

Rick

PS Feel free to PM me if you have questions. I did several other cheap and easy things to make staying aboard more comfortable, because I stayed on the boat 3/4 times a week in MDR for 2 1/2 years - - - taking the boat out to sail 250+ times a year!

[Divecoz]

I bought an M because I wanted new.. too many issues with "mods" done by DPO.. that I had seen here and read about here..
I feel, I researched a LOT.. We were prtetty sure we liked sailing and if we bought? I wanted to feel it would be the last sailboat,
I too would ever buy..I Had to sell the wife on it, to some extent anyway, and she liked the looks of a M versus the kind of, bare bones empty hull of the X.. We have only, every had the need or deire for this boat to be for us... 2... We have guest from time to time for an afternoons of sailing and Grand Children for overnights aboard.. 90% of the time ? Its Just the 2 of us..
We both sleep in the aft berth .. across it, Port to Starboard.. when needed I sleep on the dinnette.. Lots of storage and Very home-ey Nautical ..Arabian Nights with all our custom colorful cushions tossed about..
Astetics.. Eye of the beholder..... Sailing? The Better Captain will win on either boat..all things being equal..IMHO..
The head is nice on the X but it makes getting into and out of the rear berth difficult as I read it...
V Berth is storage and on the M its out of sight for the most part.. Galley can be aft or forward.. does it make a huge difference? We like it by the companionway easy to serve etc etc .. Wouldnt miss it if we never had it???
************* Remember too, with the comparison chart above......... the fellow who did that... HATED the M and LOVED HIS X.. THEN.... sold his X very early on, for a much smaller.... day sailor... that is NOW... his love/ best boat ever built and that it...is a Much better boat than either the X or the M.. He even claims that the M's additional Black stripe would effect major heat gain over the X hahahahaha Both boats are falsely represented numerous times and always to the benefit of said members short held choice.. Remember He sold it at a loss soon after he bought ...that .. Best Boat Ever Built..
Not Exactly Consumer Digest comparison..

[aya16]

Rick and sally pretty much summed it up, if you want a new boat its going to be an M. way over 6 feet is a challenge on any small boat. I used to hate being 5"8 till I got into cars, boats, and other forms of transportation, I realized I can fit just about anything. There is the option of surgery, like have your feet attached to your knees
Mike

[GaryMayo]

Wonderful replies, thanks everyone. I am leaning towards the overall larger boat, the M, but if I see a deal on an X, I am sure I would love that also. My next life I would be fine at 5'8" believe me!

Thanks again.