trailer sailor or not?

[Highlander]

Boat , says

The M boat is a GOOD sailboat IN THE FRONT:


The lines on the forward part of the hull are quite classic and if you sail the boat on the bow like it's supposed to be sailed it's just as good as any other small boat.

Yes I agree the way the hull / deck joint flares up from the mast towards the bow gives the bow a nice majestic clasic curve as the bow/deck raises giving it that nice deep bow look , also give some extra head room in the V berth .
With my double anchor roller , two anchors & a big deep cycle anchor winch battery that also doubles as a second house battery all that extra weight helps in reducing some stern drag also I replaced my steering cable when it got to the point of 6" free play on either side of center with a the high performance one from BWY now zero play !

the straight hull/deck joints really take away the gracefulness of the flared curved one as the bow raises going forward
Oh & moving as much weight aft to raise the bow just doe,s not cut it !



Now what's more majestic than this




J

[BOAT]

Hi BOAT!

While we make do with our Dodge Caravan to stay within our budget it is an aspirational dream to someday figure out a way to get a tow rig like yours! It looks Great!

Best Regards,
Over Easy

Hi Over Easy - the Sprinter van was not expensive - we bought it brand new back in 2004. We had Sportsmobile do the first conversion but we wore out those appliances and beds after about 14 years so in 2019 I stripped out the entire interior and updated it. It was cheap cuz I did it myself. As for the truck it has almost no wear on the drivetrain because the old German diesels just don't wear much even at 200K and this Sprinter is older so there is no DEF fluid. For a 3/4 ton truck they work pretty good as a tow truck. It should go over 350K without needing any parts so I think we may have it for a while.



Highlander has one of the really good mods for sailing the M boat without dragging the ass: the BOWSPRIT

Bowsprits are great on the M boat because they move the force forward and make the boat sail on it's bow like it's supposed to:

[45Plus+]

Love the sprinter for towing....kinda like a sail locker on wheels! I wouldnt have thought the caravan's 2500 lb towing capacity sufficient except maybe for short hops to a shallow ramp.

[Highlander]

Here,s an interesting link for van conversions & kits

https://pods.backlandgear.com/?gclid=Cj ... WtEALw_wcB

J

[OverEasy]

I wouldnt have thought the caravan's 2500 lb towing capacity sufficient…..

Hi!
The tow capacity of our caravan is 3500 lbs with a 350 lb tongue weight. We also added a Timbren Rear Suspension Upgrade Kit that replaces the factory pucks. We stay within the load and tongue requirements. It all works reasonably well and we have made several cross country trips from NH to SC North/South and back again through VT of about 3000 miles each. We’ve also towed up and over Franconia Notch which is 1,950 ft MSL so the Caravan does have the ability to to get the job done and then some. Mind you we do travel relatively light. Our trailer is a galvanized dual axle Sea Lion with surge brakes. We also take good pre-emptive maintenance care of our Caravan. It’s a 2017 with about 86,000 miles on it so far without any issues other than normal tire replacement at about 60,000 miles. We do not exceed 55 MPH when towing Over Easy to avoid any unnecessary wear & tear or potential handling concerns.

While the Caravan works reasonably well it is approaching 5 years old and the mileage is always increasing. What we’d like to eventually do is get a larger van with more load and towing capacity with more interior space for a bit more comfort. It might even allow us to travel West back to the Pacific Coast of California and up to Puget Sound in Washington (something we’re a little hesitant to do currently).

Best Regards,
Over Easy

[LakeMac26C]

I tow my 1992 Mac 26C with my 2018 Subaru Forester turbo. Single axle original trailer with no surge brakes or weight distribution system. Someone replaced the axle at some point. No problems whatsoever. I even forgot to drain the ballast tank coming home one day. Other than feeling a bit heavy around the curves and a little extra brake force, it handled just fine. Plus my lawn got irrigated by a few hundred gallons of lake water!

[OverEasy]

I tow my 1992 Mac 26C with my 2018 Subaru Forester turbo. Single axle original trailer with no surge brakes or weight distribution system. Someone replaced the axle at some point. No problems whatsoever. I even forgot to drain the ballast tank coming home one day. Other than feeling a bit heavy around the curves and a little extra brake force, it handled just fine. Plus my lawn got irrigated by a few hundred gallons of lake water!

While I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it…..That’s one way around any drought lawn watering restrictions

[NiceAft]

I tow my 1992 Mac 26C with my 2018 Subaru Forester turbo. Single axle original trailer with no surge brakes or weight distribution system. Someone replaced the axle at some point. No problems whatsoever. I even forgot to drain the ballast tank coming home one day. Other than feeling a bit heavy around the curves and a little extra brake force, it handled just fine. Plus my lawn got irrigated by a few hundred gallons of lake water!

Some guys just need to gloat

[LakeMac26C]

The lake water around here is chock full of "nutrients" too ha ha! I wish i had a better trailer for sure and really wish I had trailer brakes, but it can be done with even a humble Forester. Funny, the UK version of my car is rated to tow 2x the weight the US version can. No explanation as to why either.

[Jimmyt]

Well, kevinkirby is a friend of one of my best buddies, so we took him sailing on my 26M so he could drive a Mac 26M without having to go 15 hours to do it. We had a great day that started around 9-10 knots at 9:30am, had a period of around 15 knots, then fell off to nothing around 2:30. We planed at 15kts for quite a bit, and at just over 17kts for a short full throttle burn. Lots of good sailing, also - topping out around 6.5kts. Most of the day was around 4.5- 5.5kts.

We had to set up the rig after trailering (and I had been messing with it, so it was a bit out of order). Took about 30 minutes to get in the water after arrival at the ramp. We also got to take the rig down in a scorching sunny spot with narry a breeze (about 45-50 mins). He, and my neighbor stuck around and cleaned the boat when we got home, then helped me put it back in the garage (which I really appreciated).

Kevin has no issues heeling. He rearranged the cabin contents, passing the 35 degree mark on more than one occasion. So, we knew we had been sailing in a sporty fashion.

We had a great day of boating, and he got the Mac experience.

I'll let him give you his thoughts, should he feel inclined.

Kevin at the helm while I take it easy.

[Russ]

Looks like you had a great day Jimmy. Do you keep the grill attached while trailering?

[Jimmyt]

Yes. I built the mount rigid enough to trailer it. I bungee the lid shut, in addition to the factory latch.

[kevinkirby]

Well, kevinkirby is a friend of one of my best buddies, so we took him sailing on my 26M so he could drive a Mac 26M without having to go 15 hours to do it. We had a great day that started around 9-10 knots at 9:30am, had a period of around 15 knots, then fell off to nothing around 2:30. We planed at 15kts for quite a bit, and at just over 17kts for a short full throttle burn. Lots of good sailing, also - topping out around 6.5kts. Most of the day was around 4.5- 5.5kts.

We had to set up the rig after trailering (and I had been messing with it, so it was a bit out of order). Took about 30 minutes to get in the water after arrival at the ramp. We also got to take the rig down in a scorching sunny spot with narry a breeze (about 45-50 mins). He, and my neighbor stuck around and cleaned the boat when we got home, then helped me put it back in the garage (which I really appreciated).

Kevin has no issues heeling. He rearranged the cabin contents, passing the 35 degree mark on more than one occasion. So, we knew we had been sailing in a sporty fashion.

We had a great day of boating, and he got the Mac experience.

I'll let him give you his thoughts, should he feel inclined.

Good afternoon all!
First of all, Let me thank Jimmyt for the gracious invite to experience a 'real' day sail on a 26M. Very enlightening!
Full disclosure: Several things immediately came to mind.
First, by the end of this day I had decided that if my goal was to have a trailerable day sailor only.....then this wasn't happening. This was too much work to go through to enjoy a few hours on the water. But, this is not my goal. My goal is to have a vessel that I can single sail for multiple days at a time. The 26M can indeed fit the bill.
Second: I have read many posts during my research about how dreadful a 26M was at the launch. Impossible to control in a crosswind. Extremely tippy with no ballast added. For God sakes stay low in the cockpit and definitely don't venture to the top deck if the ballast tanks aren't completely full! Naw. Simply not the case. As I steered Jimmyt's vessel out of the protected area into the jettied tunnel toward the open bay I just knew that when the crosswind hit us it would immediately blow Jimmy's boat directly into the rocks...destroying it and ruining a budding friendship. Nope! No such thing happened. The wind hit us but the boat stayed true to course with no issues.
Third: I had read that the 26M was a substandard sailboat and a substandard motor boat. After sailing this boat for several hours I can say that as a novice sailor who had not sailed since I was in my pre-teens, I found it to be very adequate and user friendly. I had very few issues controlling the vessel through several maneuvers. I was quite pleased with it. And when the wind ceased in the afternoon, it was nice to be able to crank the outboard, drain the ballast and head back to the dock.
All in all it was a lot of work but an enjoyable day. A learning experience at the least. Thanks again Jimmyt!!!

[NiceAft]

Kevin,

I sure hope Jimmy pays up on whatever the amount was he promised

[Jimmyt]

Kevin,

I sure hope Jimmy pays up on whatever the amount was he promised