magregor 26

Discussion in 'Motorsailers' started by Welsh1ca, Dec 3, 2010.

  1. alan white
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    Location: maine

    alan white Senior Member

    Yup, that's the area. Dead flat, it appears. My guess is they all oil can there and similar areas as well. See what owners say.
     
  2. souljour2000
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    Location: SW Florida

    souljour2000 Senior Member

    :p


    I think this paragraph by Alan sums it up better than any of the multitudes of paragraph-long or longer threads I have read on the Mac 26 in the last couple of years anyways..

    IMHO, well...There are folks of a utilitarian-philosophy who utilize man-made machines of all types for various activities without being immersed in one particular machine, Afterall...there are so many to choose from..ATV's,4-wheelers,helicopters, a pair of skis, a paddleboat or a houseboat for weekends,,careful cruising or as fishing retreats....aircraft of all kinds abound..hang-gliders on up to Gulfstream 5 business aircraft...snowmobiles, underwater submarines large and small or just an electric propulsion thingy with handles for some underwater folk...there are canoes,kayaks daysailers, micro-cruisers,weekenders, coastal crusiers, bluewater passagemakers,etc for the other boaters...and all there requisite multi-hulled affiliates and all these dichotomies built from any number of materials with any number of potential buyers in mind...The Mac 26 is OKAY...for those whose niche it fills...period...the Hunter 23.5? ...well...lol..it's okay too...
     
  3. rwatson
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    Location: Tasmania,Australia

    rwatson Senior Member

  4. Sumner
    Joined: Dec 2010
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    Location: Southeast Utah

    Sumner New Member

    We live in the high desert/canyon area of southeast Utah and bought an older Mac 26S (water ballast with a swing centerboard) for pretty much the conditions that you find yourself in.

    We love it and I still haven't found a better boat to meet "our needs". How many other 26 foot boats can you live aboard for a month or more at a time and still sail in northwest Canada one year and then Florida the next like we have been able to do.

    If you have time check our some of our trip reports with the Mac below. On Lake Powell a year ago in 50-60 mph winds....

    http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/MacgregorTrips-3-Powell09/09-10-9-Powell-09.html

    .............. the boat took care of is in a very bad situation and has never given us concern for our safety.

    There is hardly another boat on the market that is this size and that you can....

    [​IMG]

    http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor-trips-1/2009 Powell Fr-Mia.html

    ....launch in this manner (no ramp) and still take an extended trip in and ....

    [​IMG]

    http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/MacgregorTrips-3-Powell09/09-10-13-Powell-09.html

    ....anchor and sail in water under 2 feet or just beach like above. This boat might meet your needs well.

    Good luck,

    Sum

    Our Trips to...

    Our Mac Pages

    Mac Links
     
  5. rwatson
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    Location: Tasmania,Australia

    rwatson Senior Member

    Sticking my head in a Lions Mouth

    hey - try asking a question like that in a Mac Forum !!!

    check out http://www.macgregorsailors.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=17370

    The answer is

    Yes "Midway between chine and gunwhale, halfway back from companionway to transom...I applied an estimated 20 N force over 1 cm^2 area and saw a deflection of 2mm"

    Does it matter - probably not

    "30,000 Mac's with not one hull failure says it all"

    and

    "A hurricane had stuck the Gulf. Many of the large yachts had been destroyed at dock or simply destroyed by the storm sunk or washed up on the beach with major damage. A few Macgregors were found washed up on the shore. Broken rudders and missing masts, but the Hull intact."

    But Brother, dont dare ask a technical question over there. They are super sensitive ?
     
  6. alan white
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    alan white Senior Member

    I'm already afraid to venture onto that forum!
    2mm? I got more like 20mm but at this point, it's not an issue. The hull must have been a bit over 1/8" thick there, guessing. And sometimes light weight hulls that flex do survive better than heavier more rigid hulls. It can be argued that dragging a boat across a rough shoreline is a test of survivability and in some cases, it might well be, but if you asked my which boat would I take offshore, I would look for a heavy lay-up. Something that wouldn't flex to each beam wave... fatiguing, flexing, fatiguing, flexing, etc..
     
  7. Paul B

    Paul B Previous Member

    If you watch that video you will see it is not blowing 26+ knots, and the "waves" are not 18 feet. What a bunch of marketing baloney. I'm sure it has impressed many M26 buyers at boat shows though.

    You'll notice they don't attempt to sail upwind in the conditions they show.

    If you are familiar with Newport Beach you will know they didn't wander far from the harbor mouth, and that area actually builds the swell size as it becomes shallow quickly. Ever hear of "The Wedge"?
     
  8. rwatson
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    rwatson Senior Member

    I dont know that I would be brave enough to call Roger MacGregor a liar after a 60 second youtube video myself, but I cant prove anything either way.

    However, I can say from personal experience that it is a wonderfull relief to have 50+ horses when you get caught out in very unpleasant weather, and because of the wind and wave direction, sails cant get you to your home port.
    You end up with a safe, ballasted power boat that can make decent headway, with the crew safe and sort of comfortable out of the weather.
     
  9. alan white
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    alan white Senior Member

    It's really a pretty safe boat near shore. The motor can, however, become a liability quickly should it fail to start in bad conditions. That's a lot of weight hung out there on a relatively light boat.
    Everyone has a different take on what makes a safe boat because one also has to decide what use the boat is put to. A long-keeled heavy cruiser is harder to navigate through a busy harbor due to inertia and slow turning. Yet what makes it a great cruiser is exactly what makes it a bit more of a handful near obstacles.
    The Mac always has to run to shore under conditions that the heavier boat takes in stride, but getting to shore is a snap... unless the engine conks out.
     
  10. Zappi
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    Location: Puget Sound

    Zappi Senior Member

    Agreed. I'd be surprised if it was blowing 25 knots. The bow spray tends to mist off at anything over 30 knots.
    Macgregors serve their purpose. But I see many downfalls in them. I too have witnessed the deflection, also I dont give much respect to the factory nicropress type standing rigging.
     
  11. rwatson
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    rwatson Senior Member

    I belive there's a lot of sense in what you say, but I am not sure that I understand all your points. For example, the motor, even a 75 hp is only two adults in weight, and not contributing very much pitching or capsizing moment due to its closeness to the water and the Macs Wide stern.

    Sure the engine can conk out, but so can sails tear, or become unmanageble due to crew inexperience or incapacity, severe weather conditions, gear failure etc.

    True, the Mac should run for cover if possible, but it should have no major trouble being tossed around out at sea with sails down, and full ballast, with or without a motor, if circumstances dictated it must. With the latest models rototing mast, it might even make usefull headway under severe conditions. A wise skipper might even lower the mast with enough warning, very easy to do on a Mac.

    Given that in the last 6 years, plenty of Macs must have been caught out, I havn't come across any rough weather sinking stories, just 'blown over' stories.
     
  12. alan white
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    alan white Senior Member

    We'll never know until people start crossing oceans in them.
     
  13. Zappi
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    Zappi Senior Member

    I'm pretty negative towards the Mac so I spose take what I say with a grain of salt but... The rotating mast is a gimmick. Its not going to help it go to weather. While the mac serves a niche customer base and gets newbies out on the water and into sailing... I dont give it much respect because I see many of the attributes of the Mac to be gimmicky. To someone new to sailboats comparing brochures... It looks pretty good when you see it has a "rotating mast". "Wow! A rotating mast? Those are only found on high performance developmental sailboats?.." It all looks good on the brochure to a newbie just like the youtube video of the mac in claimed 39 - 54 mph winds. It is what it is, dont start thinking it can be more than that.
     
  14. rwatson
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    rwatson Senior Member

    Boy -are you sooooo wrong. Rotating masts are not just found on high performance sailboats - they are on every 16ft production cat for starters.

    Do yourself a favour and get into the discussions on the improvement that the rotatable mast has made to the new Mac X sailing performance. 30ft of airfoil section is a big help.
     

  15. Zappi
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    Zappi Senior Member

    Watson, you are absolutely correct. Rotating masts have been on beach cats and larger multi hulls for decades now. I was unclearly speaking of monohulls such as we are discussing. I cant think of one production monohull with a rotating mast. Please, if you can think of one or even more I'll eat my words. The gain it gives is less turbulence directly behind the mast. 30' feet of stick is not going to make much difference if any. But it sure sounds good. The Mac needs more help than this to go up wind. Lets start with a different hull design. While I always have fun with a Mac bashing, I'm afraid we got off topic. I think the Macgregor the original question was asked about is not the "motorsailor", its the more traditional sailboat. A lightweight, decent sailing, easily trailered sailboat. Compromises are found in every boat.
     
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