This Is Great !

[seafox]

the ones we have here are the 26's. The hulls must weaken each time they flex. They certainly look funny skooting at planing speeds when the wind dies.

I agree with Lynx. These are great boats for their purpose. The 22 is a very different boat. As is the 65. The 65 is a very narrow beam boat for a 65 footer. 11 feet I think. A bit tight for most people, but those who have em like em. For their purpose, the Mac 26 is very well suited. It is easily trailered behind an average pickup truck, is comfortable on a lake or on the bay, and has enough room to accomodate 4 people without sleeping 4 deep. If I was looking for a trailer sailor for weekends, this would be my first choice. No it is not an offshore boat, and no it is not a practical ski boat, but for the things it is, it is very well designed. As for the thin hull, yep, it's thin, but again, this is not an offshore boat. It is designed to be light to be towed easily, and plane with moderate power. I am not fond of water balast, but this is the trade off for convenience, making the boat 1000 pounds lighter than other sail boats of the same size when dry sailing. Keeping the tank full is no different than any other necessary operation on a sail boat. If you screw up, there is often a price to pay. Remember the steps, and there is no problem.

[s/v 'Faith']

FWIW,

We have a member on the Sailfar site that sails her Mac 26 to the Bahamas, and loves it.

Maybe it is not the boat for you (or me) but to each their own, and I say that whatever someone is getting out there on beats the heck out of what it rotting at the dock.

Cheers,

[Lynx]

I have Never heard of any Mac 26 with hull damage because of the hull flexing. I have seen very old power boats that the hull was flexing in the bow when under way and there was never any damage. There is over 5000 Mac 26's made.

They certainly look funny skooting at planing speeds when the wind dies.

There are a lot of people who say that. I have even heard "What is that? A planing sailboat. What is this world comming to?" But it sure is nice to get to where you want to sail at faster than 5 knots or get out of the way or for passage making when you want to spend the money for gas or to pull a water toy or the extra power when docking.

I have spend too many hours motoring at 5 knots just to get to where I wanted to go. Motoring at 15 knots, it is so much nicer when you don't want to sail.

As noted many times - It is not for everbody. It does get me there, get me back, get me there, get .........

[seafox]

whatever someone is getting out there on beats the heck out of what it rotting at the dock

That is so true. I reckon over 90% of the boats in our marina just sit there week in week out.

[Amac]

For some reason, whenever I read the pro-Macgregor posts, I can't help but think of Amway.

[S/V Elusive]

For what they are, the Mac 26's, IMHO, are an excellent boat. There are a lot of pros to them, and few cons. Obviously they aren't meant for blue water passagemaking, but, in truth, few boats are. As mentioned by Lynx, they do get up and scoot! Being a sailing ... well, not purist, but one who is more into the journey than the destination, it isn't a boat that I would really want - also, since I'm 6' 6" .. it isn't a boat that would be 'user friendly' either.

With all that said - if I wanted to get out to the islands in a hurry with my kayak so I could get a few hours of paddling about in and return the same evening - A Mac sounds like a good deal. Could stay the night if I so desired.

[bvh]

Ahoy , surely if people buy anything and start to enjoy sailing /boating/yachting, that is the important part .I have a Mac26 and love it ,one day i will have a Valiant40 or the like ,different strokes for different folks hey. . love life love others................ smell the sea breeze.

[mxlunde]

I had a 22 ft McGregor given to me and finding some issues with the retractable keel it seems to be seized in place any ideas.

[mrohr]

This boat is neither fish nor fowl,but those marketing guys sure know what will appeal to a newbie.

But if I didn't have a boat and couldn't afford one either ,I'd take one for free and manage to have a great time on one.

[minaret]

I have gutted and rebuilt a MAC 26 that had all bulkhead tabbing fail due to extreme hull flexing. After having gutted one and seen the quality of construction, I can't recommend owning one.

[bvh]

MXLUNDE............i suspect the keel line is dented (kinked from sitting in 1 place way to long)...untie the rope on-board then go for a swim and yank on the keel to swing her down (watch for Bullsharks if in North Queensland waters (Australia).. and time your swim quickly with crew and their rifles at the ready in case of Saltwater Crocodiles . (ps..ask Minaret,hes had a lot to do with Macs & obviously loves them)