Blue water cruising

[2_rollocks]

I'm now so confused! My dad wants to escape from us all but is a bit skint, so wot would be the best cruiser for him to consider up to say 26'? Would help if it was trailerable to save all that time having to sail it, oh, and it mustn't cost more than about £15,000.

Any suggestions?

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[Althorne]

He could buy a nice little cottage in the Shetlands for that and forget the lot of you forever then!
Sounds like a bargain to me.

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[Twister_Ken]

One slightly shagged McGregor 26X?

But if you're being serious, it should stretch to a niceish Contessa 26.

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[mighetto]

If you are going Contessa you might think about getting something historic.
The Constessa 32 was the only boat in her class to finish the infamous Fastnet
Race of 1979. Over 300 boats were involved. 5 boats sank; 20 or so abandoned and over a dozen drownings. Sadler was the designer. I think he also designed
a 26 footer.

Seriously, you can not go wrong with a MacGregor Yacht. All the 26 footers are
ocean sailboats. If the operator likes the feel of a keel there is also the Mac25.
This is the vessel that Roger MacGregor is most recognized for. The Tripp 26
is a boat I have been trying to find out about./forums/images/icons/smile.gif

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[HenryB]

Buy it abroad - I know of a Carter 33 in Antigua that's for sale for £15,000 and there are a few more in Greece. Also the Westerly 31's frequently sell for that sort of price in Greece, Turkey and the Caribbean.
See www.yachtfractions.co.uk for about 30 yachts in Greece under his budget.

Good luck,

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[Sybarite]

<< Seriously, you can not go wrong with a MacGregor Yacht. All the 26 footers are
ocean sailboats.>>

What an amazing statement ! No way José.

Have you read about the MacG 26 accidents?

John

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[Twister_Ken]

Sybs,

There's none so blind as they that won't see.

Jonathan Swift

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[tcm]

hm, he won't get very far with 15k. I mean, you can get a boat, but escaping from you all will cost a bit of loot on top.

The macgregor idea is a possible, but the boat will obviously be a bit safer without the mast, at which point it's a sort of lardy cabin cruiser. The most safe route will be to plot an ocean voyage, but whilst sitting at home.

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[Rob_Webb]

Buy lots of lotto tickets?

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[IanPoole2]

Look at wooden boats if he has lots of spare time.
Otherwise - my Cobra 850 - 28 foot -£12K, Mirage - bit more - Sadler 25/26/29 bit more - increasing to 20K , older 70 styles - Hurley, Centaur etc - sub 15K!

There is lots of choice?
Find out first
1. Mooring - keel config.
2. Single handed or not
3. available time
4. Day sailing, weekending or longer

<hr width=100% size=1><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by IanPoole2 on 01/10/2004 16:29 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[nct1]

Mac 26 is a Category C - Sheltered Water boat

As opposed to Cat B Offshore and Cat A Blue water.

If you want to motor and sail in sheltered waters then this is a great boat to do it in.

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[mighetto]

The term "You can not go wrong with a MacGregor Yacht" comes from
Canadia. It is not a term those south of the boarder are familiar with.

The Mac26 classics, the Mac25 and the Mac26x can be found on both sides
of Vancouver Island. The West side of that Island gets some of the largest
waves in the world - 80 to 100 feet. Of course we are chatting in-season use
here.

There are other factors that explain why MacGregors are found all over the
world and you can not go wrong with one.

In the USA there is this notion of the 5 foot every 5 year itch. The idea
is that a new sailor will purchase a new boat that is 5 foot larger every 5
or so years. Hunter and Catalina encourage the spread of the disease. Catalina
does not sell boats outside of the US. Of course Hunter does.

But in anycase the
smaller models are treated as if they were but place holder boats. You see this
in resale value. The owners Hunter and Catalina care about are the owners that
purchases new and larger on a predictable schedule. 4 to 5 years.

Where this marketing strategy has broken down IMO, is when some poor fellow
trys to follow a MacGregor Yacht 20 or 30 miles offshore to Catalina Island or a
destination like the West Side of Vancouver Island or something like
that. If the weather gets snotty, the say Hunter 260
crew may get a scare so bad that it turns them to power boating. Hunter trys
to avoid that by marketing the H260 as a lake use only boat and not an ocean
sail boat. Once the expectations have been lowered to lake only use, hulls can
right sized (IE made less strong) and the price lowered.

MacGregor Yachts not only has stuck to making ocean sailboats (as opposed to
lake sailboats) but they only make one size boat. There is no spreading the itch
coming from this company. What this focus has done is allow better and better
construction and design at less cost.

A new Mac26x cost 18,000 US five years ago.
That same Mac26x today will sell from 17,000 to 21,000. Of course you need to
add an engine to those prices. You just can not go wrong. That has been the
pattern for 20 years at MacGregor Yachts. It could change tomorrow of course.
One should always visit the factory of birth for a Blue Water Yacht and then
check on the cost of ocean insurance. You can get insurance for any water in the
western hemisphere for less than 400 per year for a MacGregor Yacht. That is
not true for larger yachts.

We have Potters in the US that are unsinkable and about 18 foot. I spot
them cruising in pairs - one person per boat. The same is true for the unsinkable
Mac26x and Mac26m only two to four persons per boat. This syle of crusing is
wonderful because every leg of the cruise becomes in effect a one-design race.

When we charter, my wife and I charter 2 identical boats (Beneteau 402s a few
years back) and put relatives and friends on each of the boats. Usually the
boats stick together but if there is a disagreement on a destination you can
handle that by splitting up. If there are crew problems you can trade crew
members.

Folks think nothing of taking two cars on a vacation. But for some reason that
kind of thinking is novel when it comes to boats. In boats there is the added
feature of racing.

Racing develops performance and performance means safety.


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[pragmatist]

I really really don't think mentioning the Mac word was a good idea - another bout of verbose infestation.

Now Contessa ... different kettle of fish.

<hr width=100% size=1>a pragmatist is an optimist with a boat in the UK - but serious about not being in the UK !

 

[Twister_Ken]

Shush.

I think he's gone.

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[pragmatist]

Re: Shush.

I do hope so but rather suspect he'll be back. Should we ask Kim to ban the Mac word to prevent reinfestation ?

<hr width=100% size=1>a pragmatist is an optimist with a boat in the UK - but serious about not being in the UK !

 

[tome]

Re: Shush.

Did I see him post that his ban on SA was to be lifted Friday? Hopefully he's returned there and we'll enjoy an M26x holiday until his next banning.

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[boatless]

Re: Shush.

He may think that, but he has been completely blocked, permanently.

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[tome]

Re: Shush.

Then I fear for our sanity...

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[mighetto]

Do not be confused by Category C markings. The Mac26x has always been an ocean sailboat. If the Category C marking bothers you, and you can not find a Mac26x hull that is Category B marked (these may exist) do compare the boat with

http://www.macgregor26.com/offshore_review.htm

The Tide 28 is not a water ballasted vessel but still floats when swamped. This feature is just so fine in an ocean sailboat that I find it hard to fathom those still arguing against it.

Category markings are something no one really understands (I suspect) and they really mean little when you realize that seaworthiness is a function of crew. I am assuming that the Australian Mac26x clones will be CE marked. That is important because new unmarked boats can not enter EU waters legally except when racing. But the designation A, B, C or even D means little in regards to ocean use after the owner fits the vessel for the use intended, and crews her. Think this way. A category B boat that is modified by the dealer or owner may or may not still be a category B boat. A category C Mac26x fitted with an ocean worthy engine is likely category B.

It is nice to have the Tide 28. She may sail more like the keel boater trained expect. But there will never be 5,000 hulls and I doubt she planes under sail. That is important in running to the side of storm. Mac26x hulled cruisers - even at the same price as a Tide 28 - are the better choice for that reason and others.

Comments? We are seeing more and more powersailer designs because these really are the future of yacht design and because notions that a boat that sails well can not be powered safely at high speed have been descredited in US court.

I will argue that the Tide 28 is a movable ballast design where the keel movement is up and down rather than from side to side or as in water ballasted vessels on-and off. It is the On and Off movement that is most desirable for negotiating doldrums. Less external ballast and more internal water ballast would make the Tide 28 a better design. Bulbs, I really think, are disproven concepts. They came about owing to artificial ocean racing design rules. I would love to discuss this notion.

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[jimi]

What an enlightening view point but I fear you are wrong, the McG 26X is one of the few boats which has its Category in the name, thw X being a strong clue as to its seaworthiness.

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