Macwester 26

[Slow_boat]

On Wednesday, I'm off to Hullbridge to look at a Macwester 26 advertised in PBO.

Does anyone have any comments on Macwester 26 in general or know this boat in particular?

Any comments appreciated.

 

[jimmynoboat]

These were mentioned when I asked what I could buy as a first boat;
What should i buy?

Where was some mention of their lack of windward parformance (see half way down first page)

 

[RufusM]

The 26 is a roomy and sea kindly boat - the 27 was then developed in a water testing tank to get her to sail better to windward. Which she does quite well.

Not fast but quite safe and the 26 is a bit cheaper than a 27. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Wansworth]

I have been looking at them aswell.Came across one ,on the internet,that had a transome mounted rudder which apparently cured the weather helm which the early boats had,it looked good and a better ideathan a bowsprit?

 

[halcyon]

Read some where that the bowsprit was a standard extra when new, but looked old fashoned in 1970, so very few were built.

Brian

 

[Slow_boat]

I understand that the transom mounted rudder is also used to cure weather helm on Eventides, so I guess it works.

Personally, I like a bowsprit but then I don't intend to use marinas much.

 

[catalac08]

Hi
Not an expert on mac 26 but had one for 12 years and did 10k nautical coastal/irish sea miles so must have doine something right at times!
Some thoughts on the 26.
Very heavily built and re-assuring when the going gets rough. They need a good 3 to get sailing but can then hold full sail up to a 5/6. The bowsprit enables a cutter rig, which for a heavy boat like this is like having a 5th gear on a car, goes better to windward - slot effect and better twin headsails for downwind work. The weather helm is mostly due to poor sail balance. I did modify my rudder and made a steel one with some balance area which was also more vertical than the original canted one. A cheaper boat than a centaur and without the keel/hull prolems which are common with those boats. Originally they had stuart turner engines but most will hacve been re-engined now often with Yanmar 15hp diesels. The rudder set up is bomb proof and the bottom heel fitting helps not pick up lines with the propellor. These boats were made woth a doulble gelcoat as an aid to release from the mould which may exp[lain why even at 30/35 years of age these hulls rarely have osmosis. There is sometime a little deck depession around the mast taberancle but does not seem to cause any problemes if this is stable. One job not to underestimate is replacing the rubbing strake. These are made with 2 layers of wood and the through bolts that fasten the inner layer to the hull can often be very corroded. The tell tale is rust streeks from the rubbing strakes. These bolts were only mild steel, the deack was fully bonded to the hull so the bolts only served to fix the rubbing strake, but if corroded can cause leaks but only when under way. Very stiff boat to sail with good headroom and galley. Good shelves in the forecabin. Lots of stowage.Good fuel locker in rear lazarette and draining gas locker on port lazarette. On some macwester 26 hulls there are distinct lines where the keel mould fits into the hull moulding and there can also be a sort of groove across the hull forward of the keels which is normal (this was due to a rope being in the mould for lifting out the hull from the mould. Ballast was lead about a ton, which keeps the weight low and if any water enters the keel there is not the problem of rust forming and splitting the keel. no keel bolts to leak or worry about. As the keels are fibreglass there can be abrasion if kept on a drying shingle mooring but this can easily be repaired depending on the price paid. Hard to get a cheaper 26ft proper sailing boat. There is a Macwester Sailing Association where there is much information about this class of boat. The rig is particularly well set up and is not knon to give problems however old sails can be stretched and worn and wil not help sailing performance. As you can probablby tell I loved my old macwester (MARCUS) so I am probably biased but the boat never let me down even when I made mistakes, but that is what a good boat should do for you.
A bit rambling but maybe some usefull information.

keith

 

[Davydine]

Hi Duncan,

I was about to say most of what Catalac08 just said! We owned a Mac26 for a few years and found her to be a very solid and seaworthy boat. The big job that we did was to replace the Stuart Turner engine with a nice new Nanni. The Stuart Turner induced too much stress for my liking!

Coincidentally we bought our Mac from Up River YC at hullbridge, we found that the bottom of the keels had suffered abrasion damage from being on a drying mooring as mentioned in the above posts. This had resulted in water finding its way in to the boat. The problem was solved by fitting GRP shoes over the base of the keels and we never had any more problems. We had this done by a yard in Burnham and it cost about £500 I think but could be a DIY job if you are happy to work with GRP. Some people also stick sacrificial bits of wood on to the bottom of the keels if it will still be kept on a drying mooring.

A good local surveyor is Paul Stevens. He used to own a Macwester and cosequently knows the marque inside out.

On the whole I would highly recommend the Mac 26 and having seen the same ad in PBO this looks like a very good price, especially as the engine was replaced not too long ago. Of course at that price she may need some money spending!

Good luck and PM me if you have any questions...
David

 

[office_sailor]

Hi,

It might be worth having a look at www.yacht-designer.co.uk. The owner of the website is the son of the designer and builder of the Macwester range, and may be a good source of info on the range.

Hope this helps.

 

[maxi]

I owned number 26 Cocabana for a long time, strong, seakindly and very safe boats.
I was probably the first to fit a transom-hung rudder, that does NOT cure weather helm but by moving the rudder 10% further aft, steering becomes much easier.
Keeping the bows light also helps to reduce weather helm in the Mac 26, which is more to do with hull form than balance, and sailing her nearly upright also is a great help. A bathing platform extension helps to increase sailing speed if that's important to you.
Good luck.