Weighed our 2003 26X today.

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ris
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Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by ris »

We are having a new trailer tongue put on the Mac trailer so we put the Mac in the water. On the way we pass a set of certified scales so we weighed with the boat on the trailer and after putting the boat in the water weighed again without the boat and the weight of the boat was 3,200 lbs. Now we have a 60 hp 4 stroke Honda, we have used wood to extend the v-berth bed on one side, made a larger plywood dining table, have a board with all our 12 volt electrical stuff on it. Made a wood galley top and dish holder and added wood shelves under the galley for food storage. We pumped out the 30 gallon plastimo water bag, have only one 12 volt battery on board and there is no mast on the boat when we weighed it. The boat was empty except 8 gallons gas, 6 fenders, one 15 lb anchor, and the required safety gear. (all mods in mod section under ris).
By the time we add 3 more batteries (186 lbs), 21 gallons gas, (132 lbs), 35 gallons of water (292 lbs), dinghy and dinghy motor(80 lbs), natures head composting toilet(28 lbs), Engel 35 QT refrigerator (60 lbs), 2nd anchor and rode (25 lbs), tools, food, clothes (250 lbs). Our boat loaded on the trailer weighs, 4,175 lbs. Which is why we put two 3500 lb axles under the trailer.
Just thought this info might be of interest to some of the folks here. We have spent the last 6 months visiting some of the national parks in our cargo trailer modified into a travel trailer. We traveled 13,944 miles doing this. We spent 9 months in 2016 doing the Great American Loop in the Mac which was 5824 miles long and spent a lot less money. Dropping an anchor at night is much cheaper than $35 for rv sites in campgrounds and rv parks. We plan to do some months on the boat next year maybe doing part of the loop again. Especially staying up north in Canada during the summer months. For those of you who do not know us, we use the Mac as a trawler not a sailboat. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
Richard
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dlandersson
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by dlandersson »

Very nice. Do you have a blog where your cover your trips? 8)
Last edited by dlandersson on Sun Aug 18, 2019 3:11 am, edited 1 time in total.
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ris
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by ris »

Yes we have a blog that is mostly a few pics and a few words.
thejillkristy.wordpress.com
We used the same blog for the loop and our recent national parks trip. It also has a few pics of our travel trailer. You have to go back to the very beginning for the start of the loop trip.
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Tomfoolery
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Tomfoolery »

That's a long way from the 2350 lb + 710 lb trailer in the original brochure. I always figured mine was heavy, but not 1000 lb heavy.

My OEM steel trailer is only rated 3500 lb (tag is still visible), but the PO added another 3500 lb axle, so it's good for more, and has thousands of miles on it without harm. But I often carry full fuel, two batts, water, gear, mast and sails, outboard, etc.

I always figured it weighed about 4000 lb or so, including trailer. Maybe I should weigh it. :|

Image
Last edited by Tomfoolery on Thu Nov 08, 2018 8:05 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Starscream
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Starscream »

That's interesting info...thanks for that.

So a loaded X (without trailer, but with gas and water) weighs just over 4,000lbs. Do you have the all-up weight, including trailer, that would be used to select an appropriate tow vehicle? I was thinking about replacing my 2006 Durango soon, and there are several options out there that have a 5,000 lb tow rating, like the VW Atlas and Ford Explorer. With a dual axle setup, I guess that the total weight of a voyage-ready X might be just over that 5,000lb line?
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ris
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by ris »

Boat empty 3200
Boat loaded 4175
Tandem axle Trailer 840

Loaded Boat and trailer 5015 lbs
Empty Boat and trailer 4040 lbs

Remember our boat has a bit of wood added (see above), 4 stroke honda 60hp and other stuff that your boat might not have.
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Starscream
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Starscream »

Thanks again for the info...is your trailer steel or aluminum?

I would guess that my boat is similar to yours...30 gal of water, 25 gal of gas, two batteries, beer, food for 5, and so on. Dual-axle steel trailer, 90HP (but a light one) on the back. My trailer is a pretty beefy custom-built one, with lots of cross-beams, guide-rails, and a tool box on the tongue, and I suspect it must be upwards of 1,000lbs.

Looks like a 5,000lb tow vehicle is just borderline, and a bit of a legal risk, maybe.
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Highlander
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Highlander »

Also remember the higher the towing capacity usually means heavier suspension, bigger brakes, better Transmission & rear axle & Differential. Bigger rad & Trans cooler. Bigger wheel bearing & tire capacity but u will lose out In fuel consumption unless u go diesel
I love my 2007 Ford F- 150 4 door Crew cab with #9600 towing capacity u don't even know the boat is behind u. She is still going strong
J
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ris
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by ris »

ours is a steel trailer. I believe it is the original but do not know for sure. Our tow vehicle is a 2008 Silverado 1500 with a 5.3 liter engine.
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Russ
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Russ »

Yup, my boat feels heavier than the brochure states. It's gotta be pushing limits of the trailer.

I added a second axle and feel much better now.


--Russ
DaveC426913
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by DaveC426913 »

ris wrote:...we have used wood to extend the v-berth bed on one side,
Don't you think it sort of ruins the profile?

Image

:D
K9Kampers
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by K9Kampers »

DaveC426913 wrote:
ris wrote:...we have used wood to extend the v-berth bed on one side,
Don't you think it sort of ruins the profile?

Image

:D
:D :D :D
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Chinook
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Chinook »

Hi Rich and Jill,

I just looked around your website. I'm going to have to spend a little more time with it. You sure have seen some great places in your travels. By the way, I just sent a boat buck to a Florida company located not too far from your home, and am now installing a pair of 18 gallon aluminum fuel tanks. Tight fit, but they're going to work out well. Not sure what your fuel capacity is, but if you ever decide to go with 18 gallon aluminum tanks, I can point you to a company that already has engineering drawings for tanks that work fine in the 26X. Hope your travels bring you out here to the Northwest one of these days, when we're around.

Best wishes, Mike and Sandy/Chinook
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Starscream
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Starscream »

We have been looking to replace our tow-vehicle, and based on this post, I just pulled the trigger on a new Nissan Pathfinder. (Durango is up for sale). We had to have a seven or eight seater, and budget was an issue so forget the Mercs, Lexuses, Audis and the likes.

Below are the options that we considered. Only two of them can tow more than 5,000 pounds, so that eliminated all the options except the Pathfinder and the Durango. Pathfinder won because here in Canada it's about 8 grand less expensive to buy, and has significantly better fuel economy. Not a great looking vehicle, but also not the worst (that's the Highlander IMO). I'm pretty sure my X is just over 5k lbs on the trailer, and we often tow the in the US so I want to avoid any potential legal issues in case of an accident.

Vehicle Towing Capacity
Nissan Pathfinder 6000
Volkswagen Atlas 5000
Mazda CX 9 3500
Honda Pilot 5000
Chevrolet Traverse 5000
GMC Acadia 4000
Ford Explorer 5000
Dodge Durango 6200
Toyota Highlander 5000
Hyundai Santa Fe 5000

Plus, the Pathfinder came with a Hatch Tent. How cool is that?
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Tomfoolery
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Re: Weighed our 2003 26X today.

Post by Tomfoolery »

Nice, but my tent days are far in the review. :D

Too late now, but my Jeep Grand Cherokee 6-cyl gas 4x4 has a 6200 lb tow rating. The diesel version is 7200 lb, as is the hemi V8. The diesel I had was a great tow vehicle, by the way.
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