retrofit mast

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1st son of a sailor
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Oct 05, 2017 12:02 pm

retrofit mast

Post by 1st son of a sailor »

Has anyone considered or completed the retrofit of the M rotating mast to a 26X?
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sailboatmike
Admiral
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Joined: Thu Mar 12, 2015 10:17 pm
Sailboat: MacGregor 26X
Location: Australia

Re: retrofit mast

Post by sailboatmike »

1st son of a sailor wrote:Has anyone considered or completed the retrofit of the M rotating mast to a 26X?
Im not really sure what that would achieve, you would need to replace the main as the M main is slightly bigger, change the positions of the chain plates and I'm not sure you would get bang for your buck performance wise.

Seems a very expensive exercise to achieve very little, IMHO you would be better spending your money on good sails for the X and maybe changing the rudders and centerboard over for performance versions. All in all there isn't a huge amount of sailing performance difference between the X and the M
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kadet
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Joined: Tue Oct 02, 2007 6:51 am
Sailboat: MacGregor 26M
Location: Brisbane, Australia. 2008M "Wicked Wave" Yamaha T60

Re: retrofit mast

Post by kadet »

What sailboatmike said,

I pin my :macm: mast for transport and often forget to unscrew the pin and sail all day with the mast pinned and unable to rotate, honestly never notice the difference 8)
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Seapup
Captain
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Joined: Tue Nov 16, 2010 7:05 am
Location: 2002 26x - Virgina Beach, Va

Re: retrofit mast

Post by Seapup »

The :macm: mast is 2' longer and a heavier/thicker spar.

The mainsail area of the :macx: is listed as 130sqft & :macm: as 170sqft. I remember Roger hyping the increased sailing speed of the :macm: over the :macx: with only the main and no jib when it first came out. I wonder how much is due to the rotating mast, and how much is just 25%-30%more sail area on a similar boat with no jib :?:
1st son of a sailor
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Oct 05, 2017 12:02 pm

Re: retrofit mast

Post by 1st son of a sailor »

Thanks for the quick replies...i was just toying with the idea but this love affair with boats and water has cost us all plenty.

i can spend my allowance in better ways i suppose.............radar arch and more electronics maybe???????

thanks again 8)
vizwhiz
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Sailboat: MacGregor 26S
Location: Central Florida

Re: retrofit mast

Post by vizwhiz »

Someone has done the conversion to rotating mast on a D boat a few years back. They used the M hardware with their D mast, and reported very good results, particularly in light winds. At very low wind speed, they were able to make headway, where they hadn’t in the past with the fixed mast. Anyway, you might look into swapping some hardware out on your X and see if it will work.
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kurz
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Sailboat: MacGregor 26M
Location: Zürich, Switzerland, Europe

Re: retrofit mast

Post by kurz »

kadet wrote:What sailboatmike said,

I pin my :macm: mast for transport and often forget to unscrew the pin and sail all day with the mast pinned and unable to rotate, honestly never notice the difference 8)
How you pin the :macm: Mast?

Do you have a photo?

thanks
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Ixneigh
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Joined: Thu Sep 09, 2010 11:00 am
Sailboat: MacGregor 26M
Location: Key largo Florida

Re: retrofit mast

Post by Ixneigh »

After sailing the rotating mast, I would use the concept on any small boat. Only way I'd be without it is an unstayed wing sail or modified lug rig. It is extra handy when sailing with no board down.
Ix
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kadet
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Joined: Tue Oct 02, 2007 6:51 am
Sailboat: MacGregor 26M
Location: Brisbane, Australia. 2008M "Wicked Wave" Yamaha T60

Re: retrofit mast

Post by kadet »

kurz wrote:
kadet wrote:What sailboatmike said,

I pin my :macm: mast for transport and often forget to unscrew the pin and sail all day with the mast pinned and unable to rotate, honestly never notice the difference 8)
How you pin the :macm: Mast?

Do you have a photo?

thanks
Drill a hole in the mast base plate below vang mount hole, tap it then put in a wing bolt .
I use this to fix the mast for trailering so it doesn't rotate and damage my aerodynamic alloy furler :)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/p46SvQy0FhkXgqLa2
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