What is so bad about these boats???

[Russ]

Basically the Mac sucks. Don't buy this boat. The thousands of happy Mac owners are clearly out of their minds. Don't buy one. Some snobby idiot at the Yaaaught club might look down on you. Ignore all those Mac owners having fun with their families sailing...towing their kids on floats....they must be crazy.

Meanwhile your bank account will be thousands in the black and your family will be enjoying the water. Crazy I say.

And please...don't trailer the blasted thing to places the keelboats can't get to. That would only anger them more.

[NiceAft]

Terry said:

The boat may be inexpensive on first purchase but it sure doesn't stop there,

Did you forget the definition of a boat A hole in the water where you throw money

Ray

[Russ]

Did you forget the definition of a boat A hole in the water where you throw money

Ray

Amen brother.

But it's a fun hole in the water.

[Québec 1]

Starscream Quote (that normal people can afford).

Whow I'm Normal " man thats nice to know "

J

That was a generalization John, he wasn't talking about you. Besides being Scottish your a wee bit different , but that's okay cause normal people normally don't sail...when I got my sailing dinghy and started sailing it in the St Laurence with 18foot tides and 3 knot currents my office buddies all said the same thing....what if you fall off! and I had to explain that the plan when you have a boat is to stay in the boat.
Q1

[Rick Westlake]

We can spend "thousands" for maintenance, repair and upgrades to our Macs - but I believe we still get more for our money than, say, the owner of a "comparable" keelboat. (Maybe a Catalina 27 would be a good comparison? Maybe not. If I weren't "making do" so very well with the Mac, I would have gotten a lot more boat and spent a lot more on it!)

Consider a brand-new 60-horse outboard, compared to (let's say) a 20-horse inboard Yanmar diesel. I bet we'll pay less than half the price for the engine, and less than 1/10th as much for installation!

Compare the price of "dry slip" (trailered with mast up) storage to the price of "wet slip" storage. I was quoted "about $3500 (a year)" to put a Catalina 30 into a slip at the marina where I kept Bossa Nova on its trailer for $475 from mid-April to mid-October. Coincidentally, my new trailer cost $3600, but it's a dual-wheel, hot-dip-galvanized trailer and it should last at least another ten years. Probably more.

Shop for sails for a larger boat. Larger sails, heavier cloth, more yardage, more labor = more costly. Heck, shop for darn near anything for a larger boat, certainly anything that needs to be bigger or longer or both for that larger boat.

Consider the cost of repairs & upgrades belowdecks. The Mac is very simple, very plain, and so it's very much less costly to fix stuff or get things done. If I had, let's say, a Cabo Rico with its jewel-box interior, I'd be extremely leery of doing anything on my own; but I have no such compunctions about building rough-and-ready shelves in Bossa Nova's galley cabinet, and replacing the black-plastic galley front with a snap-off Sunbrella cover. It ain't impressive, but any other 26X owner will be much more likely to say "Good idea!" than to say "You shoulda...."

"What's bad about these boats" is that they just aren't impressive. They don't shout about your financial potency the way a bigger boat does. They don't scream that you've got the most "well-hung" wallet in the marina. But when you're out sailing - and "Dr. Gottbucks" is varnishing his Teak Goddess at the dock - who's having the most fun? (Unless you really get off on varnishing.)

[NiceAft]

Rick,

You were going strong until you got to this part.

"What's bad about these boats" is that they just aren't impressive.

I get too many compliments from people when they see Nice Aft for the first time. I've even had a keel boater come over to me at a restaurant (where we tied up to its dock) and say "Captain. You have a nice boat there."

Sorry Rick, but you won't convince me of us not having impressive boats. Nope

Ray

[FLembo18]

Rick,

I must say that I have to agree with Ray's (Nice Aft) above post to the letter. I have people coming over to me as soon as I pull into the Marina and I haven't even rigged the boat yet. Do I love the compliments ? You betcha !

Frank L.

[Rick Westlake]

Ray, I can only make a "half-fast" defense of my position, and I think I explained it quite adequately in the sentences following the one you quoted. People who are impressed by "Teak Goddesses" are going to find precious little to "worship" on a MacGregor; people who want a round-the-cans -racer aren't going to be impressed by the Mac motorsailers. Our boats just don't meet the criteria of the Upper-Back-Bay Corinthian Yacht Club And Mutual Admiration Society.

But to a person who's not hung up on Teak Goddesses and hot-rodding J-Boats, our MacGregors are pretty darn nice! And we know how capable they can be, which is truly impressive in a much broader way than "Ooohh, pretty brightwork."

I like your version of "impressive" better than the "Corinthian" version.

Cheers,
Rick

[Highlander]

Well I'm always getting quotes like when did Macgregor start making cutter rigs , I tell them he does not yet & this is a test boat of my own design that maybe one day will go into production , well that really turns their heads next thing you know everyone has got their camera's out taking all kinds of pics of the next new mac ! model , so now I'm kinda famous now until they find out the truth ! Then I'll tell them I think you must have misquoted me

But all the big yatch guy's at my marina wave to me when I'm heading out & when I return and are very impressed with what I've done to my boat , also when I'm away from the boat the harbour master tells me he gets all kinds of people asking questions about my boat as he says she really stands out when sitting at her slip
http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab1/ ... 010097.jpg
J

[Just Nuisance]

Hi Jamie
I just bought a 2001 mac 26x in late Sept 09. I think you have to ask yourself. Are you a person that cares about what other sailors might think? If you drink wine, does it have to be $100 bottle? My daughter will not buy cloths unless it say's "hollister" or "coach" on the label. My wife and I think it is crazy, But to a few it is reality.
The mac 26x and 26m respectively, are a versitle boat that affords the owner many different options in relation to "mods" and uses. It will not break your bank and your family will be on the water and building memories.

I wish you all the best in your decision

Regards

Mike
Just Nuisance

[mikelinmon]

Most any of the other boats are "one trick ponys". Look like you are rich. Go fast. Cruise way off shore. Sail/operate in thin water, Go lots of places. in general you can "pick one" and get a perfect boat. Most boats will only do one trick plus spend lot of money. Looks like another list of why we sail a Mac is forming up.

[LOUIS B HOLUB]

Most any of the other boats are "one trick ponys". Most boats will only do one trick plus spend lot of money. Looks like another list of why we sail a Mac is forming up.

A MacGregor Dealer ought to have an "easy sell" to any serious boating budgeted customer. The Mac can "fill" the needs of a small family quite well - fishing, camping, day sailing, motoring, protected-water cruising, etc. And, this is said without mentioning the fun in doing modifications.

I can truthfully say none of my Marina friends with other "brand" boats have criticised my Mac. I've received many nice words and opinions...especially when the tide is low here in Kemah, and I'm not hindered in motoring or sailing.

And, YES, you may print these words as a Mac endorsement for a customer. They should enjoy a fine boat as much as I.

Best Regards,
Louis

[defrich]

I enjoy my 26M , "Precious Day". I purchased her last fall and have put her into the water dozens of times since. She is easy to singlehand, and easier with a mate. I am adding transom corner seats to allow more room and fishing off the stern. I have been sailing on the Long Island Sound and she handles well. One of my sons, his friend , and I put the genoa in the water a few times until I finally got them to understand that you can ease the sheets when that happens. After that, they put the genoa back in a few times to impress the ladies. I've taken salts out on her and got positive inputs on her handling. Especially when she moved with minimal winds. I've only had her up to 7.5kts under sail, and only 16.5 kts under power. But we arte working on improving these numbers.. She is comfortable inside. I've not removed the table, and don't intend to do so. I've room for sleeping 5 with it installed , and for a weekend on a small boat, that should be more than enough. Day sailing 6 is good. The high profile of the hull to the wind is of little consequence to me. I plan on it when I pull up to the ramp , and compensate for any cross wind ( leaving the daggerboard as low as possible is one way ) when doing so. As I singlehand most of the time ( having non-sailors abourd is more work than singlehanding as they usually get in the way until they are taught properly ( but worth the time to teach them )).
To reitterate previous counsel: Find somebody with a Mac 26 who will take you out for a ride and instruction. If it is for you, go for it. If you can find a used boat fitted closer to what you want , check it out. The boats have a better resale value that comperable prices autos.
Blue Skies....Richard

[delevi]

Likewise, most of the comments I get about my boat are quite positive. Seems like the compliments just keep on coming. One exception comes to mind. A 25 year-old racer (crewman) was quite passionated about the notion of how "bad a sailboat the Mac is." This was at a bar and the kid had a number of drinks in him. Of course, he has never seen a Mac and he doesn't own a boat himself. It's all about perspective. The kid races on J-boats, so from his perspective, the Mac is crap because it's no racer.

There is no question about the Mac's versatility as many have pointed out. As a sailboat, however, it does leave much to be desired. I made mine a substantially better performer with all the mods, but there is a limit to what the boat will do, no matter how you dress her up. So the kid actually had a point, even though he had no frame of reference. For me, I'll enjoy the Mac with all the great things it CAN DO and just accept the things it Cannot do.... that is until I can afford a substantial Racer-Cruiser in the 40 foot range. The Bene Frist 40.7 comes to mind. Now that is one awesome one-trick-pony!

fair winds,
Leon

[curtiss]

This is my Mac story you all might appreciate. I was pulling my blue Mac back to Sacramento from a two week trip in the San Juan islands. I was in the mountains of southern Oregon with a lot of truckers on the road. Going up the grades I would typically pass the big rigs and they would fly by me going downhill. I passed this one big rig and for about 45 minutes he never passed me. Downhill and uphill he just stayed on my tail. I will admit it was sort of nerve wrecking after a while as other big rigs passed both of us. I started reviewing my driving seeing if I had cut him off or something and he was possibly a road rage type.

Eventually my coffee got the best of me and I pulled off at a road rest area. I will be damned if he didn't pull off and park right next to me. Now I am really starting to get nervous. He got out and walked up to me and said " I was hoping you would pull off at a rest stop. I really liked the looks of your boat and wanted a closer look". Another fellow with a kayak on top of his car also came over to look at the Mac as he too liked the looks of her. After about 40 minutes of telling them about the Mac and opening her up and showing off her pretty interior they were suitably impressed and of course it just made my day. They turned out to be nice friendly guys that knew how to appreciate a good boat when they saw one. No road rage thankfully!