new purchase Macgregor 26'

[thelederfam]

Hello,
I am new to the forum and fairly new to sailing also. I just purchased a real project boat, for cheap. This was an abandoned vehicle. I have a certificate of purchase from the state but not the title. I hope to get both the title and the trailer tags without issues. That may not be the case and I went through this with my last boat. I would like to know just what it is so that I can find the manuals, etc needed to restore it and get it into the water again. It was last registered in 1993 in ILL so I know that it is at least that old. What else can I learn from the hull number? The trailer is a steel but the numbers are worn off the name plate. It is a single axle with 14" tires.

thanks
John

MACR1 26 1 M8 21

[kmclemore]

What's the hull number?

[dlandersson]

You can put your location in your profile - can make it easier for folks to help you

Hello,
I am new to the forum and fairly new to sailing also. I just purchased a real project boat, for cheap. This was an abandoned vehicle. I have a certificate of purchase from the state but not the title. I hope to get both the title and the trailer tags without issues. That may not be the case and I went through this with my last boat. I would like to know just what it is so that I can find the manuals, etc needed to restore it and get it into the water again. It was last registered in 1993 in ILL so I know that it is at least that old. What else can I learn from the hull number? The trailer is a steel but the numbers are worn off the name plate. It is a single axle with 14" tires.

thanks
John

MACR1 26 1 M8 21

[budgates]

If it is indeed a Mac 26 and was registered in 1993 then it's definitely a 26C (classic) model. There are two classic models. The 26D (daggerboard) was built between 1986 and 1989 and can be easily identified by the foil shaped hole just behind the mast and the daggerboard trunk right next to the sink. The 26S (swing centerboard, because C was already taken) was built between 1990 and 1995. Both are water ballast and are quite similar. Both the 26X and the 26M are power sailors and were built after 1995. They can be easily identified by the twin rudders. The X has a swing centerboard and the M has a daggerboard.

If your boat has a weighted keel it's not a 26 and we would need the hull number to give any more information.

[thelederfam]

This is the id numbers stamped into the stern on the starboard side. Should there be other numbers somewhere on the boat?
MACR1 26 1 M8 21

I believe this boat has a swing centerboard instead of a daggerboard. I can see it under the boat and resting on the trailer frame.

I would like to find the floor plan and all electrical wiring diagrams. Better yet would be the full manual.

[budgates]

According to http://www.wadler.org/boat-mac/hullid.php that would be a Macgregor 25 built in 1981. The ballast for your boat is an iron keel that swings up and down with the assistance of a winch.

Go to the "Resources" tab at the top of the page and pick "Manuals" and select Macgregor 25. It's pretty limited but that's all it has.

You can find a wiring diagram and discussion about wiring here. http://www.macgregorsailors.com/phpBB/v ... 10&t=15151

[Tomfoolery]

MACR1 26 1 M8 21

Wouldn't the "R" signify it's a Mac 25? And the "21" is a mystery, as that's the model year. Maybe it's actually "81", which would put it squarely into the Mac 25 era?

A photo of the boat would probably help.

Edit: Too slow.

Edit 2: And wouldn't it be model year '81, but manufactured December '88? Assuming the "21" is supposed to be an "81", of course.

[budgates]

MACR1 26 1 M8 21

Wouldn't the "R" signify it's a Mac 25? And the "21" is a mystery, as that's the model year. Maybe it's actually "81", which would put it squarely into the Mac 25 era?

A photo of the boat would probably help.

Edit: Too slow.

Edit 2: And wouldn't it be model year '81, but manufactured December '88? Assuming the "21" is supposed to be an "81", of course.

I think you're right Tom. Model year 1981. Manufacture year 1988 (although they supposedly stopped building them in 1987).

Yes, the R signifies a Mac 25. Nice boat. The 625# keel makes it a bit heavier for towing than the 26 but still a nice boat.

[Tomfoolery]

Model year 1981. Manufacture year 1988 (although they supposedly stopped building them in 1987).

And here's my boat. Model year 1999. Manufactured in August 1998. Registered as a '99. With features of both '98 and '99, like ballast vent in the vee berth, but retaining the step that housed the vent (no ladder). And with a 2000 BF50 OB. Go figure.

[BOAT]

There are two brass ID tags in 'boat' - one on the stern and another in the cabin riveted into the liner on the port side where the aft bunk is.

[frede]

My hull number is MACM0xxxF405 which translates to Manufactured in June 2004, Model Year 2005. I think it's kinda like a car, 2005 model made in 2004. Even stranger is the Model year changes on July 1 each year so she's really is the last of the "early" M's. FWIW: I do have the folding door in the head

[budgates]

There are two brass ID tags in 'boat' - one on the stern and another in the cabin riveted into the liner on the port side where the aft bunk is.

Interesting. The HIN for Miss Behavin' is basically engraved into the transom itself (upper starboard corner).

[BOAT]

There are two brass ID tags in 'boat' - one on the stern and another in the cabin riveted into the liner on the port side where the aft bunk is.

Interesting. The HIN for Miss Behavin' is basically engraved into the transom itself (upper starboard corner).

Yes, I have seen that on some boats but a lot of superstitious sailors demanded brass. It's like stepping the mast with a coin - my dad would never let us raise the mast without putting a coin in the mast step first. I have finally started to shed some of the old superstitions that were drummed into my head as a kid (*women on board and so forth) - Naval tradition is always that a proper ship carries a brass plate with it's ID or name from the days when boats were christened by the crown (which also represented the church) "lest misfortune befall the crew". Really it allowed the trading companies to identify their ships when they sank for insurance reasons. If you want to know why your tags are brass is part superstition and part old maritime law to id boats with a tag that would hold up under water as a ship wreak.

P.S. I can often tell what guys on this site sailed prior to 1945 by the way they describe their wives as "admiral" - in the olden days you would never say that. (It's another sailor superstition and why I never say it).

*my dad firmly believed that a boats name MUST be a woman if the boat was going to have females on board AND that if a woman was to be one of the crew (your wife is LEGALLY the First Mate - NOT the ADMIRAL - and that's the law so don't even argue on that one) then the boat was to be names after your wife in some way if she was the mate. Preferably the first name and the initial of the last name.

Brass tags are always used on a proper ship.

[budgates]

There are two brass ID tags in 'boat' - one on the stern and another in the cabin riveted into the liner on the port side where the aft bunk is.

Interesting. The HIN for Miss Behavin' is basically engraved into the transom itself (upper starboard corner).

Yes, I have seen that on some boats but a lot of superstitious sailors demanded brass. It's like stepping the mast with a coin - my dad would never let us raise the mast without putting a coin in the mast step first. I have finally started to shed some of the old superstitions that were drummed into my head as a kid (*women on board and so forth) - Naval tradition is always that a proper ship carries a brass plate with it's ID or name from the days when boats were christened by the crown (which also represented the church) "lest misfortune befall the crew". Really it allowed the trading companies to identify their ships when they sank for insurance reasons. If you want to know why your tags are brass is part superstition and part old maritime law to id boats with a tag that would hold up under water as a ship wreak.

P.S. I can often tell what guys on this site sailed prior to 1945 by the way they describe their wives as "admiral" - in the olden days you would never say that. (It's another sailor superstition and why I never say it).

*my dad firmly believed that a boats name MUST be a woman if the boat was going to have females on board AND that if a woman was to be one of the crew (your wife is LEGALLY the First Mate - NOT the ADMIRAL - and that's the law so don't even argue on that one) then the boat was to be names after your wife in some way if she was the mate. Preferably the first name and the initial of the last name.

Brass tags are always used on a proper ship.

Appreciate the history BOAT. Very interesting reading. I guess I would have to keep a pocket full of change since I step the mast every time I take Miss Behavin' out. So I'm guessing that no ladies are allowed aboard your yacht since BOAT is not a woman's name?

[sailboatmike]

Many superstitions about boats are founded in illegal activity carried out by unscrupulous owners who would try and defraud insurance companies for the value of the supposed cargos.

A typical example was renaming a boat was considered bad luck as the owners would rename a unseaworthy ship to the name of a good one and then arrange for it to sink so they could claim the insurance, needless to say sailors were reluctant to sail on a renamed ship