Bought my first boat, Mac26D!

[kevperro]

I just wanted to thank everyone here. This is a great forum. I started looking at Macs a couple years ago and thought I'd be buying a 26X. After being out on a couple sailboats though what has really captivated me is sailing, not motoring.

As a result I went looking for either a 26S or D. Found a 89D that fits the bill. It needs some work but the price was REALLY very good. It also didn't have a motor leaving me the choice of picking what I want (a good thing in this case).

Overall I'm very excited to be finally getting out on the water and wanted to thank everyone here who has stoked my interest over the last couple years.

[David Mellon]

Welcome Kev! Here's to many happy days of sailing for you on your D!!

[NiceAft]

Good show Kev.

Here's to fair winds for you.


Ray

[Moe]

Congratulations Kev! Very nice boat.

[impinnacr]

Kevperro:
I have had 2 of the D boats, one I bought brand new in 1987, and the one I currently have which is an 89 model that I bought last fall. IMHO, these are exceptional boats. When i started looking for another sailboat last summer after not having one for about 15 years, I looked at all of my options including keelboats, etc. What it came down to is this; I sailed my Mac in inland lakes and in san francisco bay many times in some adverse conditions. It never ever failed me. It was stable, easy to control, sturdy (despite all of the naysayers out there) and most of all, affordable. Now that I have another one that I got cheap, I have money to burn on upgrades and fun stuff. These boats are under estimated for what they can do and what they will tolerate.
Now I have a chance to introduce sailing to my grandkids, sailboat camping, etc, etc just like I did with my children.
Have fun with your boat!
Chris

[johnnyonspot]

What do people think about performance of the 26D versus the 26S? I have a Mac 25, which seems to be comparable to the 26S, i.e., both have swing keels, with the differences seemingly being the extra foot in LOA and the water ballast. Does the 26S have more righting moment due to the keel versus the dagger board? Just curious.

I think the apparent bad rep Macs have is a good thing as it drives down the price on the used market for all of us who know they do in fact perform quite well. Mine was had for a song of $2400, in good shape. I had my Mac 25 going 8 knots on more than one occasion last summer, and I am a relative neophyte, having been into sailing for only two years so far.

[Duane Dunn, Allegro]

If I'm not mistaken, the Mac 25 was the last of the weighted swing keels. We had a similar one on our V21 (an early Mac).

The 26D has a daggerboard and water ballast like the 26M, and the 26S has a centerboard and water ballast like the 26X. Neither the centerboard or the daggerboard is weighted in any of the Mac 26 series boats. In a 25 all the righting movement comes from the weight of the keel. In any of the 26's the water ballast does all the righting work.

The daggerboard boats have always been the best sailing as they don't have the drag of the empty centerboard trunk.

[beene]

The daggerboard boats have always been the best sailing as they don't have the drag of the empty centerboard trunk.

Ya, but if you had my 75 on the back of your you'd smoke my under power me thinks

G

[kevperro]

Kevperro:
I have had 2 of the D boats, one I bought brand new in 1987, and the one I currently have which is an 89 model that I bought last fall. IMHO, these are exceptional boats. When i started looking for another sailboat last summer after not having one for about 15 years, I looked at all of my options including keelboats, etc. What it came down to is this; I sailed my Mac in inland lakes and in san francisco bay many times in some adverse conditions. It never ever failed me. It was stable, easy to control, sturdy (despite all of the naysayers out there) and most of all, affordable. Now that I have another one that I got cheap, I have money to burn on upgrades and fun stuff. These boats are under estimated for what they can do and what they will tolerate.
Now I have a chance to introduce sailing to my grandkids, sailboat camping, etc, etc just like I did with my children.
Have fun with your boat!
Chris

That is a great goal. My kids went wacko when they saw the boat. My wife did too but in a different way.

I know a lot about these boats from reading but I have very little personal experience sailing. I'm green as they come with a lot of book knowledge, a dangerous combination. I'm planning on taking baby steps out on a fairly safe uncrowded local lake to get my feet wet.

I'm probably going to be asking lots of questions. Right now I'm just learning where everything goes. Don't want to try to figure it out on the water. Any suggestions you would have for a freshman 26D owner would be welcome.

[kevperro]

What do people think about performance of the 26D versus the 26S? I have a Mac 25, which seems to be comparable to the 26S, i.e., both have swing keels, with the differences seemingly being the extra foot in LOA and the water ballast. Does the 26S have more righting moment due to the keel versus the dagger board? Just curious.

I think the apparent bad rep Macs have is a good thing as it drives down the price on the used market for all of us who know they do in fact perform quite well. Mine was had for a song of $2400, in good shape. I had my Mac 25 going 8 knots on more than one occasion last summer, and I am a relative neophyte, having been into sailing for only two years so far.

I think there are only minor differences between the S & D. Unless you are racing it probably isn't significant. The DB has the advantage of being adjustable and retracted easily from the cockpit for downwind sailing. It is something I see people making note of adjusting to different depths as needed. Retracted you loose some whetted surface area and as Duane mentioned the bottom of the hull doesn't have the centerboard cavity.

I bought my 89 26D without a motor for $2900. The trailer is about what you would expect (rust here and there) and the boat is fairly bare without any electronics. The sails are not the originals (serviceable but nothing exotic) but there is no roller furling or other expensive options like a IDA rudder. For me the lack of "extras" was a bonus because I want to pick & choose what items I buy anyway. Season #1 I'm just getting the basics. a motor, VHF, and a depth sounder of some sort. After a year of sailing I'll decide what else I need to throw some money at.

[johnnyonspot]

The 26D has a daggerboard and water ballast like the 26M, and the 26S has a centerboard and water ballast like the 26X. Neither the centerboard or the daggerboard is weighted in any of the Mac 26 series boats.

"Ahhh, I see," said the blind man.

[kevperro]

Man... this boat is getting expensive. There are way more goodies than I can afford to buy!

The talley so far.

1989 Mac 26D + Trailer $2900

2007 Tohatsu 6HP motor + prop: $1520

Northstar 538 Chartplotter $328

C-Map NT+ MAX charts for Puget Sound $180

Norcross Depth Sounder: $75

Uniden Handheld Radio $60
------------------------------------------------
$5063 and counting


I still have some deck hardware and a couple halyards to replace. I'm going to be tipping the $6000 scale before I'm in the water!

[johnnyonspot]

IMHO, and FWIW, you might have saved a lot on the OB by buying used, and might have gotten more HP if you're interested in that sort of thing. I have a 9.9 hp on my Mac 25 that works well. I can't see having anything less than that. I see late model OBs on craigslist all the time. Some great deals to be had there.

[kevperro]

IMHO, and FWIW, you might have saved a lot on the OB by buying used, and might have gotten more HP if you're interested in that sort of thing. I have a 9.9 hp on my Mac 25 that works well. I can't see having anything less than that. I see late model OBs on craigslist all the time. Some great deals to be had there.

I watched but couldn't find a good 25" unit and I like the lower weight of the Tohatsu.

[LOUIS B HOLUB]

As a result I went looking for either a 26S or D. Found a 89D that fits the bill. It needs some work but the price was REALLY very good. It also didn't have a motor leaving me the choice of picking what I want (a good thing in this case).

My prev. boat was a 92 Mac 26S, and it trailered, rigged easier, and sailed a little faster than my MacX. There are some excellent bargains out there on Mac 26D/S boats. You got a bargain at $2900. in my opinion !
I recommend the depth/fish finder as a priority first mod so the shallows dont crunch that daggerboard.

Have you named her yet

Happy and Safe Sailing !