Macgregor Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Macgregor 26M by Joe Hostetter

Year built	2007
Location of boat	Montross, VA
The boat is sailed on	Bays, sounds, or protected salt water
How the boat is used	Weekends and longer
Normal wind strength	10-15 knots
Average size of crew	2-4
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	2007
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	Yes! Best of both worlds, sailing and powerboating.
Gear that's been added	3 12v power sockets. 500w DC/AC inverter. GPS/depth sounder added by dealer.
Structural or complex improvements	No
The boat's best features	Ability to transition from sailing to powerboating. Had a day when we planned on sailing and the wind died from 10 kts to 3kts just after we set the main and genoia. Tried to cope for 40 minutes and then gave up and decided to tube. Perfect boat for a family, kids would have learned to hate sailing that day, had we not transitioned to water sports.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	Dagger board makes a 'blow hole' when you hit 18 to 22 kts and have choppy water. Watch out for water coming up through the dagger board opening when at high speeds. This water can enter the cabin if the hatch is not all the way back.
Sailing characterisitcs	We had a great day sailing in 10 to 15kts wind. We were on a close reach and doing about 6kts with me and the kids hiked out. The boat handled well and had no problems with the 1' to 2' of chop. Later in the day, had a sailor comment that he knew we must be in a MacGregor when he saw us anchored in 2' of water just off of the beach.
Motoring characterisitcs	We went for the 75HP Honda and are very pleased with the decision. When we test drove the boat with the RPM set for the 50HP the speed was about 18MPH. We get about 22 MPH with the boat loaded and 2 tubers being towed. I love this motor! Find a dealer that is approved for the higher HP if you are serious about watersports. Watch out for tight turns . . . this is not a powerboat and your have a high mast. You can do nice S-turns and large circles and keep the kids more than happy. I agree with the other posters on slow speed handling . . . use at least one rudder and about 1' of dagger board and it will maneuver in any tight marina.
Liveability	We are two adults and two pre-teens. Have a nice double bed in the aft and a good v-berth forward. The couch also makes a nice birth. A 6' adult can stand in the cabin and there is plenty of room in the cockpit. Love the space.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	N/A
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any	Bought from A-1 Sailboats in MD. Jim has taken this boat from NY to the Bahamas. He knows how to sail and motor it. We went for the 1/2 day charter and it was the best decision we made. We were able to evaluate the boat and got a nice sailing lesson to boot. When we commissioned the 'Sea Horse' we opted for a second day of sailing with Jim and received more pointers. Jim added his package of extras and he knows what you need to make this boat work. If you live in the mid-atlantic area, talk to Jim!
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