Macgregor Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997

Review of the Macgregor 25 by Theodore Bruin

Year built	1983
Location of boat	Rochester, NY
The boat is sailed on	The Great Lakes
How the boat is used	Day sailing
Normal wind strength	less than 10 knots
Average size of crew	2-4
Liveaboard?	No
Owner bought the boat in	2008
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again?	I certainly would. So far this boat has been good to me, but she needs some improvements to make her a great boat. The previous owner cut about 3' off of the mast and bought a used mainsail, which does not work that well. The plan over the next several months (it's winter here in Upstate New York) is to make a new mainsail that is compatible with the mast. Furthermore, the rudder is beaten up from hitting the outboard prop and is totally ineffective, the plan is to rebuild a new rudder, too.
Gear that's been added	I have added a new depth finder, rewired the entire boat, a new anchor light on the mast, new wiring, a windex, and a 3' Shakespeare antenna to the mast. I have also added a homemade mast raising system (works like a champ, too). My next additions will be new cushions for the cabin, a new companionway door, shocks to the poptop (when that thing falls on your head it really hurts), poptop enclosure, and a bimini. Lastly, I am going to fabricate a tiller/outboard motor linkage system.
Structural or complex improvements	No, not yet. As I said the rudder is going to be rebuilt and improved. I am going to use the stitch and glue plans found on the internet.
The boat's best features	The ease of sailing, motoring and solo mast raising (now). Probably the best feature is the launching and recovery of the boat a the marinas I use on Lake Ontario. Great for a daysailor like myself.
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc.	The used mainsail, it just doesn't fit the mast that well and tends to be too flimsy. Also the old beat up rudder, which I believe is the original, is a poor design. So many people have said the original rudder was terrible anyhow and the one on my boat is missing big chunks on the trailing edge.
Sailing characterisitcs	Curretnly, the boat does not like to sail on a close reach. The "no go zone" angle seems to be 50-60 degrees vice the usual 30-40 degrees. I attribute that to the mismatched mainsail. Also the rudder does not respond well to changes in direction, again attributed to the condition of the current rudder. Otherwise, she is an easy boat to sail especially for a novice sailor as myself.
Motoring characterisitcs	Motoring is the easiest on this boat although I plan on making a linking connector between the motor and the tiller to avoid hitting the rudder with the prop. I have a 6 hp Johnson Sailmaster outboard and it can move the boat along at a good pace especially while motoring against the currents in the Genesee River.
Liveability	Since I bought the boat late in the season, I haven't had a chance to use it on an overnight excursion. After making new cushions for all of the berths I think the cabin will be an adequate place to stay for weekends. The cabin isn't bad especially with the poptop up. I am used to camping in a popup trailer (used to do tents when I was younger) and while the cabin isn't as roomy as our popup it appears to be liveable. After all you only sleep there, most of the other activity is done out in the cockpit. Future plans will be a week long cruise. I will report on that when it happens.
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)	I have not had the pleasure of dealing with them.
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any	Bought from a private owner.
Other comments	This is my first sailboat and I love her. I think this will be the beginning of long and friendly relationship.

Contact
About
Terms of Use