Grampian 26 for offshore passage

[Sailingfrost]

Hi All,
I've been thinking of sailing from Vancouver to Hawaii.
I was recently given a Grampian 26 and was wondering if it could be capable of such a trip and if so what modifications it would need?
I'm still young and don't need it to be comfortable but I want to be sure it'll make it in one piece.

The hull and rig seem solid.
Would the size of the cockpit be a problem with waves?
The drains would obviously need to be expanded.
would the rigging need to be reinforced?
What other issues could you see with it?

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Sailingfrost.

➥ https://www.practical-sailor.com/rev...26-1182-1.html
➥ http://sailingmagazine.net/article-573-grampian-26.html

[john61ct]

I nearly bought one, supposed to be very sturdy classic plastic, well capable if sound of being upfitted to take you wherever you want to go

was en route to check it out the seller texted it was sold 8-(

yes camping no mod cons but that to be expected

If anyone knows for sure, I never got a firm number for standing headroom closed up, maybe 5'9"-5'11" ?

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by john61ct

... If anyone knows for sure, I never got a firm number for standing headroom closed up, maybe 5'9"-5'11" ?

6'-0" headroom in salon, according to reviews.

[john61ct]

Wow sweet, rare for such a small LOA

Thanks much

[Benz]

Check the rudder tube and bearings (if any). Spade rudders can be a weak spot, and there's a lot of force on them when sailing downwind in big seas. If you can drop the rudder and check for cracks and water intrusion and corrosion, especially where the shaft enters the fiberglass body, it would be time well spent.
Make sure the deck-hull joint is not leaking and re-bed as necessary. You can reduce cockpit volume by lashing a jerrycan of fresh water in there.
Drop the daggerboard and replace the hinge pin and pennant, and make sure the pennant gland won't leak as you pull the board up and down. Check the board for water intrusion and delamination--I had one break off at the trunk mid passage on a similar boat (Irwin 27). It kinda crimps your style.
Make a return plan. Do you want to stay in Hawaii forever, or will you sell the boat, or will you sail it back? It can be hard to sell little, older boats like that.
Obviously replace the standing rigging if it's over ten years old, and make sure your sails and lines are good. Best to check chainplates for corrosion and replace as necessary.
Phew. Good thing it's a small boat.

[GordMay]

Lots of information on the Owners’ website:
➥ https://www.grampianowners.com/G26/grampian_26.html
Including a “Manual”
➥ https://www.grampianowners.com/G26/G26ManualClean.pdf
and much more ...

[AA3JY]

Having owned a Grampian 26..great inshore boat..I’d hesitate for off shore work.. Very limited in water and fuel capacity. Is this an inboard or outboard engine version?

[astokel]

Originally Posted by Sailingfrost

Hi All,
I've been thinking of sailing from Vancouver to Hawaii.
I was recently given a Grampian 26 and was wondering if it could be capable of such a trip and if so what modifications it would need?
I'm still young and don't need it to be comfortable but I want to be sure it'll make it in one piece.

The hull and rig seem solid.
Would the size of the cockpit be a problem with waves?
The drains would obviously need to be expanded.
would the rigging need to be reinforced?
What other issues could you see with it?

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated

As a long-time owner of a G26, I applaud your adventurism. They were actually built for the Great Lakes but many owners have ventured off-shore.

I'd follow the tips below before setting out.

I run the Grampian Marine channel on YouTube, so please send us videos of your adventure so we can post them.

Fair winds!

Allan

[Orion Jim]

Owned a Grampian 26 in the early seventies. Honestly I would not take it offshore for a variety of reasons...no seahood over the companionway hatch, flimsy deck hatch, narrow side decks, cabinhouse windows (not ports) are huge and poorly attached, no bridge deck in the cockpit, huge cockpit capacity, small cockpit drains, small bilge capacity, bulkheads not glassed to the hull, light rigging, poor sailing performance, small winches, Minimal backing plates for hardware, small chainplates, etc.

[AiniA]

I suspect you could fix up the shortcomings mentioned earlier to make the boat more solid. Another question to ask yourself is what will you do once you get to Hawaii? The trip back is a lot tougher than the trip there.

[Mike OReilly]

I'm a former owner of a Grampian 34 (ketch), and have sailed, and been up close, to many Gramp 26s and 30s. They are all solidly built, straightforward boats. Not fancy or prissy, but solid where it counts.

I am aware of Gramp 30s doing long distance (trans oceans, perhaps RTW), and of course Gramp 34s have done much travel. I've also heard about many Gramp 26s doing long distance coastal journeys. But I can't say I've heard about 26s doing trans-ocean journeys. I'm sure it must have happened, but it must be rare. Simply put, there were not designed for this task.

The portlights, for example, are too big and too flimsy. Side decks are way too small for functional offshore work. I'd look hard at stanchion backing. And I wonder about the suitability of the standing rigging. Other limitations would be tankage and a relatively large cockpit.

Personally, I'd not do what you are contemplating with a Gramp 26 -- not without some major upgrades. At that point you can probably by a better option in the 32-foot range.

I'm sure you could do this given a Gramp 26 that is well set up, and with a fair bit of skill and some good luck. But I would not do it.

[TrentePieds]

Frosty:

Said with all the respect one gentleman owes another, the fact that you ask the question as you do indicates to me that you are yet at the low end of the learning curve, and that before you contemplate a life on the rolling deep, you need to get some further distance up onto the steep part of that curve :-)!

The question that needs to be asked is NOT the one you ask, viz is the G26 up to an oceanic crossing, but rather this: Is YOUR G26 up to it, and are YOU?

Half a century ago I sailed G26s often, partly for pleasure together with a raucous bunch of lads and lasses - all Vancouverites, but more often as a senior instructor for the sailing school that then was pioneering the teaching format still used by sailing schools all around the world today. The "crew" was then four students, all of them lubbers and sailing-wise green as grass.

Gord May has already given you the means to begin to “climb the curve” via the references he has put before you, but be cautioned that articles appearing in "the glossies" (e.g. Pacific Yachting) are merely encrypted advertising to fill the spaces among the obvious advertisements, and should not be given more weight than they merit. So let me add some opinions that have been floating around my intellectual bilge for that half century :-)

The G26 is a fine little inshore boat – far superior in every respect that matters to me to its contemporary in terms of price and target market, the Catalina 27. Here are a coupla references I recommend you study:

https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/grampian-26

https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/catalina-27

From these two references you will see that the G26 has a Sail Area/Displacement Ratio of 17.89 versus the Catalina's S/D of 15.22. You will also see that the G26 has a Displacement/Length Ratio of 216.94 versus the C27's 297.21. From that you may deduce by the very crudest of analyses that the G26 will be a “better sailing” boat than is the C27, as, indeed, in my experience, she is. Within limits that we can discuss at some other time, a HIGH S/D is good, as is a LOW D/L. A LOW S/D is bad, as is a HIGH D/L. Do not be confused by the reference in May's material to the “PHRF Rating”. That number is relevant only to the racing man, and is of no relevance whatever to the cruising man.

But ocean capability consists of a great deal more than these parameters, and a great deal of it is not even expressible in such numbers. Here is a reference you may find useful, although it is not directly applicable to you, as you will not be racing. It does, nevertheless, direct your attention to things that EVERY skipper (including single-handers) needs to contemplate in preparation for an ocean voyage.

https://www.sailing.org/tools/docume...0182019180104-[23449].pdf

As you will see, it addresses not only the VESSEL's fitness, but also the CREW's fitness.

Now, of more direct application to your situation, the RIGGING of G26s was not dimensioned for the stresses of an “oh poop!” situation arising at sea, and you should pay particular attention to the state of your particular boat's rigging. One dark and stormy night on passage from Keat's Island to Silva Bay while passing over McCall Bank, I sailed the mast out of a G26, so I know whereof I speak. I think I can say with confidence that the puddles in which the students then sat were not entirely composed of sea water :-)!

Do not let the above deter you from pursuing your dream. Do, however, let it be a warning that such dreams are fraught with complexities that you only know about innately if you are among the fortunate few who came out of the womb sculling a skiff!

All the best :-)

TrentePieds

[hamburking]

Grampians, especially the 23 and 26 are common in my area (Kingston, Lake Ontario, Canada). They are well built, not fancy.

With a little prep, I think the boat could do the trip, but it would be miserable and wet. Limited storage space would mean the boat would be jam packed with supplies and water. It would likely be too rough to cook most of the time. I would expect all your gear to be soaked with the first big waves, and stay soaked for the whole trip.

There are other small boats which are better suited for the task.

Can the G26 make it...yes. Should you do it? NO. IMHO.

[Dave22q]

I was a happy owner of a Gw26 some years ago. It's a well built boat but not for blue water. Also, unless given a total refit in the last 10-15 years, I woulld not venture more than a day or two from port.