Macgregor yachts

[amytom]

I had the 26X and loved it. Was fun to beach right on the islands but was a sailboat so I could go up to the manatee areas where powerboats aren't allowed. Camping out on it was an adventure though; we have 6 kids and it got very crowded for sleeping or cooking.

It served it's purpose though, my wife is now addicted to sailing and we have a PDQ catamaran to sail away in. (Eventually)

[jackiepitts]

Seems there is alot of people that are confusing the various Macgregor built boats. The 26 with the 60 horse motor is nothing like the 21 and 25 Macgregor Ventures. It is probably best to clarify which boat you are talking about before giving opinions.
We owned a 25 swing keel many years ago and it is a straight up sailboat (we had a 8hp motor for it). Very light boat but would teach you a lot about sailing since its weight made for a unforgiving boat. It was a fun little boat.
I have no experience with the 26 motorsailor that has been in production by Macgregor for the last several years but it clearly was meant for a different purpose than the Macgregor Venture.
I am not familiar with the 65 either but I have been told that several are out there actively cruising.
Jackie

[Guzzi]

There is also the Mac 26S which is NOT like the X or M which are motorsailors. The S stands for "swing keel". There is also the D model which is "dagger board".
These are conventional trailerable boats with water ballast. The newer models are built better than the older ones.
A friend just sold his 92 S model with a 8 hp Honda on it.
yes, they are a bit tender but are actually quite fun and are okay for a weekend or a week's vacation on the water.
We used to take his to the Ft. Walton Beach area every year and ply the ICW.
He had it for 12 years and did minor maintenance on it, like rudder and keel cables and the like. It served him well in the role it was asked to fill.
The S model is no longer in production as the space for that model is being used for X production.

[cal40john]

I don't believe anyone has mentioned the original 26, which was a water ballasted sailboat, not a motorsailor. This website says they came in S and D models.

Also there is the 36, which is a cat. I almost bought one of these. I was thinking as a weekender I could expand my cruising grounds in Puget Sound since it has the performance of a beach cat. Downside is it has the accommandations of a beach cat, 4 single berths fore and aft in the 36" wide hulls, and no bridgedeck between the hulls, all trampoline. Some of the 36s just have a daggerboard in one hull, others have a daggerboard in each hull. The link also shows the 36.

Macgregor Sailboat Photo Gallery

Edit: I see I spent too much time composing my message, as Guzzi beat me to it on the S, and D models.

John

[Arch Stanton]

I'm always jealous when I'm sailing around in Budd Inlet and one of the local 26xs decides there's better wind a mile north so they fire up the motor and buzz me at 20 knots without taking the mainsail down.

[Québec 1]

Originally Posted by bastonjock

one thing i almost forgot is that my 26x is faster than quebecs 26m as i have the faster white hull

Not once I get the C3000 Musclehead Main...

Anyhow everyone knows (except the guys with the traditional white hulls) that the physics of the Faster McBlue hull allows it to reduce the drag coefficient of the cooler water as it streams by the warmer blue hull thereby augmenting the speed of the afore mentioned craft.
Q1

[sandy daugherty]

I used to sell Ventures. There were a few17s, the 21 was possible the best sailor, the 22 was pudgy with a pop top, the 23 had a cutter rig, and the 25. In the Early 70's Roger MacGregor built a few 36 foot cats, which were relatively expensive and an absolute gas to sail.

People with $6000 boats sneer at people with $4000 boats. People buy big boats to look down upon people with smaller boats. I think Roger built the 65 because it was a pretty damn big boat at the time, and there weren't a lot of people who could look down or sneer at it. Simple yachty concepts here!

As for my former Venture Customers: I changed my name and moved.

[jackiepitts]

It's really cool learning about these old Macgregors. They really were nice little boats but it seems they have been all but forgotten about since the birth of the 26M/X.
I am curious if anyone here has any experience with the 65? It seems pretty common for them to be converted into a cruising boats nowadays.
Jackie

[CharlieCobra]

I seriously considered buying a racing version of the M65. It was the famous "Joss", the holder of several records, one for 25 years. While they may flex a bit they seem to be fast, easily driven boats. People do cruise them and the Europeans seem to like them.

[clausont]

Originally Posted by Celestialsailor

My first boat was a Mac 21. Great little boat to learn on. I noticed the deck was pop-riveted on. If you have a choice, there are much better brands.

As with Celestialsailor, my first sailboat was a Venture 21.
After that I had a Venture of Newport. Great little boats if used as a weekend trailer sailer. I never did try to overnight in mine - just no interior room in them. They are a tender boat as has been mentioned.
I loved the cutter rig on the Venture of Newport, it handled quite nicely (for someone like me who knows no difference). I did sail it in the ocean quite a bit, but was careful to only day sail it in fair weather, They aren't built for heavy weather.

[CharlieCobra]

I still have my V-21 in the driveway. Neat little boat, great to learn on and performs better than most expect. Kinda white knuckle in 20 knots true on salt water though. Ya know you're moving when the SOG is 8.4 knots offwind against the current.

[bastonjock]

one of the MacGregor dealers is currently working on building a 33ft trailerable sail boat,waterballasted with a 25hp motor

[Christian Van H]

Originally Posted by nadler_m

Macgragor yachts

I have never seen the words Macgragor and yacht so close together! Seriously though, you can have a blast with ANY of their trailer sailors. None but maybe the 65 is ocean cruising worthy without much modification.

[sandy daugherty]

Thirty years ago a Texas sailor faired the centerboard on his 21 (it became a fixed keel boat) and was seriously fast, smoking 23' Rangers and Ericsons. But a 6' draft is a handicap on Texas Lakes!

In my mind these early Ventures were the minimum acceptable sailboats, eclipsing Clippers and Bayliners. I think its a shame to see one in the back of a boat yard with trees growing thru the trailers. Somebody, somehow, should be sailing them!

Bayliners, on the other hand, should make nice backyard playhouses, maybe with authentic gunports cut in the hull, skull and cross-bone flags, and so on!

[Stillraining]

FWIW

Hull #1 is for sale and is probably the strongest one out there being built for the main man himself...Someone had interest in one latly so I thought I'd post it.

1984 MacGregor SLOOP Price Slashed!! Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com