StarSpun wrote:Salutations:-)
My name is Cat, and I'm new here! *waves*.
I've been lurking for some time to be honest....this forum has been a wealth of information which has aided my hubby and I in our search for our first MacGregor (we have decided on the X layout). We're pretty excited! Both of us have a background in boating....Bryans dad was a lobster fisherman and he used to work with him in the past. As for myself, I grew up in a family who had an addiction to powerboats;-) I spent a lot of my life on a boat of some sort, but only a small percentage of that was on a little sailboat (summer camp). We both kite surf (aka, we respect the wind!) and feel that learning to sail may just be right up our alley!
Not new to jumping into things like this....over 5 years ago we ditched our condo, sold most of our stuff and took off fulltime on an RV at the age of 25. It all happened within three months and we never looked back
Our original plan was to fulltime on a boat, but we felt somewhat restricted by where we could go. I cannot tolerate winters, so like the wimpy Canadian I am, I get us down to Florida at the first sign of cold:D We have been talking about one day revisiting the fulltime boat thing (or at least wintering on one), and thought to for once start out slow (kinda) on a Mac:D
Just last year we bought a studio condo for my biz, but as it turns out, we LOVE being downtown Toronto again so spend the summers there, and keep the RV as a cottage just north of Toronto. (Guess we are 'halftime-3/4s RVers now, ha ha!). Being right by the water, we sit out watching the sailboats go by, getting all jealous and stuff. Hopefully this summer, we'll be the ones scooting around while others sit and watch and get ideas
Soooo, things have progressed from finding a cheaper older boat to going up a bit in price and looking at Macs between 1996-2002. Now I'm pretty stuck on 1999+.
There are three contenders as of now, and I have put in an offer for one of them. I have been reading about the changes through the years and I am curious if the 1999 I just put in an offer for has the upgraded hull. Can anyone shed some light on this?
The last part of the serial number is:
L899
From my research, this means it was made in December 1998, but is a 1999 model. If anyone has any idea on what hull it is, that would be great! I am assuming the new one....but not sure....
Our first choice is this 1999 which is CLOSE to our route back home to Canada. It is listed as the most expensive, but I am working on getting it for a lower price since I think it may be a bit overpriced. From a dealer. Still waiting for the response and losing sleep
It's super clean, always stored indoors, has only had one owner, and barely has a mark on it....even on the outside. Trailer is in fine condition, has a stove, pump out option (a must for us), a few extras. Nissan 50hp, also a 1999, runs perfect and recently tuned. Fresh water only. Sails are in fine condition.
Our second choice (and sometimes first depending when you ask us, ha ha!) is a 2000 which is pretty much directly on our route back home. The Motor is a Nissan, but is a year older than the boat....a 1999. Will be tuned up before it sells. This is the cheapest of the three. It is sold directly from the owner (he was the only owner) and he has maintained it well, and says it is 'immaculate'. It has no stove, but has the pump out option. The trailer is in good condition with a spare. The outside of it has an extra stripe of color to match the red on one of the sails. It's very original and beautiful. The pictures however, aren't great (bad quality), and while I know they can lie....I am pretty good about seeing through them;-) It has been stored in a fully enclosed garage completely wrapped up every winter. Fresh water only. Seems a lot of extras are included with this one. Sails in great condition.
The third choice is the second most expensive, but not by much. Seller is motivated!! This one is a 2001, however, and it is located IN Canada....actually 20 min down the road from us in the summer. It is in rougher shape. Not bad, but not as lovely as the other two cosmetic wise. It has been stored under shelter wrapped up every winter, but this winter it is wrapped up unsheltered outdoors at a boat sale yard. The man selling it (not the owner) is super cool and seems very honest about things. The bottom needs paint. The inside needs cleaned a bit to be perfect. There is a apparently a barely visible scratch on one side from a buckle of some sort, really don't care about that. It has the pump out option but with a toilet instead of a PP, which is nice. Motor is a 2001 Honda which the owner says runs fine (will be one of the many conditions). Fresh water only. Sails are with the owner and are in fine condition.
So those are the three we are working on. Since we are in Florida with the RV right now, we are going to see if we can have someone look at all of them before we decide. There will be conditions put in for whichever one we decide on....
Anyhoo, will update as things progress. If anyone has any idea on the hull issue for the 1999, let me know:D
Thanks again, and hope to be a part of this forum moreso in the future!
Cheers!
over the border at substantial savings, even after taxes - but that was what we wanted and not the same as your desire to have bigger savings on a 'used goods' deal.
