It’s really a lovely area and I could have spent more time there. This time of year, The weather tends to be difficult. The fronts are also passing though very quickly now which makes finding a protected location a little challenging.

Pt 2 I listened to the forecast during breakfast. E-SE15-20 with 20 in the afternoon, then tomorrow SE 20-25 before the frontal passage. There was supposedly a period of lower WNW winds which I knew wouldn’t last long until we had NNE winds of up to 30, near gale, they claimed, then maybe lower E-SE...

Pt 1 The Oceanside Big Pine Key area was one of the last places that I had yet to explore in the macgregor. I had been there in a smaller keelboat thirty five years ago but wasn’t able to do much looking around at that time. We left Islamorada (with new bow roller in place) on northerly winds that h...

Power tilt seems like it’s going out on my motor. Rebuilt one is 700. New etec 50 is 3500. Motors 14 years old. Maybe time? The thirty hp is 2500 from some site buried five pages into the search results. Anyone know if the thirty will hook up to my existing controls? Other motor recs? Thanks Ix

Awesome just ordered one.
Are you going to offer other stuff like shirts and hats?

Ix

Impact broke the bolts. I’ve hit docks harder, so it must have been just been hanging on by a thread.

Ix

I hit a channel marker the other day. I had the jib up and didn’t see the BIG RED MARKER until the last second. We were going about three knots. Winds were light. The impact torn the OEM jib in half. I had been using this sail because it’s easier to stuff in the sail bag. I was able to gently ease t...

Hi. Regarding rudders. I’ve tried tree different types. The OEM rudders, the rudder craft HDPE, and some very heavy solid oak rudders I had made in a shop to the rudder craft shape. Here are my feelings. Please note. I no longer feel the boat needs larger rudders. Depending on use, it needed the stu...

Hey Viz. wish you the best in whatever direction your boat less life takes you!
Ix

Re: M capsize I’ve had mine out in some pretty breezy conditions. She heels until the wind spills from the sails, of if it’s really windy, she lies on her side or thereabouts and goes to leeward in a hurry. I’m not a lake sailor. In the Florida nearshore waters, can usually see bad weather coming bu...

Re photos: I don’t have a picture. I’ll try to describe what I did. The OEM rudder has a 3/8 pin. The first year I changed that for 1/2 inch. I tried various rudders including the HDPE rudders. About four years ago, I drilled out the already oversized 1/2 inch pivot hole and placed a heavy (stainles...

Re open ocean sailing:
That is undoubtedly true. It’s nice to know the boat can do it if it has to though.

Ix

Ok, so the ones marked “new” are the upgraded ones from BW? I’ve had my boat 14 years and am still on the original set. They are bent at the bottom. I do quite a bit of sailing. I finally put a compression stud inside the rudder pivot, which is now a half inch. This system reduced the slop, and make...

Probably not. Did he mention anything beyond bandits and the ever present bribery for anyone in authority? I’ve done some pretty rugged camping in the seventies. We didn’t have much anyone would really want and my father was a good mechanic so he was often very welcome. I’ve been saddened to see Mex...

You have to do it on the tide with the M. You have to unbolt the lower gudgions, 4 bolts. Impossible to do alone. Plus reseal with marine sealant.

Ix