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Since 2001 we have propped up the forehatch lid with one of 2 sticks (shorter or longer). Mosquito cover is limp mesh sreening with weight sewn into the perimeter, which drapes over the open lid, and works with either stick. Cheap. Easy.
Ron

We bought our 2001 X new with an Evinrude 9.9 HT 4 stroke with full controls at the pedestal and a low pitch prop. It gave us hull speed (7.4 mph on the GPS) at WOT with full ballast and good forward and reverse control for easy docking. Unfortunately, after 5 years, we had reliability problems. OMC...

My 2001 26X has a factory line to hold down or pull and hold up each rudder. Line attaches mid height on rudder, hold-down end near front rudder edge, pull-down end near aft rudder edge. Mid-portion of line cleats on top of transom with rudder in held-down or held up position. Rudder pivot soose enu...

I recall some 60 years ago, with a high school buddy, welding 2 bike frames rigidly together about 3 feet apart, to form a 4 wheeled cart using 26" bike wheels. Turning too sharply at speed collapsed a bike wheel and ended the project. The bike wheels apparently were designed to handle radial, not s...

Anderson...I believe you may have had too much sail up for the conditions described. On a course to windward in 20kn (23 mph?) of wind, flying a full main and the working jib (110% of foretriangle, with CB all or7/8 down, my X would be heeled >> 20 degrees and would head up into the wind and be held...

A 5 watt solar plate (with built-in blocking diode) continuously connected to the original house battery in my old 1988 Mac D, kept that battery fully charged , in the boat, thru Michigan summers and winters, from when new (1988) till I sold the boat in 2000. The outboard was a manual start 8, so ba...

On passage with need to get to port by a given time and a too light wind on the beam to give enuf sailing speed, we sometimes motorsail. Rather than stow sails and merely motor at 5mph or so cruise speed (our X carries a 9.9 Honda), we leave sails up and run the motor at a below normal throttle sett...

drams.. sorry, no photos...Ron

To tack, use all the suggestions above e.g. keep speed up, don"t stall the rudders, set CB position to balance the sail plan, llet the headsail backwind, etc. If despite that, you become locked in stays, let the boat stop head to wind and start backing. Given some boat speed in reverse, steer to put...

About 2 years ago I installed a DIY adjustable friction wheel brake in the form of a strap (cheap woven plastic belting from the hardware store) wrapped snuggly over the top of the steering wheel hub, with the strap ends extending convergently downward. Cords, fixed at the depending ends of the stra...

Bob...The original Doyle sails are not the most expensive or best, by any test, but my X can still sail a straight course with its 14 year old original factory sails, if not overcanvassed and with CB positioned to balance the sailplan. I mention it because it is less expensive, and thus perhaps bett...

Mac X since 2001. Mac D since '88. Venture 17 since ' 80. Various since 1970. In 15 kn (17+ mph) steady wind (and gusts to 20 kn (23 mph)) with factory reefed main and that much genoa out, my X would be overpowered. I would run factory reefed main alone with CB line only about 3/8 to 1/2 out to bala...

From your last post I understand that your headsail was a genoa and not the smaller stock working jib. Given that, I would assume your lee helm was due to a CE too far forward as a result of a big headsail and a reefed main. Dousing the genoa and running a full....not reefed ....main would have move...

My headsails are hank-on, so I use the stock jib halyard to raise my stock asym, on my 2000 X and I tack it inside the forestay, treating it like any other headsail. I have no bowsprit so the asym is blanketed by the mainsail, or luffing, except on a very narrow band of courses. Thus, I usually have...

What year Mac X? Our 2001 has all rope centerboard line ( no wire as in the early X). Ron