X Owners, would you upgrade to an M?

[Compromise]

Hey Guys,
should have never gone to the boatshow, but I did!
Thankfully I have a very interested Admiral onboard with me and we began at the boat show looking at Catalinas and then Beneteaus and we have since looked at several brokered Hunters. My wife was fixated on the Hunter Vision and me with the 2000 Hunter 31's. Due to the slightly added room and the fixed draft, we began to wonder if the bigger older,boat was an advantage at all.
All of this led back to the possibility of a job relocation and the convenience of our '02 X and we are now considering an M.

X owners would you? Has anyone actually done it?
If so Pros and cons please. Does the M bobblelike the X in choppy water.
I don't want to turn this into an M versus X thread and which one is better,just trying to do a little research before going ahead.

[Catigale]

I think the differences in 'comfort level' between the boats will be minor, and certainly in the noise of what owners feel and report rather than real differences.

If I owned either an X or M, my next boat would be a traditional keelboat, but I would keep my Mac for that next turn in the pages of life....its so versatile, it will always be useful....

[eric3a]

..

[Lease]

Nope - Not a chance.

For me, the genuine walk-through transom is a deal-breaker. Apart from that, I don't like the location of the dunny on the M, nor the way that the daggerboard breaks up the interior. I also like having a backstay, so that I can carry a kite, and the cockpit is much better on the X IMO.

Having said that, I would like the extra rear berth headroom, the moveable galley, the sharper entry, and the the larger rig.

All about personal prefs.

[Paul S]

as well as you get used to what you have..anything new seems foreign. There is not enough of a core difference in the boats for anyone to switch X to M or M to X IMO.

[NiceAft]

The questions were:

If so Pros and cons please. Does the M bobblelike the X in choppy water.

Some of the pros & Cons have been stated; now to the question of bobbing................YES IT DOES!

I love my boat, and I don't care who knows it


Ray

[Mac Ziggy]

I did it, but not by choice. I had a 99X that I sold when I got sick a few years ago. I’m happy with the M but it was a hard decision to make about which boat. When I started looking, there were some nice 2000-02 X’s available at good prices. When I finally got ready to buy, they all disappeared.

I have had my M for a year now and will start making some mods soon. I’m sure it will be my very own version and may name it the Mac ZooM. Think Zoo, not speed, hopefully with more creature comforts than creatures. I plan to keep my boat at least 10 years, so I felt better buying the M.

If I still had my 99X, I would have changed out the Honda 50, but I think I would have been very well satisfied with the boat. Neither the X or M are built to go fast under power or sail, so whatever you have, make it “your” boat and enjoy the voyage.

[kmclemore]

Different strokes for different folks, but for me... no. I like the features of the X better for me and my crew.

[Retcoastie]

I don't think I would like to trade my X for an M. Many reasons have already been mentioned. But, one thing I like on the X is the flat bottom.

So far, my experiences have not been so sever that the flat botton was a problem. It has been very nice when I foolishly anchored to high on the flats as the tide went out. She sits there nice and even. I sleep just like at home. The other Macs tend to tilt over and dump the sleepers out as the dirt comes up.

Another thing is the swing keel vs the daggerboard. I'm just to careless in shallow water and cut corners. Only when the swing keel starts to drag do I tighten up. A daggerboard, for me, might be a hazard.

[Frank C]

I'd have been an early buyer if Roger's 'NEW' design had been an improvement for my usage patterns. But the M design was not an improvement for me or my usage. Ergo, it could not be described as "upgrade."

I prefer my 26X in many, many ways ... centerboard, backstay, dinette forward, aft-head, larger cockpit, larger transom, etc ... but it's a matter of personal needs. My next boat would still be a trailerable ... prolly a Telstar 28, which would combine sailing speed with motoring speed and trailerablility.

[Québec 1]

These are my boats:

I like this one cause I plan on spending my winters with her in warm seas:


I like this one because she's fast and exciting:


I like this one the best cause she fits in the trunk of my car with the suitcases and groceries and comes in 2- 35lbs bags...which I wheell down to the rising tides on the shores of the Saint Lawrence in november when all the marinas are closed:

There is another boat I will like because she will take me across the oceans of this world I don't have a picture of her yet but I'm sure most of you folk can see her already can't you

[Night Sailor]

No, an M doesn't interest me, for all the reasons given by other's above. Not even if you wanted to give me a brand new fully equipped M for my 10 year old X. I want a keel to popup when I run over a submerged fence or tree trunk that doesn't show on my depth sounder!

Neither an X nor an M are perfect, but then I"ve never seen a boat that is, and probably never will.

[delevi]

Sounds like all a matter of preferecnce. Certainly not enough difference between thetwo boats to justify an "upgrade." For me, my next boat will probably be a trimaran. Call me crazy, but I'm quite intregued by the prospect of doing 20 kts. under sail. Probably will be a Dragonfly or Corsair.... 31-40'. Hey, we can dream, can't we? I'm thinking approx 10 years down the road. For now, My Mac with all the mods keeps me happy.

Fair winds & have fun,
Leon

[Catigale]

Next one for me will be 45 foot or larger and will park up on the Greats all summer....10 years away or so...

[Moe]

You don't have to go up in size to a boat that requires a diesel pickup truck and permits to tow, a crane to step the mast, a travel lift to launch, and diesel engine and fuel tank maintenance, to get a much more stable, much better performing boat.

All you have to do is get a pure sailboat or powerboat that doesn't compromise by trying to be both, one that has reasonable freeboard for its size and weight, even if it means loss of standing headroom.