I just purchased a 98 26 X with a 50 HP Johnson.
1.) The documentation that the original owner had mostly seems to refer to the '97 model. In fact the water ballast controls on my boat are completely different from the "manual" (30 pgs. of photocopies), showing a "filling valve" control. All I have on the step is a lever action air vent plug.
I'm assuming that the '98 just uses the air vent and the rear gate valve for control of the ballast? Directions, tips, tricks on filling/discharging the ballast would be greatly appreciated.
2.) The diagrams I have for raising mast (using mast raising system) and standing rigging are also a little confusing. Any input on mast raising (with roller furling jib) would be very helpful as well.
A few questions from a new owner of '98 26X
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Randy Smith
- First Officer
- Posts: 254
- Joined: Mon Oct 11, 2004 11:31 am
- Location: "Breezy" 26X Boardman,Or
years
The good news, a boat isn't like a car and the depreciation isn't the same.
The bad news, it sounds like you have a 97X(which isn't that bad!!). In 98 the valves were moved up front under the V berth. The 96 and 97 had the valve under the step..... Another key, do you have a little ladder or a step platform?
Raising the mast should be the same.........practice make permanant, then again....I still screw it up....always have help and lower it on the trailer.
Filling the ballast. Opening and closing the vent allows the water to flow in faster and out faster. When motoring, open the gate and the air valve to get the water out fast.......make sure the tank is FULL or EMPTY depending on which you want.........the ballast is unsafe if not one or the other...no tweeners on this issue.
The bad news, it sounds like you have a 97X(which isn't that bad!!). In 98 the valves were moved up front under the V berth. The 96 and 97 had the valve under the step..... Another key, do you have a little ladder or a step platform?
Raising the mast should be the same.........practice make permanant, then again....I still screw it up....always have help and lower it on the trailer.
Filling the ballast. Opening and closing the vent allows the water to flow in faster and out faster. When motoring, open the gate and the air valve to get the water out fast.......make sure the tank is FULL or EMPTY depending on which you want.........the ballast is unsafe if not one or the other...no tweeners on this issue.
I don't have the exact hull number with me (I'm at work), but I'm pretty sure it had a "98" in it somewhere which, I'm assuming, meant it was mfg. in (early?)'98.
The step with the ballast controls is a small fiberglass pedestal just below the hatch. Another platform covers (screws into place) the valve assembly to raise this step a little higher when the valve is not in use.
The step with the ballast controls is a small fiberglass pedestal just below the hatch. Another platform covers (screws into place) the valve assembly to raise this step a little higher when the valve is not in use.
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Randy Smith
- First Officer
- Posts: 254
- Joined: Mon Oct 11, 2004 11:31 am
- Location: "Breezy" 26X Boardman,Or
Models
Simian,
You have a great boat no matter what the year...have confidence you bought a good product....It could be early 98 .....from memory, I thought Mac changed the ballast in that year....the 96 and 97 carried 150lbs of water ballast too far back and the gate valves were smaller, as well as being on the port side....
The most important thing for you to know about sailing or motoring is BALLAST IN OR BALLAST OUT.....the rest is how they say, "sailing is an hour to learn and a lifetime to master".
You have a great boat no matter what the year...have confidence you bought a good product....It could be early 98 .....from memory, I thought Mac changed the ballast in that year....the 96 and 97 carried 150lbs of water ballast too far back and the gate valves were smaller, as well as being on the port side....
The most important thing for you to know about sailing or motoring is BALLAST IN OR BALLAST OUT.....the rest is how they say, "sailing is an hour to learn and a lifetime to master".
Congrats!
Simian,
Congrats! Welcome to the world of Macgregor ownership.
Search around through the posts for "manual" - somewhere there is a site where most of the old manuals are available in .pdf form for free, so you can figure out exactly which one you have/need.
- AndyS
Congrats! Welcome to the world of Macgregor ownership.
Search around through the posts for "manual" - somewhere there is a site where most of the old manuals are available in .pdf form for free, so you can figure out exactly which one you have/need.
- AndyS
-
Duane Dunn, Allegro
- Admiral
- Posts: 2459
- Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2004 6:41 pm
- Sailboat: MacGregor 26X
- Location: Bellevue, Wa '96 26x, Tohatsu 90 TLDI and Plug In Hybrid Electric drive
- Contact:
When you find your hull number you will most likely find it is a '98. The code is
MAC - a - bbbb - c - d - ee
MAC for Macgregor
a = should be X for the X model
bbbb = is the hull number
c = a letter that coresponds to the month made. A=Jan, B= Feb, etc.
d = a number that is the last digit of the year made 8 = 1998
ee = two digits that refers to the model year specs the boat is built to. 98 = 1998
Even after you know the details it really doesn't matter, the boat is what it is. Your's sound like one of the crossover boats. During the transition time it seems there was some mix and matching happening of hulls and other parts from different molds. If you have the single larger valve on the starboard side of the motor you have the new fill valve design. If you have the flip lever vent plug under the step you have the old vent design. It sounds like you are missing the second valve that was on the early boats (like mine). It was a valve with a handle you spin and push down on under the step. If you don't see it sticking out there you don't have it. It would be interesting to look under the boat just behind the centerboard trunk and see if you have the recess in the hull for the valve or if they had that blocked out when they made the hull.
In general you will fill and empty the boat just like a late model one except you don't have to walk as far.
To fill, open the transom valve, go to the step and remove the plug. wait about 5-8 minutes and you should be full. When you can stick your finger in the vent hole and feel water you are full. Put the plug back in. I would suggest you wait at the vent hole for the first few times. Some of the boats with the vent at the step, but not all of them will ship water if you leave the vent un-attended. Mine won't over flow like some have, but it does spout water through the hole as the final air burps out. Until you know how your boat behaves, I wouldn't just leave the vent open and walk away. You could come back to a flooded boat if it's one of the low vents which are out there.
The reason the vent was moved forward to what arguably is a less desireable location than under the step is some boats had trouble getting all the air out. This left a bubble in the tank up front. It's not a hazzard or anything but as the water sloshes at anchor is can make anoying burping sounds. Mine doesn't have this problem at all, it vents all the air at the step vent, others don't. I think how your boat sit's in the water is part of the problem. If it is low aft rather than level to the boot stripe you may find air gets trapped up front when filling. I wouldn't worry about this the first few times out. If you find it is a problem, one approach to address it is to walk to the bow at the end of filling to help burp the air out.
Once the tank is full, put the plug in and then close the transom valve.
Draining is just the reverse. If under way, speed up to around 8-9 knots so the boat is in it's bow high attitude. Open the rear valve and the vent. Wait about 10 minutes and you should be dry. The ideal speed is one where the water at the transom breaks away cleanly from the bottom of the boat leaving the valve dry and exposed. You will see the water flowing out the open valve. When the flow stops you are empty.
Draining at the ramp, before you put the boat on the trailer open the rear valve and the vent. (Only do this if your boat is one that doesn't flood or spurt through the vent. Other wise wait to open until you have pulled the boat out a bit.) Load the boat onto the trailer, just winching the boat on will lift the bow and start the draining. Pull just a bit up the ramp, you don't have to pull the boat all the way out clear of the water (some vehicles may find it hard to pull a boat with full ballast out completely plus it's hard on the trailer and tires as well). Wait about 5 minutes, then pull up more until you do have the boat clear of the water and no more water comes out the valve. Close the valve, plug the vent and you are done.
Mast raising with the kit and a furler is straight forward. You might want to take a look at my detailed setup and teardown checklist I have at my web site, http://www.ddunn.org/Boat%20Procedures.pdf . Most likely there are things in it that won't apply to you as it is gear specific to my boat with it's enclosure and other gear, but the core process is the same. I leave all the raising kit parts in place at all times, the baby stays, the raising pole with tackle.
The steps are these:
1 - Undo and fastners that hold the furler to the mast leaving one at the speaders.
2 - Remove the bolt and mast from the pulpit, clear the spreaders from under the lifelines, and roll the mast aft to the step. Install bolt.
3 - Attach the bottom of the raising tackle to the deck padeye. Elevate the raising pole to just aft of vertical with the jib halyard and cleat the halyard off. (I tie the tail to the vang bail to backup the cleat). Remove the final bungee at the spreaders.
4 - Run the tail of the raising tackle back to the winch, (I go starboard) and take three turns. Make sure all the side stays and the back stay are all outboard and clear. Begin to winch the mast up always tailing the line by hand at the winch. Keep an eye out for snags. They will happen. If you hit a snag or get a twisted stay, back down a bit, then take the tail of the raising line and cleat it to the aft dock cleat before you release it. Do not trust the cam cleat at the winch. Masts have come crashing down when the line slips out of these cleats. Go untangle as needed then continue raising.
5 - When all the way up the stays will all go tight. Give two or three extra pulls on the line to tension the rig, then cleat off the tail of the raising line at the aft dock cleat.
6 - Go forward and bring the furler drum to the bow and insert the pin and ringding. Depending on your rig tension this can be easy or hard. Make sure the opening in the furler drum is facing the right way. You may want to wrap the furler drum in something during the raising process to protect the deck from scratches as the mast goes up. I have my wife stand on the trailer tounge and pull on the drum with the furling line. As the mast goes up she brings the drum closer so it never touches the deck. She then puts the pin in, (we have a oversized one which is much easier than the standard one) and installs the ringding from her position on the trailer.
7 - I then release the raising tackle and coil it up. Release it from the deck, and then I fold the pole up against the front of the mast and bungee it there. I don't remove the pole or the baby stays. The raising tackle is always attached to the pole. Tidy up the halyard and you are ready for the other steps like the boom and other gear.
If you have any more specific questions about any of this let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.
MAC - a - bbbb - c - d - ee
MAC for Macgregor
a = should be X for the X model
bbbb = is the hull number
c = a letter that coresponds to the month made. A=Jan, B= Feb, etc.
d = a number that is the last digit of the year made 8 = 1998
ee = two digits that refers to the model year specs the boat is built to. 98 = 1998
Even after you know the details it really doesn't matter, the boat is what it is. Your's sound like one of the crossover boats. During the transition time it seems there was some mix and matching happening of hulls and other parts from different molds. If you have the single larger valve on the starboard side of the motor you have the new fill valve design. If you have the flip lever vent plug under the step you have the old vent design. It sounds like you are missing the second valve that was on the early boats (like mine). It was a valve with a handle you spin and push down on under the step. If you don't see it sticking out there you don't have it. It would be interesting to look under the boat just behind the centerboard trunk and see if you have the recess in the hull for the valve or if they had that blocked out when they made the hull.
In general you will fill and empty the boat just like a late model one except you don't have to walk as far.
To fill, open the transom valve, go to the step and remove the plug. wait about 5-8 minutes and you should be full. When you can stick your finger in the vent hole and feel water you are full. Put the plug back in. I would suggest you wait at the vent hole for the first few times. Some of the boats with the vent at the step, but not all of them will ship water if you leave the vent un-attended. Mine won't over flow like some have, but it does spout water through the hole as the final air burps out. Until you know how your boat behaves, I wouldn't just leave the vent open and walk away. You could come back to a flooded boat if it's one of the low vents which are out there.
The reason the vent was moved forward to what arguably is a less desireable location than under the step is some boats had trouble getting all the air out. This left a bubble in the tank up front. It's not a hazzard or anything but as the water sloshes at anchor is can make anoying burping sounds. Mine doesn't have this problem at all, it vents all the air at the step vent, others don't. I think how your boat sit's in the water is part of the problem. If it is low aft rather than level to the boot stripe you may find air gets trapped up front when filling. I wouldn't worry about this the first few times out. If you find it is a problem, one approach to address it is to walk to the bow at the end of filling to help burp the air out.
Once the tank is full, put the plug in and then close the transom valve.
Draining is just the reverse. If under way, speed up to around 8-9 knots so the boat is in it's bow high attitude. Open the rear valve and the vent. Wait about 10 minutes and you should be dry. The ideal speed is one where the water at the transom breaks away cleanly from the bottom of the boat leaving the valve dry and exposed. You will see the water flowing out the open valve. When the flow stops you are empty.
Draining at the ramp, before you put the boat on the trailer open the rear valve and the vent. (Only do this if your boat is one that doesn't flood or spurt through the vent. Other wise wait to open until you have pulled the boat out a bit.) Load the boat onto the trailer, just winching the boat on will lift the bow and start the draining. Pull just a bit up the ramp, you don't have to pull the boat all the way out clear of the water (some vehicles may find it hard to pull a boat with full ballast out completely plus it's hard on the trailer and tires as well). Wait about 5 minutes, then pull up more until you do have the boat clear of the water and no more water comes out the valve. Close the valve, plug the vent and you are done.
Mast raising with the kit and a furler is straight forward. You might want to take a look at my detailed setup and teardown checklist I have at my web site, http://www.ddunn.org/Boat%20Procedures.pdf . Most likely there are things in it that won't apply to you as it is gear specific to my boat with it's enclosure and other gear, but the core process is the same. I leave all the raising kit parts in place at all times, the baby stays, the raising pole with tackle.
The steps are these:
1 - Undo and fastners that hold the furler to the mast leaving one at the speaders.
2 - Remove the bolt and mast from the pulpit, clear the spreaders from under the lifelines, and roll the mast aft to the step. Install bolt.
3 - Attach the bottom of the raising tackle to the deck padeye. Elevate the raising pole to just aft of vertical with the jib halyard and cleat the halyard off. (I tie the tail to the vang bail to backup the cleat). Remove the final bungee at the spreaders.
4 - Run the tail of the raising tackle back to the winch, (I go starboard) and take three turns. Make sure all the side stays and the back stay are all outboard and clear. Begin to winch the mast up always tailing the line by hand at the winch. Keep an eye out for snags. They will happen. If you hit a snag or get a twisted stay, back down a bit, then take the tail of the raising line and cleat it to the aft dock cleat before you release it. Do not trust the cam cleat at the winch. Masts have come crashing down when the line slips out of these cleats. Go untangle as needed then continue raising.
5 - When all the way up the stays will all go tight. Give two or three extra pulls on the line to tension the rig, then cleat off the tail of the raising line at the aft dock cleat.
6 - Go forward and bring the furler drum to the bow and insert the pin and ringding. Depending on your rig tension this can be easy or hard. Make sure the opening in the furler drum is facing the right way. You may want to wrap the furler drum in something during the raising process to protect the deck from scratches as the mast goes up. I have my wife stand on the trailer tounge and pull on the drum with the furling line. As the mast goes up she brings the drum closer so it never touches the deck. She then puts the pin in, (we have a oversized one which is much easier than the standard one) and installs the ringding from her position on the trailer.
7 - I then release the raising tackle and coil it up. Release it from the deck, and then I fold the pole up against the front of the mast and bungee it there. I don't remove the pole or the baby stays. The raising tackle is always attached to the pole. Tidy up the halyard and you are ready for the other steps like the boom and other gear.
If you have any more specific questions about any of this let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.
Thanks!
Duane, Andy, and Randy,
Thanks for taking the time to write your replies. Duane, your web site is very helpful too!
I must, in fact, have one of the "tweeners": I have the starboard side transom valve, single step-mounted flip-valve vent.
Thanks for taking the time to write your replies. Duane, your web site is very helpful too!
I must, in fact, have one of the "tweeners": I have the starboard side transom valve, single step-mounted flip-valve vent.
-
Pouw Geuzebroek
- Engineer
- Posts: 179
- Joined: Mon Jan 12, 2004 11:22 am
- Location: Aalsmeer (NL) The Netherlands (Europe) 1999 X 'Travelling Light' Yamaha 9.9 high thrust
Simian, check this earlier threat about the factory changes that took place between 1998 and 2000. This may clarify some things. 2000 Mods
)I rechecked the hull number when I got home last night...
Boat has a manufacture date of Sept. 97, 1998 model though ("I798").
The vessel has a lot of extras: beautiful spinnaker (never sailed with one...must learn now!), stainless grill, skis, wakeboard, VHF, mast raising, etc...
I think I got a pretty good deal, only one previous owner; plus the boat has been used exclusively in fresh water.
Boat has a manufacture date of Sept. 97, 1998 model though ("I798").
The vessel has a lot of extras: beautiful spinnaker (never sailed with one...must learn now!), stainless grill, skis, wakeboard, VHF, mast raising, etc...
I think I got a pretty good deal, only one previous owner; plus the boat has been used exclusively in fresh water.
-
Pouw Geuzebroek
- Engineer
- Posts: 179
- Joined: Mon Jan 12, 2004 11:22 am
- Location: Aalsmeer (NL) The Netherlands (Europe) 1999 X 'Travelling Light' Yamaha 9.9 high thrust
congrats!
you've got a very fine boat. the '97 model is one of the best (i also have one) 
! just kidding... but i still prefer to have the vent plug handy at the companioway than forward under the v-berth (where i have my 25 gallon water tank). 2 tips: bring some weight into the bow to minimize weather helm, and reinforce your cast aluminum rudder brackets before they brake.
! just kidding... but i still prefer to have the vent plug handy at the companioway than forward under the v-berth (where i have my 25 gallon water tank). 2 tips: bring some weight into the bow to minimize weather helm, and reinforce your cast aluminum rudder brackets before they brake.-
Mark Prouty
- Admiral
- Posts: 1723
- Joined: Mon Jan 19, 2004 8:52 am
- Location: Madison, WI Former MacGregor 26X Owner
I looked at a boat around '98 that had the pedistal step (no ladder). The valve wasn't under the step. It was in the bow.
I keep selling the mast raising system on Erik Hardtle's site. It works really well. All the parts are listed and you can order them online. Erik has posted many nice mods.
Here is a listing of other sites with mods.
http://macgregorsailors.com/links.php
I keep selling the mast raising system on Erik Hardtle's site. It works really well. All the parts are listed and you can order them online. Erik has posted many nice mods.
Here is a listing of other sites with mods.
http://macgregorsailors.com/links.php
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Captain Steve
- Captain
- Posts: 722
- Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2004 9:40 am
- Sailboat: MacGregor 26X
- Location: Oxnard, CA "Wildest Dream" '98X Nissan 50