New guy.

[silverfox441]

Hi everyone.

Just saying hello. I just purchased a '96 26X couple weeks ago here in Vancouver. I have been sailing with a friend of mine who owns an '03(?) and after a particular outing on Harrison Lake with my kids, we decided to get one. I love the versatility and the fact that it's trailerable. Strangely, the previous owner installed a '07 75 HP EFI Mercury motor because he wanted to "go faster". There is quite a bit of small items missing, clevis pins, whatever holds the boom to the mast (nut and bolt or clevis?), and to my dismay because i just noticed, the rear dinette seat back . It's taking rain water from the usual places (chain blocks and the forward hatch rotary vent) and somewhere aft (pedestal?). The water seems to follow all the wiring under it. But hey, i got it for very good price and i can fix anything and i have loads of tools.

I own a 17 ft runabout but my kids hate it and they never want to go out in it. Not so with the MacGregor. Well my friend's MacGregor at least. maybe it's him they like better? .

One thing, i have to replace one of the side cleat aft and i can't seem to figure how to access the bolts underneath. Raising the mast in my driveway was "fun" because my friend is gone to Australia for a few months and, obviously, he can't help me. But i got the darn thing up regardless . The boat is very "stock" and i'm looking forward to doing some mods to it.

Some stuff about me: French Canadian (no, not separatist ) served 13 years, aircraft and then HD mechanic, involved in some way or another with boating since the '70s. Married (very late in life) 15 years, three kids (2 boys and one very tenacious girl) 8,7,5. Now "semi-retired" which means i can't afford to retire completely but i'm to lazy to work full time (hey, she wanted to go back to work, right?).

Glad to be part of the MacGregor community and we'll see you guys later.

Alan.

[Todd]

Welcome aboard. You will find a wealth of information on this forum. Todd

[Russ]

Welcome and extra cheese for me.

We quickly bored of our runabout. The Mac is a different boat. The roomiest boat in its class that fits on a trailer. You'll love it.
Sound like you have all winter to dream up stuff to do with it.

Post some pics when you can.

--Russ

[Starscream]

Welcome aboard Alan,

The Mac is an excellent way to enjoy semi-retirement with the kids. We got our Mac26X in 2010 when my three boys were 4,2, and newborn. Now they're 10, 8 and 6, and don't remember ever having a summer that didn't revolve around MacTrips. We moved up from a Siren 17 which was our learn-to-sail platform for three years before we bought the "big" boat.

With regards to being with kids on the Mac, my advice is to be constantly aware of what makes them tick, and don't expose them to an adult's sailing trip. To be honest, my kids don't really like to sail, for sailing's sake alone, and I suspect that's true for most kids. There is another member on the forum named BOAT who recalls his childhood on a sailboat as really, really boring because he spent forever on a boat not really knowing (or maybe caring?) where they were going. I think he started to hate sailing because of that, when he was young. For kids, sailing is about destinations, not the journey. With the boys on the boat, we limit sailing to one of a few specific times: First, if we can sail downwind for extended periods and then barbecue and eat while we are moving nice and flat, or play games like chess or yahtzee, then sailing is cool and goes un-noticed. Second, if we are going somewhere on a broad reach with decent wind and we want to try to "beat our record" then it's all hands on deck for about 20 minutes or so with a lot of yelling and smiling; and finally if we are trying to navigate from point A to point B but the two points are not more than half an hour apart, so the boys can track our progress on the GPS, watch for markers, and so on. The rest of the time we use the motor to go places, trying to limit the overall moving time on the boat to about an hour. That's where the big motor comes in real handy: an hour gives us almost 20 miles of range between destinations.

With the kids on board, we basically NEVER go out for a sail. For the kids, that's not the point. We go places. To a beach. To a castle. To the middle of the lake for a swim. To a village upriver where we can walk on the boardwalk and get something to eat. We are constantly aware that we can't put the kids in a situation where they start to wonder why they are there and why it's so long and boring. Going out for a sail from point A to point A doesn't do anything for my kids, even though I love it. That's alone time for me, or time with my wife when the kids are occupied elsewhere.

With three kids, a full enclosure is a must, in my opinion, if you are going to spend nights on the boat. A worthwhile investment that gives you somewhere to put all the "stuff" when you transition from day mode to night mode. It takes us about half an hour each morning and evening to put everything in position for the appropriate mode. During the day, we store all the beach chairs, laundry baskets, tents, sleeping bags, pillows, sheets, lifejackets, paddles, toys etc. in the aft berth, but in the night most of that stuff goes up in the cockpit under the enclosure. The table comes down to make the fifth sleeping place and we spread out the sheets and sleeping bags and stuffed animals.

I used to live in Vancouver, but when I was young, so the distances involved in getting places around there with a Mac are not familiar to me. Are there destinations to take the kids to? We used to walk down to the marina (at or near Stanley Park if I remember correctly) and read the boat names on the docks. At the time we were dirt poor, three kids living on welfare with their mother in a one bedroom appartment, but we could still dream. Well 35 years later the dream is reality thanks to the almost-free Canadian education system which delivered my Engineering degree in 1996 and has resulted in my own semi-retired lifestyle with, thank God, the time and health to enjoy the Mac. Time flies. Enjoy it now!

[Bilgemaster]

Welcome aboard! As a fairly new owner of a 26X myself, I can assure you that you will find lots of tips and other advice in this forum to help you come to grips with your new vessel. My hunch is that if it's all squared away, working as it should, and trimming it clears the seat, that you might come around to really appreciating those 75 horses on the stern. I've got a nice enough old 50 hp Honda BF50A, and while I'm happy to have it, all things being equal I wouldn't exactly be crestfallen to have another couple dozen ponies back there either.

[dlandersson]

Pizza? I like (kids really) extra cheese.

Hi everyone.

Just saying hello. I just purchased a '96 26X couple weeks ago here in Vancouver. Alan.

[dlandersson]

From another post:

A few people have given me some positive comments regarding my "treasure hunting" expedition with the kids last September. For those that didn't see the vid, its here if you're interested in a fun activity for the kids/grandkids...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xm_124tVM5U

The map was copied from this guy long before we went on the cruise:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hF3jKjqsm58

It was screwed up in a ball, and then It was painted in a mixture of coffee and water and little bits were torn off all around it, and the edges and a few holes were then burnt with a lighter. It was then put in a rum bottle which just happened to be on the beach when we went for a walk!

The "treasure" had been buried in "dead man's swamp" while the missus was entertaining the kids not long after we arrived in the creek.

My boy still has the rum bottle and the map is now in bits from him pulling it out and then jamming it back in the bottle and taking it to show and tell LOL.

Hi everyone.

Just saying hello. I just purchased a '96 26X couple weeks ago here in Vancouver. Alan.

[silverfox441]

Thanks guys! Sorry, i haven't answer back faster.

So far we did a huge clean up of the interior, installed a hinge for the rear cockpit seat (wasn't there???), 2 four inches deck plates on each side of the cockpit so i could replace both cleats, fixed a bunch of rain water leaks (cockpit pedestal, all three chain blocks, both rear cleats, killing two birds with one stone when i replaced them) and so forth. We got ride of some accessories inside that were beyond saving (metal basket, wooden clothes hanger etc). I will redo the electrics so it's more flexible and safer. I don't know who did before but he didn't have a clue. We plan on modding the galley, of course. My kids are forever bugging me about "when are we going sailing dad?"! Which is a good sign i guess. I just received my new transom anchor light, LED, to lower power consumption. The original one was trashed. I have to install a new deck plug, the male portion has been ripped off from the electrical cable on the mast. So just a bunch of small stuff, which is fun for me to do. This is what i like. Buy something in fairly good condition at a good price, fix it up, use it. I draw quite a bite of satisfaction from it.

I'll keep you guys posted!

P.S. were is the option to post an image???

[Tomfoolery]

Thanks for the update. A couple of questions, and a couple of answers:

How did you access the rear cleats? Did you cut a hole in the cockpit seat back, or reach up from underneath?

What is a 'stern anchor light'? The light on the cockpit rail, port side stern? On a little flat area made for it?

I don't know who did before but he didn't have a clue.

Something you hear most of us say on a regular basis.

The boom is held to the mast with a small bolt. Probably 1/4, with nylon insert locknut. The manual, which shows this connection and many other thing, is available for download from the menu at the top of the web page, under 'Resources'.

Image posting is done through third-party web hosting sites. I prefer tinypic.com, which doesn't require an account and is anonymous (unlike photobucket and many others). Just upload, and copy the url with the ubb code at each end (img and /img bits at the start and end), and paste that line directly in your post. Leave a blank line before and after for best layout. Hit the 'Preview' button at the bottom of your post to see if it looks the way you want it to, and 'Submit' for post it if it's right. The image will be reduced in size, but clicking on it will open a window or tab with a larger version.

[silverfox441]

Yep. That's the light i'm talking about. Only the base of it was left, the rest was ripped off. I assumed it's what it's called, same as my runabout (transom i mean).
I installed the port holes on the cockpit seat back. Way easier access plus you can see the mounting nuts for the rear of the stern rails.
I did download the manual off this site. I purchased the appropriate nut and bolt, stainless with nylon lock and it is now mounted on the mast. I guess i should have mention that .

Thanks for the info about the pictures!

[Highlander]

welcome aboard I just moved to Victoria & I joined the MYCBC & lookin forward to joining some of there sailing events next yr

J

[vizwhiz]

Welcome aboard!
You have to have a certain number of posts (ten, I believe) before you can post pics. That's to help keep spam and bots away.

Glad to hear you're already on the road to having fun! Congratulations on your purchase!
A great resource, in the form of "Highlander", just moved out to your area, from what I gather reading the forum. If you connect up, and offer him food and whiskey (I believe), he'll become a great inspiration! He is pretty much "King Of All MacGregor Rigging Modifications", also affectionately referred to as "the crazy guy with four headsails".

Another inspiring resource is Sumner, who can, and has, pretty much built a rocket ship from an old GMC truck that also sails, cooks him breakfast, and does his laundry. Or maybe it just seems like that.

You'll have just as much fun searching these forums as actually working on your boat!

[sailboatmike]

Welcome to the exclusive Mac club

MY kids love sailing, I get them involved in all aspects that I can trust them to do, thats the way they learn and become involved, after all it is a family activity.

Remember the boat isnt just yours, its the families, so get them involved, even if its just holding a line, trying to pull in a sail or even on the helm.

If they think they are part of the process they will enjoy the journey as well as the destination and there is always 100 little adjustments that need to be made to the sails, even if its just to keep them occupied.

Im sure you will love it as we do, every day we like our boat and what it does for us more (well until it comes time to pull out and clean the hull, then they all disappear pretty quickly )

[silverfox441]

Hi guys!

Some updates. The winter has been particularly harsh here in Vancouver this year, so i kinda put everything on hold. But i've been buying a lot of stuff for the Mac and as soon as it gets back to a more favourable temperature, i'll be back at it. So far i've tested watching a movie with an older 21" screen i had laying around with a lap top plugged into an inverter: fun! I've replaced the bulbs in the ceiling lights with LEDs. Big difference in power consumption. I got all my wood and hardware so i can start modding the interior. I'm happy to say that i seemed to have fix all of the rain water leaks.
The kids are really excited about the whole thing and we are already planning our summer vacation. We are grateful to live in one of the most breath taking area for sailing in the world.
So far i'v found a wealth of info on this site and it gives me a lot of ideas.

See you guys on the water!

[Baha]

Welcome!

You will love the Mac! I have had my for 2 years now, and am trying to resist the urge to add mods until I am completely certain that they will be a good addition. I have actually ended up taking more stuff off then adding things. Next year, though, I want to think about redoing the galley, and will add the bimini cover I got for free this winter (unless you count the 12 hour traffic jam that driving to Cornwall usually means).

Have fun!!!