MacGregorSailors.com

Max,

I got the trailer info from the boys at the Southampton boat show. It may only apply to new boats. The guy said it was to do with the width of the trailer.

So don't panic.

Simon

You can find out most of what you need here

http://www.ntta.co.uk/law/law/identification_plates.htm

Most of the reasons I know of is that the US Trailers by default don't have overun brakes.

No-one I know has ever been stopped so I shouldn't worry too much.

I am more worried about the width - the max in the UK according to this site is 2.3m (for a vehicle under 3500kg - even my Mitsi Shogun is under this)

I think (anyone measured it) the Mac is 7'10'' (2.3876m)

So we are 8.76 cm illegal width in the UK unless you tow with a lorry !

But like I said I have never been stopped and there are hundreds of Macs in the UK out there being towed. May be I have read the regulations wrong.

I am happy for someone to correct my maths.

(I haven't even included the fact that my bent ( ) launch poles stick out beyond the Mac.

Maybe the "Trailor" is narrower and the fact the boat overhangs a bit is allowed.

Never really wanted to ask a copper !!

Hmmmm, thanks Simon, Mark.
Last year I towed a 2.8 tonne sports cruiser which was 2.43m in the beam! I had a trailer made for it at SBS in Wolverhampton and towed with a Discovery. They never questioned the fact that their trailer was too wide, according to the 2.38m limit. In fact the trailer that I bought was one of their standard trailers - albeit one of their biggest.
I don't think I'll lose any sleep over it If I get stopped, I'll just plead ignorance!
I have to sya however that the Mac and the US trailer I have is the best combination I have ever towed. As I said before..the trailer is waxoyled in black and I shall do it again after the winter.
Incidentally, think about the brake flush kit....
Regards
Max

In response to the enquiry regarding a UK forum. There will be a new UK dedicated Macgregor site up and running by mid October the site name is www. macgregorsailing.co.uk It will feature: boats for sale, a discussion forum, items for sale, Macgregor bits & pieces & hopefully even a joke section. Its took me 6 months to get this far and have just to put the finishing touches to it. I have decided to put this site together after owning a number of Macgregors 26's over the last 6 years

So don't forget www. macgregorsailing. co.uk.

Malcolm

Malcolm,
Great news for the UK!! Look forward to raeding and contributing to it...whilst ,of course, still contributing to this one.
Max

Sounds great Malcolm. May be a good idea to make that a European site by adding a section on the rest of Europe. Would be nice to see any ongoing events, so non UK Europeans may join in. It is only a couple of hours drive from the continent to UK.
I just found out that many UK Mac owners went to Holland last summer, if I had known earlier I might have joined them.

Pouw from Holland

Hello from another UK based MacGregor owner. Ive joined the UK MacGregor Owners Association but their website is not very active yet. Ill certainly be a regular visitor to MacGregorSailors.com. Good luck also to macgregorsailing.co.uk.

I bought my one year old 26X a couple of months ago. She had only been in the water for three weeks. The previous owner had her on the trailer in his factory premises in Birmingham. He delivered her to my local marina in Liverpool and backed her into the water from the trailer (first time he had done it). That went OK but he then promptly drove her straight into the transom of a nearby motorcruiser minimal damage to our bow but some fibreglass repair needed to the other boat.

Ive just bought a Ford Maverick and will soon do my own first haul out and bring her home on the trailer for the winter. Thats a daunting prospect but I guess after all the reading has been done there comes the time when you just have to do it.

As regards UK towing laws I recently did a day's towing training with Towing Solutions who are the training provider for NTTA which was very useful. They say the maximum trailer width is 2.3 metres if towing with a vehicle up to 3500kg. The load may overhang up to 305mm each side. Similarly, the maximum trailer length is 7 metres but the boat is allowed to overhang up to a further 3.5 metres if a marker board is fitted.

Although I do like the idea of having a unique place for the European (and UK) folks to discuss issues which are more relevant to their home countries, I guess I'm sad to see that we can't do it all in one place. We have so many issues which are in common amongst us... further, I'd really like to be able to keep up with the UK/Europe Mac comments and issues as well as those in the US - so I'm faced with going to several websites to do this now.

A suggestion - why can't we just have another forum Index section (or sections) in this website where the UK folks and the continental Europeans can discuss their issues. Then we can discuss common things in the common index forums and unique things in the unique index forums.

At first I thought you were talking about a very ugly Ford sedan that was marketed here in the States. But a web search shows a little SUV, looks like the Explorer brand here. Are they the same? Have they had the tire issues that the Explorer had? Or is it something totally different? Is it made in the UK?

Boating Dictionary : Bow (bau) the pointed end, the best part of the boat to use to hit another boat.

km,
I like the idea of that! I've picked up loads of stuff from this site...and printed loads off to keep in a folder on board.
Great moustache BTW!! That's what I call a moustache!!
BTW Mike, where in Liverpool is the marina? Know the city reasonably well being a complete Beatle freak! Good luck with her. Ignore the negative comments from purist sailors......know the Mac's limitations and she's great fun. We use ours on the River Severn near Worcester and trail her to Plymouth and Brixham.
Regards all
Max

JK -
I resemble your remark about the Maverick. I used to own one as wellas a Comet. Not only were they ugly, but also underpowered. lol. Actually, I didn't mind the looks so much, but could have used another 100 ponies. Maybe if they'd hooked up a Honda 50 to each rear wheel?

My first car was a 1968 Ford Falcon with the 200 straight six. Ran forever, easy on gas, and underpowered enough to be safe for a teenage boy. And those bench seats sure were roomy and fun

Great moustache BTW!! That's what I call a moustache!!

Thanks, Max! Yeah, well, I guess I've never been one to do things half-way!

True story... upon seeing me for the first time, the mother of an old girfriend of mine winked at her daughter and whispered to her that "kissing a man without a moustache is like having eggs without a bit of salt!" I rather liked that comment... and I developed a new respect for the experience of an older woman. Just as well, too, as that's the only sort of birds I could pull these days anyway!

km,
Great story....
To be honest, you'd pass for an Englishman if ever you were to stroll pass Buckingham Palace - with a 'tache like that you could become an honourary Englishman!
(sorry everybody getting off the subject of Macs!!)
Max

Max wrote:km... To be honest, you'd pass for an Englishman if ever you were to stroll pass Buckingham Palace - with a 'tache like that you could become an honourary Englishman!

Ha! Thanks, Max! Tell the truth, I actually used to work in England for a little firm called Lotus Cars, Ltd... perhaps you've heard of them? I lived in Mells, Somerset, and later on in the village of Radstock. Click here to see me (and my young son) in a car a mate and I used to race in the UK - it's called a "Ralt". And I also once restored and later raced a car called a "Turner Sports", made not far from you in the town of Wolverhampton... unfortunately the sod who later bought it from me nearly wrote it off soon after... pics here.