Worst Sailboats - What Not To Buy - Ep 254 - Lady K Sailing
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- Опубликовано: 2 июн 2024
- This week we take a look at a couple of the worst sailboats you can buy if your boat shopping to go cruising or live aboard in the Bahamas or Caribbean. The bad sailboats that are actually being used as live aboard cruisers right now. Sailboat problems, bad fibreglass work, sinking sailboats.
This week we look at BAD sailboats and what not to buy, how to spot problems with a sailboat before you go see it, red flags in sailboat for sale ads and boat brokers, damaged sailboats, and sailboats that will just cost to mucht o fix. How to not buy a sailboat.
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I will likely never buy a sailboat (62 yrs old and 2 kids still in college) BUT I am entranced by the whole idea of cruising and find your videos invaluable, If I ever did buy a sailboat, I'd hire you first.
Irwin 37 CC, $12K, got my family sailing.After some sweat equity she's kept us safe all around the Pacific Northwest. Tim's right, She's leaky so 5200 is required, but the decks are hard. Stations solid - maintain.. A great boat to make all of your mistakes on (solid, stubby mast, can bolt things to her without fussing). 2nd head = storage!!! Tim knows his craft, spot on. PS, thanks for the honesty and courage in your booze video. We NEED to hear that.
The worst sailboat to buy is one you never sail.
I have worked at a marina for 30 yrs. They used to sail, their kids now tailgate equivalent on their boats.
Damn! You sure got that right.
"For people who want to pull a waterskier behind their sailboat" 🤣🤣
😂😂😂😂😂
The best sailboat is the one you use the most. I have had thousands of hours on my MacGregor and have never had a bad moment on it.
@@dougm5895 I totally agree. Any boat that doesn't get used is the one that needs the most repair. A buddy of mine is looking to get a McGregor after having many sailboats including the 37' Lagoon Catamaran he just sold.
I easily passed one sailing down a channel in my old SJ24, but they got the last spot at the dock because they could switch on the motor which beat my 6hp Evinrude and displacement hull.
I think they have a place and there are four on my dock in the marina. Here in Puget Sound in summer, the winds can be light and variable, so you can spend a lot of time rolling the sails in and out before deciding to motor to get somewhere. Not to mention sometimes you can be sailing full burl and going backwards over the ground because of currents. If you have a family and you only have the weekend it can be a good way to get to the islands and sail around and get to the dock in the evening.
I looked at them but never bought one, but after a number of sailboats, I bought a trawler and suddenly realized all the destinations were much closer than I thought in the previous 30 years because I wasn’t putting the sails up and down and tacking with the current against me. In places with stronger or more consistent winds, or less passages with strong currents they might be a terrible idea, but in some places they might be useful
Anyways, McGregor retired and one of his daughters took over and moved the production across the country and renamed the boat Tattoo 26 and I don’t know if they sold any, or are still around. All McGregor’s are used at this point.
@@artsmith103, almost everything you listed is wrong
I owned a MacGregor 65 pilot house, it was my second sailboat and I purchased the boat for $25,000 and the first thing I did was haul it out and do a bottom job. My boat came with the Volvo TAMD41B which I rebuilt myself for around $4,000 in parts and I tuned it for 250hp. I did completely rewired the boat with all the newer used electronics. The boat was all fiberglass construction and it was fast, it was definitely a cross between a race boat and a yacht.
I used to laugh at people in the eighties who mocked my old wooden boat telling me how their boat would be around forever and mine would rot to pieces next year… Mines still around.
Much like a lot of people think piloting a motor vessel is like driving a car, a lot of people think a fiberglass boat is maintenance free... except for sponging off and polishing. That, they think is important stuff to do.
gday from austrailia,now i do agree with u about the Macgregor in some aspects,but i have owned one for 5 years now the X,and i love it,it has a Cult following,iI dont water ski but while fellow sailors can take all day to get home we can leave on a late sundat arvo and have her back on the trailor and home before most boats are even half way,i would surgest watching some of my videos,i completed a 600 klm round trip in her at some ponts being 30k out to sea,i would totally recommend for the firsy sail boat owner to give it a go,we went in a race with her surf to city and we got the biggest applause out of everyone and had a great time doing so
Well, I bought a Challenger 35 USA for $500. Its hand laid up and the decks a 1/2" thick glass all backed up with 1/2" marine plywood. But nobody ever looks at these boats....
If you haven't done so, how about an episode on the old boats made in and around Taiwan, Japan, Hong Kong etc. Particularly boats like the Choy Lee Clippers, Sea Wolf, Island Traders etc. How are they holding up, who would want one, and so forth.
Thank You.
Irwin hating sounds fun, too bad those who own them are too busy sailing comfortably to care.
😂. Bunch of you tube warriors without sailboats out there talking smack! Can’t wait to have a boat one day!
Well said!
Tim I have owned a MacGregor for 29 years and have sailed it in the waters of Vancouver Island and now the great lakes. In fact I was just across from you in the Clinton River Michigan this summer. The best sailboat is the one that you will use the most. I have spent thousands of hours on my MacGregor 26S and have loved every minute of it.
I have a 26x and agree 100%.
Absolutely! Also note that Tim talks about MacGregor powersailers, he probably not aware of classic S and D models. Those things are proper sailboats. Yeas, they are light and tender, but they also trailerable and fast.
@@alexshyshkov8585 The idea of a trailerable boat with shallow draft (when needed) and a droppable mast is very attractive, especially in lake country. When I began sailing in Poland, I came across a much more solid solution. Mazurian lake boats are generally as solidly built as the best keelboats, but have internal balast, swinging centreboards and rudders giving a 1 foot draught for negotiating creeks between lakes and move into shallows, while a strong A-frame up front with a line to a winch aft makes lowering and raising the mast a breeze to pass under bridges over the same shallow creeks. Unlike the original MacGregors, everything on these boats is solid; with a fixed keel or even a keel-centreboard, these boats sail oceans. They are available in North America, (e.g. TES ), and can open up all sorts of cruising grounds not easily accessible with conventional sailboats (e.g. in Ontario, Canada).
I had a 26S as well. It was good to me as a lake boat, till irrigation season left it stuck in the mud one summer.
As a recovering Macgregor owner, you are correct. The quality of the build has much to be desired and they just don't sail well. All that said, it did meet a need of mine. I had a 6 mile motor to open water through shallow canals and backwater passes. Macgregor was perfect for me but I cannot think of another use for the vessel.
I spent a couple years cruising with my family on a 65 foot ketch, and came across a number of Irwin's, my favourite was the 52. We saw several, and the owners loved them. They are not yachts, they are motor sailers, but for many people coastal cruising, that works perfectly well. I think you are being a tad hard on Irwin. Build quality may be an issue on some of their boats, not something i know, but they aren't the lone ranger there. Many usa boat builders cut multiple corners.
Hi Tim, agree with all your comments. There’s a place for almost any kind of boat for the right person. I do have to add two important cautions for the new to sailing buyer looking for their entry boat and that 1) is it insurable and 2) will a marina or club allow you in? The first point is yes, with the right upgrades and good research prior to sail. The second point is maybe and is becoming more and more difficult as yards are becoming more and more restricted as older boats are being abandoned by owners who can’t afford to upgrade them or bite the bullet to dispose of them. If you’re going to go south and stay on a hook, then no issues, but first you’ll need a harbour/yard to start in to make her ready for your adventure and hone your skills. Thanks as always for share! Fair winds.
Your point 2 is really interesting. Being out of sailing for many years but watching the abandoned boats story with interest, I wonder if any / many marinas require a "disposal" deposit or bond to cover the cost of removing abandoned boats.
I was lucky enough to get a Pacific Seacraft Flicka 20 recently. Love this boat, will serve us fine for the PNW.
Truth is different boats for varried needs and budgets.
The ABSOLUTE WORST way to buy a boat is based on someone elses likes and needs and not figuring out your own likes and needs
Macgregors sail downwind and reach for miles . . . that is all fuel you do not pay for, and can keep for later. We use ours all the time
I wouldn't hate on MacGregors... you have to consider a boat for what the need it was designed to fill. A Mac has a very light weight swig keel and will draw less than a foot of draft with it and the motor up. I've sailed mine to Isle Royal in Lake Superior and to the Dry Tortugas in the Florida Keys, all because it could easily be pulled by a low end SUV. You shouldn't compare it to an ocean going boat, that would be like comparing a Cooper Mini to an RV. They're just in different boat categories. If you want to get people into sailing, then a Mac is a great boat to start with!
I think you missed that Mac 26's are trailerable behind a minivan. This is there real benefit. When Ontario goes into a deep freeze in November you can load your Mac onto it's trailer and be in the keys in 2 days and spend the winter there. There are really few boats with stand up accomodations that can realistically be trailered across the continent behind the daily driver.
I have been eyeballing 26S And 26D's. I like the rear sleeping and dedicated motor well (do you like it?). I also appreciate the features you mention. How do you feel about build quality? What upgrades to the basic boat would you say are worthwhile?
They are very lightly built. Just look at the weight. 1600 pounds for a 26 ft boat, but that's what makes them so good fir trailering.
When my dad and mom switched from motor boat to sailboats (I was 6), Our 1st sailboat was a Morgan 24 (I was hooked on sailing). It was perfect for learning how to sail. Then several years later, they sold it and bought a Morgan 27 (1st one in Sarasota area). That was a racing boat with a radical new keel design. The decks would cracked and raspberry glue came out.We won a lot of races. After we got tired of racing, they sold her and bought a Morgan 38. That was our 1st cruising boat. Sold her. Then we got real serious. Bought a Bristol 41.1 my dream boat. I love, love, love this boat. Sometimes we would race and won 1st place in our group. In high winds, she sometimes would go faster than haul speed, keeping the rail in the water. I miss her. So, I am on the journey to get off land by 1st repairing/updating up my house to sale it, down size, and then go boat shopping (that is where you Tim will come in) Bristol? Oyster? Island Packet?. P.S. so sorry for the long....... response...Happy Sailing ⛵
I grew up on the water racing NS14s and a 16ft skiff. Left home at 18 and have been a landlubber ever since pining for the salt water. I gotta get back out there.
I'm the guy in the hammock on the macgregor 26. We had a blast on that boat. It led us to buy a Catalina 36 which we appreciated so much more after the Mac 26. And recently we sailed Mexico to Tahiti. If you want to see our modifications and trip on the MacGregor we put some videos up at a time no one else was doing any in the PNW. (Selfless plug as our Pic was used without permission, no hard feelings). Great video Lady K we've watched lots of your vids and always find them informative. We're now on the hunt for a boat for a circumnavigation and tho we have a couple selected we still like watching your videos looking for another to add to the list.
I had a mac 26 for 10 years and loved it. It wasn't a particularly good sailboat and we had it weighed down so much it was hardly a motorboat. We mostly enjoyed it on the lake but allowed us to take it down to the FL keys a few times. We've since moved aboard a Moody 47, which was also featured in Lady K's Moody video. Though it was a pic from an earlier date.
We traveled extensively on our 1985 Catalina 36 for 6 years. We loved that boat! Bought it for 24k and put 25k into it and after 6 years sold it for 36k. Cheap home of 6 years!
We are in our 50 'S and had a 28 foot pwr 2005 for years. Time for a hybrid , the costs of fuel is now too much. Love the sailing idea, no gas or diesel , solar for power, no smoke for running , use of wind energy to get us slowly moving . Nice
I lost it at Pull a water skier behind the mcgregor ahahahah
hahaha :)
Awesome work on this channel! Thank you!
Love my Macgregor 19. Yes it was a great intro to sailing and yes I will eventually go to something bigger.
You have asked for comments on old battle axes. We own a Stevens Custom 47 which is an S&S design (ours launched in 1983). For us she is the perfect boat. I am 68 years old and my wife weighs 46kg so we are short handed. We sail the New Zealand coast - often in 30 knots plus. She keeps us safe and has great performance for her age and weight. She is definitely my "forever" yacht.
LOL, "Friends don't let friends buy Irwins." Thanks for that.
Got my first sailboat as an Irwin 37 ketch for $14k and couldnt be happier. There are some good points made in this video but overall id say ask a true owner of a live aboard Irwin and see why they LOVE it
Most valuable and informative "sailing" channel in Yt.
Thanks for educating us.
The hair cut looks as fresh as the great advice! Always appreciate the insight and observations Tim.
HAHA!! -i love it. NICE observation. Haircouts ftw!
Hey Tim, past owner of an 1988 44' cc Irwin sv San-D. Biggest problem was the rotten chain plate supports. Most of the salon needs to be removed and is very difficult to blend the new back into how it meets the cabin top. There were only 10 of our made before Irwin went under and she did sail and point fairly high with the solant stay albeit with more heal most would be comfortable with. I stopped loving the boat and now own a C400 that I always look back at from the dinghy with a smile.
Derek
made me chuckle if your looking for a boat to cruise and live on under 100k im looking for a boat to llive on under 10k lol
Would you do a episode about the insurance side of sailing?
The MacGregor fills a niche and gets people on the water. Irwin is entry level and you get what you pay for. Love your straight talk videos.
Agreed we need to keep the older boats of the fleet sailing, $100k is some serious gate-keeping.
Glad we moved on from MacGregor - I like those things & reckon we need more variety. Kids who grow up with a family MacGregor ARE sailing kids & that's the main thing. Not a lot of Irwins here, they're way too susceptible to sinking after stingray attacks... ;-)
I really love the Center Cockpit layout, mainly due to the extra large aft cabins you get, but I noticed all the major production manufacturers (beneteau, bavaria, etc) stopped making CCs in the mid 2000s. Feels like it fell out of fashion and that 20 years from now we’re only gonna have overly expensive Hallberg-Rassys and Najads.
Hi Tim, been loving all the videos. I think for all the people who yelled Hunter you should show them what they get for under $100k. There are some great post 1995 36 foot + boats out there. The only people who don't like Hunters are the ones who haven't owned one. My little 29.5 had more room than some other 36 footers.
Keep up the good work.
The really scarey part of this line of boats is the mast root support. Lateral support is via plywood that is mostly rotted. This is also the support for the forward salon deck. Take a look at the flimsy mast root.
You are right about that. We had step slip down 4 inches while offshore between Cuba and Dry Tortugas. We had to quickly tighten the rig and limp back to key west. Known issue.
We owned a Morgan 43 and sold it for a Hylas 46. The Morgan was built like a tank but sailed very well. Interior appointments were significantly better than the 41 and a lot sleeker looking on the exterior. I miss that boat.
Owned a 1985 Morgan 43, first big boat. Lived aboard three years, Crossed Atlantic, cruised Caribbean. Good boat for the price point...
Hylas 46 is a dream boat…we have been on one once. Look at the specs for the Irwin 46 and the Hylas 46 shoal draft….almost spot on. I wish we had the Hylas sail plan on our Irwin, we need more sail cloth up there….
I baught a Citation 30 last spring for $2500. It will be some work, of course, but it sails well and is good enough for a single guy. And yes all the deck hardware needs rebeding, new ports installed (they came with the boat) as well as reupholstering, fabric and foam also included. But, it keeps me off the street and on the water.
“Friends don’t let friends buy Irwin” is exactly what our broker said when i sent him a listing.😅
Thoughts on the later Ericson 38-200s after they were bought out by Pacific Seacraft?
I’ve heard all the bad about Irwin so they were never on my radar. I ended up with a Bob Perry design double Ender, a Baba 30 but when/if I upgrade I really like the Gulfstar boats. I know someone with a 37 and it’s a sweet boat. I know they make bigger ones as well.
I know a 5000$ (not 50k but 5k) 43foot boat with everything (sails, working engine, water and fuel tanks)... but.... ferrocement...
Hmmm... I lived/sailed on a 42 Irwin ketch (the coach-roof variant, not the poop-deck) for many years and most of what you describe must have been an entirely different boat, I surely couldn't see through the fiberglass, indeed one of the strong suits of our 42 was its heavy glass and large cabin -- when other boats of that era were plagued with blisters, we'd have one or two pseudo-blisters ever year or so and with nearly 14' width inside, she could entertain a larger group... But, you are absolutely correct o lack of hand-holds, but the biggest weakness of the boats were a very inadequate electrical system... over the years we had ours I think I replaced all the 12-volt of any consequence as well as the 110...
For a 16-ton center-board boat, our Irwin's sailing qualities on a broad-reach were thrilling for the time (assuming you weren't think in terms of a fly-weight Cal 40 or the like), although compared to a quarter-ton fin-keeler (which she could almost carry as deck-cargo), her upwind properties were less than impressive. She was steady on the helm so even newly minted sailors could be coaxed into taking a turn at "steering..." Her longish keel made docking easy and predictable - what you describe isn't what frustrated me with ours - and much of what you describe sounds like a different boat (excepting the electro-gremlins, which had me pulling my hair out at times ).
i like your opinions, do you have a video on hull shapes canoe stern scallop transom etc with thought on pro and cons of each, couldn't fond one on your page,
I was a bit nervous clicking on this video knowing that my boat, a Tanzer 26, looks like a bleach bottle floating on its side, so I was relieved when it wasn't picked on. I don't think I've ever seen a MacGregor before. There are a lot of sailboats around here (Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada) but I don't know of anyone with one of those. I had no idea that they were sort of a hybrid. Excellent video, as always!
Awesome comment! -At least you OWN a sailboat.
But the Tanzer 26 is a real sailboat, I believe it has crossed oceans, though it's fairly light. And it really does not look bad, it's a nice boat! However, unlike the MacGregors and the Polish Mazurian Lakes boats, it does not get away with a one foot draught and pass under 3 or 4 metre high bridges as well as scooting around on a car-towed trailer.
Of course, the "real" sailboat which the MacGregor could be is the Shark 24. Fixed shallow keel (3' 2"), it's trailerable (2100 lb / 950 kg) with a compact SUV and its mast can be raised by hand by two or three people. It can be devilishly fast, and has crossed oceans. Still very popular racing class.
Tim, how much offshore sailing have you done, and I'm not talking about running down the coast or sailing to the Bahamas from Florida?
Tim, How does a 56 yr old start sailing (solo) in the Caribbean?
Hay just I need to say I love your videos, BED'S-BIRTHS. I am doing my research into my future home on the water I can not find much on sleeping on a sailboat. Aft berth looks great but what is the trade off. Big V berth island bed, again looks grate but can you sleep in them at anchor? is this a good idea for a new episode? I have a budget of $120us. Cheers
I just sailed on an Irwin 38 across the Gulf of Mexico in forty knots and she took it like a champ. First place cruising B. 2024 RDSAS #AfterYou
I have sailed and lived on my Irwin 46 for 3 years. Love the boat. Sure, it doesn't point but my 40 years of sailboat racing days are over. The layout is far superior to the equivalent Morgan, which my friend who chartered one said was a pig that you hand run the engine to tack. Irwin was way ahead of his time with the deck salon windows. I didn't want to crawl back into the submarines that most designs are and modern designers agree with me. Sure the previous owner fixed some soggy decks, repowered with a Yanmar and yes, we redid the electrical system. But the result is a comfortable deck salon boat with a 750 watt lithium bank, 800 watts of solar, a comfortable aft cabin with a separate shower, and guest quarters with their own head for less than $150k all in. Yes, there are small nits we continue to improve, but we also didn't spend the money involved with the modern, lightly built deck salon boats. BTW, the stanchion deck screws are not an integral part of the stiffness of the stanchions. They are anchored inside the hull, extending down a foot or so, glassed in for stability. My wife loves her galley step down, which separates the space from the salon, but she can still be in the conversation. All in all, I think your opinion needs more research, like try one.
Cheers.
your clickbait title is so good, I watched your video twice
I have heard that early MacGregors (designed to be entey level starter boats) are not bad once you make a few upgrades. I note that few 26 footers offer a rear sleeping area as generous as that found on Macgregor 26D's or 26S's. And while water balast is not ideal it does have the advantage of making a boat reasonable to trailer and tow. I would like to hear other's thoughts on the matter.
I lived with my wife and our very young daughter on a Morgan OI36 for 5 years. We sailed it all over So Cal from Point Conception, to every one of the Channel Islands (including special permission to anchor at both San Nicholas and San Clemente Islands) to Coronado Island in Mexico. It was comfortable in all kinds of weather. Didn't really sail all that well, couldn't point, and didn't sail well in So Ca's light winds, but it was always comfortable and we felt safe with our little kid in the huge (for a 36 foot) center cockpit. Don't see them for sale much, but when you do they are really cheap. I don't think they held up all that well over time. We paid $40K for it when we bought it in 1983, and sold it for $45K in 1989.
Ive bee sailing 25 yrs and have owned a sail boat 25 years. I like the idea of a McGregor because Id like to save time. The idea of towing it to, Bra Dor Lakes, or Newfoundland and being there in a day appeals to me.
I've done it but takes a week to get the on a non trailer boat. For that reason I just would like one in a barn. ;)
I think any boat you buy is both the worst (and the best) option. I had a Columbia 8.7 that had soooo many problems that I fixed most of then virtually gave it away-only to be berated by the next owner for its shortcomings 😮
I crewed on a C & C40 and a 41. Those boats take a pounding. Seemed great for a racer/cruiser. But, it was pathetic when it came to speed. You knew you were not going to be competing for the trophy. I wonder what you think of those old boats. Currently looking at a C & C 35. Sticking to the great lakes for now. Plans for a trip from Chicago to Puerto Rico, will require a proper vessel. And, I enjoy sailing in rough weather. Don't understand that, other than the boat was finally moving at speeds I was seeking!
power sail with 60hp ... it's handy when you need to get someplace to sail and it is miles away down a channel or canal to open water.
MacGregor makes another sail. I have a 25ft MacGregor not the Power/sail, Lived on it for 4 months bumming around FL and sail it in New England waters. Upgraded to a 37ft Catamaran but still have the Mac. Love that boat. Never liked the power/sail MacGregor
How about a Gemini? The small catamaran for the no-budget cat cruiser.
Aa yes the McGregor 26. I have the 24' no engine but dont wana cruise it. Id call em day sailors. That being said at south beach harbor in SF their is a cal 19 called black feathers that did Hawaii and back to SF.
Liking my Legend 40.5 more & more every day. ❤
If I had to pick in the 80k - 100k range of what is currently available on Yacht World: 1. CT 54 (CR 50.92) @ $99k, 2. Swan 44 (CR 40.21) @ $99.9k, 3. Bristol 45.5 (CR 43.66) @ $85k, 4. Morgan 462 (CR 38.46) @ $90k. I'm partial to Perry designs, so i would probably go after the CT 54 if it wasn't on the west coast!
1st comment hooray!
Love your videos and the work you do
I really miss my boat
"Wrecking gang" ?@@brownnoise357
Great info. Even the old ugly ones are overpriced. I agree to its a proposition to someone with more time than money. I like this vein in general. It would be nice to get close to 100k but it is way easier to get closer to 50k or 30.
Why are Mcgregor considered one of the worst? I’m looking to buy a lake boat here in Colorado and majority of boats for sell are mcgregor (not the sail power version). Are they fine lake boats? This will be my first boat and would like to stay away from a dingy and have something I can spend a long weekend on in an alpine lake in the mountains.
From episode 130 of Lady K Sailing: ‘You should definitely look at one… if you can find an owner willing to part with theirs… because they love them.’ Quite a positive review of the brand all in all. Certainly no mention of poor construction methods or quality.
In this episode, on the other hand, you fairly rip them a new one. See-thru fiberglass, poorly mounted safety stanchions, etc.
So now, I am quite confused. Are Irwin’s good boats, or not? Please enlighten me, Tim!
I agree. The message is confusing and does not take into account the difference in years and makes of Irwins. To make a broad statement like that is not accurate and is only one man's opinion. Find me anywhere else on the internet that states, "Friend's don't let friends by Irwins." If this statement is to be believed as a fact, then you would think it would be all over the internet.
How about the fisher 37 pilothouse ketch?
I just bought at Chris Craft 410 Commander. I hope it will work out for me. :) Not a sail. Power all the way babe!
Good morning Lady K Sailing. So I have a question. In ep254 Worst Sailboats. you mentioned that the Macgregor 26X-M are the only boats of their kind. Just curious if you think that the Hunter 27 Edge, Odin 28 (Imexus), or even the Telstar 28 Fall into the same category? Trailer Sailers that have 50+ hp outboard. I would like to know what you think.
I was on a Morgan Out Island 41 in a rain storm once. We went down below to get out of the weather. Unfortunately we had more rain pouring down our necks inside than outside. We had nearly all the pots and pans from the galley set out collecting rainwater. The skipper and owner apologized while he was putting on his foul weather gear. I'd put that boat on the "not to buy list."
Hi. I was wondering how slow is actually a full keel compared to a fin keel?
I was helping a new-to-sailing owner of a McGregor learn the ropes on a Texas lake, when I saw a big thunderhead developing upwind. I told him we should start sailing for the dock, that it was going to get rough, but he demurred. Ten minutes later, and it was double the size and half the distance away, and I told him that if he didn't turn around, I was bailing out and swimming to the very-close shore, and he'd be on his own. That got his attention. We dropped sail, he cranked his 50 hp motor, and away we went. Just as we got the last dockline around the last cleat, it hit. Lightning, high-impact rain, and winds 40+. McGregor has a place in sailing. The worst I've ever encountered is Buccaneer. Total waste of fiberglass! I'll never forget a review I saw of them in the 70s, which said that they would do their very best sailing when firmly tied to the dock. I totally agree!!
I'm no expert by far but looking around, I think I'd go with a Tayana 37 or 42. Another choice would be a Gulfstar 39 Sailmaster. Any of those three for the right money would be good, IF you can do some work on your own. I think there's work to be done in all older boats; it just depends on what work needs to be done and the extent and how much you could do yourself.
Would you buy a Westsail 43' Ketch for a live aboard and restore project? I found one for $30K and I think it has some great potential!
I believe the Mac 26 may actually be the safest boat for cruising the Bahamas. Consider that they can be beached or go into water less than 3' deep to get into calm water while her deeper draft cousins are stuck out in the nasty. If the weather starts to turn bad during a crossing, she can be motored at speed much greater than any other sailboat into calm waters.
It doesnt matter that she is a poor sailer and poor powerboat. The Morgan OI was a poor sailer but they sure were popular. People dont cruise to windward, they wait for better conditions. Purists hate them but who cares. Go cheap and go now.
Unload the water ballest from the Macgregor and add armas and you have a trimaran.
What's your thoughts about Vindö 45 1984, 34ft boat?
Man, I really wish you hadn't shown that Morgan at the end, I am trying to buy it, I don't need tons of competition, haha. still, I love this channel, I use it to get my friends into sailing!
How did you get hold of the owner, we've been trying to get ahold of him for months. He lives 15 minutes from my house supposedly. LOL
In its defense, the MacGregor is the ultimate gate way drug, and makes a lot of sense for a lot of people.
If I send u a picture of a boat could u tell me what it is please?
It's small by most standards, but we own a Sam L Morse built Bristol Channel Cutter 28. Lyle Hess design. They go for about $70,000.00 and are nice. Somewhat overpriced, but a lovely boat for cruising Maine and beyond. Ours is a 1991.
Would be absolutely wonderful if you could review a Rawson 30 sailboat
Is that a yes? They are really worth a review by you of course I'm the owner of one they do have quite a following fairly cheap blue water cruising built originally in Seattle
I sea you're perspective but wow
I live on the Hudson River. Need I say more? The McGregor makes a shitload of sense.
Honestly, I think the rotten deck boats and poorly manufactured 80s boats need to be scavenged and scrapped. Let the wholesalers buy them for salvage, and look for something older that was made from solid fiberglass or something newer with a solid survey.
No such thing. Everything depends on the sailor. If you are a real cruising sailor then you've seen it. We've seen 2 people on 60 foot boats give up because it's to much. We've also witnessed a guy on a 17 foot sailboat having the time of his life. But the ones we love are the 20 year olds on a 27 foot Catalina with a huge rack of surfboards sewing their oats and making memories of a lifetime. Every boat is more capable than the operator.
Worst boats:
- Plywood epooxy hull (plywood rotts and = totall loss..)
- foam-polyester-foam. hull like etap 26 boats.. As new it's light, stiff, insulated and unsinkable. Once you have a leak or some osmosis in the thin outer hull, the foam sucks up water and i think it's a totall loss then..
- Decks with balsa wood... (this always starts to rot, it can be repaired but is a load of work)
- Boats with keels, rudders or other parts mounted in wood that starts to rot in a place that can't be reached. (like the small open boat centaur) The keel is boltet into a piece of wood under the floor. To fix the keel you need to saw the entire floor out..
And by the way: ALWAYS!!! do a safety chain/rope on an outboard! The mounting screws or moutning plate vibrates loose.. Then you make a corner and it flips off.. To the bottom of the sea...
My local yard has 10 various sail boats that are worthless condition
nice
maybe we can bring back the aux. power gunkholer, or costal and local sailor. I haven't seen one advertised since the 1970's.
That Morgan keeps coming up in searches. Someone go buy that thing.
I"AM on it captain send money please, thank"s .
Ha ha. The worst boat to own and buy in my opinion, is the one you build. The 45 footer on my lawn right now is a testament to that. I should have learned my lesson on my first boat, a Chrysler 26 not dissimilar to your first boat, which I gutted and rebuilt from a bare hull. The work is free you say, but your time is money and you will waste a lot of time building a boat if you are an amature and want it done right.
Looking at a 1978 macgregor 25 for cheap. Tons of info on the 26 footers but why does no one talk about all the other “normal sailboat” macgregors?
Are Precision good boats?
Hello Tim, I am a follower of your great RUclips videos. I came to the sad conclusion to sell my McIntosh 47 sailing yacht. Are you familiar with these yachts? How can we discuss this further? thank you so much, Fernando
We are retired, disabled, and have an adult son with special needs. I have severe arthritis and spinal stenosis. My wife is insulin-dependent. We are in our 60s with no boating experience. My idea (my bride needs convincing) is to live out our remaining years cruising the Caribbean or, perhaps, other tropical climes. With a budget of 200K, is it possible to find a boat that three adults can live on comfortably and that won’t require us to contort our bodies into impossible positions everyday other day? I am not a tinkerer and have no desire to rebuild a boat from the inside out. So, am I a dreamer or am I insane?
I’ve been in and out of yachts my whole life and unfortunately tinkering comes with the territory. Salt water, wind, rain and sun are your constant companions. That means, no matter how good your boat, things wear, get jammed, corrode and motors need maintenance. All that said, sailing is about learning patience and peace and enjoying the journey not just the destination. I had to learn to tinker one RUclips video at a time and it’s edifying to fumble around and see something fixed by your own hands. I know it’s tough if you have some physical restrictions but if you break things down into bite sized problems you can work almost anything out. (Read Gipsy Moth Circles the world by Francis Chichester). As a rule of thumb, allow between 5 to ten percent of the purchase price each year for maintenance. Stuff just has to be done (antifouling, engine servicing, insurances, registration etc). That all said, every sailer is a dreamer and insane (we just hide it better than most) so don’t let practicalities hold you back. Yachties are a generous bunch as we’re all in the grand delusion together and that means lots of advice, helping hands and experience shares when you need it. Talk to Tim about finding an optimum boat that matches budget with liveability and longevity. Got for it I say. (But be prepared to change your thinking as you do your research into the ideal boat).
Sailor. Wow. I Spelled it wrong.
@@adambenson4253 Thank you for your insights.
No, asides Hunters, try Jeanneaus, Beneteaus and Bavaria’s. End of story
.....Can I just put in a bad word for a little one-person sailboat called a "Sidewinder"? I bought this as my first sailboat maybe thirty-five years ago, and it had a quirk during tacking where it would sometimes suddenly knife out of control. Other than that it was okay. I was proud of it because it was a bit fancier than a sunfish. It stunk, though.