--------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3C00002 Date: 03/06/96 From: STRUTHER MACFARLANE Time: 08:12am \/To: JOE SUSEVICH (Read 2 times) Subj: Catalina 25' Joe: I wish your friend luck in his quest for THE perfect Catalina 25! I "admired" your comment that if he ends up getting her he'll be sailing it this season "with you as crew"!! Since a) you're giving him advice on "choosing & finding" this boat, and b) you're wanting to go sailing on boat in part a)..... I can only assume this to be a "conflict of interest"! I applaud your gaul, Sir - and wish you both happy sailing (but then, is there any other kind?) * S2S Toronto, Ontario (416) 975-1547 --- WM v3.11/93-0359 * Origin: Ship to Shore, Vancouver,BC [604]540-9596 (1:153/7064) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3C00003 Date: 03/06/96 From: STRUTHER MACFARLANE Time: 08:08am \/To: LAURENCE CHARLOT (Read 2 times) Subj: Re: Mac 26 Laurence: You said that you're concerned the Macgregor 26X wouldn't sail as well as a true dispacement hull..... Gee! No kidding! The Mac26 (either X or no bloody X) is a LIGHT boat that is MASS produced that is a way to get people onto the water fairly inexpensively... and the idea that they can market it as either a sail OR power boat simply increases their market. The Mac 26X will be a lot of fun for someone who doesn't know diddly-squat about sailboats (or power boats either, for that matter), but if you want to SAIL - get a SAILBOAT!!! A quasi-planing hull will not, under ANY circumstances (water ballasted or not), perform like a displacement hull.... and you're quite right about those little rudders not having the same effect as one large, centred rudder; correct, too, are you in your assessment of the VERY high freeboard and condominium structure on-deck giving a wind resistance that would make slow movements (such as....docking?) difficult - might just as well leave your main and jib up and HARDEN 'em both! * S2S Toronto, Ontario (416) 975-1547 --- WM v3.11/93-0359 * Origin: Ship to Shore, Vancouver,BC [604]540-9596 (1:153/7064) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3E00000 Date: 02/25/96 From: GERRY ZIDNER Time: 06:04pm \/To: AUGUSTIN HENRIQUES (Read 2 times) Subj: Re: Seals message originally sent by Augustin Henriques to Struther Macfarlane on 02-28-96 AH> AH> Greetings Struther, AH>-------------------- AH> AH>AH>> Hey! I really did see 24 seals!! They're those dark AH>bulky things AH>AH>>that swim in the water and say "arf", right? Ya, that's what I AH>thought. AH>AH>>I saw 26 of them! Here I thought you guys were discussing boat parts. You know,, the kind that stop water from entering the boats?? Silly me. AH> BTW... why is it so silent around here? Have you been insulting AH>people while I was off the board or is everybody just off sailing? I actually thought Struther was starting to mellow out, then a discussion got started about Harbour Licences. Well.. he's off and running now.. AH>I hear it'sfreezing cold in Toronto and there are still 3 whole months to go before launch . You can have your boat shipped west for $8,000... Hey there Augustin I am going to be in Vancouver on Sunday evening. Suzanne and I are doing a one night stop over on our way to Hawaii. We will be leaving first thing Monday morning so I likely won't get a chance to call. If we return via Vancouver I will drop you a line and maybe you can show me around the marina's out there. That way I can come back and not only show Struther my tan but tell him that all your stories are really true. Actually we must be careful when dealing with such a vulnerable subjectas Struther. We just might find him hanging from the yardarm if he doesn't get onto something floating real soon. Talk to you soon Gerry WinQwk 2.0 a#0 * S2S Toronto, Ontario (416) 975-1547 --- WM v3.11/93-0359 * Origin: Ship to Shore, Vancouver,BC [604]540-9596 (1:153/7064) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3E00001 Date: 03/09/96 From: LAURENCE CHARLOT Time: 12:35am \/To: STRUTHER MACFARLANE (Read 2 times) Subj: Re: mac 26 -=> Quoting Struther Macfarlane to Laurence Charlot <=- SM> The Mac 26X will be a lot of fun for someone who doesn't know SM> diddly-squat about sailboats (or power boats either, for that matter), We had a Mac 19 in our sailing club, and it's sailing performance was so poor, especially upwind, that the unfortunate skipper was often several hours later than everyone else in completing a cruise. As of last January, that person has upgraded to a Catalina 27, so I guess his Mac 19 is going to be sold...Anyway, I fear the Mac 26-X may share many of the handicaps that were oh so apparent in the Mac 19. Now, the regular Mac 26 isn't too shabby under sail, at least considering the price. We have 2 of these, and they seem to keep up with the Chrysler 26's and Catalina 25's, of which our club has several of each. By tuning the rig and purchasing better quality sails than what comes from the factory, a regular Mac 26 can be made to sail fairly fast. I don't know the PHRF rating, though. Of course, the bottom line for any MacGregor product is the light hull construction. My first boat was an '86 Mac 25 (pre-water ballast, it had a cast iron swing keel). It was 2 years old when I bought it, and was in near factory-fresh condition. After 5 more years, there were stress cracks in every corner of the deck and hull liner, and the bow pad-eye was starting to tear out. I could feel the foredeck sag under my feet a little every time I walked on it, and the swing keel had developed a lot of lateral free play in the pivot bushing. A lot of the stress-crack problems may have been partially to blame on the cheap trailer, which does not support the weight of the boat very well. Looking back, and comparing to other trailerables in it's size range, the mast was smaller in diameter and wall thickness of the extrusion, and it may be a miracle that I didn't dis-mast the boat in the typical brisk summer winds common on San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento river delta. The Mac 26 is still using that same size extrusion, and I still feel a little uncomfortable with it on a 26' boat. Of course, the deck hardware MacGregor uses is infamous; a lot of it is "homemade" out of stainless sheet metal, very rough looking, and barely adequate. Of course, you get what you pay for, and the cheap hardware and fittings is one of the reasons the Mac 26 is $6000 less than a Catalina 250 and $8000 less than a Hunter 26. I wish MacGregor would beef up their hull and deck laminates-the owner can always upgrade hardware, but a weak lightweight hull is something that can't be easily upgraded like installing better blocks, turnbuckles, and cam cleats. SM> condominium structure on-deck giving a wind resistance that would make SM> slow movements (such as....docking?) difficult - might just as well SM> leave your main and jib up and HARDEN 'em both! Nothing worse than trying to make a graceful entry to a marina berth in a hard crosswind with a high-freeboard boat and a puny 5 hp motor! --- HyperMail! v1.22 * Origin: Omni - (916) 388-0905, longest running Sac BBS (1:203/3333) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3F00000 Date: 03/09/96 From: ADAM CZERECHOWICZ Time: 03:17pm \/To: STRUTHER MACFARLANE (Read 2 times) Subj: Catalina 25'(not really) Struther: SM> I applaud your gaul, Sir - and wish you both happy sailing (but then, is SM> there any other kind?) I once had a pet German on board too, but I never applauded her... Maybe that's why she won't sail with me any more... I guess she "edit" with me... ---acz * S2S Toronto, Ontario (416) 975-1547 --- WM v3.11/93-0359 * Origin: Ship to Shore, Vancouver,BC [604]540-9596 (1:153/7064) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3F00001 Date: 03/09/96 From: ROGER BOYLE Time: 06:37pm \/To: GERRY ZIDNER (Read 2 times) Subj: Re: Seals Jerry, I've seen Struther "floating" along real good this winter -- many times! Roger * S2S Toronto, Ontario (416) 975-1547 --- WM v3.11/93-0359 * Origin: Ship to Shore, Vancouver,BC [604]540-9596 (1:153/7064) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3I00000 Date: 03/12/96 From: STRUTHER MACFARLANE Time: 10:30am \/To: LAURENCE CHARLOT (Read 2 times) Subj: Re: mac 26 Laurence: LC>>We had a Mac 19 in our sailing club, and it's sailing performance LC>>was so poor, especially upwind, that the unfortunate skipper was often LC>>several hours later than everyone else in completing a cruise. As of LC>>last January, that person has upgraded to a Catalina 27, so I guess LC>>his Mac 19 is going to be sold...Anyway, I fear the Mac 26-X may share LC>>many of the handicaps that were oh so apparent in the Mac 19. Well - he's certainly moved up to a nicer boat!.. or perhaps I could venture as far as saying, he's "played around" on the water long enough and finally he's decided to GET a boat! LC>>Now, the regular Mac 26 isn't too shabby under sail, at least LC>>considering the price. That's really the bottom line, isn't it?... the price! Which isn't, by itself, really all that inexpensive. $18K or so, for the boat in Canada, is a fairly steep price to pay for what you're getting - or not getting. It's a poor man's (read: fool's) way of getting into a NEW sailboat; which is a shame that people would want to have, NEED to have, a NEW boat when for the same price and a little time committment they could get a used boat that would be so much better. LC>>to keep up with the Chrysler 26's and Catalina 25's, of which our LC>>club has several of each. Catalina 25's are quite nice - but I can't imagine the idea of trying to compare it to a Chrysler... they were DOGS when they first came out and ugly dogs at that! Ever wonder why they were only made for a few years? LC>>Nothing worse than trying to make a graceful entry to a marina berth LC>>in a hard crosswind with a high-freeboard boat and a puny 5 hp motor! You can always put in a slightly larger motor... thing is, of course, you can't USE all that power when you're maneuvering in tigh areas... well, you can - but it scares the hell out of the other boaters who are SURE you're gonna stop by plowing into their transom! * OLX 2.1 TD * It's only a hobby ... only a hobby ... only a * S2S Toronto, Ontario (416) 975-1547 --- WM v3.11/93-0359 * Origin: Ship to Shore, Vancouver,BC [604]540-9596 (1:153/7064) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3I00001 Date: 03/12/96 From: STRUTHER MACFARLANE Time: 10:19am \/To: ADAM CZERECHOWICZ (Read 2 times) Subj: Pet Germans...? Adam: AC>> I once had a pet German on board too, but I never applauded her... AC>> Maybe that's why she won't sail with me any more... I guess she AC>> "edit" with me... A pet "German"??? Was that a typo - ie: missed word - where it should have been a German Shepherd (?) or are you referring to a person of the Arian race? You really SHOULD have applauded her.... dogs (either kind) really DO respond to positive reinforcement! * OLX 2.1 TD * Unable to locate Coffee -- Operator Halted! * S2S Toronto, Ontario (416) 975-1547 --- WM v3.11/93-0359 * Origin: Ship to Shore, Vancouver,BC [604]540-9596 (1:153/7064) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 254 SAILING Ref: D3J00000 Date: 03/13/96 From: AMANDA HUMPHREY Time: 12:45pm \/To: DAN CEPPA (Read 2 times) Subj: Re: Mac 26 DC> > (hope you didn't get dumped into the Charles River too often!) Hi, I hope that doesn't happen again! Good luck in your travels. --- FreeMail 1.09 * Origin: Red Creek High School BBS [Red Creek,NY,USA] (1:260/665)