1990 Macgregor 26S

$10,000 US

The owner bought this boat in 2015

General condition and any additional information

Ready to sail today. I’ve been over everything, she’s ready to go.
First off, the price reflects the extraordinary amount of upgrades and custom modifications not available on comparable Macs. You can probably find one of these for half this price. But before you blow me off, hear me out. These boats came very bare bones. Many are still basically that way. This one has been modified like crazy. It’s probably one of the most modified S models in existence. For starters, Honda extra long shaft electric start with new impeller, brand new sails, and extensive woodwork below. It has some unique mods you won’t find on any others. And they took a lot of time to plan and execute. I wanted to make this boat comfortable for my wife to overnight on. She wanted it to be “cozy.” I tried for this and also to make it more convenient to sail and stay on. Unfortunately my wife fell ill while I was doing these mods and is now an invalid. We never got to enjoy the boat as we had hoped. Still, I had some wonderful sailing and times with friends and family. It has so much of my heart and soul (and sweat and blood) invested that it is a very difficult thing to let it go. But my loss is your gain if you want a 26S that is modded to the hilt and would rather spend your time enjoying it instead of spending hundreds of hours copying all these features.

This Mac is a pure sailboat, not to be confused with the later motor-sailor versions. (26X and 26M) This was the first year for the swing keel. The earlier D model had a dagger board and lower cockpit combings. Other than that, they are the same. Actually, “S” and “D” are designations adapted by owners. Officially they were both just the “Macgregor 26” and were not produced concurrently. Later they were both called “26C” for classic. There are many advantages to the 26S, particularly for SW Florida and it’s skinny water.

You can see extensive photo documentation of some of the mods here:

https://www.facebook.com/dan.philgreen/media_set?set=a.10153802500122899 and type=3 and __tn__=-UK-R!%3Av

Lots more current photos here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10162717166767899 and type=3

Photo documentation of installing the Honda engine here:

https://www.facebook.com/dan.philgreen/media_set?set=a.10155928157222899 and type=3 and __tn__=-UK-R!%3Av

See the motor run here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hETCWVw04RyMgPVG-HSpJrfyYhNCyJPC/view?usp=drive_link

Photo documentation of the trailer rebuild here:

https://www.facebook.com/dan.philgreen/media_set?set=a.10153722643187899 and type=3 and __tn__=-UK-R!%3Av

Standard features

Fully retracting swing keel, boat can be beached, draws approx. 15” with boards up, approx. 4’ boards down. Unlike with a dagger board, if you hit something with the keel, it just swings up – a non event
Retracting rudder, flip up tiller
Water ballast, 150 gal = 1200 lbs of ballast. Empty, boat weights only 1,600 lbs.
V-berth
Queen size rear berth
Port setee can sleep one adult, starboard setee can sleep a child
Galley sink
Enclosed head with porta potty
2 winches, winch handle
Gin pole for raising mast
Bow and stern nav lights
Pop top section over center of cabin for standing headroom
Original pop-top tent cover. Very rare! This may have been an option, but in any case, very few still around

Extra gear included

Roller furling jib
Main sail cover
Stern rail
Main sheet with quick releases and jam cleat
Boom vang with quick releases and jam cleat
Anchor rack on bow pulpit rail
Jib sheet tracks and trucks
Reefing blocks and jam cleats
Jam cleats for all sheets
Anchor chain through deck and locker
Brand new marine deep cycle battery
Depth gauge
Marine radio
Mast top antenna
Mast top windex (wind direction vane)
Boss Marine stereo w/speakers in cockpit and cabin, Inputs: Radio, USB, SD, aux, Bluetooth
Bimini top
Propane stove
On deck propane bottle magazine
Fresh water tank with electric pump
Shower hose and nozle with valve
Swim platform/ladder
Custom folding table fits in cockpit and cabin and stows in head
Boat hook
Camfro low draw fan
Screen panel for companionway
Roller top mast crutch for transport
Extra tall mast crutch for access during storage
Brand new aluminum fenders on trailer
Brand new water pump impeller in Honda 9.9, installed 4/20/25
Brand new main and jib sails. I mean brand new. They have never been used.
Jib has integral dacron UV cover for use on furler
Main: https://shop.bwyachts.com/product-p/7104-1v0.htm
Jib: https://shop.bwyachts.com/product-p/7206-1c0.htm
Spinaker
Spinaker pole with deck brackets
Items to be legal: flares, whistle, fire extinguisher, 4 basic PFDs
Included, not installed: Simrad Auto Tiller (needs some fittings), blower unit for laz with ducting

Improvements to the hull, deck, rigging, engine, or interior

Honda 9.9 extra long shaft 4 stroke engine, electric start, extra charging capacity for sailboats. Special installation allows full locking tilt up and lock to lock steering. (No small feat to make this work as boat was built when smaller 2-stroke power heads were the norm.)
Custom Delrin rudder guard on Honda lower unit
New standing rigging (now all 5/32 stainless)
New spreader end sail guards
New color coded running rigging
New 5/32 bare stainless life lines
Custom headstay with Johnson Marine lever tensioner (makes a huge difference raising/lowering mast)
In-cockpit 2:1 keel raising system (stock requires going below and is 1:1)
Replaced keel raising cable
Replaced keel raising system pulleys and hardware
Cut opening in stern rail and added a walk-through gate
Made and installed bulkhead storage cabinets just inside companionway including new panel for VHF radio, stereo, and 4-switch panel
Installed speakers in cockpit and cabin
Custom galley of oak and ipe fitted for plates, cups, silverware, etc., matching overhead rack for wine glasses, custom storage over sink with flip down cover
Propane stove tilts up to access pots/pans storage below
Custom shelving with oak fiddles along sides of rear berth and along sides and across v-berth
Matching oak and ipe magazine racks flush mounted in sides of rear berth
Custom shelving with fiddles in head
Replaced old original 6-switch, fused, incandescent pilot light panel over galley with 8-switch panel with breakers and LED pilots + charge and discharge meters
Added 6-switch panel to laz
Added 4-switch panel to storage unit just inside companionway
New LED cabin lights, galley lights, plus alternate red cabin LED lights
LED lights in galley storage areas
LED lights in cockpit footwell
LED light over engine
USB outlets added to galley, cabin, rear berth, and v-berth
Gooseneck LED lights to use in berth USB outlets
White/red LED light in head
White/red LED light in laz
Flat wood floor in laz
Bilge pump in laz
Solar powered exhaust fan in deck above head
Folding spring hatch supports on front hatch and laz hatch
Padlock hasps on companionway and laz
Opened foam containment areas above V-berth, through companionway bulkheads (accessing behind cockpit seat backs) and above aft berth (accessing under cockpit seats) for storage. Cut openings in aft berth side panels for inserted oak and ipe magazine racks
Battery moved from laz to under v-berth to counter heavier Honda engine
Master breaker added near battery
Drilled out rivets holding cast mast top cover to access wiring, replaced with 1/4-20 bolts after drilling and tapping
Replaced all mast wiring for anchor light, steaming light, and spreader flood lights
Added zip ties with long tails all along mast wiring to prevent internal slap noise at anchor
Removed broken deck light from mast
Installed LED flood lights on spreaders
Replaced steaming light with LED unit
Replaced bow and stern nav light bulbs with LED
New mast to deck plugs
Removed head door and replaced with curtain using screw eyes and bungee cord, provides privacy 2 ways with much more room to maneuver in the head
Curtain bungee setup for rear berth and v-berth privacy
New stainless steel gooseneck boom attachment
Refinished tiller and added epoxy reinforcement to mounting end
Installed blue underwater light below waterline on transom
A beautiful young woman christened the boat “Goldilocks,” we spilled champagne, and added lettering to the stern (The boat had not been previously named)

The one thing left that needs attention is the cushions. They are the originals from 35 years ago. Hard to believe they have lasted so long but they are needing replacement.
Also, I would not trust the trailer tires beyond local use.