Com-Pac 16 vs MacGregor 26X (and M)
A Round 1 Mini-Cruiser Madness Match-up
Well, this one could get ugly! While there have been more MacGregor 26s (in various versions) produced than almost any other sailboat—proving the design’s popularity—the inelegant hybrid power-sailing design is also something of a lightning rod.
When we first reviewed it we summed up the 26’s advantages thusly: When MacGregor started building their powerboat/sailboat-hybrid Mac 26X, they might have anticipated the public would need some convincing.
Lacking superior performance under sail or power, the 26 might seem like a tough sell—until you consider the qualities it does possess: a capacious cabin with accommodations for six, an enclosed head, a galley and dinette, positive flotation, a shallow 9” draft, easy trailering weight, sound value— and the ability to return to harbor at 20 mph.
We noted some criticisms of overall quality and highlighted many compromises, but we closed our review with: She’s certainly not the saltiest-looking boat on the market. If one can accept her rather unorthodox appearance and the performance-related trade-offs inherent in her design, she’s a boat worth exploring. The MacGregor 26X offers a unique combination of features simply not found anywhere else in the boating world.
The salty little Com-Pac 16 has received its share of criticism as well—mostly on the subject of its poor performance to weather (fixed shoal keel) and limited interior accommodations. But the well-built 16 is generally considered exceptionally seaworthy for her size.
In an article we published that compared the Potter, Com-Pac and Montgomery (SCA issue #85), we wrote: If you’re the type who thinks “exciting sailing” sounds like something you’d just as soon avoid, and what you’re looking for is a chance to relax, camp, explore, and sleep under the stars on a rugged, low-maintenance miniature yacht—the Com-Pac 16 is an ideal choice. Built with few moving parts on a solid foundation of fixed ballast, the 16 offers its own brand of simple pleasure.
Now it’s time to vote:
No contest on this one…the Com-Pac 16 might be small and cramped as a mini-cruiser, but it’s a towering classic next to the MacGregor.
Yes, the ComPac 16 has a well deserved reputation to need half a gale to drive her well and not going to windward well--maybe not at all if her sailor isn't a pretty fair hand at coaxing shy fillies upwind. BUT, there two things we can say with confidence:
- First, they are built like tanks. I used to park my boat (not a ComPac 16) next to one in a mast-up storage lot near a launch ramp at one of my local reservoirs which hadn't been moved for years. After we'd all covered our boats for the winter, we had some really heavy rain. Checking on my own boat, I noticed that the ComPac 16, mast still up, no cover in place, had her cockpit completely full of water (stopped up cockpit drains, I'd suppose) which had overflowed into the cabin, which was also nearly full of water. All of this weight had sunk the trailer in the ground right up to the frame.
I reached out to the owner, who appreciated my call; but he was unable to organize a rescue before a long stretch of cold weather set in, causing the water inside the boat to freeze up into a solid plug. Darnedest thing--the next year the boat was rescued, found to have no structural damage, and eventually returned to sailing with new owners. That was one tough boat.
- Second, they look so salty you just about have to hug one. Nobody is going to be hugging that MacGregor based on looks. <;-)