BoatsMacwester Marine 26

Macwester Marine 26

Masthead Sloop · Twin keels · 1964–1972

The inaugural yacht from Macwester, this twin-keeled masthead sloop offers a stable, long-running design for coastal cruising

Designed by C. S. J. Roy.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Ballast
Hull type
Twin Keel

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

Shoal draughtDraws 0.84 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.
LivelySea-kindly

Her heavy displacement on a beamy beam gives 24 — a moderate, middle-of-the-road motion.

Comfort ratio 24
CoastalBluewater

1.95 — just under the 2.0 offshore line; her beam is modest for her weight.

Capsize screening 1.95
LightHeavy

324 — heavy for her waterline, built to carry stores and ride steadily.

Displacement / length 324
EasygoingPowered-up

14.0 — modest power for her weight; easygoing rather than lively, and happier with a breeze.

Sail area / displacement 14.0
TenderStiff

34% of her weight is ballast — on the tender side; she'll heel readily and want a reef sooner.

Ballast 34%

A capable cruiser that sits just inside the offshore line — coastal work with real passages in her.

  • Draws less than ~95% of boats her size on file

Compared with 1703 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions
Weights
Ballast / displacement
33.7%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Masthead Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
14.0
Displacement / length
323.9
Comfort ratio
24.1
Capsize screening
1.95
Hull speed
6.1 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
688
Hull
Hull type
Twin Keel
Construction
Fiberglass
Production
Years built
1964–1972
Units built
400
Designer
C. S. J. Roy
Builder
Macwester Marine

Boats like this, on the water

Nobody has filmed this one — but these are close.

Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.

Catalina Yachts 278.18 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA masthead sloop with 6,662 hulls produced over two decades, serving as a staple of coastal cruising since 1971
Cascade Yachts 278.23 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA masthead sloop with a fin keel and spade rudder, designed by Robert A. Smith for balanced coastal cruising
Puma 268.00 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA masthead sloop derived from an IOR Half Ton prototype, designed by Holman and Pye for competitive performance
Colvic Ltd. Sailor 268.21 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA twin-keeled masthead sloop with hulls moulded by Colvic and finished by various yards, including Atlanta Marine
Coronado Yachts 278.13 mSame hull family0.2 m longerA William Tripp Jr. design featuring a masthead sloop rig and fin keel, sharing a near-identical hull with the Columbia 27
Watkins Yachts 278.23 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA masthead sloop with a skeg-hung rudder, offered in rare pilot house and keel-centerboard configurations

The family

Boats like this

Nearby designs by size, type, and era — worth a look alongside her.

Keep looking

Nothing filmed of this one yet

Two ways to keep looking — both search what the fleet has actually recorded.

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