1989 MacGregor 65 Pilothouse

Located in Carolina Beach. NC.

This is a great 1989 MacGregor 65 Pilothouse, needs a little work but with so much potential!

Macgregor made 2 versions of the 65- the first was a very light racing sled of which about 25 were made.

Being lightly built and considered somewhat “disposable” these early boats had a reputation for being flimsy and cheap-made, their only positives being that they were cheap and extremely fast- up to 30 knots.

Here are the details: https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/macgregor-65

Starting with hull #26 Macgregor redesigned the deck, adding a pilothouse, and greatly increased the strength of the boats adding about 7,000lbs of fiberglass and 3,000 lbs of ballast in a shoal finned keel.

Here’s the data on the pilothouse: https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/macgregor-65-pilot-house

The last dozen boats built were changed by moving the engine from the pilothouse to the aft lazarett/cabin and installing a V-drive.

The old engine space was converted to a freezer. Molded-in steps were added to the transom.

This mid-production model differs only in the location of the engine and lack of transom steps.

All of the pilothouse models are extremely well built to offshore standards.

The hull is up to 3” thick under the keel and is a minimum of 3/8” found on the aftermost topsides. There is no coring except for some marine plywood in the deck under the winches and mooring cleats.

Having a solid glass hull and deck eliminates any concern about core rot or delamination issues.

No ABS certificate but built the same way to the same standards.

Macgregors were all built with high-quality hand mixed/catalyzed resins and as such do not have a history of blistering. In fact, blisters are extremely rare.

The boat has been dived on and the hull, keel, and rudder are all sound.

The engine and related bits operate as they should, it starts easily and runs well without smoke but does need fresh batteries and the wiring cleaned up.

Folding Max-Prop and modern dripless shaft seal.

There are no sails, estimated quotes for the main, inner jib, and genoa in dacron from totaling about $14k.

The traveler is usable.

The boat has 4 Lewmar #52 winches, some of which have damage to the top plates.

Also on board are 3 Lemar #40 winches, all in good shape.

All winches are self-tailing.

The inner staysail and genoa sails are mounted to Harken #3 furlers, both in good shape but parts are readily available should they be needed.

The hydraulics for the boom vang and backstay are all there.

The galley has a CNG stove/oven with two tanks in the aft stateroom.

Water pumps, etc are functional. Refrigeration needs to be replaced or use as an icebox.

Both heads appear functional.

Vertical clearance for the ICW is 67’

Macgregor are amazing boats to sail- incredibly stable, very little pitching, easily single-handed and extremely fast, often passing everything in sight with little effort.

Don’t miss this opportunity!