This is the PY26 section. Click
on a link above to find specs about the boat along
with lots of photo's.
My name is Jay Moran from Naples, FL and until recently
I owned a PY26 which can be seen in the photo section. My
boat, the "Galatia" was an AMF/Paceship
built in late 1979, shipped in 1980. I bought her
from the original owner.
The Galatia is an inboard version and the original
12HP Yanmar Diesel had been replaced with the 18HP,
two cylinder water cooled version of the same manufacture.
The boat had a keel centerboard and Drafts about
3 fit with the keel up and about 6 ft with it down.
The PY26 sails reasonably well with the centerboard
up which is sometimes becomes necessary since barnacles
and rust can foul the cast iron keel centerboard when
the boat is not used for a while! |
I have found few faults
with the boat. Although they should not be taken
as serious faults, the shallow bilge and cast iron
keel is bothersome. She is also a little tough to
get going in a light wind but crank out the 150% Genoa
and she hikes right along.
She is relatively stiff and being a fairly light
displacement hull, she will bob a bit in a heavy chop
but nothing to awful!
I found myself in pretty heavy seas from time to
time here in the Gulf of Mexico and the PY26 takes
the worst of them and still remains pretty dry on
deck. I would not be afraid to take some selected
blue water cruises with the boat. I feel that confident
in her ability to handle the seas.
The PY26 a great family boat and easy to sail.
I single handed her a good part of the time during
my almost daily sails. The boat is comfortable with
a cockpit large enough to accommodate the five people
it sleeps and is also capable of winning a regatta
or two as well! |
| The PY26 were designed by
John Deknatel of the famed marine architectural firm
C. Raymond Hunt
Associates sometime in approximately 1973. Interestingly,
only these two boats carry the "PY" designation
The PY 26 design was first built by Paceship
Yachts in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia. At the end of 1977,
the company was bought by AMF of Connecticut, who
built the design between 1978 and 1981. Tanzer Industries
bought the mold and rights to the design in 1981 and
produced the boat as the Tanzer 27 (with a desk stepped
versus the original keel stepped mast) until they
went out of business several years later.
The Nova Scotia boats can be identified by gold anodized
masts and wooden toe rail; the AMF boats had black
anodized masts and black, slotted aluminum toe rails.
The boat is heavily built with quality components
throughout. A fiberglass inner liner finishes
the interior very nicely.
The interior of the PY26 is laid out in a traditional
manner. A forward V-berth is separated from the head
compartment by a bulkhead and a door. The main saloon,
separated from the head by a bulkhead and a door,
has a settee/berth on either side with a pilot berth
aft of the port settee. |
The galley sits across the centerline
of the boat under the bridge deck in the Canadian
version layout, but the AMF boats had an is L shaped
galley. The dinette table folds up against the main
bulkhead on the port side of the interior mast when
not in use.
The boat was manufactured in both inboard and outboard
configurations. The original inboard versions used
8 HP diesel while later models used both 10 and 12
HP versions prompted by owner comments regarding the
boat's anemic powered performance. Some models of
the boats could be bought with either a fixed or swing
keel.
The PY 26 is quite large for its length, but the
boat still sails very well, even in light air with
a 150% genoa. In heavy airs, the boat feels
stable, secure and is usually remains fairly dry.
The large tiller steered outboard rudder makes the
boat very responsive and provides excellent helm feedback.
In summary this is a well built, roomy, and beautiful
looking high performance sailboat.
Jay Moran
|
