Design and Construction
Scott designed the Express 26 with a solid fiberglass hull and a stub/centreboard keel arrangement. Depending on load, draft ranges from roughly 2.33 to 2.63 feet, allowing the boat to tuck into shallow marinas.
The 10.5-foot beam is generous for a 26-foot boat. Its length-to-beam ratio of 2.47 makes the Express 26 notably broad for its size. Displacement is 7,500 pounds, including 2,500 pounds of lead ballast, for a ballast ratio of 33 percent.
Wetted surface is about 290 square feet. An immersion rate of 881 pounds per inch points to a hull that resists squatting under load. The sources don’t state when production ended.
Rig and Performance
The fractional rig’s ISO 8666 reference sail area produces a sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 17.1. With a 135 percent genoa, that figure rises to 19.1. Along with a displacement-length ratio of 240, these numbers put the boat in the moderate-racer category rather than among out-and-out racing designs. The theoretical hull speed is 6.6 knots.
A capsize screening value of 2.15 and a motion comfort ratio of 20.4 place the Express 26 firmly in the small-family-cruiser range rather than at the offshore-racer extreme.
Rigging dimensions are well documented. The mainsail, jib/genoa, and spinnaker halyards are each about 84 feet long and 5/16 inch in diameter. The 65-foot mainsheet and 26-foot genoa sheets are both 3/8 inch. Those recorded lengths make re-lining the rig a straightforward, measured job.
Tankage and Accommodations
The specifications list fixed tankage of 15 gallons for diesel and 40 gallons for water. The available sources provide no details about the interior arrangement or accommodations.
Refits and Ownership
Owners may specify an inboard Yanmar diesel. The fully tabulated lengths for the rig’s consumable lines also make a re-rig or halyard replacement less of a guessing exercise.
The Verdict
The Express 26 is a practical small cruiser-racer, combining shoal draft and a centerboard with a broad, stable platform. Its moderate sail power places it squarely among performance-oriented cruising designs rather than all-out racers.
Pros
- Load-dependent shoal draft from the stub/centreboard keel eases access to shallow marinas
- Broad 10.5-foot beam and 33 percent ballast ratio aid form stability
- Fully documented rigging lengths simplify halyard and sheet replacement
Cons
- No stated production end year, limiting historical precision for later boats
- Available sources don’t describe the interior layout or accommodations
