Leisure 26 Buyer's Guide
Shopping for a Leisure 26 on the used market means chasing a scarce boat with a distinguished parent: she was built from the same moulds as the Oyster 26, in limited numbers, to a Holman & Pye design from the early eighties. Most examples a buyer meets will be solid fibreglass hull and deck on a fin keel, with a transom-hung rudder and a fractional sloop rig.
Layouts on the Used Market
The boat carries five berths below, and with a length-to-beam figure of 2.63 the cabin is more spacious than 90 percent of similar designs — a standout for a 26-footer. The Motion Comfort Ratio of 19.7 places her above 54 percent of comparable boats for ride quality. A buyer should expect a compact but genuinely usable interior rather than a scaled-down big-boat layout, with the volume concentrated in the main saloon and forepeak rather than in separate staterooms.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
The Leisure 26 may be fitted with an inboard diesel driving through a saildrive, though not every boat left the mould with one. Given no equipment appears in the commonly-fitted or often-seen tiers, a buyer should treat any engine, canvas, or electronics as a sometimes-seen or owner upgrade rather than standard. The only consequence-grade items to verify are the presence and condition of that inboard/saildrive package and the sail-handling lines: original spec called for 3/8-inch sheets, with jib and genoa sheets about 25.9 feet, mainsheet 64.7 feet, and spinnaker sheets 56.9 feet. Anything beyond those is the owner's doing.
What to Inspect
Documented known issues for the Leisure 26 are limited in the record, but the saildrive leg deserves close attention where an inboard is fitted, since that transmission type is age-sensitive and can leak at the diaphragm. The solid fibreglass hull and deck should be checked for osmotic blistering on the wetted surface, quoted at about 247 square feet, and for any crazing around the fin-keel sump where loads concentrate. The fin keel itself offers splendid maneuverability but less directional stability than a long keel, so inspect the keel-bolt area for weeping or movement less directional stability than a long keel.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
Leisure 26s turn up in Ireland more than elsewhere, reflecting the typical market for the marque. For a buyer, the checklist is short and specific:
- Confirm hull/deck are solid fibreglass and free of structural blistering
- Verify saildrive condition and engine provenance if fitted
- Measure berth count and cabin volume against your cruising plan
- Inspect keel sump and bolts for load-related defects
- Expect to source spares slowly given very few were built
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Leisure 26. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 1 row
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 26 | 1 | $8,611 | — |
Where they're listed
Leisure 26 listings appear across 1 country. Ireland has the most listings with 1.
Country view
1 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | $8,611 | 1 | 0 | 100.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
5 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sadler 26 | 25.75' | $ 12,870 | 29 | 7 |
| LM 26 | 26.57' | $ 21,467 | 14 | 5 |
| MacWester 26 | 26' | $ 4,742 | 6 | 1 |
| Grampian 26 | 26' | $ 7,500 | 6 | 0 |
| Leisure 26You are here | — | $ 8,611 | 1 | 0 |