Paceship PY 26 Sailboat Review, Specs, and Listings

Design and Construction

The PY 26 was built with the materials typical of its era—hand-laid fiberglass cloth, mat, woven roving, and balsa core—and the interior is built up with a fiberglass pan forming the cabin sole and berth foundations, finished overhead with a one-piece fiberglass headliner anchor. Bulkheads are plywood with teak trim. The hull carries a raked stem and near-vertical transom, and the rudder is mounted outboard on the transom, an arrangement that provides good control. The 9.5-foot beam gives the boat good initial stability, and the 2,200 pounds of iron ballast in the 4-foot 6-inch fin keel provides adequate ultimate stability anchor. Notably, the keel is cast iron rather than lead, which unlike lead can rust.

Canadian-built boats had teak toerails, later changed to a slotted aluminum toerail at AMF. In 1979, just before production ceased, a centerboard version was made available, with the board pivoting from a ballasted stub keel external to the hull anchor. That version draws 2 feet 7 inches board up and 6 feet 7 inches down, but its 9-foot 6-inch beam exceeds standard highway limits and its 6,900-pound displacement would require a substantial towing vehicle.

Rig and Handling

The PY 26 is a masthead sloop with the mast stepped on the keel, generally considered better than deck-stepped for strength anchor. The rig includes an anodized mast and boom with stainless steel wire rigging—split backstay for the tiller, headstay, upper shrouds, and single lower shrouds terminating at the same chainplate. The mainsheet attaches near the end of the boom and leads to a traveler at the aft edge of the bridge deck.

Under sail, the sloop rig gives a modest sail area/displacement ratio of about 15.7 to 16.5. PHRF ratings run 194–207 for the keel model and 207–210 for the centerboard, and Practical Sailor found the design faster than a Cal 25, Pearson 26, or Catalina 27 anchor. The displacement/length ratio sits in the 227–250 range depending on the figure used, with around 6,000 pounds displacement giving confident coastal cruising without being too heavy for decent performance.

Accommodations

For a 26-footer the PY 26 shows remarkable interior space utilization, with full 6-foot 1-inch headroom that was exceptional for its era anchor. There is a V-berth forward with access to a tiny forepeak; a door from the head opens into the forward cabin, so a V-berth insert would require removing that door. The head compartment extends to both sides, with the toilet to port and a small sink and vanity to starboard.

The saloon has two settees with stowage behind each backrest, and a quarter berth aft of the port settee. The dinette table folds up against the main bulkhead when not in use. The galley sits under the bridgedeck with a sink, a generous 125-pound icebox, and a two-burner alcohol stove; the stovetop was gimbaled in some models and fixed flush in others. AMF boats adopted an L-shaped galley and pushed the starboard settee past the main bulkhead to gain footroom beneath the head sink, while Canadian-built boats kept a conventional starboard settee.

Known Issues

The principal material concern is the cast-iron keel, which unlike lead can rust anchor. The transom-hung rudder location, while good for control, is unusual for the size and worth inspecting for wear at the pintles and gudgeons.

The Verdict

The PY 26 is a thoughtfully laid-out small cruiser that punches above its length in accommodation and stability. The keel-stepped mast and beamy hull give it a solid, seakindly feel for coastal work, and the centerboard option adds shallow-water reach at the cost of trailering practicality. The iron keel demands rust vigilance, but the design remains a competent, well-mannered 26-footer.

Pros