Nonetheless... if you were a real friend... you would have talked him out of
this insanity.

You know very well he won't be happy with the purchase.....

Mooron, here is what I wrote to him:

Jim, I don't know if you're a troll or not, but I did recently speak to a
couple who sailed the new boat in Florida a few weeks ago. They mostly sailed
her and found her to be pretty bad, with poor upwind ability and a very cheap
feel. Under power, she did not get up on a plane until they (4 people total)
balanced their weight better. I assumed there was some chop. They were looking
to buy, but found the sailing performance less than thrilling. They've been
mostly renting small sailboats and taking courses in California. They had not
sailed the 26X, so this was just a stand-alone test of the M model.
I've been aboard the new version, but did not sail her. I can confirm that
she's very lightly built and lacking in comfort below, compared to the average
Catalina 27. There's a reason for all of the Mac bashing. While she might fit
someone's needs, her performance is so poor as to have earned her a general
disdain. The build quality, still pretty much the same, is also not highly
valued. Speak to a few surveyors.
I would not put my family on one, certainly not on anything more than VERY
protected waters, such as a small lake. I currently work as a broker part time
and have learned a lot about the market. I recently declined two Macs because
no brand has a faster loss ratio and owners are pretty shocked by it. They can
sell for as little as HALF after just a few years. Amazing.
If you've actually bought a Mac, I wish you the best of luck with her.
Otherwise you might care to rethink the decision. While the Asa group can be
pretty nasty, the well of info is generally on target.
There are some boats with bad reps. US Yachts, Mac, Hunter, tanzer, Siedleman
and so on. There's a reason for it. As Katy said; "It's your money."
Best of luck,

Robert B
C&C 32, Alien
NY