Hunter Owner Reviews

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Review of the Hunter 26 by C.J. Burmeister, Jr.

Year built 1995  
Location of boat Lonville, Louisiana  
The boat is sailed on Bays, sounds, or protected salt water  
How the boat is used Weekends and longer  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew 2-4  
Liveaboard? No  
Owner bought the boat in 2000  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? yes....  
Gear that's been added none,,,yet....jib furling in the near future..  
Structural or complex improvements Yes...installed a ballast discharge pump. I had a bad time at low tide on a mud bar. I found the boat more difficult to load with a full ballast tank. So...I installed a 6.3gpm WATER PUPPY pump under the step, ran the discharge out through the stern. This system works very well. I can pump out the ballast tank any time I need to.  
The boat's best features The interior is much more comfortable than other boats in it's class.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. The rudder has given me a bad time. The uphaul system does not work well. I added a purchase(pully) at the rudder. It helps. The aluminum plates that support the rudder were bent and very flexable. The pivot bolt bushing was missing. The 38 all-thread carriage bolt was in a hole approximately one inch in diameter. All this gave the rudder a very spongey feel and it was very hard to hold on tack and heeled over. I straightened the side plates, added 3" aluminum angel pieces on both sides diagonally up the plates to add stiffness to the rudder mounting assembly. Then I manufactured a new bushing to go into the rudder pivot hole and used a 58"X 5" stainless steel bolt with a shoulder that extends all the way through the rudder assembly so as to avoid threads on the bolt from cutting the new bushing and the new aluminum support pieces. The result is a much better feel to the rudder and even the uphauling the rudder is easier because it isn't binding anymore.  
Sailing characterisitcs Made a trip from Swansboro N.C. to the Pamlico Sound by way of the IWC and the Neuse River. Due to the above rudder problems the trip could have been much better..BUT..we still had a great time and the seas reached 2 to 3 feet at times. "Sail Mates" handled it all very well, considering the rudder problems.  
Motoring characterisitcs Motoring was easy...on a couple of occasions a large power cruiser would not slow down for us and give us a bounce, Sail Mates did not pitch too badly and handled the large swells well. Now that I have the ballast discharge system installed, motoring can be a bit more economical.  
Liveability Sail Mates should be livable for two adults for as long as necessary. My wife may not agree but I believe I could stay on the 26H for about 2 weeks. Perhaps even a month...or more...!  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) So far so good  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any I bought the 26H at SailIowa in Knoxville, Iowa. Rod was very helpful.  
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