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Review of the Hunter 410 by Bruce Mulford

Year built 2002  
Location of boat Chester, Md  
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 2002  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Yes. Purchased this boat new - winter 2002. This is our second season on this boat sailing the Chesapeake Bay. Overall very pleased with this boat.  
Gear that's been added This boat is named Dreamboat and that was our approach when we initially outfitted her. We have full electronics; radar, GPS/chartplotter (2 stations), autopilot with gyro, wind, Knot and depth, VHF with Ram mike at helm as well as a flat panel LCD tv and a dvd player both of which run on 12 volts, with a powered mast to TV/FM antenna. Also, spinaker halyard (only used so far for hoisting the inflatable to the foredeck) and spinaker winches (used so far only to position jib sheets near helm for single handing), roller furling main. Chose a fixed 3 blade prop because a sailboat of this displacement on the Chesapeake is going to be a trawler with a mast 50% of the time. We have dual airconditioners/heat pumps. The admiral got her factory bedding option (sheets, spreads, shams and throw pillows for both staterooms) and marine grade area rugs for all of the teak floors. The only significant options not chosen was a generator (at present have no desire to add one) or a spinaker (high on the wish list).  
Structural or complex improvements Best improvement was to install an access panel on the front edge of the aft bed platform so that the three thru-hulls there can be accessed without lifting that heavy 7" innerspring mattress. Cut the hole in the plywood front panel with a sabre saw and used a stock teak drawer front from West Marine with plastic ball and socket type latches to hold it in place. I also moved the courtesy switch for that compartment to work with the new drawer front. Now it's real easy to get open or close the thru-hulls. I also added a high water alarm to the keel bilge at about 8" to alert if the water gets above the main bilge pump, which should be very early in any real problems.  
The boat's best features Great accomodations, very comfortable for entended periods aboard, both above and below decks. Handles a wide variety of coastal conditions very well under either sail and motor.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. Had problems at launch with significant rain leakage into the aft cabin. This was traced by the dealer to a factory assembly problem with the starboard rubrail which they removed, resealed the hull seam and replaced. Had problems with the Raymarine GPS receiver which was replaced. Also, it took a whole season for the dealer to solve problems with the stock battery charger, which died once and was replaced, and the new one had to be adjusted before it would properly charge the house batteries. Tidewater/HdG gets credit for realizing there was a fix for the old one instead of accepting my offer to pay to upgrgade to a different one, as their adjustment has solved that problem. Had the freezer evaporator, the fan from freezer to fridge, and both control units replaced under warranty over the winter and now have a freezer and fridge that really work.  
Sailing characterisitcs Very comfortable cruising boat that gets a lot of compliments for it's good looks and great accomodations. Found the step up from our old H29.5 to be very easy. Boat is really freindly to handle in all conditions. Boat with stock sails loves 15 to 20 knots before reefing, then does very well with about 60% of main and jib out in winds above 20. For light air I wish the vertical batten main had been available two years ago but would not trade the convenience of the mast furler compared to the full batten conventional main on our old 29.5.  
Motoring characterisitcs With the fixed 3 blade prop on the 56hp Yanmar the boat moves quickly and well in trawler mode in all conditions we've encountered so far. She also backs down fairways and into slips with ease. As long as you anticipate the wind I've found it very predictable under power in forward or reverse.  
Liveability Great accomodations, very comfortable for entended periods aboard, both above and below decks. Have  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) No direct contact with Hunter  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any Our dealer, Tidewater/HdG, was excellent on launch commissioning and has been reasonably good in addressing the post launch problems that have arisen.  
Other comments Considering the amount of boat for the money, the short list of design/production shortcomings that I have shared directly with Hunter are minor. Boat has met almost all of our expectations and we plan to enjoy her for along time ot come.  

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