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Review of the Hunter 25 by peter

Year built 1982  
Location of boat NJ  
The boat is sailed on Bays, sounds, or protected salt water  
How the boat is used Day sailing  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew 2-4  
Liveaboard? No  
Owner bought the boat in 2011  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Yes. It is alot of boat for the money. It can be found much cheaper than a 27 footer (next size up), but unlike a typical 22 footer (next size down) this boat is big enough to sail pretty much anywhere coastal in any kind of reasonable weather. Also parts for the boat, such as standing rigging or new sails, are a degree cheaper than a typical 27 footer and won't break the bank. I would probably get the deep keel version rather than the shoal draft (for better upwind performance), but the righting moment is probably about the same because the shoal draft has a 50% ballast to displacement ratio (very good).  
Gear that's been added Took out the roller furling, replaced with hank-on. Now have a working jib (100%) and a light air (I think 4.5 oz) 130 genoa which is GREAT for prevailing light summer winds. Added LED mast and anchor lights. Added a cheap house battery and charger for the dock. Added a depthfinder and marine stereo (both totally worthwhile). Replaced the ice box with an AC mini fridge for the dock, that is removable. Added DIY lifeline netting, a line zigzagging from the toe rail to the lifeline and back. Also added forward hand grips, very necessary if going hank-on. Installed simple shore power. PO added a flexible watertank under the v-berth, and an electric water pump for the sink. PO replaced the front hatch.  
Structural or complex improvements Re-did the galley counter. The galley bulkhead tabbing had broken so I re-tabbed them. I found one other bulkhead that had been re-tabbed by the PO in the same area. The other bulkheads were sound though. When I replaced the galley counter, I cut out the ice box, cut a vertical hole in the plywood that holds up the counter, and installed a mini-fridge. This gives access to the area under the cockpit well (which originally held the watertank). I installed a ply floor for the batteries, and for some plastic water jugs. The mini-fridge must be pulled out to access this area though. Took down and re-wired the mast and radio (which wasn't working), replaced all standing rigging (cost was about $660 at rigging only, not an expensive job)  
The boat's best features  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. The ports, if original, will be glazed and leak like hell (a problem with all hunters of this era). The leaking turns the core surrounding the ports into rotted cardboard, which must either be cut out and replaced, or else, like I did, just cut them bigger and make tinted lexan ports that screw in from the outside (Don Casey recommends this in his book "This Old Boat"). Frames can be made for the inside if you are concerned about the looks. Otherwise new ports cost minimum $125 each, times 8 equals alot of ports. The toe rail should be re-bed, as that is another source of much more minor leaks, and it is best if all fittings are re-bed. The traveller was a major leak in heavy rain until I re-bed it. That said, I did not find any crevice corrosion in any of the through-bolts of the boat. They used butyl to bed at the factory, which may explain this. I wound up replacing the U-type chainplates, because the only way to remove them and inspect/rebed was to cut them in the middle and "unscrew" them to get them out. They had minor corrosion, a tiny bit of pitting, so it felt good replacing them and the replacements were relatively cheap. However, where they mount, the port side was a good half inch thicker than the starboard side, so on the port side I had to drill out a shallower hole from the bottom. On one of them I hit a metal plate that is obviously structural. I was just able to bolt the chainplate after this. The boat had about 100-200 little blisters which I ground out with a hand circular grinder and a floppy disc, then filled with a patch of glass and epoxy filler. The rudder bearing is a tad loose, another old Hunter trademark, but it wasn't bad enough to replace. The top of the rudder post is held secure by a piece of teak just under the head where the tiller attaches. It had worn and there was alot of play, not to mention room for water intrusion, so I replaced it and the tiller has much less play now. The rudder had some water intrusion, though no blisters. I ground down to the metal, dried it out as best I could, and patched it back up well with many layers of glass. The boat should eventually be dried out and barrier coated, but it wasn't as bad as it might seem from my description, and nearly all older boats like this suffer from water intrusion so I don't really blame the design. The cockpit lockers should have latches on them so they don't flood and possibly sink the boat in a knockdown (a common occurence on J-24's) though I've yet to experience a complete knockdown in the boat. The companionway is very big, and has several gaps that ensure this could never be a bluewater boat. The rather incomplete tabbing and bulkhead placement also ensure that this is no bluewater boat, but few Hunters are... that said, I regularly go out into some pretty rough stuff, 25 knots wind and 4-5' swells/chop, and the boat handles it fine, no more de-tabbing yet. I have had it out, shortly, in 7-9' seas as well, but that was really pushing it and I would not do that again.  
Sailing characterisitcs Cherubini boats are known as good sailors. The shoal draft version could do better upwind in heavy winds, but part of that is sail selection and the fact that it's such a light boat. The boat experiences pretty severe weather helm upwind no matter what you do, esp as the boat heels and the wind picks up. When going upwind, it is best to ease the main to right before it starts flogging, that helps with the weather helm and helps your speed significantly since the rudder is no longer acting as a brake and the boat heels less. The jib does all the work on the boat, under main alone you will never get more that 1 knot, might as well be hove-to. The cockpit fits 4 comfy, can fit 6 but it's tight and the tiller really gets in the way. When sailing in any real wind, where the boat will be heeled over significantly, two is the ideal crew and 3 is kind of tight. More than that and it becomes hard to use crew weight to balance the boat without having them out on the rail racing style. The genoa overpowers the boat in anything over 15 knots, even when roller reefed. A working jib is a necessary sail to have if you are anything but a light winds sailor, and is one of the reasons I switched to hank on. A fun boat that handles well and, considering that is it a 4000# 25 footer, can handle all but the most extreme coastal weather. Unlike a catalina 22 or similar, this boat has great final stability and doesn't rely on hull form. I had a few close calls when taken aback in heavy winds where the boat was nearly knocked down, and she just rounded up and popped back up. No knockdowns yet though so take it with a grain of salt. Downwind a poled out genoa moves you along well, I am not set up for spinnaker so can't comment on that.  
Motoring characterisitcs Like any small boat with an outboard, when crew moves forward, or in a strong chop, the OB can be lifted in and out of the water.  
Liveability Very nice interior layout, well done and not bad looking. Private head is nice, the doors to the v-birth are useless but the sliding door at the main bulkhead works great. No standing headroom, so tough for a liveaboard, but with the companionway open you have standing headroom for cooking and dish washing. Comfy interior for two, any more and you want to be eating in the cockpit it's too cramped in the salon. Also, if you have leaks make sure to pump out the bilge regularly b/c it's shallow and the water will get all over the cabin sole (or carpet) when sailing.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any)  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any Bought it on Craigslist.  
Other comments  

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