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Review of the Hunter 260 by Gary fisher

Year built 1998  
Location of boat Lake Winnebago-Wisconsin  
The boat is sailed on Lakes  
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 1999  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Probably, especially at the price we got it. had some initial letdowns, but overall probably woul buy again.  
Gear that's been added Added Stereo system, electronic depth sounder, shades for windows  
Structural or complex improvements Not yet, but I'd sure like to help redesign a few parts of the future 260's produced.  
The boat's best features Large interior and cockpit. Nice sleeping berth beneath cockpit. Easy setup-the mast raising system is nice.Water ballast for lighter trailering weight is nice.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. The center board raising system realy sucks. Hasn't worked properly ever. Had the dealer try to fix it and the Hunter factory. neither could. The factory said it was a design flaw. The board does not fully retract, but hangs down 6 to 12" further than advertised. The other part I'm concerned about is if I have to replace the line that raises the centerboard, how does an owner do it? I see premature failure on the way because of the force needed to raise the board. Also the rudder assembly is flimsy. A lot of chatter is strong winds, screws that constatly work loose. Had initial electical problems from factory. Had to bypass a wire that apparently has a break in it within boat walls. The tiller extension is too short, especially if you have the optional corner seats. Have two "voids" in the fiberglass on topside where holes have appeared after about a year. Looks like thin wall of fiberglass in the area. Had the mainsail tear out one of the grommets at the reef point while reefed and raising mainsail.  
Sailing characterisitcs The boat moves easily in light winds. Initial heel is greater than a solid ballast boat, but seems to "equalize" at 10-15 degrees of heel. Mainsail is way overpowering in 15-25 mph of wind. Could use another set of reef points. Would like a larger jib. Probably will get a 150 genoa for light wind days.  
Motoring characterisitcs Have a 9.9 Mercury 4 stroke with the extra long shaft and bigfoot prop. Works great. Plenty of power for bucking the waves coming out of harbor. Idles quietly. Pushes boat about 6 knots-flat  
Liveability Have ony done overnighters so far, will be doing a weeklong later this year. Don't anticipate problems. The windows and shaded hatch covers don't offer good privacy after dark. Window shape makes full coverage difficult. Haven't figured out how to cover hatch exposure yet.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) The service area is responsive and helpful. Unfortunately my one "big" problem they couldn't do anything about.  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any My dealer sold the business. New opwner no longer does sailboats. The other dealer in the area apparently didn't have time to return my call when I did try him. Weak dealer network in my area.  
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