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Review of the Hunter 30_74-83 by A. Leathers

Year built 1980  
Location of boat Mandeville, La.  
The boat is sailed on Lakes  
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 2005  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Yes, yes. yes! This boat, for the size, feels like a much larger boat. we sailed our family's 50ft Gulfstar many times and we love the feel of this boat is comfort, ease of care and handling under sail. Plenty of storage, plenty of engine, the Yanmar 2QM15 is plenty of engine that never quits! Burnes almost no fuel and really not as loud as we heard with other boat engines.  
Gear that's been added yes, removed all the out dated Nav stuff and purchased a Garmin 276c GPS! this thing is all but idiot proof! Also added new carpet in the cabin, New Marine stove and will be replacing all the seat cushions and port curtains.  
Structural or complex improvements Just did some cleaning in the bilge area and engine compartment. Removed the Exhaust manifold and cleaned it, was clogged and we feared we were in for an incredible expence trying to replace it but it was just slightly plugged at the inlet port on the water jacket. Not a big deal to remove and clean out at all! The hand waste pump diaphram was split, changed that and the head works fine now. Changed some running rigs, the halyards, also an easy feat to accomplsih if done right. Also, the 1st thing we did was haul her out the water for a fresh bottom job. Upon removing the junk from the hull, for a boat that hasn't had a bottom job in 5 yrs, she was almost blister free and what was there was small. The hull ws in great shape and with a new bottom now, she slides nicely through the water now!  
The boat's best features Cabin layout, handling under power and sail. Ease of getting to things that need replacing or repairing if needed. Cabin storage. Her lines are nice. For a boat her age, she is vertually water tight, absolutely no leaks anywhere.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. The inlet port on the water jacket side of the exhaust manifold has a reducing port that tends to catch trash and plugs. But easily able to get at to unplug if it ever does again. The 12V cabin lights, some don't work but easy to change out that too. Not much else to say bad about the boat.  
Sailing characterisitcs Responsive, easy to sail, good in just about any wind condition.  
Motoring characterisitcs I think the problem others have had with the boat walking to port while backing up is a prop pitch problem because I haven't had much of a problem backing at all. I have a 13/13 L handed prop on my boat and don't really have any problems that I have read here about backing.  
Liveability Seems like it will be nice to do extended cruising. We just got the boat two weeks ago so we haven't done any long trips but I can tell it will be a wonderful experience because the cabin layout is among the best I've seen. Lots of storage, room and it having a seperate V-birth from the rest of the cabin gives privacy when needed!lol The previous owner installed a New AC system along with a new refrigeration plate that made the deal for us!  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) Hmmmm, sent an email once asking for info and never got a responce? What's up with that?  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any Bought the boat from Mayer Yacht sales out of New Orleans, La. If you want a good deal, hastle free experience. Ask for Joe Peters! Oh and Randy too, they are both great guys that will not feed you a bunch of B.S. They want happy customers and these guys have our buisness from now on because of how they treated us and delt with us fairly and most importantly, HONESTLY! Thanks guys for helping us accomplish our dream, owning our own boat!  
Other comments She is solid and gives you a feel of a much larger boat for her size. Well placed rigging and she almost sails herself!  

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