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Review of the Hunter 23.5 by Tony Helbling

Year built 1993  
Location of boat Portland, Oregon  
The boat is sailed on Rivers  
How the boat is used Day sailing  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew 5-6  
Liveaboard? No  
Owner bought the boat in 1996  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? In a heartbeat. It has been the perfect family trailer boat. It has the room of a Catalina 250 with half the cost. The fit and finish is better and the support from the factory has been outstanding. We have three kids, currently 8, 11 and 14 years old. All love the boat and the 11 year old can sail it. When we first bought the boat, they were all over it. The life lines provide a good measure of security for them as well as me. The ease with which it is launched and recovered from a trailer is unbelievable. I used to sail a Capri 14.2 and it took more time to get in and out of the water than the Hunter.  
Gear that's been added I just bought a genaker and am going to try it out this summer. Other from that, the previous owner added an Autohelm BiData knot and dept indicator (works great) and a Sunto compass. No other alterations.  
Structural or complex improvements None.  
The boat's best features Ease of launch and recovery. By myself or with the boys, even the kids can handle getting it to the dock, tie it up and get ready to go. A real family boat. We've camped overnight on it too... plenty of room and we all fit. Even all the stuff my daughter brings along!!!  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. Other from signs of normal aging, nothing has really failed other than some of the minor retaining clips. The only thing I would change is the connections of the Shrouds to the deck plates. The "T" end of the shroud is easily bent if the shroud turn buckle is not straight up when the mast is stepped. (I bent two out of four.)  
Sailing characterisitcs Very easy to handle even in a brisk wind. I tend to wait longer than I should to reef. Mainly because my kids like the excitement. Be careful in a strong wind that the rudder does not come up in the least. Should it come up (because the line that holds in down is not cleated to the tiller) you will have weather helm like you would'nt believe.... if you know you are in deep water with no chance of grounding, cleat it off. When completely down, little to no weather helm in a strong wind.  
Motoring characterisitcs I have an 8 horse Tohatsu on the boat. It will move the boat at a little better than 5 knots. As it is not connected to the rudder, great care must be taken when docking not to turn the rudder into a spinning prop. This lack of connection does come in handy. It is easy to maneuver in tight quarters because I can turn the engine nearly 90 degrees. However, when running down the river, it is sort of a two hand process, one hand on the tiller and another on the engine's steering arm, keeping it straight. There is a friction lock on the throttle, but not on the engine to keep it from turning.  
Liveability Again, with 5 of us, it is a great "camper", but I would never live on a 23 foot boat. With respect to the other boats in the size and price range, it has way more cabin space. Underseat storage is plentiful, as is storage aft of the under cockpit birth. The ability of the table to be used either in the saloon or up on deck in the cockpit is pretty cool! At anchor, we've used it lots of times to make lunch or have drinks and munchies while watching sunsets or fireworks. My wife's only point of contention with this boat is the porta-john location. Under the forward birth. If someone is sleeping there and someone else has to "go", the choice is waking the sleeping dog, (ever try to move a 6' 14 year old with size 14 feet that does not want to move?) or use the bucket! This is the reason that my wife is very interested in the H260 or larger!  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) Excellent. I used to work in the parts business in the airplane industry. I ran the parts system for a chain. These guys are great, better than anyone I worked with!!! Email is very useful with them and they reply within a few hours, next day at the latest. They are dedicated and very knowledgable.  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any We bought from a use boat broker. He was very nice and did a great job.  
Other comments I liked our boat so much, I convinced a friend he needed to buy one too. He bought an H260 and is moored in the slip next to our boat. If I coulf find a way to justify and afford an H340, I would be sailing it next week.  

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