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Review of the Hunter 19_81-83 by Kevin

Year built 1982  
Location of boat Mid Michigan  
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 1990  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? I loved her dearly.. made my heart throb every time I looked at her. Gave me many years of sailing pleasure... Yeah, I'd probably give her a good hard look...just sold her last month (still have a bit of a sickly feeling in the pit of my stomach); she hadn't been in the water since my second child was born and I had no indoor place to store her or work on her...it was either her or a family heirloom Snipe... she went to a craftsman... I have high hopes of seeing her on the water with proper refinement.  
Gear that's been added New mast and rigging...bulkhead compass...various appointments below...lifting outboard bracket... new forward hatch, new companionway hatch and boards, slab reefing, many trailer refinements, new outboard. My wish list included a spinnaker ( I was thinking an Interlake spinnaker would probably have worked just fine), rollering furling for the jib, boomkicker, electrical system for nav lights and hard mount radio, new interior cushions...and on.... and on....  
Structural or complex improvements Replaced the chain plates early on; rebedded the deck/hull joint. Building the new mast was interesting; I started with a new blank and had to cobble the rig, using many components from other boats' rigs. Fabricating the hatch and companionway boards also proved an exercise in patience whereas the openings proved to be anything but square and true. Thank goodness for the help and expertise of friends...  
The boat's best features very easily driven... a joy to sail, very responsive, yet forgiving. Her speed was often a surprise to much larger boats. I'll never forget rocketing on a reach across Lake Charlevoix in 25 to 30 knots of air with 3 large brothers aboard, listening to the hull hum through the water... Launching off the trailer and retrieving were a cinch. I could be sailing within 20 minutes of having reached the launch site and be ready for the road as quickly at the end of the day! At 1200 lbs. she was easily trailered.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. Chain plate failure was probably the most bothersome. I'm not sure if the flakey square-shouldered u-bolts through deck and hull to a smallish aluminum backing plate was original design, but my sailing became much less worrisome after considerable refabrication and spreading of stress loads in that area. I did have a bit of problem with delamination of the hull on the inside. That probably would have been her next big project: removing the deck and relaminating her from the inside out. I would have preferred some kind of boxed enclosure over the top of the centerboard trunk; small seas would prompt a bit of splash inside the cabin. Also, the routing of the centerboard pendant and it's attachment at the board head was a bit unrefined.  
Sailing characterisitcs Driven to the bitter edge in 18+ knots of air she would refuse to broach. Her beam, combined with ample control surfaces on both rudder and centerboard made her very forgiving... I could drive her right over on her beam and she would sit right there until I eased her up. The one characteristic I found troublesome was pounding of the hull when driven head on into seas or large wakes... she'd stop dead; the price paid I suppose for such speed off the wind, given all that flat area aft.  
Motoring characterisitcs Again, an easily driven hull. For years my auxiliary was a 1.7 hp Mighty Mite outboard; a motor capable of driving her to weather in anything up to 15 knots of air with light chop... maybe not at great speed, but I could make headway.  
Liveability Liveable? Well... that's a push. it's a tiny cabin, handy for porta-potti privacy, gear and cooler stowage, naps during summer rains, but that's about it. I suppose a hardened micro-cruiser might howl in protest and point out the vastness of her accomodations, but this 6'3" fair weather sailor found her adequate for little more than extended daysailing.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) They were very helpful in my initial search for information.  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any Nothing to write home about.  
Other comments I called her "Attila".... I couldn't resist the campy word play. I long considered the name "Orca", because her profile always made me think of a killer whale. Ah, for the lack of a pole barn....  

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