Hunter Owner Reviews

Serving sailors online since 1997
Hunter OEM Parts
General Marine Parts
 
 

Review of the Hunter 19_81-83 by Ted

Year built 1982  
Location of boat Boynton Beach, Florida  
The boat is sailed on Bays, sounds, or protected salt water  
How the boat is used Weekends and longer  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew solo  
Liveaboard? No  
Owner bought the boat in 2005  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Yes. The price was $1,300 with the tailer - no motor. That's not much more than a lot of similar aged Sunfish and it sure is a lot more boat.  
Gear that's been added A Bimini, a new motor, a sliding gooseneck so I could sail under the bimini - small convience items.  
Structural or complex improvements None needed. I did take a foot off the top of the main sail so the boom woud clear the bimini, and, more importantly, my head.  
The boat's best features The low weight, shallow draft and the fine sailing performance (good speed and neutral tiller).  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. Nothing. I have replaced a couple of stays, and tried to bring back some luster to the hull.  
Sailing characterisitcs 20 to 25 on my first sail. It was scarry, but now I know that the boat can handle it. It seams to sail best in about 10 -15. It will sail between five and six mph in those winds. At higher winds, you tend to be pinching, dumping air or healing over too far. The boat does pound pretty hard into two to three foot chop, but I have only sailed solo in those conditions.I believe it would smooth out some if I had more weight in it.  
Motoring characterisitcs It does well with a two horse, but I use a five because I sail in the Keys and sometimes have to deal with strong current and wind, plus I like to motor at half throttle for a smoother ride.  
Liveability The cabin is pretty cramped, so I use a couple of boards accross the deck to sleep on. I consider it to be a one person camper.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) No experience.  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any N/A  
Other comments Sometimes I think about getting a bigger boat for more overnight comfort or a smaller one for more ease of trailering and rigging, but this seems to be a very good combination of ease of use and quality of performance. Going farther in either direction would likely mean giving up one or the other of those two attributes.