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Review of the Hunter 340 by Larry Jackel

Year built 1999  
Location of boat Bayville, NJ  
The boat is sailed on Bays, sounds, or protected salt water  
How the boat is used Day sailing  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew solo  
Liveaboard?  
Owner bought the boat in 1999  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? yes  
Gear that's been added 100 AlternatorRefrigeratorLink 2000R Battery MonitorFreedom 20 inverter/chargerST 50 Wind, Depth, SpeedST 4000 autopilotRL 70 Radar/Plotterspinnaker winchesanchor windlassengine temperature gauge  
Structural or complex improvements Not really, except that I use the  
The boat's best features - General clever design, including large, cheerful interior.- Good sailing performance if the wind is not too high.- Can be easily single-handed.- lots of small, nice features: e.g. cockpit shower, lighted labels in electical panel, speakers in the arch, etc.- good access to the engine and the other systems(This is MUCH improved compared to my previous h28.5)  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. It's hard to flake the sail into the integralsailcover because the boom is so high above thecockpit. I am 5' 10  
Sailing characterisitcs The boat will do 5-6 knots close-hauled in 12 knots true wind, withthe apparent at 30 degrees.In these conditions there will be about 10 degrees of weather helm as the boatheals about 15 degrees. At stronger winds it is necessaryto reef the main, or else the weather helm becomeslarge as the boat heals toward 30 degrees.I try to take the first reef in the main with12 - 15 knots of wind and the 2nd reef in 18 - 20knots. In winds ~ 25 knots, I have sailed upwindwith just reefed jib. I would not want tosail this boat with wind  
Motoring characterisitcs At 2800 RPM the boat will make about 6.4 knotsprovided there is not a strong headwind.At this speed, about 4 degrees of starboardrudder is required to keep the boat on course.If you let go of the wheel, the boat quicklyturns to port.  
Liveability In general, the boat is very comfortable.The galley works well, as does the head, exceptif you are not careful, the shower tendsto soak the toilet paper in its vanity holder.There is plenty of storage, but there is no deep,large locker for big objects, such as a deflateddinghy.The V-berth is ok for people ~ 5' 8  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) The Hunter factory tour was very worthwhile. I took a bunch of photos of 340s in various stages of construction. They have proven to be helpfulin diagnosing and fixing squeaks caused bythe rear bulkhead moving against the deck.While I was at the factory, I met with JohnPeterson; he was very accomdating and helpful.At my request Hunter gave me a semi-customelectrical system that includes a batterymonitoring system, and a larger alternatorthan the standard issue. They also made a fewother custom mods that were important to me.  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any I bought the boat from Sandy Hook Yacht Sales in NJ. They have offices near where I sailin Ocean County and near where I live in MonmouthCounty. I have dealt with both offices andeveryone was helpful and responsive.The commissioning team and the warrantywork was really superb.  
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