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Review of the Hunter 376 by Steve and Betsy Lazerow

Year built 1998  
Location of boat Waukegan, IL  
The boat is sailed on The Great Lakes  
How the boat is used Weekends and longer  
Normal wind strength 10-15 knots  
Average size of crew 2-4  
Liveaboard?  
Owner bought the boat in 1999  
If the clock could be turned back, would owner buy again? Yes, we have been very happy with this boat. It is extremely comfortable both above deck and below deck. The boat is also easy to sail. All lines lead aft to the cockpit and the electric halyard winch makes it a breeze to raise the mainsail.  
Gear that's been added Air conditioning, electric winch, windlass, 2 blade Max Prop, inverter, refrigerator/freezer, Magellan 6000 GPS, autopilot, wind indicator, binimi, electric head conversion kit. All of these additions are essential to comfortable and easy sailing, especially the electric winch and air conditioning. We seldom use the windless, in part, because it does not work very easily.  
Structural or complex improvements No  
The boat's best features Accommodations below deck are exceptional. The boat is highly functional and aesthetically pleasing in terms of living quarters, seating and dining accommodations.Above deck, the rounded cockpit seats up to eight comfortably and the sails are very easy to set and control.  
Problem areas in terms of design, materials, maintenance, etc. We came across a number of problems in commissioning the boat that were all handled to our complete satisfaction by our dealer, Racine Riverside Marine in Racine Wisconsin, along with Hunter Marine. These included problems with intermittent starting (solved by adding a relay), an autopilot motor that needed to be replaced, a water leak at the mast step that resulted in water coming into the cabin and several gel-coat voids. The steering is also stiff due to the rudder bearing but I have learned to live with it. We are still having a problem with poor refrigerator and freezer seals that will hopefully be fixed or replaced over the winter. This has resulted in large amounts of ice in the freezer.  
Sailing characterisitcs The boat is reasonably fast for a cruising boat and points well (with deep keel). The sailing controls are easy to access and it's very easy to tack or jibe. We've been comfortable sailing this boat in winds up to 30 knots with the sails reefed.  
Motoring characterisitcs The boat goes about 6.5 knots at full speed under engine and reverses well with the Max Prop. One minor complaint is that I can't see if the engine water is flowing out of the boat properly because the water exits under the stern, out of view.  
Liveability Livability is exceptional. The air conditioning makes it very comfortable for our family of three to spend weekends on the boat. Hunter truly gave the 376 the room of a forty footer. However, I would have preferred a real mattress rather than cushions in the aft cabin.  
The owner's experience in dealing with Hunter (if any) Hunter's customer service team is great. In fact, they are one of the reasons I decided to trade up from an '89 H30 rather than switch to another builder.  
The owner's experience with the boat dealer or broker, if any We bought the boat new from Racine Riverside in Racine Wisconsin. Brad Strand and his partners did an excellent job in commissioning the boat and in fixing the various warrantee problems that we encountered. They have gone the extra yard in servicing the boat, at their expense, including re-doing the bottom paint and hiring professional detailers to do a quality job in cleaning and waxing the boat for us.  
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