@Joe and @DrJudyB
I have removed all previous posts. Many questions for additional information from the poster have yet to be answered and without that I cannot give a good response. Judy hit on a major point which I was going to point out when additional info was received.. First I do advise what I did for Hunter to show my knowledge and experience only and then speak in layman's terms as many prefer it that way. There were many ideas given to the industry from me but do not wish to discuss that except the fact I was very instrumental in the water ballast series built by Hunter and I am very grateful to my friend, Warren Luhrs who owned Hunter, that he listened. At times I feel attacked and withdraw. I will give you my two cents worth and then take care of issues at home and my hobbies as I do not have time for now due to other issues and will ask that the two of you follow up only if the Poster will at least help us here to help him. I will state I enjoy helping Boy Scout Councils with their sailboats.
The original comments are the turnbuckle studs are completely all the way in the turnbuckle body along with a rake of 20 inches. Tuning and rake are different from each other but the comments from the poster appears to be synomonous . The one photo shows squat in my books. Before becoming a sailboat dealer, I was an investigator for an insurance company to include safety the old gumshoe style which is why I ask for additional information in order that we give a better response. In fact, I handled litigation and never lost a case. If questions are not being answered, my policy is not to give reasonable replies as I to be blunt do not want to waste my time when I help others to include church, model railroading with decoder installs, Boy Scout Councils with sailboats and so on not to mention a mountain that I take care of and @Kermit can attest to, I had to use my truck to pull his 260 up the quarter mile driveway due to the steepness. In fact following open heart surgery last year, three months following surgery, I helped an owner to put his mast up and 260 into a lake in TN as he had no one to help him as he had little experience.
First the Hunter 26 was introduced by me at Annapolis and the last hull built laid in August, 1997 for the model year 1998 when the Hunter 260 came out. Besides the forward hatch, cockpit wheel, swim platform and other minor upgrades but major to many, the forestay chain plate was attached at the hull to deck joint on the bow below the deck plate. The original boat came with only a forestay.. I was instrumental working with CDI and Hunter to supply as an option the FF2 system. Due to the forestay chain plate being lower than the deck itself, tangs were needed to raise the drum so it would be able to clear the deck. The forestay had to be either modified or replaced. I chose to replace it with a new one. Why? The original forestay would have to be cut with it inside the furling extrusion and cut at the bottom with a new stud by the owner or a rigger. The big problem for servicing if that forestay had to come out of the furler, that manual put on stud was too large to go thru the extrusion or grey plastic hole and that in itself was a headache. Thus a new forestay was in order as a swaged stud could go thru the extrusion hole. That said, I am not sure what is happening as the Poster is not helping himself as he is either slow or reluctant to supply the additional information. A good example is a side shot of the mast with the main up and condition of the mainsail itself Would be most helpful. Further is there any play left in tightening the turnbuckles particularly the forestay that is buried within the furler itself. If in fact the there is no room left in the forestay turnbuckle body and the a side photo shows the mast raked back without knowing the tuning too, then one of several things has happened. Since the Hunter 26 ceased production over 22 years ago, could the standing rigging have stretched to a point there is no room to adjust for the tuning anymore? Could it be the standing rigging originally was not manufactured correctly as to lengths but doubt that knowing who made it? Was a manual stud put on possibly the cut of the forestay being too long? How about the tangs were the correct ones used. The only way to tell is measure which Judy pointed out if you want a true assessment which dropping the mast to get that is needed to get an accurate measurement. I can tell you my daughter who was 10 at the time raised a mast by winching it up on TV before a show and I sold some boats that weekend which was good marketing.
As to tuning, this is a B &R rig with no backstay. I was given instruction by the two owners of B &R as to tuning. I can say the lower shrouds are generally tighter than the upper shrouds. Then of course if originally sails, it could be a Rob would say blown out. The one photo supplied I could not tell but it looks like the bolt rope is bunched up inside the sail. There are other things but cutting studs nor the deck sagging is out of the question. There are compression posts in the 26 and 260.
With all that I have going on, I will ask that the two of you take this over. I have other things that need my immediate attention which have come up. Shot a rattler a few days ago and ran off a bear with a boat air horn last night
It would be interesting who the person in the photo is measuring that forestay.
I have removed all previous posts. Many questions for additional information from the poster have yet to be answered and without that I cannot give a good response. Judy hit on a major point which I was going to point out when additional info was received.. First I do advise what I did for Hunter to show my knowledge and experience only and then speak in layman's terms as many prefer it that way. There were many ideas given to the industry from me but do not wish to discuss that except the fact I was very instrumental in the water ballast series built by Hunter and I am very grateful to my friend, Warren Luhrs who owned Hunter, that he listened. At times I feel attacked and withdraw. I will give you my two cents worth and then take care of issues at home and my hobbies as I do not have time for now due to other issues and will ask that the two of you follow up only if the Poster will at least help us here to help him. I will state I enjoy helping Boy Scout Councils with their sailboats.
The original comments are the turnbuckle studs are completely all the way in the turnbuckle body along with a rake of 20 inches. Tuning and rake are different from each other but the comments from the poster appears to be synomonous . The one photo shows squat in my books. Before becoming a sailboat dealer, I was an investigator for an insurance company to include safety the old gumshoe style which is why I ask for additional information in order that we give a better response. In fact, I handled litigation and never lost a case. If questions are not being answered, my policy is not to give reasonable replies as I to be blunt do not want to waste my time when I help others to include church, model railroading with decoder installs, Boy Scout Councils with sailboats and so on not to mention a mountain that I take care of and @Kermit can attest to, I had to use my truck to pull his 260 up the quarter mile driveway due to the steepness. In fact following open heart surgery last year, three months following surgery, I helped an owner to put his mast up and 260 into a lake in TN as he had no one to help him as he had little experience.
First the Hunter 26 was introduced by me at Annapolis and the last hull built laid in August, 1997 for the model year 1998 when the Hunter 260 came out. Besides the forward hatch, cockpit wheel, swim platform and other minor upgrades but major to many, the forestay chain plate was attached at the hull to deck joint on the bow below the deck plate. The original boat came with only a forestay.. I was instrumental working with CDI and Hunter to supply as an option the FF2 system. Due to the forestay chain plate being lower than the deck itself, tangs were needed to raise the drum so it would be able to clear the deck. The forestay had to be either modified or replaced. I chose to replace it with a new one. Why? The original forestay would have to be cut with it inside the furling extrusion and cut at the bottom with a new stud by the owner or a rigger. The big problem for servicing if that forestay had to come out of the furler, that manual put on stud was too large to go thru the extrusion or grey plastic hole and that in itself was a headache. Thus a new forestay was in order as a swaged stud could go thru the extrusion hole. That said, I am not sure what is happening as the Poster is not helping himself as he is either slow or reluctant to supply the additional information. A good example is a side shot of the mast with the main up and condition of the mainsail itself Would be most helpful. Further is there any play left in tightening the turnbuckles particularly the forestay that is buried within the furler itself. If in fact the there is no room left in the forestay turnbuckle body and the a side photo shows the mast raked back without knowing the tuning too, then one of several things has happened. Since the Hunter 26 ceased production over 22 years ago, could the standing rigging have stretched to a point there is no room to adjust for the tuning anymore? Could it be the standing rigging originally was not manufactured correctly as to lengths but doubt that knowing who made it? Was a manual stud put on possibly the cut of the forestay being too long? How about the tangs were the correct ones used. The only way to tell is measure which Judy pointed out if you want a true assessment which dropping the mast to get that is needed to get an accurate measurement. I can tell you my daughter who was 10 at the time raised a mast by winching it up on TV before a show and I sold some boats that weekend which was good marketing.
As to tuning, this is a B &R rig with no backstay. I was given instruction by the two owners of B &R as to tuning. I can say the lower shrouds are generally tighter than the upper shrouds. Then of course if originally sails, it could be a Rob would say blown out. The one photo supplied I could not tell but it looks like the bolt rope is bunched up inside the sail. There are other things but cutting studs nor the deck sagging is out of the question. There are compression posts in the 26 and 260.
With all that I have going on, I will ask that the two of you take this over. I have other things that need my immediate attention which have come up. Shot a rattler a few days ago and ran off a bear with a boat air horn last night
It would be interesting who the person in the photo is measuring that forestay.
Last edited: