Looking to buy 1987 hunter 31

[Dfisher]

Hello all. I currently have a 1994 h-26 that I just put up for sale and am currently looking at a 1987 hunter 31. I'm located at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia and plan on weekend sailing / sleepovers. I looked at the boat briefly but am going back next weekend to take a closer look and wanted some insight on what to look for specific to this boat. I have gone through the forums and archives and read about the basic problems; leaky hatches, compression post rot, water trapped between the liner. One thing I noticed was two cracks in the gel coat about 1/16 of a inch wide running port to starboard on the cabin roof about 1 foot forward of the mast step. Is this indicative of stress from the mast on a failed compression post? I plan on bringing a moisture meter to see if the core seems to be saturated. Another issue is the engine. The boat sat for about 2 years and the motor will not start. I talked to the diesel mechanic that worked on it and he has checked the injectors out and they seem fine. His next action will be to check the fuel pumps to see if they are gummed up or to disconnect the exhaust to look for back pressure. The boat is pretty dirty and they are asking 15k which I will need to get lower if I buy the boat. Can anyone share what they paid for their 31 that needed work? I will post some pictures of the cracks and the rest of the boat when I go look on Sunday. Thanks again and I hope to permanently join the medium boat forum soon if the transaction goes through.

Dan

 

[woodster]

check with member crazy Dave Condon he used to be a hunter dealer and lives close by that lake

 

[Dfisher]

I completely forgot about that. I will give Dave a call. Should have been my first stop.

check with member crazy Dave Condon he used to be a hunter dealer and lives close by that lake

 

[Benny17441]

Yes that asking price seems to be significantly overstated. Close to 30 year old boats are priced according to their individual condition and equipment and not year model. Bing landlocked in a lake is a minus for the seller as the prospective number of buyers shrinks considerably. If your current boat has a trailer and it easily moved it will be a plus for you regarding a sale but not a for a boat that has to be hauled out and trucked to compete with those fetching top prices in the coast. From your description the engine is not running, the boat is dirty and has cracks in the gelcoat. Lack of proper maintenance deteriorates other things as well. Besides the engine the other large ticket items are the sails, check them out. If I were to consider such a purchase I would not offer more than $7,000. Do not limit your boat shopping just to the lake; you may find your ideal boat somewhere else and then just move it.

 

[Dfisher]

I went out to the boat for a closer look and here is what I found. The boat is actually a 1986 and the hull gelcoat is in pretty good shape. The deck gelcoat is starting to deteriorate and will need paint. I have posted some pictures of areas of concern and wanted to see what people think of them, specifically the cracks forward of the mast and structural problems where the traveler is. I also found out that the engine runs but it needs motor mounts. The boat has a RayBan Autopilot and Horizon electronics. Sails were fairly crisp but dirty. I have the following questions.
1) The boat had a Harken Traveler. Is this the stock traveler?
2) The boat has Maxwell winches. Are these stock?
3) The boat had baxter sails. Were the original sails Doyle?
4) I see some water stains on the compression post but it felt fairly solid. What else should I be looking for in this area? The head is in pretty bad shape and looks like it will need to be completely torn out and rebuilt. Do the cracks in the Gelcoat forward of the mast look indicative of compression post failure?
5) Interior woodwork is solid but will need to be re-done.
6) Boat canvas is in fair shape.
7) Running rigging is in bad shape and will mostly need to be replace.

Thank you again for all of your help.

 

[HMT2]

That is not the compression post that you are looking at. It is a cover around the compression post. To access the actual compression post you need to remove the bulkhead in the head, you can partially remove it to get a decent look. I have an '83 and my winches are Lewmar which does not necessarily mean that those are not the stock winches because they changed those things from year to year. My sails are Baxter. That looks the traveler system on my boat, but I cannot find a name on it. I don't know a lot about evaluating the structural components of the deck, but the hole near the traveler would be of some concern to me and I think needs a little further discovery. I has lost gelcoat in similar places, i ended up painting the entire topside and transom with Brightside one part polyurethane. I've been pretty darn happy with it.

 

[Charlie98117]

I have a '83 H34 and on that model, the problem seems to be more a case of the wood blocking in the beam deteriorating rather than the compression post. The telltale sign on the interior is bulging or cracking of the fiberglass above the wood trim around the compression post. It's on my to do list.

 

[HMT2]

Dan, she is a bit of a project for sure. I agree that the price needs to come down and down. My '83 was in better shape with a recently overhauled and running engine and we got it in 2011 for a lot less than 15k. But the owner was in a it of a jamb and needed to be shed of the boat and monthly slip payment. Good luck, we have really enjoyed ours. We have found ours to be pretty fast (of course these things are relative), and we enjoy sailing her on Galveston Bay and occasionally racing her in the Gulf of Mexico. Hope it works out.

 

[pateco]

The boat is pretty dirty and they are asking 15k which I will need to get lower if I buy the boat. Can anyone share what they paid for their 31 that needed work? I will post some pictures of the cracks and the rest of the boat when I go look on Sunday. Thanks again and I hope to permanently join the medium boat forum soon if the transaction goes through.

Dan

Dan, I don't expect you to find as good a deal on a 31 as we did, $0, but $15k is high for one with that much work to do. If you want to see what work we have done on our 1983 H31 Stargazer, check out her Facebook page.

 

[Dfisher]

Thank you all for your comments. Next time I'm looking at the boat I will see if I can access the compression post through the head to take a look. I have not seen any signs of sagging or cracking of the cabin ceiling which is a good sign. Thank you again

 

[kloudie1]

Quick comment, Dan.. The water damage on the top of the compression post indicates that there has been quite a leak there .. The picture also shows the post to be compressing the transverse beam. You can see the dimple the post is causing because the wood core of the beam is rotted.. There is some great info about fixing it on the H-34 section . The 31 is almost identical. Another place to carefully look is at the port/starboard chainplate tie rod anchor. Where lower end of that stainless rod screws into a plain carbon steel plate buried in the side cubbies.. That is a tough one to fix, more involved than the compression post. The compression post alone would cost roughly $1500 to have fixed if you don't do it yourself.. The asking price seems very high..

 

[HMT2]

I saw all the posts about rotten compression posts and freaked out a little so pulled back the bulkhead in the head (you also have to remove some trim pieces around the head door) and got a good look without having to totally remove the bulkhead. Mine looked almost like new, I was relieved. But as you have seen in the forum it can be repaired.

 

[Dfisher]

is the compression post material
Metal or wood?

 

[Scott]

wood

is the compression post material
Metal or wood?

All great comments by others. It is much easier to remove only the trim`"aft" to inspect the post. Trying to upload 16 pics of my fix. If it doesn'
t work, I will email them to you.

Winches on mine are maxwells. traveler is Ruetegers (sp) 1986 H-31 purchased in 1990 so they are original i am sure

Scott

 

[Dfisher]

Thank you for the additional information and pictures. Does anyone know if any of the sites like Yachtworld or Sailboat listings has a directory of what boats have sold for in the past? I'm trying to get an idea of what my roof should be in terms of offer so I don't get stuck with a bad deal. Thank you!

 

[HMT2]

Thank you for the additional information and pictures. Does anyone know if any of the sites like Yachtworld or Sailboat listings has a directory of what boats have sold for in the past? I'm trying to get an idea of what my roof should be in terms of offer so I don't get stuck with a bad deal. Thank you!

I am sure someone on this forum knows a good surveyor in your area. I would look to him for some counsel about that and have him do a thorough inspection. If I'm spending in the tens of thousands of dollars I would insist on getting one. The several hundred dollars you spend on a surveyor could save you thousands if you buy a boat with serious issues. It can move quickly from a "business" decision to an affair of the heart once you own a boat.

 

[Dfisher]

I'm looking to get a quote on new running rigging for this 87 h31. I looked through the manual and could not find a list that shows lengths and diameters required like in my h26 manual. Does anyone have a comprehensive list?

 

[Sailor_Jeff]

For a quote I found this place.

http://www.riggingonly.com

Did you buy the boat, or, are you pricing out repairs before making an offer?

 

[Dfisher]

Thanks Jeff. The buyers have accepted my offer, now I'm just waiting on the survey.

 

[SeanP]

Since I just had my running rigging replaced by North Sails, thought I would share their invoice with lengths, prices, and specs for other H31 owners to reference (see attached PDF). Cheers, Sean