Considering 1984 Hunter 37 Cutter

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Tom E.

Thinking of making an offer on a 1984 37 Cutter. What should I know abi=out this boat? Never handled a cutter rig, what should I know about cutter sailing? What should I expect to pay? Asking price is 39,000. Thanks all, and happy sailing!
 
Dec 2, 1999
15,184
Hunter Vision-36 Rio Vista, CA.
Great boats & a good price.

Tom: They are great boats. The price seems a little low but depending on the condition it could be a deal. What engine does this boat have? They have a self tending stay sail, so it is not much diffent from a sloop. The cutter rig gives you a lot of versatility. A couple of thousand will get you a nice new interior and hopefully the boat is sound.
 
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Steve O.

holding tank

There is an issue with the holding tank being sealed in and impossible to remove when replacing. Search the archives or maybe a 37C owner will weigh in on this.
 
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Sanders

Could be a Best Buy

The cutter rig is easy to handle, as the sails are all a manageable size. My wife and I are in our sixties, ands find it an easy boat to manage. We often sail in San Francisco Bay 25 knots with the staysail and reefed main, and make comfortable hull speed. The boat is stable, and because it is older, the fiberglass construction is heavier than newer boats. The design is good. Two things to look at: -- Has the original holding tank been replaced? Most have, and it is not a real big deal to do so. Check the archives. -- What engine and how many hours? The two-cylinder Yanmar's tend to be a bit noisy, but they all seem to last forever if the hours are right. The price is in the range of what people seem to be asking these days. If the survey shows the boat is sound and most equipment in good order, I think it could be the equivelant of the $60,000 boat . We have had ours five years, and have no complaints about performance or safety or accomodations. I wish it had no exterior teak, but when in good shape it makes for a beautiful boat. Search the owner reports for lots more discussion. Good luck Sanders s/v Good News
 
Jun 5, 2006
5
Hunter 37-cutter Muskegon, Michigan
37 - Cutter response

I recently purchased a 37 - Cutter, with my last sailing experience being when i was about 5 years old. I have found this to be a dream boat. With an oversized 150 genoa i can consistantly run hull speed even in somewhat light air conditions. After owning one that was completley re-built in 2002, i have a few points. If it has the original windows in it, 9 times out of 10 they are going to leak and have some amount of intrusion into the interior wether it be in the core or the infamous seals. Depending on that engine is optioned (mine has a 27hp Yanmar) the boat is powered quite well. With the three-blade prop, docking can be quite entertaining and once you get the hang of it, quite magical to your guests . I'd say $60,000 is quite a bit on the high side price wise. I found many to be had in the $40,000 range. Mine was a extensively re-fit 1980 with a beautiful cherry interior and new expoxy paint and i picked it up for roughly half that. She is an incredibly stable vessel, never have i felt so comfortable on a boat than on this 37. The head can be problematic, as indicated in the post above, but even replacement of the tank cannot guarntee that it was done correctly. I happened to unfortuantly find my vent tube was broken, and instead of fixing it, the builder decided to just shove it up in the cavity behind the shower. Convienently, if the need for replacement arises, you can cut out an area in the v-berth and manage to get the tank out that way. Its unobtrusive, and is covered by the v-berth cushions 99% of the time. Also, plan on adding alot of insulation to the icebox, or just spring for a referigerated unit. Check the seal from the helm to the deck, quite often this has gone bad from stress and few ever bother to check it. Mine had quite a bit of intrusion here and the deck was quite wet. Sailing the boat will amaze you. She's truly great under sail. With a 150 genoa and a double reefed main she'll sit quite upright and have managed speeds averaging 8 knots with some weatherhelm.
 
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Tom E

Thanks All! Any one else to chime in?

Thanks everyone. The engine is listed as a 40hp, but I dont know the make. Anyone else have more to add?
 
Jun 5, 2004
11
- - Emeryville CA
Get a survey

Something to remember is that on a $40,000 boat you could easily run up another 50% of that in doing essential repairs if just the tanks are bad, the engine/transmission needs work, the rigging is old, mast at step is corroded, cores are rotted, portlights (12 at $150 each = $1800 ?), stove, batteries, steering, rudder, propane, electrics, and more stuff than I can think of needs repair or replacement. For this reason it is generally agreed that an out of the water survey by a good surveyor, armed with a moisture detector, is a good investment. We also had a separate engine survey done that included compression and run tests. I think that a starter motor runs about $600 and an exhaust manifold is I think about $750! On a 22 year old engine you would not need many problems before it would be better to replace, and that is big bucks. By the way we love our 84 HC37. John Brecher
 
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