Considering a 1994 Hunter 26

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abk

abk

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Aug 9, 2007
203
Hunter H 26 Somers Point, NJ
Any owners thought as to the outstanding features and shortcomings would be appreciated... It appears to be a great boat but it is always nice to hear a real owners thoughts.

Sail ability? Coastal Cruiser? Inherent problems? Any things in particular I should be looking at closely before the purchace?

Any links to reviews would help
 
Papa Bruce

Papa Bruce

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Dec 9, 2008
48
Hunter 30 Lake Ontario/Fair Point Marina, NY
I owned one, I think a 94. It was great for sailing up here on the Finger Lakes. I had no trouble whatsoever with mine. It's a bit tender and wants to round up in a stiff breeze, but otherewise easy to handle. There are alot of older posts on this site re: upgrades and bracketing the motor with the rudder. If you're looking for a comfortable boat, you'll like the 26.
 
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Crazy Dave Condon

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Jun 8, 2004
10,532
-na -NA Anywhere USA
The Hunter 26 came out in 1993 for model year 1994 if I recall which makes it one of the first boats.

I would make sure the boat is test sailed and then look for any leaks around the compression post and in the stern from the rear berth.
In addition, see if the kcenterboard raises up and down easily. On the trailer, check the bunk board for any rot to include keel tray. These are items many fail to look at just to make sure the boat is sound.

Crazy Dave condon
 
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Barnacle Bill

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Jun 9, 2008
1,818
- -- -Bayfield
One guy gave you a link to the Hunter 260. Well, the Hunter 26 came before the Hunter 260 and so that link might not be what you want. The Hunter 260, I believe, actually is an improved version of the 26 and is more sought after, but also you pay more.
 
shanker

shanker

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Oct 10, 2010
269
Hunter H260 Gull Lake
Bill is correct. That link is designed around the 260 which is supposed to be an upgrade to the 26. However there is some very specific info on the 26 itself that could answer some of abk's questions.

Also, as I am finding out, there is a ton of information in the archieves, so use that search tab at the top of the page and anything you want to know about the 26 has probabbly been discussed before and can be found in there. Good luck!
 
Juice6576

Juice6576

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May 10, 2004
254
Hunter MH 37 Manitowoc, WI
Owned one for 16 years

We bought our 26 new in 96. The base bought is a great boat. Some desirable option are the stern rail seats, as they are difficult to add on. We had the cloth interior on ours. The 26 came with a 2 burner Origo stove. The water system relied on collapsible water bottles and was always on my wish list was a better water system. Overall, the boat sails well and it was always easy to maintain. Some of the early boats had a push pull wheel system which had issues. I never could get one for my 96.
 
Kivalo

Kivalo

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Jun 5, 2011
116
Hunter 260 Owasco Lake
That is a wealth of information on the 260 which is similar to the 26 in many ways but not identical. But as far as sailing performance goes, both boats should handle about equally.

shanker said:
Many of your questions can be answered here.

www.h260.com
Click to expand
 
BrianW

BrianW

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Jan 7, 2005
843
Hunter 26 Guntersville Lake, (AL)
A month or so after I bought my 1994 H-26 I saw another H-26 with stern rail seats (mine didn't); and I've have had "stern rail envy" ever since. Keep this in mind as you look. The upgrade is pretty pricy, but probably won't add much, if any, additionial cost for a boat purchase (with vs. without). It's a great boat! BrianW
 
Kivalo

Kivalo

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Jun 5, 2011
116
Hunter 260 Owasco Lake
Stern rail seats are the cat's ass!:thumbup:

Brad
s/v KIVALO

BrianW said:
A month or so after I bought my 1994 H-26 I saw another H-26 with stern rail seats (mine didn't); and I've have had "stern rail envy" ever since. Keep this in mind as you look. The upgrade is pretty pricy, but probably won't add much, if any, additionial cost for a boat purchase (with vs. without). It's a great boat! BrianW
Click to expand
 
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Crazy Dave Condon

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Jun 8, 2004
10,532
-na -NA Anywhere USA
The Hunter 26 is the forerunner to the 260. Major changes was to the cockpit for enhancement of the wheel steering option and on/off the boat from the transom. The other included water system and the forward deck around regardng the opening forward hatch. Otherwise the hull, deck, systems, sail plan, etc are pretty much the same; therefore the H260 link is pretty good information on both boats.

Crazy Dave
 
T

tgrass462

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Jan 22, 2008
171
Hunter 260 Lake Carlyle, Illinois
94 Hunter 26

We had a 94 H-26. Loved it; had tiller steering and no Stern Rail Seats. We asked Mike Thomas at Hunter about new stern rail seats ... he looked up our hull number #174 and said that he was pretty sure that this was before Hunter molded aluminum backing plates in the hull at the stern where the stern rail seats installed; we purchased the seats new from Hunter (about $700) along with factory supplied molly bolts to hold the seats. Bottom line - it took about a day for my son and me to mark the location of the seats (measure 10 times - drill once!). When we drilled the 1st hole - thankfully I drilled a 1/8" pilot hole and guess what - aluminum filings came out of the drill hole- we DID have backing plates. We quickly drilled the other holes to the proper diameter; tapped them to the correct thread spec and installed the seats. Best investment we ever made!

We lost our boat in a freak wind storm while trailering ... we immediately purchased a 1999 H-260 which we still are enjoying.

Tom Grass
Carlyle Lake - Illinois (St. Louis)



Crazy Dave Condon said:
The Hunter 26 is the forerunner to the 260. Major changes was to the cockpit for enhancement of the wheel steering option and on/off the boat from the transom. The other included water system and the forward deck around regardng the opening forward hatch. Otherwise the hull, deck, systems, sail plan, etc are pretty much the same; therefore the H260 link is pretty good information on both boats.

Crazy Dave
Click to expand
 
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Hopeful Rookie

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Sep 17, 2011
12
Hunter 26 Iuka, MS
We have a 97 H-26 and have really enjoyed it. One thing of note on ours is a leak from the slider. We put a companion way cover on it and that took care of it
 
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Crazy Dave Condon

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Jun 8, 2004
10,532
-na -NA Anywhere USA
On the slider hatch leak, generally this came due to caulk gone bad in either one of two or both places.

There is a piece of teak on the back of the slider as a stop so the slider or lexan hatch cannot come out. to access this, you must take it off via screws on one side. Suggest two men on this with one holding so it will not fall out. Remove it and clean off old caulk. Use silicon in this area and make sure you bead it well over the length of that piece and around the screw holes. In clean up, only use alcohol as acetone will severely craze your lexan slider hatch.

the other is of course is the teak rail which is used to open and close that slider.

crazy dave condon
 
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