After 2 months of cruising the San Juan's, Gulf Islands, and Desolation Sound area of BC I feel more qualified to point out some flaws I have found that have caused leakage that collected in the area under the sink, head cabinet,aft bilge etc. The worst leak I found was at the failed sealant joint at the point where the mast compression post meets the centerboard trunk. This leak alone was very hard to find the sealant looked fine, it was not until I saw water spurting around the seal in a heavy sea that I realized I had found my main problem..easily fixed at a calm slip with 5200. My second leak was more serious, I found the rudder lower pintle had worked loose, and the bolts that held it on were loose and had stripped, these bolts are tapped into the hull (presumably there is a steel plate glassed into the transom)..anyway water was coming in around the bolts and collecting in the aft compartment, I repaired this by adding ss flat washers, and nylock nuts, as well as a liberal coat of 5200 on every part as it was installed. I don't care what hunter finds acceptable.. I can't understand why they would omit nuts and washers on the bolts that hold the rudder on! I also found that the centerboard banging at anchor can be silenced by simply putting decent tension on the uphaul, I took a turn on the winch and cinched it up and it was dead quiet for the rest of our journey So those are the pearls from 2 months on the water..other than these issues the boat was a super platform for our family explorations incredible liveability for a trailersailor !
H26 leaks found
- Thread starter Rob19626
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Centerboard uphaul
Are you saying you lift the centerboard up when at anchor? Doesn't the boat roll more that way, or is that not an issue in good anchorages? ...RickM...
Are you saying you lift the centerboard up when at anchor? Doesn't the boat roll more that way, or is that not an issue in good anchorages? ...RickM...
How old is your H26
Rob Sounds like a great trip. Were there other issues of concern(as if leaks aren't enough)? I too just noticed (salt)water under our sink area. Are your through hull fittings part of the recall notice(we are)? Your extended use of the boat qualifies you to realize most shortfalls or mfg issues. All input appriciated as I recomission our new to us 260 for safe longer coastal cruising. Escepicially helpful would be your opinion of other important weaknesses and a few top picks for necessary and unnecessary gear/eqt. Thanks, Michael and Kelli
Rob Sounds like a great trip. Were there other issues of concern(as if leaks aren't enough)? I too just noticed (salt)water under our sink area. Are your through hull fittings part of the recall notice(we are)? Your extended use of the boat qualifies you to realize most shortfalls or mfg issues. All input appriciated as I recomission our new to us 260 for safe longer coastal cruising. Escepicially helpful would be your opinion of other important weaknesses and a few top picks for necessary and unnecessary gear/eqt. Thanks, Michael and Kelli
further thoughts
My thru hulls are all good, I had to replace the bilge pump thruhull, it had sheared off under the galley. Since you have a 260 which has some major differences around the rudder from the 26 I can't comment on that..but have heard that the 260 rudder can be troublesome..the 26 rudder has it's own issues..the friction hold down system is adequate, but fails and creeps in a heavy sea, the resulting weather helm is intense, and repositioning the rudder underway in bad conditions can be memmorable. I tried the plastic bolt shear pin idea that involves drilling a hole through the rudder plates and rudder, and inserting a dowel, or plastic bolt into the rudder case to hold it down. This worked great for 6 weeks, then we hit a partial submerged log, it knocked the rudder up and the pin sheared as it should...but then lining everything back up and driving out the "plug" that will be left in the rudder proved impossible underway..I will be refining that modification. The rudder motor connection idea is more than a helpful modification...in my opinion it is a neccesity, since the outboard is offset its thrust cone is not deflected by the rudder...on smaller trailer boats this is not a big issue, but on the hunter 26 it is major...the very best set up is to have remote controls in easy reach, and a reliable motor rudder connection..the results are superb, and I can park like captain Ron. I have posted pics in the past so they are archived somewhere. For us water is a big issue, we are a family of 4 plus 2 small dogs, I like deck fill water systems, and have installed one on our boat. The bladder is a plastimo 26 gallon rectangular, it fits nicely in the huge compartment under the v berth, it is vented by a 1/4" poly tube tapped into the top of the plastic 90 hose adaptor supplied with the tank, the poly tube vent is secured to the underside v berth deck. the fill tube is a 2' section of 1" flex vinyl, (allows tank expansion) attached to a run of 1' pvc pipe that runs all the way back to a deck fill fitting installed in the small triangular deck section (cockpit floor) just aft of the stbd seat, and fwd the motor well..it is a perfect out of the way spot for a deckfill, and no unsightly pipe runs visible..The pipe runs neatly in the "v" groove formed by the ballast tank in the stbd setee locker, the pipe penetrates into the galley cabinet following the groove all the way to the aft galley penetration where the line now runs on top of the aft berth deck right next to the hull curvature, the cushion hides it nicely. one more penetration into the aftmost compartment and then straight up to the deckfill fitting. 2 flex joints were neccesary and achieved by rubber plumbing couplers they were located at the fwd and aft galley penetrations...guess I should post pics!.. A steady supply of water is a must, and adding a filter and pressure pump gives an almost limmitless drinking water supply. we have 2 faucets in the galley, one for raw water, and one for filtered drinking using a culligan kit that I got from the hardware store, it came with its own neat little faucet that addapted perfectly to the hunter sink, it feeds slowly but surely from the 35psi demand pump installed at the tank. I have spent too many years lugging 5 gallon jugs to the boat..deckfill is a must. The centerboard (imho) should only be used under sail, since the latteral loads are constant on a tack then the stresses on the trunk are within the designs limits. If the centerboard is left fully deployed at anchor the "slop" causes the rudder to bang against the trunk in one small area (the less deployed the wider the contact patch) this small area must receive a tremendous load when badly waked. I would not consider it a good idea. Tides are also an issue and an extra 6 feet under the boat is a contact waiting to happen. I find our 26 rolls at anchor, but does so gently not herky jerky like some boats I have been on, I and my crew don't seem adversly affected by our boat's motion at anchor, and centerboard banging is far worse, and the slop allows the boat to rock anyway..if I did not find the motion at anchor tolerable I would investigate rocker stoppers (a submerged disc suspended from the boom swung out pt or stbd) As always just humble opinions hope it helps
My thru hulls are all good, I had to replace the bilge pump thruhull, it had sheared off under the galley. Since you have a 260 which has some major differences around the rudder from the 26 I can't comment on that..but have heard that the 260 rudder can be troublesome..the 26 rudder has it's own issues..the friction hold down system is adequate, but fails and creeps in a heavy sea, the resulting weather helm is intense, and repositioning the rudder underway in bad conditions can be memmorable. I tried the plastic bolt shear pin idea that involves drilling a hole through the rudder plates and rudder, and inserting a dowel, or plastic bolt into the rudder case to hold it down. This worked great for 6 weeks, then we hit a partial submerged log, it knocked the rudder up and the pin sheared as it should...but then lining everything back up and driving out the "plug" that will be left in the rudder proved impossible underway..I will be refining that modification. The rudder motor connection idea is more than a helpful modification...in my opinion it is a neccesity, since the outboard is offset its thrust cone is not deflected by the rudder...on smaller trailer boats this is not a big issue, but on the hunter 26 it is major...the very best set up is to have remote controls in easy reach, and a reliable motor rudder connection..the results are superb, and I can park like captain Ron. I have posted pics in the past so they are archived somewhere. For us water is a big issue, we are a family of 4 plus 2 small dogs, I like deck fill water systems, and have installed one on our boat. The bladder is a plastimo 26 gallon rectangular, it fits nicely in the huge compartment under the v berth, it is vented by a 1/4" poly tube tapped into the top of the plastic 90 hose adaptor supplied with the tank, the poly tube vent is secured to the underside v berth deck. the fill tube is a 2' section of 1" flex vinyl, (allows tank expansion) attached to a run of 1' pvc pipe that runs all the way back to a deck fill fitting installed in the small triangular deck section (cockpit floor) just aft of the stbd seat, and fwd the motor well..it is a perfect out of the way spot for a deckfill, and no unsightly pipe runs visible..The pipe runs neatly in the "v" groove formed by the ballast tank in the stbd setee locker, the pipe penetrates into the galley cabinet following the groove all the way to the aft galley penetration where the line now runs on top of the aft berth deck right next to the hull curvature, the cushion hides it nicely. one more penetration into the aftmost compartment and then straight up to the deckfill fitting. 2 flex joints were neccesary and achieved by rubber plumbing couplers they were located at the fwd and aft galley penetrations...guess I should post pics!.. A steady supply of water is a must, and adding a filter and pressure pump gives an almost limmitless drinking water supply. we have 2 faucets in the galley, one for raw water, and one for filtered drinking using a culligan kit that I got from the hardware store, it came with its own neat little faucet that addapted perfectly to the hunter sink, it feeds slowly but surely from the 35psi demand pump installed at the tank. I have spent too many years lugging 5 gallon jugs to the boat..deckfill is a must. The centerboard (imho) should only be used under sail, since the latteral loads are constant on a tack then the stresses on the trunk are within the designs limits. If the centerboard is left fully deployed at anchor the "slop" causes the rudder to bang against the trunk in one small area (the less deployed the wider the contact patch) this small area must receive a tremendous load when badly waked. I would not consider it a good idea. Tides are also an issue and an extra 6 feet under the boat is a contact waiting to happen. I find our 26 rolls at anchor, but does so gently not herky jerky like some boats I have been on, I and my crew don't seem adversly affected by our boat's motion at anchor, and centerboard banging is far worse, and the slop allows the boat to rock anyway..if I did not find the motion at anchor tolerable I would investigate rocker stoppers (a submerged disc suspended from the boom swung out pt or stbd) As always just humble opinions hope it helps
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