I am a moderately experienced sailor who just bought his first 'big boat'. I sailed on 50 foot offshore racing boats for a few years a while ago (did Newport to Bermuda and Bermuda to Annapolis), and have sailed 19 foot daysailers since. I just bought a 1981 Hunter 27 for $1,200. It was pretty neglected for the past few years. However with a lot of cleaning, some replacement parts for the plumbing and head, and some fiberglass polish and paint, it is turning out to be a pretty nice boat. The outboard is in the shop (renault diesel removed in 2002 by previous owner). I have heard of the blistering problems on this model, and had a diver look at the hull, and he reported it was in good shape, with little growth, and no discernable blisters or cracking. I have a few questions for those of you with more expereience with this craft. MAST BEND - the mast has a slight bend because the previous owner sailed the boat in light winds with the port upper shroud loose (in fact the spreader end cap fell off). I have been up the mast, and there is no crimping of the metal, and I have replaced the spreader end cap, tightened the rig, but there is still a slight curvature between the spreader and the main deck (only a few inches, but still noticable). Second, the paint seems to be blistering a little at mid-mast with some light oxidationunderneath. Corrosion is not bad at this location, but I still ahve concerns. Someone back east here has told me to just tune out the bend, and that the mast was pretty sturdy. If there was no crimping of the mast, then it should be good. He also recommended that the next time I step the mast, to have the corrosion inspected and corrected. Any ideas? HULL BLISTERS - I will pull the boat out of the water next spring, and was wondering if I can do any preventative work on preventing the blistering problem. KEEL BOLTS - the bolts look good, and the bedding has no crushing, cracking, or any structural deformities. The bolts and nuts seem to also be in good repair with no corrosion on them. Is there anything else I need to look at? NEW DIESEL - I have a retractable motor mount on the stern with a 9.9 hp outboard. It looks like the motor will run well, but I wanted to know from anyone out there if it is worth putting in a diesel again. The engine space makes a nice tool stowage locker. I plan on using the boat as a live aboard, for sailing up and down the Chesapeake bay, and along the Virginia and NC coast. I have two new deep cycle marine batteries, and a smart charger on shore power. I only plan on using the engine to get me into and out of the slip, and am looking at a fair amount of single handing. Any advice? HATCH PORTS - Mine are slightly fogged (original plastic), and I was wondering if anyone makes an economical replacement. They are tight and do not leak at all, so I am happy with them, except the fogging... OCEAN SAILING - What do I need to do to the rig to make the boat good for sailing on open water (Atlantic Coast)? It seems to be a sturdy rig compared to some of the other models I have seen, but am unsure just how seaworthy the boat really is... The owners seem to like the boat for its heavy displacement and strong rig. I look forward to any comments people may have, and look forward to some serious sailing in the coming years. Chris J.
- Status
- Not open for further replies.
E
Ed Schenck
Blisters, etc.
Conventional wisdom will say if it does not have blisters now then it never will. Not being a fan of CW I took the bottom of my H37C down to bare fiberglass just to see. There were maybe 50 to 75 pencil eraser size "things", not cracked and no moisture inside. Still I dremeled them out and filled with epoxy. Then I put on five coats of Interlux 2000E. Pretty cheap peace of mind. My '79 keel bolts are like yours, just as nice as new. They are stainless and should not corrode unless you get seawater in the bilge. Since my mast is keel-stepped I almost always have water in the bilge. But it does not corrode the bolts/nuts. I keep them very tight. You can buy just the lenses for the portlights. Get the part numbers, see www.pompanette.com, then call West Marine to see if they will beat the price. But first you might try some Mequires polish if you haven't already.
Conventional wisdom will say if it does not have blisters now then it never will. Not being a fan of CW I took the bottom of my H37C down to bare fiberglass just to see. There were maybe 50 to 75 pencil eraser size "things", not cracked and no moisture inside. Still I dremeled them out and filled with epoxy. Then I put on five coats of Interlux 2000E. Pretty cheap peace of mind. My '79 keel bolts are like yours, just as nice as new. They are stainless and should not corrode unless you get seawater in the bilge. Since my mast is keel-stepped I almost always have water in the bilge. But it does not corrode the bolts/nuts. I keep them very tight. You can buy just the lenses for the portlights. Get the part numbers, see www.pompanette.com, then call West Marine to see if they will beat the price. But first you might try some Mequires polish if you haven't already.
T
Terry
Chris, with regards to ocean sailing (I have ...
yet to sail our boat in the ocean) I would replace the standing rigging and sails if they are over ten years old. We sail in the protected waters of the Puget Sound so our original 1991 gear is okay for what we do. It is another matter when you are off the coast where your boat will encounter stronger seas. Terry
yet to sail our boat in the ocean) I would replace the standing rigging and sails if they are over ten years old. We sail in the protected waters of the Puget Sound so our original 1991 gear is okay for what we do. It is another matter when you are off the coast where your boat will encounter stronger seas. Terry
D
David Foster
Some answers
Welcome the the ownership of a great boat, Chris. Here are my thoughts on your questions: MAST BEND - The original mast is incredibly strong - overbuilt by today's standards. So it is not useful to bend it, although it is possible. I often get the mast a couple of inches out of column while tuning the rig, so you should probably tune it back into column. If it stays bent when you unload it, that may or may not be an issue. The blistering near the middle is probably a coincidence, especially since I think the original masts were uncoated. Selden was (and is) the supplier for most Hunter masts, and I'll bet they would answer questions through their website if you are still concerned. HULL BLISTERS - Ed Schenck's answer is the best wisdom. Our '77 h27 has no sign of blistering, and we do nothing to prevent it. Blistering is a long term effect of a manufacturing defect. If you don't have it now you prabably never will. KEEL BOLTS - Again, Ed is right. One solution in salt water is epoxy encapsulation of the head assembly. But the complete lack of problem reports from the many sister hulls in salt water leads me to think annual inspection and tightening is the way to go. NEW DIESEL - Sounds like you have a good solution for power underway. I would not switch back to a diesel. HATCH PORTS - See Ed's answer. OCEAN SAILING - This boat is a great design for ocean voyaging, and a number of us have done it. Do an archive search on "blue water" for advice on what modifications and improvements others have made. Basically, it means lots of small improvements to key systems, provide for storge, navigation, and liveability. Check the owners' reviews, too (Tom Manalili's is especially good.) Finally, John Cherubini II, the son of (and assistant to) the designer is restoring a '75 h25 for offshore racing, so he certainly believes in the design! Hope this is some help. David Lady Lillie '77 h27
Welcome the the ownership of a great boat, Chris. Here are my thoughts on your questions: MAST BEND - The original mast is incredibly strong - overbuilt by today's standards. So it is not useful to bend it, although it is possible. I often get the mast a couple of inches out of column while tuning the rig, so you should probably tune it back into column. If it stays bent when you unload it, that may or may not be an issue. The blistering near the middle is probably a coincidence, especially since I think the original masts were uncoated. Selden was (and is) the supplier for most Hunter masts, and I'll bet they would answer questions through their website if you are still concerned. HULL BLISTERS - Ed Schenck's answer is the best wisdom. Our '77 h27 has no sign of blistering, and we do nothing to prevent it. Blistering is a long term effect of a manufacturing defect. If you don't have it now you prabably never will. KEEL BOLTS - Again, Ed is right. One solution in salt water is epoxy encapsulation of the head assembly. But the complete lack of problem reports from the many sister hulls in salt water leads me to think annual inspection and tightening is the way to go. NEW DIESEL - Sounds like you have a good solution for power underway. I would not switch back to a diesel. HATCH PORTS - See Ed's answer. OCEAN SAILING - This boat is a great design for ocean voyaging, and a number of us have done it. Do an archive search on "blue water" for advice on what modifications and improvements others have made. Basically, it means lots of small improvements to key systems, provide for storge, navigation, and liveability. Check the owners' reviews, too (Tom Manalili's is especially good.) Finally, John Cherubini II, the son of (and assistant to) the designer is restoring a '75 h25 for offshore racing, so he certainly believes in the design! Hope this is some help. David Lady Lillie '77 h27
R
Richard A. Marble
Chris, Done several things to my 81 Hunter 27
Chris, I keep my boat in Potts Harbor, just north of Freeport Maine. This harbor is open to the Atlantic so I do a lot of sailing in the Atlantic. The boat is very stable and feels safe when the surf is up. I have the tall rig version but it still feels quite safe in windy conditions. I’m buying a new main sail and I’m having two reefs put in it, one at 4 feet and one at 8 feet. I replaced the old Renault this last spring with a Vetus 16 HP twin diesel. I can’t say enough about this engine. Price was $4,600.00 IE a lot cheaper than a Yanmar. Figured out that I didn’t need to change my prop and that also saved me $$$. I now have all kinds of power. If you want more on the Vetus go to Archives and punch in Vetus and you can read more about it. Anyway my boat has no blisters. I do have a small leak around my keel bolts. The caulk is brittle so I’m dropping my keel this spring and rechalking it. I have rechalked both Bomar hatches and the sliding hatch. I’m currently replacing the two PVC vent cawls in the cabin roof. I took teak cleaner to the interior teak and then varnished the teak with two or three coats of varnish, what a difference that made. If you look you will see some old posts that say the 27 is a 30 foot wanta be. In my experience my 27 is a good sailing, safe feeling, boat with more room than most 27’s.
Chris, I keep my boat in Potts Harbor, just north of Freeport Maine. This harbor is open to the Atlantic so I do a lot of sailing in the Atlantic. The boat is very stable and feels safe when the surf is up. I have the tall rig version but it still feels quite safe in windy conditions. I’m buying a new main sail and I’m having two reefs put in it, one at 4 feet and one at 8 feet. I replaced the old Renault this last spring with a Vetus 16 HP twin diesel. I can’t say enough about this engine. Price was $4,600.00 IE a lot cheaper than a Yanmar. Figured out that I didn’t need to change my prop and that also saved me $$$. I now have all kinds of power. If you want more on the Vetus go to Archives and punch in Vetus and you can read more about it. Anyway my boat has no blisters. I do have a small leak around my keel bolts. The caulk is brittle so I’m dropping my keel this spring and rechalking it. I have rechalked both Bomar hatches and the sliding hatch. I’m currently replacing the two PVC vent cawls in the cabin roof. I took teak cleaner to the interior teak and then varnished the teak with two or three coats of varnish, what a difference that made. If you look you will see some old posts that say the 27 is a 30 foot wanta be. In my experience my 27 is a good sailing, safe feeling, boat with more room than most 27’s.
C
Chris J
THANKS... NEW ISSUE: HOLES IN THE BILGE WELL
Thanks to all you gave me the data on my 81 Hunter 27. I have a new question now, regarding the bilges. I was cleaning out the bilge wells, and at the forward end there are a couple of small cutouts where some electrical wires are routed. They are about 1.5 in in diameter, and lead to the space beneath the deck in the head. I have a shower in my head with a drain in the deck. The drain just dumps to this space (fwd of the main bilge well). Is the area in there sealed, or is it raw core wood? I felt around with my fingers a little, and the water was only about a 1/2 in deep. Whatever was in there was pretty hard and did not feel like rotted out wood. What exactly is under the head, and is it okay for there to be water fwd of the main bilge well? It looks like the holes were intentionally cut there, perhaps by the factory... Thanks for the help... Chris
Thanks to all you gave me the data on my 81 Hunter 27. I have a new question now, regarding the bilges. I was cleaning out the bilge wells, and at the forward end there are a couple of small cutouts where some electrical wires are routed. They are about 1.5 in in diameter, and lead to the space beneath the deck in the head. I have a shower in my head with a drain in the deck. The drain just dumps to this space (fwd of the main bilge well). Is the area in there sealed, or is it raw core wood? I felt around with my fingers a little, and the water was only about a 1/2 in deep. Whatever was in there was pretty hard and did not feel like rotted out wood. What exactly is under the head, and is it okay for there to be water fwd of the main bilge well? It looks like the holes were intentionally cut there, perhaps by the factory... Thanks for the help... Chris
M
Matthew Fleming
hunter 27 restore
Chris, I bought a H27 three years back in Maryland. She was in disrepair and I have been slowly bringing her back to life. Hull work was alot of work and i stripped her to the glass. I used a two part epoxy and she is like new. I found the diesel is a great part of her. It will help her on the ocean (weight) and is good when maneuvering. I also mounted a 9.9 for a back up engine. Still working on rig and found her to fair well in heavy seas. I retrofitted a after market hatch up forward and used fiberglass filler to blend it. Good luck Matt Fleming
Chris, I bought a H27 three years back in Maryland. She was in disrepair and I have been slowly bringing her back to life. Hull work was alot of work and i stripped her to the glass. I used a two part epoxy and she is like new. I found the diesel is a great part of her. It will help her on the ocean (weight) and is good when maneuvering. I also mounted a 9.9 for a back up engine. Still working on rig and found her to fair well in heavy seas. I retrofitted a after market hatch up forward and used fiberglass filler to blend it. Good luck Matt Fleming
B
Benny
Lenses
There is a very fine proffessional grade rubbing compond used by plastic sign makers and used auto dealers to clean plastic lenses and it will do the job of removing the oxidation which results in the fog. It will also remove small scratches. Try an auto parts store and look for a rubbing compound for plastics, the finer the better. Too coarse and it will leave scratches. Replacement lenses are available from Gray Industries a Division of Pompanette, they also have the rubbers seals and the dogs. If you are planning extensive offshore sailing I would re-install the Diesel. The outboard will be of little help in heavy seas when it gets dunked.
There is a very fine proffessional grade rubbing compond used by plastic sign makers and used auto dealers to clean plastic lenses and it will do the job of removing the oxidation which results in the fog. It will also remove small scratches. Try an auto parts store and look for a rubbing compound for plastics, the finer the better. Too coarse and it will leave scratches. Replacement lenses are available from Gray Industries a Division of Pompanette, they also have the rubbers seals and the dogs. If you are planning extensive offshore sailing I would re-install the Diesel. The outboard will be of little help in heavy seas when it gets dunked.
- Status
- Not open for further replies.