Congratulations
we went from a Catalina 34 to our 2008 Hunter 38. She was a dealer demo that we purchased new in 2009. We have enjoyed her immensely. There have been a few things to learn with this boat.
First lessons were from the dealer. Make sure the main halyard is snug and make sure no one accidently releases the clutch because slack in the halyard will cause the furling main to jam. Second, when sailing if the wind gets around 12 to 15 knots it’s time to reef the main a little. On this boat you reef the main first. If you go to about 3/4 of the the boat flattens out and takes off. Too much heel with how far aft the beam runs will make the boat go a lot slower. As the dealer said it’s like dragging a barn door through the water.
It’s a wonderful boat and we’ve enjoyed it greatly. There are quite a few posts on here regarding maintenance, improvements, and things that have been done to keep the boat tip top. Search the archives and you will find a treasure trove of information.
If I can be of any help, drop me a note and I’ll try to share what I’ve learned, modifications we’ve made, and problems we’ve addressed. One of our biggest changes was that in our second year of ownership we changed all the interior upholster. My wife hated the factory original as it was too dark. Extravagant for sure but we do love the look and brightness of the fabric we used to replace the original. I’ve attached a picture.