I recently bought a 1999 Hunter 260 from an insurance auction for a very fair price. I had no idea of the damage before I bought it, but after contacting the previous owner I discovered it was hit by lightning. The only signs of the occurance is a burned out mast light, a short in the mast light breaker, a shorted wire for the depth finder, and a few chips in the gel coat around the water line and centerboard. The hull seems to be perfect around the cracked gel coat and no water damage occured. My concers are if this was actually the action of a lightning strike or simply a shorted wire in the mast light. If anywone has any experience with evidence that would solve this initial problem with verifying a lighning strike please let me know. The other question is the integrity of the water ballast. I dont know if damage would occur in the ballast. But that was the reason for the insurance company to pay off the claim (not being able to confirm damage to the ballast without cutting up the boat). Im looking for any answers leading to the possible damage due to the strike and what areas I need to watch out for when rebuilding the boat.