Should I purchase a Hunter 18?

[Eismin]

Hi folks I am new to this forum, but have been sailing for a long time. Call me Skipper Tom. I am currently looking to up grade my fleet (two boats is a fleet; right?) I sail (race) mostly at a local club in Indiana on an inland lake so I recently purchased a Mega Byte. The Mega Byte is a bit of a rocket ship similar to a Laser.

Now I want a more "family friendly" boat for those non-racing days with friends and kids. (Or any day I don't want to get wet) I like the design of the Hunter 18 and wanted to hear from some current owners on their thoughts....my questions 1) Is this an appropriate boat for seasoned 65 year old sailor who whats to take out friends and family, maybe occasionally race? 2) I like to transport the boat to other lakes; so is the boat easy to rig/ launch from a trailer? 3) are their any issues I should look for when buying a used Hunter 18? 4) is the Hunter 18 easy to single-hand up to 10-15 Knts?

Any input you can provide would be greatly appreciated. & THINK SUMMER!

 

[CurtisC]

I have owned a Hunter 18 for over a year and love it. As a "seasoned" catamaran sailor and over 65, I decided to move into something a bit more suitable for teaching grandkids to sail. I like the boat because its roomy with a very clean cockpit, easy to set up, and with the asymmetrical spinnaker and sprit pole package, fun for to sail. In addition to making the cockpit a bit larger the open transom makes for easy water access for the grandkids. We trailer it to NC and lake sail during the summer then back to the east coast of FL for the winter. I solo the boat often with winds 10-15 being the sweet spot, the roller furling jib if needed, makes single handing in heavier air easy. If you get creative with a bungee and an aft cleat you can rig a tiller minder and set the spin by yourself as well. I've raced it with crew in 20-25 gusting to 30+ and while doable, its more survival sailing than fun. The main does have a single reef capability however I've never used it. Kudos to the designer for angling the cockpit coaming to serve as a perfect seat when heeling. The wide beam makes the boat very stable, worst case you might take a partial heavy air knockdown and a little water into the cockpit but my sense is you've really got to work hard to fully capsize it. Its not rated in either the Portsmouth Yardstick or in PHRF but if you start with a Hunter 170 PY rating, and take penalties for added WL, SA and the asym spin you get a PY DPN of 88.5 and can convert that to 201 in PHRF. While agreeable to both clubs I race with, a 201 PHRF rating is unfortunately too low (IMO) particularly when the wind and waves pickup. Set up is easy for one person and if you hustle, you can be on the water in about 20 minutes. Other than the usual structural and cosmetic issues to watch for in a used boat there are no specific problems to watch for that I'm aware of. Besides the spin package, add an outboard bracket paired up with a Suzuki 2.5 (if you need a kicker). I chose to pass on cockpit cushions and just use garden kneeling pads instead. Great little daysailer!

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

As there were a couple of Hunter 18’s depends on how to answer from a former dealer for Hunter. 18.5 or the newer 22 (fiberglass) that replaced the 216?

 

[CurtisC]

As there were a couple of Hunter 18’s depends on how to answer from a former dealer for Hunter. 18.5 or the newer 22 (fiberglass) that replaced the 216?

Just to be clear, the Hunter 18 is an 800 lbs. open transom planning hull w/centerboard daysailer in production since 2011 while the 18.5 is a pocket cruiser w/wing keel and displacement of 1600 lbs. produced between 1987 and 1993. The H 18 replaced the H 170 in 2011with 2 extra ft. at the WL (1ft. overall), an all fiberglass/ balsa core hull instead of the 170's ACP plastic hull, and an asymmetrical spinnaker / sprit pole option.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

@CurtisC
Thank you for the correction. Boy I forgot about the 18 having introduced that boat to replace the 170 but it was earlier than 2011.
So often it is critical describing a boat asking for help , it is important to include model and year

 

[jpia]

Folks, I have an 18' Marlow-Hunter daysailer that I purchased in 2021.
I need some gelcoat attention and cant for the life of me match the blue hull color. Cant't get in touch with the factory.
Can anyone point me in a good direction????

 

[shemandr]

Blue gelcoat fades a lot. Unfortunately , gelcoat repair kits don't account for fading. Skilled gelcoat technicians can get pretty close. But if you want undetectable results paint the whole topsides. It's only 18'. A lot of work but fun in a weird way. I did my Bandit 15 in blue. Roll/tip a Interlux 2 part epoxy following instructions and you'll get good results. For better than good you need a pro to spray in several coats including a clear finishing coat.
A local blue boat from a respected builder faded and the warrantee fix was a full Awlgrip paint job.

 

[jpia]

Blue gelcoat fades a lot. Unfortunately , gelcoat repair kits don't account for fading. Skilled gelcoat technicians can get pretty close. But if you want undetectable results paint the whole topsides. It's only 18'. A lot of work but fun in a weird way. I did my Bandit 15 in blue. Roll/tip a Interlux 2 part epoxy following instructions and you'll get good results. For better than good you need a pro to spray in several coats including a clear finishing coat.
A local blue boat from a respected builder faded and the warrantee fix was a full Awlgrip paint job.

Thank you so much for the response. Quite frankly, I wasn’t sure if anyone would ever answer me. I only have a few scratches and I’m trying to sell the boat so if I got a color that was close and I touched up a few nicks here and there that would be OK with me. The problem is You’ve got to get pretty darn close to not see it and I was wondering if anyone in the community knew what color Marlow-Hunter use so I could get that paint from a West Marine or from other sources. I guess I’m looking for a color name or a color code

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Check the forum store as it is owned by a former Hunter employee