Small by Choice, Able by Design, Page 2 |
HUNTER 18.5
The Hunter 18.5 was the most rakish of the group. According to Hunters Steve Cutsforth, “The 18.5 is aimed at the entry level market, at the young couple with a small child looking for a trailerable, reasonably priced, simple, fun, and stable boat.”
The hull and deck are joined with a solid, shoe box joint using DuPont PL 5200 and stainless steel screws spaced 5 inches apart. The screws terminate in a piece of wood fiberglassed to the hull inside the cabin. On our test boat, some of them protruded into the port quarterberth. In addition, the through-deck fasteners for hardware protruded into the cabin—some almost 1 inch. The builder could easily cap or file off these protrusions and eliminate a hazard. We also felt some flexing in the hull and foredeck, indicating a possible need for stiffening in those areas.
The Hunter has a single scupper in the cockpit sole. Though its size is adequate, its screen could become clogged with cockpit debris. Considering the cockpit’s volume, two straight-through transom scuppers would be better. Also, since the Hunter doesn’t have a bridgedeck, water from the cockpit will flow into the cabin unless the hatchboard is in place. The boat does have foam flotation.
To increase cabin headroom, the boat has no side decks, which is not had considering the deck’s quality non-skid surface and fine toerails on the cabintop. Unfortunately, the toerails don’t extend to the foredeck, and the optional 10- to 12-inch-high lifelines seem an afterthought.
The most likely hazard to the crew is the starboard cockpit locker lid. The lid, 42 inches long, is prevented from opening too far by a swaged steel cable that keeps it precariously close to its balance point. When open, a gust of wind, a wave, or someone stepping on the port gunwale will bring the lid down with considerable force. The cover closed this way twice while we were examining the boat.
Rigging took only 11 minutes. The European-style step-through bow pulpit is an excellent mast crutch when padded with carpet. The single pin through the mast and tabernacle works well, hut tolerances are so close that we were unable to insert the retaining split ring until the mast was
vertical. Hunter 18.5. Innovative bulb wing keel helps performance and does not hinder launching or retrieval. Outboard motor bracket is molded in transom; note mast carrier that attaches to rudder fittings. The Hunter’s cabin top is a good platform for sail handling thanks to stout toe rails and effective non-skid pattern of the deck.
Launching and retrieval was simple; even with the bulb wing keel’s 2-foot draft, the boat slid easily off and on the trailer.
The cockpit coamings are wide for sitting, hut like the Capri, the seat backs need more rake to be comfortable. In addition, the locker’s 7-inch-high retaining lip is too low to keep gear from spilling onto the sole when open. The integral, transom outboard mount is superior to the lifting mounts of the other boats.
In the cabin, comfortable sitting headroom can only be found on the port side (34 inches) because the starboard seat is raised 5 inches to accommodate the optional galley. (This option includes stove, sink with tankage, and a cooler). Storage space is available under the port berth and the V-berth. Light and air come from the forward hatch and hinged seahood, neither of which has a hold-open method.
Impressive Rig
The Hunter’s impressive rig centers on a quality Z-spar mast and boom with internal halyards and internal jiffy reefing for its single reef point. The fully-battened main is controlled by a mainsheet run through a block on the cockpit sole. Our test boat also had the optional yang.
The jib sheets lead aft through stand-up blocks to bullseye fairleads and non-swiveling cam cleats angled toward the cockpits center.
The Hunters bulb wing keel works well. Because the boat is stiff, predictable, and fast, sailing it is great fun. Sailing in light air of the first day, the Hunter easily out sailed the more tender Precision but was whipped a few times by the Capri.
On the second day, both Tom and I had our hands full singlehanding the Precision and the Capri, and double-teaming on the Hunter. Glitches not evident in light air became apparent in the higher winds.
First, the mainsheet is hard to release in heavy air because we could no longer use our feet to pop the sheet from the cam cleat: They were being used to brace us against the leeward seat.
Second, the non-swiveling jib sheet cam cleats were hard to release under load and should be replaced with swiveling cleats.
And third, we lost the top batten and very nearly the next two because of the nylon strap-and-buckle retention system. The addition of a pressure-sensitive fastener on the exiting strap may secure it better.
Other than these problems, we just had fun. When we felt weather helm, it was easy to pump the tiller, feather the rudder, work away the resistance, and continue sailing without any great loss of speed. There was no predictable rounding up, just speed and good manners.
The Hunter 18.5 is lacking in safety and finish, areas we believe are more important than sailing well for a family boat. But some redesigning and more attention to detail could turn it into a fine all-around boat. After all, it did give the best performance under sail, pointing higher and sailing faster and with better manners than the other test boats.
