3
REVIEW
Hunter Keel, 27X and Edge
Three Hunters on trial -- the deep draft 27 keelboat, it's racing twin and the multi-purpose powersailing EdgeCOOKING WITH GASTHE CONSTRUCTIONUP THE MASTCRUISING WITH ZINGHIGHS
LOWS
I saw a boat speeding towards me, with a sizeable bone in its teeth and at first sight I didn't couple it with the sailing craft I'd just stepped off. This powerboat kept bounding towards me, but I couldn't spot any telltale mast because it was lost in the Eastern Suburbs housing background. Only when the Edge closed to around 800m did I make the connection.
The Edge circled the RIB, churning the water to foam as it manoeuvred tightly around Athol Bight. I could hear Keryn's shrieks of laughter above the subdued roar of the 75hp Evinrude that was pushing this ‘yacht' to 20kts. Yep, the Edge is no ordinary 27-footer.
The new Hunter Edge is an unashamed competitor for the successful MacGregor 26, which has exploited the concept of a yacht that doubles as a powerboat - the so-called powersailer. I'd read up on the new Hunter and I knew that it could almost match the lighter MacGregor for pace, but the sight of a yacht sitting up on the plane without a gale up its tail and sails set was hard to fathom!
THE POWERSAILER CONCEPT
Mum wants a caravan, the kids want a wakeboard boat, and dad wants to revive the sailing skills he learnt in an MJ 20 years ago. That situation could lead to a big spend, with three lots of trailer insurances and registrations each year and two lots of boat regos, plus the complication of where to park all these trailerable toys. Enter the powersailer, with some of the characteristics of a caravan, a yacht and a powerboat.
MacGregor has best exploited the multipurpose powersailer concept and now claims to be the biggest producer of trailer yachts in the world. Little wonder the boys at Hunter grew tired of watching MacGregor's success and determined to have a slice of the powersailer market for themselves.
Hunter already makes the 25 trailerable yacht but it is a conventional shoal-draft vessel with an auxiliary - not a powersailer. It's also a permit-only towing proposition in Australia, having a beam of 2.58m. The new Edge powersailer has a beam of 2.54m - technically 4mm overwidth but you'd be unlikely to be pinged for such a minor discrepancy.
IN DESIGN
The Edge resembles the class-leading MacGregor in appearance but has a Farr-like wraparound ‘eyebrow' cabin window, instead of the MacGregor 26M's two-level window design. But like the MacGregor, the cabin is full-beam, without sidedecks.
The hull-deck joint is through-bolted and covered by a protective rubrail. The hull is monolithic FRP, with a swing-up 77kg centreboard, supplemented by a water ballast tank with up to 730kg capacity. Ballast intake is controlled by a transom-mounted lever.
The rudder lifts and lowers, using rope tackle, inside the helmsman's seat pod.
The walkthrough transom has a boarding platform and telescopic swim ladder. The boarding platform also serves as the mount for the Evinrude E-TEC 75hp outboard engine, which comes with hydraulic steering and electric tilt. The engine controls and instruments are mounted on the steering pedestal.
Like all Hunters, the Edge uses a B&R rig, with, wide, swept-back spreaders and no backstay. Additions not found on other Hunters are tubular braces running from the deck to the mast, to stabilise the mast during raising and lowering.
The B&R rig allows fitment of a cat-style main with ample roach and a wide headboard. The optional furling headsail is high-clewed and cut to follow the line of the upswept boom. From a distance, the Edge resembles a stubby catamaran in profile.
PEOPLE PLACES
Hunter's designers are skilled at making Tardis-like boats and this expertise has been well employed in the new Edge. The pushpits can be fitted with optional stern seats, complementing cockpit seating for four, plus a dedicated helmsman's perch, allowing seven to sit comfortably on deck for day sailing. That crewing fits within the boat's rated payload of 700kg.
The cabin hatch is double-hinged and rises on gas struts, so going below is a breeze.
Below decks, the Edge resembles the Hunter 27 keelboat, featuring a for'ard vee-berth that can be used for a pair of kids, or extended with bolster cushions to sleep an adult couple. The under-cockpit bed is huge and can sleep four kids or a couple of adults and one child.
At the foot of the tubular stainless steel companionway is a lift-up panel that allows a visual check of the ballast tank. The dinette is built around the swing-keel FRP box and the mast compression post, featuring a double-drop-side table and seating for at least six.
The galley has fiddled bench space, a deep sink with swivelling tap and there's top-loading fridge space beside the galley cupboard. A second cupboard with fiddled serving space is opposite the galley. Because the cabin is full width without sidedecks, there isn't the usual shelf space under the cabin windows, but there's ample storage under the dinette seats.
The standard enclosed head is fitted with a portable loo, but a fixed head with holding tank is optional.
ON THE WATER
The Hunter Edge is at the large end of the traileryacht scale, so it needs a decent sized boat ramp for launching and retrieving. At an empty weight of 2.2 tonnes, plus the weight of a tandem-axle trailer, the Edge also requires a sizeable towing vehicle with around three-tonne towing capacity - a 4WD wagon or ute is better than a 2WD car.
Raising the mast, attaching the boom and the optional jib with furler, and rigging the sheets takes around 45 minutes. Ditto for retrieving and de-rigging for transport. The plus side is that the trailer hubs cool down while the boat is being rigged and are less likely to ingest sea water when the wheels are submerged.
With the trailer buried at the far end of the Little Manly ramp, the Edge slid off easily and motored into the nearby beach, where the rest of the crew clambered aboard. Being able to beach the Edge makes boarding easy.
Once clear of the shallows we opened the ballast filler, lowered the centreboard - an easy operation from the cockpit by simply releasing a cleated line - and dropped the rudder from the raised position it needs for trailering and when motoring at speed. With the ballast tank showing full we closed the valve, hoisted the main - no halyard winch needed or supplied - and unfurled the headsail. We shut down the outboard, tilted it with the flick of a switch and sailed away.
The Edge is no raceyacht but it climbed to windward at a respectable angle and slid up to five knots in a 10 to 12-knot breeze. The wheel is powerboat-size, so it's on the heavy side, because it lacks the radius needed to reduce steering effort. This heaviness makes it easy to oversteer the boat, until you get used to the feeling.
The Edge will go to windward quite well, but it felt much happier with the sheets eased to a broad reach. It won't keep up with a 27-foot racer, but it's fine for its intended purpose: family cruising.
The transition from sail to motorboat takes only a few minutes. Once the sails are packed away and anything that can blow off the deck has been stowed, the rudder and centreboard are hauled up - each a one-hand operation - and the outboard brought into attack mode. The engine is fired up, the ballast valve is opened to drain out the unnecessary weight and it's time to hold on! You wouldn't get more than around 60nm at WOT with the standard fuel tank, but throttle back to a comfortable seven knots or so and the range goes out to around 200nm. Alternatively, you can go for a blast and carry additional petrol.
Most powersailer owners use full noise for a while until the novelty wears off and then they adopt a more sedate pace, but it's handy to know you can get home in a hurry if a storm is brewing.
Retrieving the boat from the water is easy thanks to a trailer design that allows accurate power-on boarding.
How will the Hunter Edge fare against the established MacGregor? Time will tell, but Hunter's profile here is somewhat higher through the US Yachts organisation. And while the Edge is more expensive than a Mac and heavier to tow, it does offer caravan space inside.
Would my beloved and I buy a Hunter Edge? It's not the boat for us, because we love to race and the HJ27X keelboat has much more appeal in this respect. But for the hapless bloke who's trying to please a caravan-keen wife, a wakeboard-mad tribe of kids and their mates, and who also wants the joy of sailing, the Edge has plenty of appeal.
HIGHS
LOWS
- Outstanding value for money
- Generous accommodation
- Ease of sail handling
LOWS
- Two-blade prop vibration
- Engine cover fitment
- Rattly door catches
| Hunter 27 KEEL |
| PRICE AS TESTED |
| $130,000 |
| OPTIONS FITTED |
| Deep keel, marine head with holding tank, vanity with hot and cold shower, hot and cold transom shower, 14hp engine, Raymarine ST40, VHF radio, battery charger, 240V outlets, 12V outlet, high-water bilge alarm, AM/FM CD player, bimini, mainsheet traveller, folding leather-bound steering wheel, outboard sheeting and aft winches, anchor with chain and warp, spinnaker halyard, pedestal cover, cockpit cushions, pressure water system, 12V fridge, and water heater |
| PRICED FROM |
| $115,000 (H27); $125,000 (H27X) |
| GENERAL |
| Material: FRP monolithic hull and balsa sandwich deck |
| Type: Monohull |
| Length overall: 8.33m (H27X w/ extended bowsprit) |
| Hull length: 8.23m (H27) |
| Waterline length: 7.18m |
| Beam: 3.02m |
| Draft: 1.05m (1.52m optional H27; 1.60m H27X) |
| Mast height: 12.12m (13.31m, furling mast; 12.29m H27X) |
| Weight: 3476kg shoal draft; 3407kg deep keel; 3650kg H27X |
| CAPACITIES |
| Berths: Two doubles and two single settee berths |
| Fuel: 57lt (45lt H27X) |
| Water: 76lt |
| Holding tank: 38lt (H27) |
| SAILS |
| Sail area (standard): 35.86m2 |
| Sail area (with mast-furling main): 4.28m2 |
| Sail area (H27X): 41.26m2 |
| Asymmetric spinnaker: Optional |
| ENGINE |
| Make/model: Yanmar diesel |
| Type: Shaft drive |
| Rated HP: 10 (14 optional) |
| Prop: Fixed two-blade |
| SUPPLIED BY |
| US Yachts Pty Ltd, |
| Sydney By Sail Festival Pontoon, |
| Darling Harbour, NSW |
| Phone: (02) 9281 4422 |
| Fax: (02) 9280 1119 |
| Mail: PO Box Q1195, QVB, Sydney 1230 |
| Website: www.usyachts.com.au |
HUNTER 27X – A SERIOUS CRUISER/RACER
The basic hull design of the Hunter 27 impressed us, but the cruising rig didn't look like it would be happy with greater demands for speed. Enter the Hunter 27X.
The X-factor is added to the standard hull in the form of a taller mast, deck-sweeping headsails, a lower boom setting, telescopic carbon bowsprit, deeper (1.6m draft) and heavier keel, 3:1/6:1 mainsheet blocks, tiller steering, two spinnaker halyards, split-purchase vang and a removable engine control lever on the cockpit side.
Interestingly, the headie sheet primaries remain in their standard position on the aft coamings, so experience in sailing a Young 88, where the sheet hand has to stand far aft and handle both sheets through a tack, will be invaluable to a 27X racing crew. A plus for this aft-winch arrangement is easy spinnaker sheeting.
US Yachts plans to bring in a 27X in the near future and you'll know when it's arrived, because the standard hull colour is bright red.
AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT
I sat bobbing up and down in the Sydney By Sail RIB just off Bradley's Head, waiting for the Hunter Edge to motor by so that I could click off some happy snaps. I could make out US Yachts principal, Matt Hayes, and my better half, Keryn, down near Rose Bay, packing the sails away on the Edge following our Sydney Harbour sailing test. I thought I'd have a long wait for them to motor within shooting range… but I was wrong.I saw a boat speeding towards me, with a sizeable bone in its teeth and at first sight I didn't couple it with the sailing craft I'd just stepped off. This powerboat kept bounding towards me, but I couldn't spot any telltale mast because it was lost in the Eastern Suburbs housing background. Only when the Edge closed to around 800m did I make the connection.
The Edge circled the RIB, churning the water to foam as it manoeuvred tightly around Athol Bight. I could hear Keryn's shrieks of laughter above the subdued roar of the 75hp Evinrude that was pushing this ‘yacht' to 20kts. Yep, the Edge is no ordinary 27-footer.
The new Hunter Edge is an unashamed competitor for the successful MacGregor 26, which has exploited the concept of a yacht that doubles as a powerboat - the so-called powersailer. I'd read up on the new Hunter and I knew that it could almost match the lighter MacGregor for pace, but the sight of a yacht sitting up on the plane without a gale up its tail and sails set was hard to fathom!
THE POWERSAILER CONCEPT
Mum wants a caravan, the kids want a wakeboard boat, and dad wants to revive the sailing skills he learnt in an MJ 20 years ago. That situation could lead to a big spend, with three lots of trailer insurances and registrations each year and two lots of boat regos, plus the complication of where to park all these trailerable toys. Enter the powersailer, with some of the characteristics of a caravan, a yacht and a powerboat.
MacGregor has best exploited the multipurpose powersailer concept and now claims to be the biggest producer of trailer yachts in the world. Little wonder the boys at Hunter grew tired of watching MacGregor's success and determined to have a slice of the powersailer market for themselves.
Hunter already makes the 25 trailerable yacht but it is a conventional shoal-draft vessel with an auxiliary - not a powersailer. It's also a permit-only towing proposition in Australia, having a beam of 2.58m. The new Edge powersailer has a beam of 2.54m - technically 4mm overwidth but you'd be unlikely to be pinged for such a minor discrepancy.
IN DESIGN
The Edge resembles the class-leading MacGregor in appearance but has a Farr-like wraparound ‘eyebrow' cabin window, instead of the MacGregor 26M's two-level window design. But like the MacGregor, the cabin is full-beam, without sidedecks.
The hull-deck joint is through-bolted and covered by a protective rubrail. The hull is monolithic FRP, with a swing-up 77kg centreboard, supplemented by a water ballast tank with up to 730kg capacity. Ballast intake is controlled by a transom-mounted lever.
The rudder lifts and lowers, using rope tackle, inside the helmsman's seat pod.
The walkthrough transom has a boarding platform and telescopic swim ladder. The boarding platform also serves as the mount for the Evinrude E-TEC 75hp outboard engine, which comes with hydraulic steering and electric tilt. The engine controls and instruments are mounted on the steering pedestal.
Like all Hunters, the Edge uses a B&R rig, with, wide, swept-back spreaders and no backstay. Additions not found on other Hunters are tubular braces running from the deck to the mast, to stabilise the mast during raising and lowering.
The B&R rig allows fitment of a cat-style main with ample roach and a wide headboard. The optional furling headsail is high-clewed and cut to follow the line of the upswept boom. From a distance, the Edge resembles a stubby catamaran in profile.
PEOPLE PLACES
Hunter's designers are skilled at making Tardis-like boats and this expertise has been well employed in the new Edge. The pushpits can be fitted with optional stern seats, complementing cockpit seating for four, plus a dedicated helmsman's perch, allowing seven to sit comfortably on deck for day sailing. That crewing fits within the boat's rated payload of 700kg.
The cabin hatch is double-hinged and rises on gas struts, so going below is a breeze.
Below decks, the Edge resembles the Hunter 27 keelboat, featuring a for'ard vee-berth that can be used for a pair of kids, or extended with bolster cushions to sleep an adult couple. The under-cockpit bed is huge and can sleep four kids or a couple of adults and one child.
At the foot of the tubular stainless steel companionway is a lift-up panel that allows a visual check of the ballast tank. The dinette is built around the swing-keel FRP box and the mast compression post, featuring a double-drop-side table and seating for at least six.
The galley has fiddled bench space, a deep sink with swivelling tap and there's top-loading fridge space beside the galley cupboard. A second cupboard with fiddled serving space is opposite the galley. Because the cabin is full width without sidedecks, there isn't the usual shelf space under the cabin windows, but there's ample storage under the dinette seats.
The standard enclosed head is fitted with a portable loo, but a fixed head with holding tank is optional.
ON THE WATER
The Hunter Edge is at the large end of the traileryacht scale, so it needs a decent sized boat ramp for launching and retrieving. At an empty weight of 2.2 tonnes, plus the weight of a tandem-axle trailer, the Edge also requires a sizeable towing vehicle with around three-tonne towing capacity - a 4WD wagon or ute is better than a 2WD car.
Raising the mast, attaching the boom and the optional jib with furler, and rigging the sheets takes around 45 minutes. Ditto for retrieving and de-rigging for transport. The plus side is that the trailer hubs cool down while the boat is being rigged and are less likely to ingest sea water when the wheels are submerged.
With the trailer buried at the far end of the Little Manly ramp, the Edge slid off easily and motored into the nearby beach, where the rest of the crew clambered aboard. Being able to beach the Edge makes boarding easy.
Once clear of the shallows we opened the ballast filler, lowered the centreboard - an easy operation from the cockpit by simply releasing a cleated line - and dropped the rudder from the raised position it needs for trailering and when motoring at speed. With the ballast tank showing full we closed the valve, hoisted the main - no halyard winch needed or supplied - and unfurled the headsail. We shut down the outboard, tilted it with the flick of a switch and sailed away.
The Edge is no raceyacht but it climbed to windward at a respectable angle and slid up to five knots in a 10 to 12-knot breeze. The wheel is powerboat-size, so it's on the heavy side, because it lacks the radius needed to reduce steering effort. This heaviness makes it easy to oversteer the boat, until you get used to the feeling.
The Edge will go to windward quite well, but it felt much happier with the sheets eased to a broad reach. It won't keep up with a 27-foot racer, but it's fine for its intended purpose: family cruising.
The transition from sail to motorboat takes only a few minutes. Once the sails are packed away and anything that can blow off the deck has been stowed, the rudder and centreboard are hauled up - each a one-hand operation - and the outboard brought into attack mode. The engine is fired up, the ballast valve is opened to drain out the unnecessary weight and it's time to hold on! You wouldn't get more than around 60nm at WOT with the standard fuel tank, but throttle back to a comfortable seven knots or so and the range goes out to around 200nm. Alternatively, you can go for a blast and carry additional petrol.
Most powersailer owners use full noise for a while until the novelty wears off and then they adopt a more sedate pace, but it's handy to know you can get home in a hurry if a storm is brewing.
Retrieving the boat from the water is easy thanks to a trailer design that allows accurate power-on boarding.
How will the Hunter Edge fare against the established MacGregor? Time will tell, but Hunter's profile here is somewhat higher through the US Yachts organisation. And while the Edge is more expensive than a Mac and heavier to tow, it does offer caravan space inside.
Would my beloved and I buy a Hunter Edge? It's not the boat for us, because we love to race and the HJ27X keelboat has much more appeal in this respect. But for the hapless bloke who's trying to please a caravan-keen wife, a wakeboard-mad tribe of kids and their mates, and who also wants the joy of sailing, the Edge has plenty of appeal.
HIGHS
- Good value for money
- Generous accommodation
- Multi-purpose design
LOWS
- Unusual appearance
- Heavy steering when sailing
- No sidedecks
| HUNTER EDGE |
| PRICE AS TESTED |
| $89,500 (including US-made aluminium/steel trailer) |
| OPTIONS FITTED |
| Evinrude E-TEC 75 outboard, cabin accordion blinds, portable fridge, icebox, marine head, vee-berth curtain, hot and cold pressure water, additional battery, electric bilge pump, speed and depth instruments, 240V shorepower connection, AM/FM stereo system, stern seats with integral speakers, bimini, mainsail cover, bowroller, compass, jib roller furling, swim ladder, and primer and anti-foul paint |
| PRICED FROM |
| $69,150 (sans motor) |
| GENERAL |
| Material: FRP monolithic hull |
| Type: Monohull |
| Hull length: 8.03m (sans motor) |
| Waterline length: 7.37m |
| Beam: 2.54m |
| Draft: 0.48m (board up); 1.50m (board down) |
| Mast height: 10.08m |
| Weight: 1565kg; 2290kg (with ballast) |
| Towing weight: 2234kg |
| CAPACITIES |
| Berths: Two doubles and two single settee berths |
| Fuel: 23lt |
| Water: 38lt |
| SAILS |
| Sail area: 31.15m2 (standard) |
| ENGINE |
| Make/model: Evinrude E-TEC |
| Type: Outboard |
| Rated HP: 50 (75hp optional) |
| SUPPLIED BY |
| US Yachts Pty Ltd, |
| Sydney By Sail Festival Pontoon, |
| Darling Harbour, NSW |
| Phone: (02) 9281 4422 |
| Fax: (02) 9280 1119 |
| Mail: PO Box Q1195, QVB, Sydney 1230 |
| Website: www.usyachts.com.au |
Share this article
Written byAllan Whiting
See all articlesStay up to dateBecome a boatsales member and get the latest news, reviews and advice straight to your inbox.
Subscribe todayRelated articles
Disclaimer
Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
Contact
Advertise with us
International marketplaces
Consent
Download the boatsales app
