1988 hunter 18.5 sailboat

Small Craft Advisor

Hunter 18.5

Simple, fun and forgiving—perfect for the sailing family.

We’re all romantics. Some of us have it worse than others, of course—those with the proverbial wandering eye—and our backyards are a visual testament to both our passion and our lack of impulse control. We’ve got a small marina’s worth of vessels in various states of repair—the sprit-rigged dinghy, the leaky catboat, and the sweet little double-ender that just needs some cosmetic work—in truth we own more boats than we could restore in three lifetimes. Despite what we tell ourselves (and our spouses), not all boat purchases are especially rational decisions.

But the same thing that seems to draw us to certain boats blinds us to others that might, arguably, be a better fit. Some of the more common production fiberglass trailersailers are good examples. Staring at them probably won’t make your heart sing— no portlights, no sweeping sheer line, and not much wood—just angular windows, predictable lines, and lots of white fiberglass. But over the years we’ve found that many of these popular factory boats—which typically aren’t great in any one category but are pretty good in most—deserve more consideration. The Hunter 18.5 is one we felt warranted a closer look.

The buxom little 18.5 was produced from 1987 to 1993 (a quite different water-ballasted Hunter 19 superseded the 18.5 and was built from 1993 to 1996). The 18.5 featured a modern-looking cockpit and a cabin with as many as four berths. The sliding cabin hatch could be slid forward and hinged up, potentially offering something akin to standing headroom below, and the optional “Weekender Package” included a galley with ice chest, stove, and bucket sink. There was also a portable head located beneath the aft end of the V-berth—everything a small family might need for cruising.

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• Sailboat Guide

1988 Hunter 18.5

• Description

Seller's Description

Go to Sailing Texas classifieds for current sailboats for sale Hunter 18.5, 1988 sailboat wing keel 18 and a half feet long clean and ready to sail comes with main and two jibs. extendible trailer. Interior cushions complete. all good condition. Moore, Oklahoma. $4.000

Rig and Sails

Auxilary power, accomodations, calculations.

The theoretical maximum speed that a displacement hull can move efficiently through the water is determined by it's waterline length and displacement. It may be unable to reach this speed if the boat is underpowered or heavily loaded, though it may exceed this speed given enough power. Read more.

Classic hull speed formula:

Hull Speed = 1.34 x √LWL

Max Speed/Length ratio = 8.26 ÷ Displacement/Length ratio .311 Hull Speed = Max Speed/Length ratio x √LWL

Sail Area / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the power of the sails relative to the weight of the boat. The higher the number, the higher the performance, but the harder the boat will be to handle. This ratio is a "non-dimensional" value that facilitates comparisons between boats of different types and sizes. Read more.

SA/D = SA ÷ (D ÷ 64) 2/3

• SA : Sail area in square feet, derived by adding the mainsail area to 100% of the foretriangle area (the lateral area above the deck between the mast and the forestay).
• D : Displacement in pounds.

Ballast / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the stability of a boat's hull that suggests how well a monohull will stand up to its sails. The ballast displacement ratio indicates how much of the weight of a boat is placed for maximum stability against capsizing and is an indicator of stiffness and resistance to capsize.

Ballast / Displacement * 100

Displacement / Length Ratio

A measure of the weight of the boat relative to it's length at the waterline. The higher a boat’s D/L ratio, the more easily it will carry a load and the more comfortable its motion will be. The lower a boat's ratio is, the less power it takes to drive the boat to its nominal hull speed or beyond. Read more.

D/L = (D ÷ 2240) ÷ (0.01 x LWL)³

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds.
• LWL: Waterline length in feet

Comfort Ratio

This ratio assess how quickly and abruptly a boat’s hull reacts to waves in a significant seaway, these being the elements of a boat’s motion most likely to cause seasickness. Read more.

Comfort ratio = D ÷ (.65 x (.7 LWL + .3 LOA) x Beam 1.33 )

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds
• LOA: Length overall in feet
• Beam: Width of boat at the widest point in feet

Capsize Screening Formula

This formula attempts to indicate whether a given boat might be too wide and light to readily right itself after being overturned in extreme conditions. Read more.

CSV = Beam ÷ ³√(D / 64)

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HUNTER 18.5 Detailed Review

If you are a boat enthusiast looking to get more information on specs, built, make, etc. of different boats, then here is a complete review of HUNTER 18.5. Built by Hunter Marine (USA) and designed by undefined, the boat was first built in 1987. It has a hull type of Wing Keel and LOA is 5.61. Its sail area/displacement ratio 20.63. Its auxiliary power tank, manufactured by undefined, runs on undefined.

HUNTER 18.5 has retained its value as a result of superior building, a solid reputation, and a devoted owner base. Read on to find out more about HUNTER 18.5 and decide if it is a fit for your boating needs.

Boat Information

Boat specifications, sail boat calculation, rig and sail specs, contributions, who builds hunter 18.5.

HUNTER 18.5 is built by Hunter Marine (USA).

When was HUNTER 18.5 first built?

HUNTER 18.5 was first built in 1987.

How long is HUNTER 18.5?

HUNTER 18.5 is 4.72 m in length.

What is mast height on HUNTER 18.5?

HUNTER 18.5 has a mast height of 6.4 m.

Member Boats at HarborMoor

Hunter 18.5

The Hunter 18.5 is an American trailerable sailboat that was designed by the Hunter Design Team as a cruising sailboat and first built in 1987. The Hunter 18.5 is a small recreational keelboat, built predominantly of fiberglass, with wood trim. It has a fractional sloop rig with a fully battened mainsail, a raked stem, a reverse transom, a transom-hung kick-up rudder controlled by a tiller and a fixed wing keel. It displaces 1,600 lb (726 kg) and carries 520 lb (236 kg) of ballast.

The boat has a draft of 2.00 ft (0.61 m) with the standard shoal-draft wing keel, allowing ground transportation on the factory standard trailer. The boat is optionally fitted with a small 3 to 6 hp (2 to 4 kW) outboard motor for docking and maneuvering. Other factory optional equipment included a portable head, galley alcohol stove, water pump tap, cooler and anchor.

The design has sleeping accommodation for three people, with a double "V"-berth in the bow cabin and a straight settee in the main cabin on the port side. Cabin headroom is 48 in (122 cm).

The design has a PHRF racing average handicap of 288. It has a hull speed of 5.28 kn (9.78 km/h).

Source: Wikipedia . Image Credit: Sailing Texas

LOA: 18.42 ft LWL: 15.50 ft Beam: 7.08 ft Draft: 2.00 ft Displacement: 1600.00 lbs Ballast: 520.00 lbs Hull type: Wing Keel Hull construction: FG Rigging type: Fractional Sloop

Hunter 18.5 for sale in the last 12 months

Below you'll find the latest Hunter 18.5 listings for the last 12 months. We compare the listing price with boats listed in the past and the color coding indicates if the price is good (green = below the average listing price) or more on the expensive side (red = seller is asking more than the average listing price).

Hunter 18.5 listing prices over time

Listing details.

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Hunter 18.5 - Sailboat Data, Parts & Rigging

Sailboat data, rig dimensions and recommended sail areas for Hunter 18.5 sailboat. Tech info about rigging, halyards, sheets, mainsail covers and more.

Sailboat Data directory for over 8,000 sailboat designs and manufacturers. Direct access to halyards lengths, recommended sail areas, mainsail cover styles, standing rigging fittings, and lots more for all cruising and racing sailboats.

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• Hunter Marine

Hunter 18.5

Hunter 18.5 - Hunter Marine / STW002395

cabin cruiser

overall length

hull length

waterline length

standard draft

minimum draft

displacement

diesel tank

mast height

Accomodation layouts

standard version

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Hunter 18.5 standing rigging tuning

• Thread starter tool_room
• Start date Aug 2, 2013
• Hunter Owner Forums
• Smaller Boats

I need information on tuning the standing rigging on my Hunter 18.5. I do not have owners manuals and the one on the download site does not have much information on mast tuning. I need to know how much mast rake I should have, how much pre-bend, and how much tension using my Loos gage should I have on the forestay and shrouds? Thanks in advance.  

Here ya go .... this applies to most 'all' masts and rigging combinations: http://www.riggingandsails.com/pdf/selden-tuning.pdf  

Thanks RichH. I have this information, but I was looking for something more specific to the Hunter 18.5.  

Ken Prichard

I had a 18.5 and tuned it pretty much the way Rich suggested: - Centre the mast head with the uppers. - Tension the uppers to 15 % of breaking strength. I'm not sure but I think the thickness is 1/8". I used a Loose Gauge. - I tensioned the lowers so the prebend was 3/4" - 1" at the spreaders and the mast track was straight. - I wasn't too concerned with the rake but if I recall it was only a couple of inches. Too much is just going to produce weather helm. The boat sailed really well up to about 12 - 13 knots true. Above that the forestay will fall off and you are going to begin developing weather helm. Without a backstay I don't think you can do much about it. The main has a large roach and is full battened. The boat is getting a little " aged " so there's a pretty good chance the main is showing it's age. That's going to make a big contribution to weather helm. You might want to have a loft look at it. Enjoy the boat. I did!  

Thanks Ken, My sails are 2 years old, and she sails nicely. I have noticed the forestay going slack in stronger winds which concerned me. This past weekend the guy in the slip next to me bent the mast on his McGregor 26, most likely due to insufficient tension on the stays. This got me thinking that I had better make sure mine was tuned properly.  

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