Hunter 27
Built 1975–1984 by Hunter Marine
About the Hunter 27
Researched from public sources for this model. Any individual boat may have been modified or repowered — confirm before relying on any figure.
- Built
- 1975–1984
- Builder
- Hunter Marine
- Designer
- John Cherubini
- Length
- 27.17 ft
- Waterline
- 22 ft
- Beam
- 9.25 ft
- Draft
- 4.25 ft
- Displacement
- 7,000 lb
- Ballast
- 3,000 lb
- Hull
- fiberglass
- Hull / keel
- fin keel
- Rig
- sloop
- Propulsion
- inboard
- Fuel
- 13 gal
- Water
- 36 gal
- Stern thruster
- not fitted
- Steering
- pedestal cable
Tank capacities — where the figures come from
-
Fuel 13 gal
“Fuel tank capacity: 12.5 gal.” — owner's manual, sbo.sailboatowners.com · “12 gal” — spec database (1975-1984), hunter.sailboatowners.com · “12 U.S. gallons (45 L; 10.0 imp gal)” — search excerpt, en.wikipedia.org · “Fuel tank - Gallons 12.5 / Liters 47.3” — brochure (1983), sbo.sailboatowners.com · “Fuel tank: 12.5 gallons / 47.3 liters (Hunter 27 column)” — brochure (1982), sbo.sailboatowners.comThe Hunter owner's manual spec page, the 1983 Hunter 27 brochure and Hunter's 1982 standard-equipment table all give 12.5 gal (47.3 litres). The 12-gal figures seen elsewhere are rounded spec-database entries.
-
Water 36 gal
“Water tank capacity: 35 gal.” — owner's manual, sbo.sailboatowners.com · “36 gal” — spec database (1975-1984), hunter.sailboatowners.com · “35 U.S. gallons (130 L; 29 imp gal)” — search excerpt, en.wikipedia.org · “Fresh water tank - Gallons 36.0 / Liters 136.3” — brochure (1983), sbo.sailboatowners.com · “Fresh water tank: 36 gallons / 136.3 liters (Hunter 27 column)” — brochure (1982), sbo.sailboatowners.comTwo builder documents, the 1982 standard-equipment table and the 1983 brochure, give 36 gal (136.3 litres), matching our earlier figure. The owner's manual spec page says 35 gal, but it is an earlier edition showing the older, shorter rig (337 sq ft sail, 33 ft 5 in mast), so the gap may be rounding or an early-boat difference.
-
Holding unknown
Neither the owner's manual nor the 1983 brochure gives a holding figure (the brochure lists an enclosed head only).
-
Water heater unknown
“Pressure water system (standard on the 27; 'Hot and cold pressure water system' marked only for the 30 and larger)” — brochure (1982), sbo.sailboatowners.com · “Pressure water system (Hunter 27 standard equipment list, no water heater listed)” — brochure (1983), sbo.sailboatowners.comHunter's 1982 standard-equipment table gives the 27 cold-only pressure water (the 30, 33, 36, 37 and 54 get hot and cold), and the 1983 brochure lists no heater. The generic Hunter owner's manual says a heater, where fitted, runs on 120 V AC. No option list or capacity was found; one owner of a 1980 boat reported years without hot water.
Tanks are often replaced or added on older boats — check the tank labels or a survey for yours.
Thrusters and steering — where this comes from
-
Bow thruster unknown
The builder's standard-equipment lists (a 1982 fleet table and the 1983 Hunter 27 brochure) name no thruster; no option list or other source was found.
-
Stern thruster not fitted
Our earlier figure of none had no source. The builder's standard-equipment lists don't mention a thruster, but no option list was found to confirm that none was offered.
-
Steering pedestal cable
“COCKPIT ... Pedestal steering, w/engine controls and lighted compass” — brochure (1983), sbo.sailboatowners.com · “General/Safety Group ... Emergency tiller” — brochure (1983), sbo.sailboatowners.com · “Hunter models that have pedestal steering should undergo periodic visual inspection of cables and pulleys. These cables” — owner's manual, sbo.sailboatowners.com · “auxiliary cruisers, sizes range from 27 to 37-feet, all with reliable diesel power, pedestal steering” — brochure (1982), sbo.sailboatowners.com · “the Yacht Specialties pedestal/steering system used on the 1980 Hunter 27” — search excerpt (1980), forums.sailboatowners.com · “have any of you hunter cherubini owners removed your y/s pedestal for a edson pedestal?” — search excerpt, forums.sailboatowners.comHunter's owner's manual describes cables and pulleys to a rudder quadrant; 1982-83 builder lists make pedestal wheel steering with an emergency tiller standard (the 1982 table shows a laminated tiller only on the 19, 22 and 25). Yacht Specialties comes from two owners' forum reports. Whether the earliest 1975-77 boats had tillers isn't confirmed.
Thrusters and steering are often replaced — check the units on your boat before ordering parts.
Sources disagree on which years had the Renault — left blank rather than guessed.
Early Cherubini-era Hunter 27 (not the later 27 of 2005+). Standard fin draws 4.25 ft; shoal/wing keel draws 3.25 ft with 3,200 lb ballast (sailboatdata, from 1979 brochure). Renault 8 hp diesel until about 1979, then Yanmar (hp not stated). Start year, tankage and beam are settled in disputed[]; 1983 brochure dimensions match sailboatdata. Split backstay; deck-stepped mast on a wood compression column. Owners report strong weather helm and consider it underpowered. Hull is solid glass per PS. Hulls built: sailboatdata gives 2000, GOB says over 2,000.
Engines fitted
-
Renault diesel (8 hp) — 8 hp, diesel, single
standard
Sailboatdata and Practical Sailor list the 8 hp single-cylinder Renault; an owner of a 1980 boat has one. Owners found it troublesome (loose shift linkage, parts).
-
Yanmar single-cylinder diesel (8 hp) — 8 hp, diesel, single
standard
Practical Sailor says Hunter moved from the Renault to Yanmar; sailboatdata says later boats had Yanmars. Owners of 1976/77 and 1982 boats report an 8 hp Yanmar; a 1982 listing shows 10 hp.
- Yanmar — diesel standard
-
Beta Marine 12 hp — 12 hp, diesel, single
common repower
An owner in Practical Sailor's review repowered with a 12 hp Beta.Sources: practical-sailor.com
Boats of the same model can differ — check which engines yours actually has before ordering parts.
Generator
No generator mentioned in the brochure, the 1982 standard-equipment table or the owner's manual.
Manuals and brochures online
- Document HunterOwners.com downloads for the Hunter 27 (1975-84): brochure, owner's manual copies, drawings (member-uploaded PDFs) (1975-1984) — hunter.sailboatowners.com
- Owner's manual Hunter Boat Owners Manual - Hunter 27 (spec page, systems, wiring schematic) — sbo.sailboatowners.com
- Brochure Hunter 27 sales brochure (specifications and Cruise Pac standard equipment) (1983) — sbo.sailboatowners.com
- Brochure 1982 Hunter sales brochure '27 30 33 36 37 - The Affordable Fantasy' (standard-equipment table with tankage) (1982) — sbo.sailboatowners.com
Hosted by the builder or an owners' association; they own the copyright.
Known problems for this model
-
Keel-to-hull joint stress hull
The narrow lead fin puts a lot of leverage on the hull; owners have reported oilcanning, weeping keel bolts and keel misalignment. Inspect the keel joint and bolts closely.practical-sailor.com
-
U-bolt chainplates without backing plates rigging
Shrouds anchor to stainless U-bolts through the aluminum toerail with no backing plates. PS recommends adding backing plates and checking the nuts regularly.practical-sailor.com
-
Renault shift linkage loosens engine
On Renault-powered boats the shift linkage attachment at the transmission was reported to vibrate loose, a real hazard when docking.practical-sailor.com
-
Shaft alignment and strut bolts running gear
Leaking strut bolts and shaft wear from poor alignment were reported; alignment is often not rechecked after launching.practical-sailor.com
-
Gate valves instead of seacocks plumbing
Through-hulls were fitted with gate valves rather than proper seacocks; replacement with seacocks is advisable.practical-sailor.com
1 more
-
Aluminum tank in cockpit locker, no fill ground fuel
The 12.5-gallon aluminum tank sits in the starboard cockpit locker where wet gear can corrode it, and the fill had no grounding jumper per ABYC.practical-sailor.com
Own a Hunter 27? Add her to your boats, then share a photo — names, numbers and faces are blurred before it appears.
Other Hunter models
- Hunter 30 1973–1983
- Hunter 33 1977–?
- Hunter 336 1995–?
- Hunter 34 1983–1987
- Hunter 356 2000–?
Researched from public sources. Spotted an error? The sources are listed above — tell us what they got wrong.