A compact family
cruiser, the Hunter Horizon 232 offers a comfortable interior with
very good sailing ability, and particularly easy handling, with
a fractional rig with self-tacking jib. The Horizon 232 packs an
amazing amount of space into a small and hence cheap to moor hull.
Both twin keel and fin keel versions were built - Hunters calling
the twin keel versions 'twin fin' rather than 'bilge keel' to emphasise
their performance. This twin fin version is the last but one of these to be built and is on a quality 4-wheel road trailer.
Beam
8' 6"
Cabins
Open plan saloon and separate heads
Draught
3' 1"
Berths
4 - 5
Displacement
2,745 lbs
Engine
Yamaha outboard
Ballast
1,435 lbs
BHP
8
Keel type
Twin iron bilge keels and transom-hung rudder.
The British company * Hunter Boats was set up in 1969 near Rochford, Essex, initially building keelboats and small cruisers. Sizes of yachts built increased, though the biggest British Hunter to date is the Mystery 35. In 2003 Hunter Boats was taken over by Select Yachts (builders of Cornish Crabbers). In 2008 Select Yachts went into administration, and Lauren Marine took over the Hunter name, and rights to some smaller Hunter models. In 2009 they set up Hunter Boats Ltd again, building a limited range of models for a few years. A re-formed Cornish Crabbers now builds the Mystery range under a new name of Mystery Yachts.
Designed by David Thomas,
the Hunter Horizon 232 was a very slightly modified form of the popular Hunter Horizon 23, the change in name being more of a marketing device than an alteration to design of the actual boat. The Horizon 23 and 232 were a development
of the Hunter Duette, itself a derivative of the well known
Sonata 'quarter tonner' one-design club racer from 1975.
With a ballast ratio of over 50% in twin canted aerofoil keels, and an
efficient and easily handled three-quarter rig, both fin and
twin keel versions sail well, without being overly demanding
on their crew. Over 200 Hunter 23s and 232s were built from 1989 to
1998, most being twin keeled. This 1996 version is understood to be the last but one boat built.
* British Hunter are nothing to do with the American-built Hunter range - and there is an American Hunter 23 model, which is a much lighter built design.
Yachtsnet photographs November 2021
The boat is on a RM branded 4-wheel trailer, which is about to be given four new wheels and tyres, new mudguards, and have the braking gear and wheel bearings serviced. The trailer has never been immersed in water, it being used solely to move the boat from home to boatyards, where she was craned in.
With a three-quarter fractional rig the headsail sheet loads are low, and the self-tacking jib, standard on these boats, makes her very easy to handle.
The outboard occupies a well on the port side of the cockpit: in the photo above it is tilted up to lift the prop leg from the water: the photo below shows the leg down.
Although this boat has a trailer, it is better to think of her as a trailerable cruiser than a "trailer-sailer". With quite deep twin keels she would be difficult to actually launch from the trailer, and she is heavy and stable enough to be happily left for a season on a a mooring.
The same factors that make her not a very good "trailer-sailer" make her a very good sailing boat: with the David Thomas hull design based on the one-design Sonata racer she has good performance and handling, and manages to pack a lot of space into a small overall length, which makes mooring costs economical.
The accommodation starts with a raised bunk platform
in the bows, which although almost 6' long is very narrow at the
bow end, and is probably best thought of as either a childrens berth
or stowage space.
Aft of this, in the midships part of the saloon, are two settee
berths, each 7 feet long, with the saloon table between, and a fold-down
chart table by the port berth.
Aft is the heads compartment and galley, and finally behind the
galley is a 6' 8" by 4' 6" (at the wider end) double quarterberth.
Headroom is 5' 8" maximum by the galley, with about 5' 6"
in the heads compartment and 5' 4" forward in the saloon.
British Hunter were right to call these keels "twin fins" to distinguish them from the often shallower and much less efficient "bilge keels" of many of their competitors. All the British Hunters sail well, and the 232 offers a really good family daysailer or weekender, or for a couple a boat more than capable of longer passages.
Inventory:
Engine details
Yamaha 8CMHS 8 hp two-stroke, serviced September 2021
Fuel tank capacity
5 gallons
Propeller
three bladed
Batteries
One battery
Battery charging/electrics
*
* Could be either by solar panel or connecting engine charging system. Neither fitted at present.
Sails
and deck equipment
Rig details
Sloop rig with self-tacking jib. Alloy spars with new S/S standing rigging May 2016
Mainsail
Battened mainsail with sailcover
Jib
Self-tacking jib
Genoa furling
Plastimo furler - new 2016
Primary winches
2 x Lewmar 5
Bower anchor
15 lb Plough type with 5 metres chain and 17 metres warp
Steering
Tiller
Autopilot
Raymarine ST1000+ tiller pilot
Steering compass
Suunto bulkhead compass
Warps & fenders
4 warps and 6 fenders
Miscellaneous
Sprayhood and mainsail cover new 2016/17, dodgers with name
Navigation Equipment and instruments
Log/speed
Autohelm Bidata
Depth sounder
Autohelm Bidata with Airmar transducer
VHF radio
Shipmate RS8000
Safety/emergency equipment
Lifebuoy
Horseshoe
Bilge pumps
Manual pump
Interior
Cabin layout
Open plan saloon and quarterberth, heads compartment with screen
Berths
4- 5
Water tank capacity
Not known
Cooker
Plastimo Coral two-burner and grill, gimbaled
Coolbox
Coolbox only
Heads
Raske & van der Meyde Marine WC
Miscellaneous
Trailer
RM Trailers 4-wheel braked trailer, new wheels, tyres, mudguards and braking system
These particulars
are believed to be correct but cannot be guaranteed and are subject
to confirmation by the purchaser subject to still being available.
For further information or to arrange a viewing,
please contact Yachtsnet on 01326-212234
or
The particulars detailed herein are intended to give a fair
description of the vessel but their accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
These particulars are not a part of any contract or offer, and
are supplied on the understanding that all negotiations shall
be conducted via Yachtsnet Ltd., who are acting as brokers for
the vendor. The vendor is not selling in the course of business
unless otherwise stated. The prospective purchaser is strongly
recommended to check the particulars, and where appropriate, at
his own expense, to employ qualified agents to carry out surveys,
structural and/or mechanical & electrical checks or tests