All-New Hunter 49 is a Big Luxury Cruiser

by Mark P. Greenwald on 10 May 2006 There’s a new queen of the fleet at Hunter Marine -- the spectacular new Hunter 49!

'The new Hunter 49 will serve as our flagship,' said John Peterson, director of sales and marketing for Hunter Marine. 'We designed this new model to be a luxurious passage maker with a versatile floor plan for total extended offshore cruising, offering a complete range of live aboard accommodations and outstanding entertainment features.'

As part of its launch this month, the 49 will embark on a six week dealer and media introduction tour along the east coast, starting in Jacksonville, FL and ending in Newport, Rhode Island. Piloting the boat will be renowned sailor Steve Pettingill, Hunter’s director of offshore testing.

The all-new 49 will replace the Hunter 46, a mainstay in the Hunter product line since 1997, boasting more than 250 units in its illustrious production career. With an overall length of 49’11', plus 14’5' beam and 6’9' salon headroom, the 49 is a BIG boat with impressive interior volume. The challenge to designers in building such a large high-end cruiser was delivering all the performance and easy sailing for which Hunter is known.

'We added significant volume to the hull fore and aft, but maintained fine water entry points,' said Glenn Henderson, head of Hunter’s design team. 'It’s a really sharp hull underwater.'

Driving the 49’s new hull is a specially engineered sail plan that achieves maximum efficiency while maintaining the Hunter trademark of single-handed sail-ability, which is a great feature for a boat of this size. Components include Hunter’s famous mainsheet traveler arch, backstayless B & R rig, a battened full roach main sail, and two headsail options: single self-tacking jib or self-tacking staysail with overlapping jib. A dual-ended mainsheet allows adjustments from both the cockpit and companionway, and all sheets and halyards end at the cockpit. A sail locker just forward of the watertight bulkhead and aft of the anchor locker is convenient for storing extra sails and spinnakers.

A finely tuned foiled rudder helps guide the sleek 49, assisted by a shaft driven Lewmar® Mamba™ gearbox-and-shaft steering linkage system which doesn’t require the maintenance of a cable system. Dual helm stations with leather covered steering wheels are standard and provide better vision under sail and while docking. The expansive cockpit is ergonomically designed for comfort and maneuverability, and Flexiteek®, a highly durable material with the look of teak but none of the maintenance concerns, is used on the seating and cockpit sole. Cavernous stowage is available under the seats and in two transom compartments. The cockpit finishes off with a polished Corian®-finish cockpit table with dual leaves, stainless grab rails and a place to mount instruments that can be viewed from both helm stations.

A 12,600-pound antimonious lead keel was custom-designed to give the Hunter 49, a low center of gravity plus a stiff and stable ride and is available in either a shoal or deep configuration. The forward hull section on the bow is Kevlar®-reinforced for extra strength.

Below deck, accommodations include a spacious forward master stateroom with island berth topped by a comfortable queen-sized inner-spring mattress with two large storage drawers beneath. The mattresses throughout the boat can also be upgraded to memory foam in the Hunter Mariner Package. A built-in padded sitting area and vanity with mirror and lift-up storage drawer, plus two very large cedar-lined hanging lockers, provide comfort and additional storage. A private split head has a shower stall on one side with head and vanity sink opposite. Ash slats on the hull panels with teak cabinetry throughout impart a feeling of retro-nautical style, and further make the master suite truly luxurious -- a very special retreat for the captain and mate. For the customer who wants additional cabin space for guests the forward cabin can be built to split to create two cabins with the four cabin version.

The voluminous salon has 6’9' headroom and continues the ash slats and teak cabinetry designer look. Everwear® gloss 'teak and holly' flooring is a favorite feature for its rich look and low-maintenance care. A 23' flat panel TV w/ DVD/CD combo unit with Bose® 3-2-1 Surround Sound delivers high-quality entertainment. The revolutionary sound of the Bose Lifestyle 28 is also available as an upgrade to the Bose 3-2-1 system. The U-shaped seating area with storage below converts to a double berth, with a large solid teak dining table that also has a removable leaf. A full-sized port side settee adds to the comfortable designs found throughout. A customer also has a choice of cushion fabrics including leather and ultra-leather options.

In the fully equipped galley there’s a front-loading, 3.9 cubic-foot refrigerator and 1.4 cubic-foot freezer, with ice maker or wine chiller as available options as well as an additional refrigerator and freezer. Flush-mounted compact microwave and coffee pot unit, dish drying storage rack, three-burner range and oven, plus plenty of drawer and pantry storage complete the galley, offering all the convenience of home. The large Corian® countertops encase the twin deep stainless sinks which give aesthetic beauty to the galley and provide enough room to prepare gourmet meals for even the largest quantity of guests.

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3-3-3-3 All-New Hunter 49 is a Big Luxury Cruiser with Easy Sailing Features and Performance

With all the interior room from its large beam, the new 49 also includes a deluxe nav station in the salon, complete with adjustable Navigator’s Chair. It can accommodate either the new Raymarine® E-series multifunction displays for paperless navigation, or the carbon fiber-laminate look chart table lifts for plotting gear storage.

An adjustable chart light, 12 volt and 110 outlets, phone jack and bonus cabinet space make the nav-station a complete communications and navigation hub. The electronics displays can also be output to the salon’s 23' monitor which is a great way to involve the crew in tracking the voyage.

Two separate private aft cabins are complete quarters for guests and double as functional space for the 49’s main operation. The starboard cabin with twin berth offers pantry storage and can accommodate an optional hidden washer dryer. Ordering the office version option adds a clever built-in work bench and seating. The larger port side cabin has a wet-locker, along with queen-sized innerspring mattress, built-in night stand, under berth storage, two cedar-lined hanging lockers and a private entry head. Again, the mattresses can be upgraded to memory foam.

The guest head features a full vanity with Corian® countertops, mirrored storage cabinet and towel storage beneath; shower stall with bi-fold doors, teak seat and sole slats; standard head with macerator and 52-gallon holding tank. As an upgrade, Hunter’s 'Mariner Package' includes Quiet Flush heads both forward and aft.

A 100hp Yanmar® turbo-diesel engine turns a three-blade prop and with an upgraded 100amp alternator is the engine of choice in Hunter’s Mariner Package. Fuel capacity is 150 gallons, but even more range can be added by converting the starboard water tank to a fuel tank, adding an extra 67 gallons. An HRO™ Seafari 170 model water maker is available to compensate with its 7 gallons per hour output.

Hunter Marine is part of the Luhrs Marine Group, and is an employee ownership company. With facilities in Alachua, FL, East Lyme, CT and Portland, England, Hunter Marine distributes sailboats from 9 to 49 feet in over 46 countries throughout the world. For more information, please visit www.huntermarine.com.

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4-4-4-4 All-New Hunter 49 is a Big Luxury Cruiser with Easy Sailing Features and Performance


High resolution photos of the new Hunter 49 are available at www.huntermarine.com/ftp.


Hunter 49 Specifications