Hunter 170 (Hunter 17)
Description
The Hunter 170 is a compact, unsinkable fiberglass daysailer designed by the Hunter Design Team in collaboration with JY Sailboats and built by Hunter Marine (now Marlow-Hunter) from 1999 to the mid-2000s, with over 500 hulls produced—making it a staple for beginners, families, and sailing schools seeking an affordable, trailerable entry into sailing. This 17-foot open-cockpit dinghy prioritizes safety and simplicity with high freeboard to prevent swamping, a contoured self-bailing cockpit, and a wide beam for stability, while its fractional sloop rig (loose-footed mainsail and roller-furling jib) offers forgiving performance in light to moderate winds (up to 15 knots). The counterweighted centerboard and kick-up rudder enable easy beaching, and the flat-bottomed hull planes downwind for fun speeds of 6-8 knots.
Construction Details
| Designer | Hunter Marine |
|---|---|
| Builder | Hunter Marine |
| Length | 17.000 ft |
| LOA | 17.080 ft |
| LWL | 12.080 ft |
| Beam | 7.000 ft |
| Displacement | 478 lb |
| Max Draft | 4.490 ft |
| Min Draft | 0.490 ft |
The standard boat dimensions
| i | 19 ft |
|---|---|
| j | 5.50 ft |
| p | 19.40 ft |
| e | 8.37 ft |
| p2 | - |
| e2 | - |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 ft | 5.50 ft | 19.40 ft | 8.37 ft | - | - | - | - |
Sails
| Sail Type | MAINSAIL |
|---|---|
| Luff | * 19.4 ft - (5913 mm) |
| Foot | * 8.37 ft - (2551 mm) |
| Leech | * 20.67 ft - (6300 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 88 ° |
| Diagonal | * 20.86 ft - (6358 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 4 in - (102 mm) |
| Area | * 83.98 ft² |
| Sail Type | MAINSAIL |
|---|---|
| Luff | * 19.42 ft - (5919 mm) |
| Foot | * 8.38 ft - (2554 mm) |
| Leech | * 20.69 ft - (6306 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 88 ° |
| Diagonal | * 20.88 ft - (6364 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 4 in - (102 mm) |
| Area | * 84.17 ft² |
| Sail Type | JIBSAIL |
|---|---|
| Luff | * 15.82 ft - (4822 mm) |
| Foot | * 7.17 ft - (2185 mm) |
| Leech | * 13.95 ft - (4252 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 114.91 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 6.32 ft - (1926 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 12.02 ° |
| Area | * 50 ft² |
| Sail Type | JIBSAIL |
|---|---|
| Luff | 18.5 ft - (5639 mm) |
| Foot | 6.42 ft - (1957 mm) |
| Leech | 17.25 ft - (5258 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 82.62 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 5.99 ft - (1826 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 3.65 ° |
| Area | * 55.37 ft² |
| Sail Type | ASYMMETRICAL |
|---|---|
| Luff | 19.5 ft - (5944 mm) |
| Foot | 10 ft - (3048 mm) |
| Leech | 17.5 ft - (5334 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 165 % |
| Area | * 146 ft² |
| Sail Type | ASYMMETRICAL |
|---|---|
| Luff | * 18.79 ft - (5727 mm) |
| Foot | * 9.07 ft - (2765 mm) |
| Leech | * 17.29 ft - (5270 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 165 % |
| Area | * 128 ft² |
| Sail Type | SPINNAKER |
|---|---|
| Stays | * 18.79 ft - (5727 mm) |
| MidGirth | * 9.9 ft - (3018 mm) |
| Foot | * 9.9 ft - (3018 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 180 % |
| Area | * 158 ft² |
Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.