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Island Packet and Cape Dory 33- 40 range.

18K views 52 replies 17 participants last post by  RainDog 
#1 ·
Please tell me about them? I've kind of taken a shine to IPs. Not that a purchase of such a boat is even possible for me. thanks!
 
#2 ·
One of the Rock Hall charter companies has a bunch of IPs in our marina if you want to try one out. I think they rival Catalinas in speed but they're a lot heavier. I've only been at the helm of one, an IP35, and I hated having to straddle the worm gear (I'm told that's what it's called) at the helm. The owner loved the simplicity of not having any cables but to me it was just annoying. Not all of them are designed like this.

That's the extent of it for me.
 
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#3 ·
Cool Donna! I was viewing some IPs and CDs on you tube last night. Yeah they are heavy blue water boats. Which is a big conundrum for coastal wannabees like me I guess. But I think how cool it would be to just sail all the way from the south like the or Georgia Mobile AL, and to Maine and back I know it's the sailors ability & planning more then the boats on which dreams do float. :)
 
#14 ·
I found this on the website you mentioned:
The Island Packet 31 Sailboat : Bluewaterboats.org
One feature I like is the "bulletproof" steering (rack and pinion) that the older IPs have. True, you do have one leg on each side of the wheel shaft but I never had an issue with that. Its just a feature one gets used to. I also like to reach along at 7+ knots in a 25 knot seabreeze feeling secure and safe. (maybe I'm just a great sailor:rolleyes:)
I've sailed and chartered many sailboats and would be happy to own any of several well made ones.:)
 
#6 ·
Another interesting unique feature of IP's is that they use proprietary resin "Polycore" filler for deck core instead of balsa or other wood. Not sure if this is better or worse than anything else, but I like the idea of not worry about rotten core.

Here's a few more IP construction details from BW Sailing:

"Unlike many fiberglass boats, the Island Packet hull is made in one piece, including the keel. Cast lead sections are lowered into the matching cavities and laminated over using more triaxial fabric. The hull is roughly an inch and a half thick at the turn of the bilge, tapering to half an inch at the hull flange.

With the hull sitting outside the mold, a grid is dropped into place, serving the purpose of a hull liner and doubling in brass as floors. This liner/grid is a structural element, and is cored with what IP calls Polycore. If you think of it as microballoons contained within a polyester foam you won’t be too far off. It has the quality of being resistant to water intrusion and is blessed with a very high strength-to-weight ratio.

The floors are an engineered structural grid, referred to as an Internal Glass Unit. This IGU, part of the liner, contributes to the hull’s strength.

The deck is also made of triaxial fiberglass, changing to biaxial in places where a pronounced curvature would make the triaxial unsuitable. The flat parts, in addition to being made of triaxial, are also cored, with the same material as used in the hull liner.
The important thing is that the core is structurally identical to the fiberglass, so the fiberglass and the core stretch and contract due to stress at the same rate, minimizing delamination. Island Packet has been using this method of lamination since 1984, and in 1992 they began to provide a 10-year warranty against deck delamination. It seems to have been a safe bet: so far, there hasn’t been a single claim.

The keel is unashamedly full. In a world of bulb-fin keels, canting torpedoes of lead and keels with trim tabs, the IP full keel has the simplicity of a hockey puck. It’s there, it’s the full length of the boat, and it even has the rudder fastened to it. Island Packet’s explanation is that this is a FullFoil keel, i.e., its shape develops lift to windward, and that the advantages of a full keel, especially when shaped as a “full foil,” more than offset the drag caused by the wetted area."
 
#7 ·
I crewed on my friends CD30. Awesome boat IMO. We sailed mostly on Pamlico Sound and sometimes out to open ocean through Ocracoke Inlet. Not the fastest boat but felt very comfortable even in heavy weather and short, nasty chop on the Sound. IP boats look awesome to me as well. If I could afford one I would be seriously thinking about buying an IP27. I like it more than CD30 for coastal cruising (draws only 3.7 feet and has wider beam and more room than CD30).
 
#9 ·
Full keel so slower than a Bene/Bav/Jun esp in light winds.

Keel is slightly less efficient to windward than a fin despite the marketing hype.

But when you go aground the keel protects the rudder.

Benefits from a bow thruster if berthing in a tight marina.

Comfortable rocking chair of a boat. I like the 485 interior. But my 44 ft old girl eats it for breakfast esp in light winds or to windward.
 
#11 ·
Yup ski. no need to get excited :)

I was not asking i "is this blue water capable?"

"Island Packet 32, 35, 350, 37,38, 40, 420, 44, 45 Island Packet Yachts USA Roomy & comfortable with good tankage
& storage but some odd features. Continually improving. Good value, exc. company."

"Cape Dory all models * USA All models are well designed & built."
 
#12 ·
I guess they wre on the list I referenced, I thought I had not seen them. Then again, the group you listed, as they said, is new'ish, more boats will be added from what I can see. I had thought initially they were one and the same folks. I guess not.

Neither would be my first choice.........Then I'm not you, nor are you me.....My spouse on the other hand would probably prefer anything over 40-50' vs our barely 30' boat!

Marty
 
#13 ·
I'm just idly checking them out. I kinda like the IPs. Sure there are dozens of full keel boats out there. I just don't know what I'd do If my fantasy of summers in Maine and winters in the south is even remotely possible. But eh.. looking at boats is better the watching re-runs of low rated reality shows on TV lol
 
#15 ·
Silly me, Seduction. I didn't look deeper into the site. Interesting boat the 31! Oh and the CD 36 is the one that grabs my attention. Thanks!
 
#17 ·
Guests on the IP31 typically respond with the comment that the interior of the IP31 has as much room as a typical 34 or 35 footer. Due to the beaminess, of course. Boat shows are a wonderful way to see them all, and you know that there are "used boat shows" annually in the Chesapeake. Otherwise, ya gotta go look at all the brokers offerings.:)
 
#16 ·
CD was a good boat in it's day. But there is no comparison between the two boats, IMO. Other than a full keel, there really isn't much that's the same.

Check out this link for more detail from The World's Best Sailboats, Volume 2 by Ferenc Mate. Great book.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CDEQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ipy.com%2FDownloadFile.asp%3FsFile%3DDocuments%2FWorldsBestSailboats_1.pdf&ei=tkLTUZDRKfKv4APmk4CgDg&usg=AFQjCNHfY2AzbveyjgptNhjpa8QQlLjycQ&bvm=bv.48705608,d.dmg
 
#22 · (Edited)
I almost doubted myself for a second there, that was weird..

The IP 30 or whatever length it is has this interior


If they are not the same maker they are so close it is confusing. I think the deck shot in the first picture was taken at a screwy angle from above, you can see the portholes in one of the other photos and they look like they should for the IP boats.

This is another one an IP 27, interior for comparison


This one is $40,000.00 if you were interested
Used 1992 Island Packet Ip 27 (hull 242), Jacksonville, Fl - 32256 - BoatTrader.com
 
#23 ·
Thanks mark, I am of course just looking at them. the plan to sail and live aboard may not ever happen but stranger things have happened.
 
#27 ·
Denise, the debate here seems to be whether IP's are "true bluewater boats".

I'm a bay sailor with no aspirations to cross oceans; the IP's I've been on have been very nice boats, roomy and comfortable below and seemingly well made and solid.

The IP owners I've talked to all seem to be happy with their boats. I have noticed sailing near them on the bay that it takes a bit of wind to get them moving though. They're not light air boats, but I'd imagine that would mean a more comfortable motion.

BTW, how is your boat doing on her mooring? I was in Trenton today and was shocked at how high the Delaware was running with all this rain. There must be some interesting stuff washing down the river :eek:
 
#28 ·
Not a debate from my point of view. I just like what I see. But I love Caba Rico too. Y'all can debate about blue water till the cows come home :)

Jim, The river is looking like the ole Miss A Sipp! I'm checking in at the club in the mornig. so far no news is good news. :)
 
#30 ·
Not a debate from my point of view. I just like what I see. But I love Caba Rico too. Y'all can debate about blue water till the cows come home :)

Jim, The river is looking like the ole Miss A Sipp! I'm checking in at the club in the mornig. so far no news is good news. :)
Cabo Rico, now that's one nice boat. :D
 
#32 ·
Baileys in the fridge. It is Galliano and Grand Marnier tucked away in the cabinet. I like the cheap plastic wine glasses, but wait... I have equally cheap or cheaper plastic martini glasses as well. I cant figure out why I took that photo without prepping a little, you know.... fresh flowers, and a terry robe hanging nicely on the bulkhead.
 
#31 ·
I have chartered a few IPs over the years. (Well to be totally accurate, I was just along for the ride on someone else's charters.) A 45', a 35' and a Packet Cat. All were nicely equipped with very comfortable accommodations.

The two monohulls sailed well with enough wind. We handled some rough weather in both and were comfortable. I don't think I would like either with the light winds I experience here in the Chesapeake. And both were somewhat difficult to maneuver in tight quarters, and fairly difficult to control in reverse. I am sure that would be less of an issue if we had more than a week to get used to the boat.

I have very little positive to say about the Packet Cat. Since that is not the subject, and I don't mean to boat bash, I will leave it at that.
 
#33 ·
But I love Caba Rico too.
Denise - you should buy this one. It's in the slip behind us and no one has been on it in at least 4 years. It's just sitting there, slowly decaying. The price is unrealistically high and I bet they'd take almost anything. It's a really nice Cabo that just needs love and time (and someone to rip the teak deck off it - just me talkin').

Olversons Lodge Creek Marina, Inc. (Lottsburg, VA)
 
#34 ·
Sabreman, Shame that Cabo is sitting. That's one boat I would not think would be loved continuously! I'm not in a position to buy anything just now sadly. :(
 
#37 · (Edited)
Yea, and drip all over your head down below even when it is not raining. Unless it is a modern teak that was just glued down. It is not if old teak decks will leak, but when. You end up with a nice wet core and it leaks all the time.
Exactly. Those old teak decks look nice enough, but if screwed down (which they nearly always were in the 80's) are a disaster. Most boats with a deck of that vintage have been scrubbed or sanded down so much that most of the plugs are gone and there isn't enough material to reseat the screws and install new plugs. If not properly secured, the deck will squeak as you walk on it, which to me is disconcerting. There is a nice Baba 40 in our marina whose owner removed the teak deck, filled the holes, and painted the deck with non-skid. Very nice job, the boat is far better for it.

Just love it and oil it
Not exactly. A teak deck shouldn't have any finish on it. Gray weathering is safest. Any finish is prone to making the surface slippery.
 
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