Thanks for visiting the Islander Bahama 30 page. I’ve posted IB30 photos and specifications here, including a scan of the original spec sheet and diagrams produced by the Islander Yacht Company.

I sailed many nautical miles on an Islander Bahama 30 and I hope this information is helpful to other owners and enthusiasts.

On this page:

  • IB30 specifications
  • IB30 photos
  • IB30 scanned original diagrams and spec sheets
  • IB30 owner comments

IB30 specifications

  • Designer Finch
  • LOA 29.92 feet
  • LWL 24.58 feet
  • Beam 10 feet
  • Displacement 8,230 pounds
  • Draft 5 feet
  • Ballast 3,130 pounds
  • Sail area 450 sq feet
  • Hull speed 6.64 knots
  • PHRF 180
  • I (100% jib leech) 40 feet
  • J (100% jib foot) 12.8 feet
  • P (Main luff) 33.8 feet
  • E (Main foot) 11.5 feet
  • First year 1970
  • Last year 1985
  • Number made 463

    IB30 photos

    IB30 scanned original diagrams and spec sheets

    To buy scanned images of the original spec sheets — four pages including internal and external “floorplan” diagrams of the boat — please send a message here.

    IB30 owner comments

    Date: Mon, 13 Aug 2001 10:56:41 -0700
    To: [islander -list@sailnet.net]
    From: “Jo Scrowston”
    Subject: Re: [islander-list] Bahama 30

    I have a ’79 B30 also with a MD7A. Mine sails very well too, frequently upsets Catalina30 owners who desperately trim their sails in an effort to get their luxury liners to go faster.

    I sailed mine back from Marina Del Rey CA to Vancouver BC in May. We encountered some very big seas and winds, Folly handled it all beautifully, rising up to the seas with confidence. We fell off some large waves and the 2 members of the crew were curled up in their bunks crying with fear! The hull though is practically bomb-proof and never gave me any cause for concern. (The compression post was worryingly strained at times though) The MD7A never failed even though frequently running for 24 hours in VERY rough conditions. It was also very economical, running for 2 days on a single tank. (20 gallons).

    If the boat is in remotely decent condition….. buy it!

    JJ

    Date: Mon, 13 Aug 2001 11:14:42 -0800
    To: [islander -list@sailnet.net]
    From: Larry White
    Subject: Re: [islander-list] Bahama 30

    Jeremy,

    You might want to check out this site:

    http://www.gvmc.org/~travelyn/links.htm

    which has a good history of Islanders, plus some specs. I have an IB24, 1965, which I love (except I wouldn’t mind six more feet and some headroom). I would be concerned about the year–not sure which years the problem of blisters began it’s marked increase with plastic boats, but think that 1985 is a year to watch. The older boats from the ’60s and
    early ’70s had fewer problems with blisters.

    Best of luck,

    Larry White
    “Sierra Mist”
    Berkeley, CA

    Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 00:09:51 EDT
    To: islander-list@sailnet.net
    From: KREEDPIO
    Subject: Re: [islander-list] Bahama 30

    I bought an 81 B30 last year and haven’t regretted it a bit. We love the richness of the interior, and she really sails well. The MD7A is a workhorse, and we haven’t had any problem, other than when I changed fuel filters and tried to follow the book on bleeding the lines. They neglected to include one of the bleed points in the manual.

    My boat has been upgraded several times, including new water and holding tanks. The PO did a bottom job with Interlux barrier coat and we haven’t seen any sign of blisters in 2 winters.

    When varnished up the interior has an incredibly comfortable feeling. Storage is not the best, but we have added wire baskets to all the lockers, which has helped. There is a lot more we could do, especially in the lazerettes, etc. Since we keep the V-berth made up (we weekend on the boat almost all summer) the storage under the V-berth is wasted for us, but it could add a lot. We are replacing the stove/oven with a microwave since on southern L. Michigan there aren’t any anchorages, so we aren’t needing propane. Using a butane “hot plate” and stainless grill off the stern for those infrequent occasions where we woudn’t have 110V power.

    I would like to run the main halyard back to the cockpit, but am faced with cutting the headliner to install backing plates, which I am reluctant to do.

    We also added stern perch seats this year, which really increases the seating capacity of the cockpit, which was a disappointment when we first started sailing the boat.

    Sailing performance is great.

    I paid a little over $25K for mine last year, which included a dodger, bimini, and an inflatable with an outboard. I feel like I paid a fair price for a fresh-water boat in really good condition, and have not had any misgivings.

    I hope your experiences are as good as mine. Good Luck!

    Ken Reed
    S/V Serendipity

    Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 06:18:07 -0700 (PDT)
    To: islander-list@sailnet.net
    From: william campbell
    Subject: Re: [islander-list] Bahama 30

    Hello Jeremy,
    I bought a B30 in May that had been Dis-masted. The prior owner had acquired another mast that was not yet stepped. I had the boat hauled and the bottom cleaned and painted. It is a 1978 model with an Atomic 4. There were many blisters that required attention but no serious structural problems.

    I replaced all of the standing and running rigging and ran all of the lines to the cockpit for single handed sailing. The boat had been raced so hardware had already been installed through the headliner with backing plates. As a result I did not have the difficult decision on punching holes through the headliner.

    I looked at many boats, both at marinas and, on-line. I found www.yachtworld.com am excellent source for comparison shopping. Since I plan to do a lot single handed sailing I did not want a larger boat.

    It sails really well and even though I have a gas engine it starts and runs well. The boat is really fast and I would have a difficult time trading it for anything else.

    The one you are looking at sounds much better than mine; looks like you better buy it before someone else beats you to it!

    Sincerely,

    Bill Campbell

    Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 09:07:02 -0700
    To: islander -list@sailnet.net
    From: “ARONOW”
    Subject: RE: [islander-list] Bahama 30

    We bought our ’78 B30, Panama Pam, a year ago for $13,500 and sailed it up from Marina Del Rey to Channel Islands Harbor. She was gel stripped and epoxy’d. She had a brand new full batten main and furling 130. She had sailed most of her life in fresh water up in the delta so the engine was in good shape. Its an Atomic 4 and even though its big and heavy its bullet proof. I’ve installed an electric fuel pump and got rid of the gas smell.

    We removed the oven and put in a face frame with two large drawers. This improved storage greatly and I highly recommend the change. On top of the new drawers there’s a counter with a new Origo 2 burner cook top. It’s the best. I added a shelf to the large locker under the nav station for even more storage. We fitted shelves into one of the hanging closets and added large doors for easier access to the area under the vee. Additionally we added smaller doors to access the storage under the main cabin settees.

    This boat now has a lot of storage. It was a piece of cake to do and it looks great. She has a Garhauer solid vang, which is a bargain by marine equipment standards. They custom make it and ship within a few days. We’ve polished her out and waxed her to bring back some of her shine and we think she’s beautiful. But best of all she is one sweet sailing boat and she handles heavy weather quite nicely. I have a J/24 that we race so Panama Pam makes a nice change to relax on and sail over to the channel Islands for a few days of R & R. I have had a couple of other boats but the B30 is a keeper.

    Jay Aronow

    Posted by Captain Hugenot on May 25, 19101 at 13:18:22:

    In Reply to: 30′ Islander Bahama posted by John Hudson on May 17, 19101 [2001] at 13:38:15:

    John:

    The Islander Bahama 30 is a capable offshore vessel, I prefer the roominess of a Islander 36, but I have made many coastal and offshore passages in 30 ft hulls. The keel weight on the Bob Finch design is 3,130 which is 38 percent of the total displacement of 8,230. The rule of thumb for ballast in an offshore hull is 1/3 of the diaplacement. This means that she will remain stable in a seaway. She will be fun for bay or coastal voyages.

    fairwinds and following seas

    Captain Hugenot
    Naval Architect – Marine Surveyor – Delivery Skipper

    Posted by Richard on May 18, 19101 at 16:22:45:

    In Reply to: 30′ Islander Bahama posted by John Hudson on May 17, 19101 [2001] at 13:38:15:

    We have a 1979 Islander Bahama 30 that is currently for sale in San Diego. We have owned the boat for two years. She is a fun boat, easy to sail, and comfortable on the hook and at anchor. We really enjoyed sailing her. She has a bit of weather helm. She probably needs to be reefed about 18 knots, but since this happens so infrequently in San Diego we tend to ride it out to a little over 20 knots. We added a full batten main and roller furling 130 Genoa. That was a good sail combination for SD. The new full batten really made her get up and go even in light winds. The boat is real easy for a shorthanded couple. Our offshore experience was limited to near coastal. The previous owner of this boat was in the 1997 Baja Haha, a season in the Sea of Cortez, and a single-handed bash back to SD. He didn’t speak highly of the trip but I imagine the single-handed bash and having to sell the boat dampened his enthusiasm. At least he did it. He did mention that he was more comfortable with a working jib 90%. The boat handled the trip well. He fixed a few things on his return, and cleaned her up well to sell. We have a piece of black electrical tape marking the rudder center.

    Subject:
    Re: IB30
    Date: Tue, 28 Aug 2001 12:06:03 EDT
    From: JHudso
    To: Jeremy Randall

    Hi Jeremy. My Islander is a 1981. The company is no longer in business, but had a reputation of building a solid sailboat. I tell you from my personal experience so far that is a true statement. I am very happy with the quality of the boat I purchased. The previous owner was transferred to Korea, and was in a no-win situation, having to be there for years, but still paying slip fees, mortgage, etc, in CA. I bought the boat for literally $400 more than he owed on it. I can’t say that everyone will get such a smoking deal, but I’m happy. It’s set up for single-handling, with roller furler jib sail, and two mainsails – one for heavier air with two reefing points. There was pride of ownership, and it shows. No one can believe the boat is 21 years old it looks that good. It has a two cylinder Penta-Volvo diesel with only a little over 500 hours on it, and runs like a watch. It came with a VHF radio, full galley, head, fold up table, pressure water (hot & cold), Loran ! (which I threw away), new battery system w/charger – the batteries charge from shore power and the engine, and a complete set of covers for everything.

    So far I’ve bought a hand held VHF (for topside), a new binnacle cover, and I’m having a full dodger setup installed with sunshade and weather cloth. I’ve had a blast sailing the bay, and my friends are having a good time coming with me. I can’t say enough about this boat – it was an excellent price, a solid performer, sleeps six adults, – and I almost forget, I bought one of those small (3 cu ft) stand up refrigerator/freezers – it works great, and I’m going to get an inverter to run it while I’m sailing. GPS and radar are on the horizon. At full speed with the engine, it might make 6 kt, and sailing averages about 3 ~ 5 kts depending on wind. It really moves on a run with both sails out (jib on a wisker pole), and last week I estimate we were going about 6kts with the wind.

    The instruments that came with the boat were a depth gage and a knotmeter, but! I have to have the knotmeter repaired. You can tell this boat is my favorite subject right now, hope I didn’t bore you. John