Islander 30/A

Description

The Islander 30 Mk II, designed by naval architect Robert Finch and produced from 1970 to 1985 by Islander Yachts in Newport Beach, California (with over 500 hulls built before the company's bankruptcy), is a timeless fiberglass masthead sloop racer-cruiser celebrated for its spacious accommodations, balanced handling, and coastal voyaging prowess in a compact, affordable package that shares hull lines with the Bahama 30 variant; constructed with a solid fiberglass hull, plywood-cored deck and cabin trunk, inward-flanged hull/deck joint secured by through-bolted aluminum toerail, fully encapsulated lead keel, and foam-filled spade rudder on a stainless post, it measures 30.00 feet LOA with a 24.58-foot LWL, 10.00-foot beam, 5.00-foot draft, 8,600-pound displacement, and 3,500 pounds of ballast for solid stability. It deploys 446 square feet of sail area on aluminum spars in a single-spreader rig (I=38.5 ft, J=12.6 ft, P=32.5 ft, E=12.5 ft; optional tall rig adding ~5 ft²), powered by a compact auxiliary diesel such as the 13-hp Volvo MD7A or later Yanmar 3GM30F (27 hp) with 17-20 gallons of fuel and 25 gallons of water; the inviting interior sleeps five in a practical layout featuring a king-size V-berth forward with hanging lockers and under-berth storage (including holding tank), U-shaped galley to port with gimbaled stove/oven, sink, icebox, and ample cabinets, opposing 6.5-foot settees in the saloon convertible to berths with a drop-leaf table, double quarter berth aft to starboard doubling as storage, and a centerline head with marine toilet, vanity, sink, and shower sump, all finished in teak or mahogany joinery under 6.25 feet of headroom with dorades, ports, and hatches for ventilation. With a sail area-to-displacement ratio of 17.06 for lively performance, displacement/length ratio of 258.5 for efficient cruising, comfort ratio of 23.61 for offshore poise, capsize screening of 1.96 indicating low inversion risk, theoretical hull speed of 6.64 knots, and a PHRF handicap around 150-165, the Islander 30 Mk II endures as a forgiving, family-friendly classic