32 ft 1986 Island Gypsy Sedan

[reefdrifter]

Hello Island Gypsy people,
We are looking at a 32 ft. 1986 Island Gypsy Sedan to buy as our first trawler.* We have had several boats over the years but never a trawler.*

What if any, are the areas of concern for this type of boat should I be looking for?* It has teak decks and they seem very sound with only about 2 or 3 bungs missing.* It appears as though the fuel tanks have been changed to aluminum.* There is no fuel*or holding tank odor which I have noticed in several trawlers.* The engine has 3500 hours but I think that the entire boat looks like it has been well taken care of so I don't think the hours are too much of a concern.* I have read that up to 10 thousand hours is doable.* The bottom was repainted back in October and no blisters were noted.*

Any information would be appreciated.* If any of you have 32 ft boats, do you feel it is roomy enough for a week or two if cruising?* We will probably cruise for the most part in the SW Florida area with some trips to Key West.*

Thanks so much for your input.

 

[Peter B]

Reefdrifter, I don't own one, but have* similar layout in my CHG 34 sedan (Europa).* I know the build quality of the Halvorsens are excellent, and would own one like a shot.* The 32' is a particularly well-known and loved version, and the sedan has the attraction of feeling more open, with that indoor-outdoor appeal of the cockpit versus the aft cabin type.

 

[dwhatty]

After 22 years with a 1939 40' woodie, we sold her and bought our IG32 Europa a year ago Oct. After one season we can say that we really like her although 8' less interior length has us a little short on storage. Wife used to take along full service for 14 +/- and all the pots, pans, food etc to entertain a ravenous horde for a month, and all the bedding etc to cruise with 4-7 people.

But the kids and their friends have flown the nest, other friends now have their own boats and we are down to just the two of us and our Lab. So we reduced/simplified the "stuff" we used to carry and, with the help of the fairly spacious lazarette and plastic storage bins, we make do in fairly good style.


My only minor complaints:

There is no extra stateroom or similar space to toss one's clothes and shoes at night and hang jackets etc, so I rigged a clothes bar in the separate shower room to hang jackets etc and handle the shucked off clothes at night. The boat you are looking at may have the shower in the head and a separate hanging locker. The two little hanging lockers on our boat aren't good for much.

The galley counter is a bit cramped compared to what we were used to, but the Admiral doesn't complain and my bowl still gets filled with good food.

Wish we had twin engines for redundancy/get home as well as maneuverability. Old boat did. At 8kts the IG32 with a single burns about the same gph as the old one's twins did total but we now have the ability, if we want to pay for the fuel, to hit a whopping 12.4kts while the old one maxed at 9.

Longest we were out cruising last (our first with the IG32) season was 10 days and we could have gone another 10 easily stopping only for ice and maybe water.

Old boat was a no flybridge sedan with no "walkaround" decks so it was either one was inside or in the cockpit. Going forward was a bit precarious underway. Love the extended Europa flybridge, walkaround decks, swim platform and transom door on the IG32. Lots of exterior space.

The IG32 is well set up for our coming geriatric years. Now, if only the dog could make it to the bridge.

-- Edited by dwhatty on Sunday 31st of January 2010 11:50:11 AM

-- Edited by dwhatty on Sunday 31st of January 2010 11:52:42 AM

 

[Codger2]

Since I own one (2005 no flybridge) and know where all the "warts" are, I would heed dwhatty's remarks. These are great little boats that are well built and are nice coastal cruisers. I love my boat but if I were to do it over and could afford it, I would buy something in the 38-42 foot range. The Europa design is also on my wish list as I have been aboard two different designs, both Europas, and love the walk around capability. 32' is on the small side for any trip over a few days. (IMHO of course.)

Good luck!

Walt


-- Edited by SeaHorse II on Sunday 31st of January 2010 10:43:37 AM

-- Edited by SeaHorse II on Sunday 31st of January 2010 10:45:13 AM

 

[dwhatty]

Reefdrifter:

Is this the boat you're looking at?
<a href="http://tinyurl.com/ycmr5ew">
http://tinyurl.com/ycmr5ew</a>

Looks like an interesting boat. Full size fridge and an icemaker! Wish we had an icemaker although I don't know where we'd put it. Galley countertop is more spacious than ours and it looks like there is a fairly good size hanging locker down below to port.

Now if the current owner(s) would just stow all that messy clutter in the salon.....* Surprised the broker would take that galley picture with all that showing.

Don't, of course, forget to make a survey part of any offer.

 

[reefdrifter]

Yes that is the one we have in mind. I do like the aft cockpit as appose to the aft cabin. No transom door could be a bit of a problem for SCUBA diving but I can work around that. It doe have a nice hanging locker forward but the shower is part of the head space. The full fridge is a pluss and is very clean. Don't get that clutter thing.......Guess it is like getting your kids to clean their room!!!LOL..........We have been debating as to the size but for our first trawler we think it will work. We don't intent to live aboard for long but maybe a week at a time or so. The side decks are a nice size for getting to the bow and good rail system.

What do you guys think of the Leman with 3500 hours? Is that getting up there or is ther plenty of life left if taken care of? How often do you change the impeller and is that a difficult task? Since the tanks are aluminum I think they will be ok. The engine roon is very clean. With one engine it is fairly easy to wiggle around down there.

 

[Forkliftt]

3500 hours on a Lehman 135. I have 4000 hours on mine and the folks who know say it is just now breaking in. No oil consumption, oil sampling shows great.

 

[Forkliftt]

BTW, great looking ship!

 

[dwhatty]

Forkliftt wrote:

3500 hours on a Lehman 135. I have 4000 hours on mine and the folks who know say it is just now breaking in. No oil consumption, oil sampling shows great.

Obviously, it depends upon how well the engine has been maintained as well as oil sampling and a look over/diagnostic by a knowledgeable mechanic. Our last boat had an estimated 3,500-4,000 hrs on 1970's era Chrysler Nissan 6 cyl diesels and they are still going strong.

As to Reefdrifter's* impeller question, I don't know how hard it is to change it on a Lehman. You might try the Power Systems section of this board or join boatdiesel.com (well worth a membership there whichever engine you end up with). I change our impellers every spring and carry two spares. Once in awhile I did skip a year. On our old boat I only had one impeller in 22 years fail to work and that was at spring launch. No big deal at that stage as still on the yard floats.



*


-- Edited by dwhatty on Sunday 31st of January 2010 08:31:53 PM

-- Edited by dwhatty on Sunday 31st of January 2010 08:39:03 PM

 

[Codger2]

I use to change my impeller every year until I went to TrawlerFest in San Diego last year. I attended Bob Smith's seminar and he said that for the typical recreational boater (100 hrs/yr) changing the impellers every two or three years is fine. I'm starting my 3rd year now.

I can't comment on your engine as I know absolutely nothing about Lehmans.

 

[thugger]

Reefdrifter, are you dealing with Annie Gray at Gray and Gray?* I bought my boat through her...she really knows trawlers and was a huge help in buying our boat.* Turned out to be a nightmare (long story), but she really went out of her way to make the deal work and keep everyone happy.* Tell her I said "hi!".

Ted Hugger
Sequin, GB32-126

 

[dwhatty]

Thugger:

I posted that link to the IG32 for sale as I had searched for it through the Gray & Gray web site. I don't believe that it is her listing although I may be wrong. Her site, as with most broker's sites (and as with real estate broker's sites), are linked with a central listing facility (like yachtworld.com for boats or something like realtor.com for real estate) and the name of the broker whose site through which you searched is linked automatically to the particular listing you pull up.

We bought our first "big" boat through Annie (then Annie Steadman) 22 years ago, sold her (twice, long story) through Annie last summer and bought our latest through her a year ago October. My wife grew up in York, ME, and knew Annie back then from there. Annie and her husband Bob keep their boat at our local boat yard. What inter weaved lives we lead.

What's your story?

 

[reefdrifter]

The Gray and Gray broker is in Maine.* I believe this IG is brokered with Edwards Yachts of Florida.* I am in SW Florida which is where this boat is.* Nice little boat for sure......Working on it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bob

 

[reefdrifter]

Just an update to this thread......we ended up purchasing a 1983 Marine Trader 34 foot trawler and it soon should be up to our personal specifications as to interior and mechanicals. We are very excited about it because it was exactly what we wanted.

 

[dorgra]

reefdrifter, I'm new to this forum. I am looking to buy my first boat and plan on liveaboard in the Ventura Ca area. You mention that the boat you were looking at did not have a transom door which would be troublesome for scuba. But you could work around that. One of the main recreational uses for the boat we end up with will be for scuba. What were you planning on a work around? I've been discarding consideration of some boats because of the lack of a transom door.

 

[boogiediver]

I guess it depends on the design of the transom but suspect cutting a new door into a transom (and using the cut out pieces to make the door) can in some cases be a relatively straight forward affair for the average boatyard. Having unhindered access to the swim platform is a great feature which we love. At the risk of defacing a classic boat design I would cut that door into almost any transom where practically possible!