1987 IG sedan

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Drummer79

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I've commented in previous threads I've commented or posted in, about already having seen the Island Gypsy review of a 40 footer, but found one here, https://www.boats.com/power-boats/1...mJBQebjpyaKR5NuPf_nBZDthGwX1yvuqya03atQHRGVsQ
Seems to be incredibly well maintained. Survey and test drive is a must, but any reason right off hand to say "nope" and just forget about it? As my broker told me, "with any production boat, the one made right before yours, or right after yours, might be vastly better or worse, due to new guy starting work that week, somebody hungover and not caring, etc.." and that makes sense to me. If it passes a good thorough survey, any reason to walk away anyway?
 
Great to see you are going to become a boat owner and in particular that you are looking at an IG.

Your brokers advice was a bit "odd" - perhaps a bit of an urban myth that people applied to cars. IGs have a good reputation as being solid, well built boats - full stop, irrespective of what day it was built. Factory quality control takes care of the newly started tradesmen.

A boat is what it is now, some 40 years after it left the factory. A survey and your personal observation are the only ways to get a handle on the condition of it NOW. Believe the surveyor and your own eyes well before the broker.

There endeth the lesson:)
 
Island Gypsy boats in my opinion having owned two of them, are of very good quality. They really did not make many of them compared to say Grandbanks or Marine trader.Our current boat a 1996 36' Classic (aft cabin) is hull number 135 of all the IG 36s built since maybe the late 70's. The hardware seems robust and nicely installed. Thru hulls, plumbing and engine system are excellent heavy duty stuff. Standard Groco strainers, sea cocks, nice electrical panels and wiring. The over all boat is very nice---Is it perfect? Nope Have I had to fix and repair deck and window leaks? You bet! Fuel system is good tanks are clean, dry, and no rust. Not to jinx it but all good at this time. The only issue with semi planing trawlers is if you really perfer to cruise at displacement speeds than my boat and the one you are looking at are over-powered! So if you want a true displacement boat than now is the time for you to find one.
You can't change it later, also any 40' boat is going to take time and money to get in shape and keep it nice. Good Luck The IG 40 looks like a comfortable vessel.
 
Photos not great, but looks unmolested, shows signs of usage, could use a good clean up/detail, suggesting the owners interest may have waned, there could be "deferred maintenance", and it`s not been "tarted up for sale". Over 35 years, you`d expect the build defects to out themselves.
The outriggers say it`s been fished, the engines may have been run hard getting to/from the fishing grounds asap. What are the hours run?
The only basis not to inspect is, if you accept Pascoe without qualification. You are persisting, so probably not.
The usual weak points will be osmosis, decks,windows and tanks. Ask for maintenance records, especially mechanical. The price does seem modest, but I know our prices, not US ones, the ask here, well presented, would be circa AUD $150K plus.
 
Last edited:
Brisyboy said:
Great to see you are going to become a boat owner and in particular that you are looking at an IG.

Your brokers advice was a bit "odd" - perhaps a bit of an urban myth that people applied to cars. IGs have a good reputation as being solid, well built boats - full stop, irrespective of what day it was built. Factory quality control takes care of the newly started tradesmen.

A boat is what it is now, some 40 years after it left the factory. A survey and your personal observation are the only ways to get a handle on the condition of it NOW. Believe the surveyor and your own eyes well before the broker.

There endeth the lesson:)
Click to expand...


The broker told me that after I told him all about Pascoe's slamming of IG 40s in particular. He was making the point that Pascoe checked out ONE boat, not all of them.
 
BruceK said:
Photos not great, but looks unmolested, shows signs of usage, could use a good clean up/detail, suggesting the owners interest may have waned, there could be "deferred maintenance", and it`s not been "tarted up for sale". Over 35 years, you`d expect the build defects to out themselves.
The outriggers say it`s been fished, the engines may have been run hard getting to/from the fishing grounds asap. What are the hours run?
The only basis not to inspect is, if you accept Pascoe without qualification. You are persisting, so probably not.
The usual weak points will be osmosis, decks,windows and tanks. Ask for maintenance records, especially mechanical. The price does seem modest, but I know our prices, not US ones, the ask here, well presented, would be circa AUD $150K plus.
Click to expand...
OK so I'm getting closer to the time I'll shop hard and pull the trigger on something. So last night I emailed about this boat asking for better pics. It's basically the same pics, but they do show better in gmail than they did through the ad. he also sent a survey. I did not have a survey done on the sailboat I bought and worked on for years. Should have but didn't
I'm sure everyone here is far more used to reading a survey than I am, so if you wouldn't mind, please read this survey, tell me what you think of what it tells you, because it sounds a little scary to a newb like me lol. EDIT: Reading through it all again, not on my phone but on home computer, nothing seems like oh my god it'll sink on the way home to NC, but does seem like there might be a ton of work to do on blisters and stuff for me to feel comfy messing with it. As I said, I'm a newb, the report seems scary, but maybe not as bad as i think?
 

Attachments

  • Island Gypsy survey- 2021.pdf
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Sorry but you need a new Broker . Maybe someone that knows boats
 
Ig 40

I purchased a 1989 IG40 earlier this year. It is very similar to the one in the ad. Mine is structurally and mechanically sound but does need a lot of cosmetic work. I am very happy with the boat and am impressed with the quality of the hardware installed by the builder. I am located near Smith Point on the Chesapeake Bay. (near the mouth of the Potomac River) If you purchase the boat let me know when you come down the bay.
 
Arc said:
Sorry but you need a new Broker . Maybe someone that knows boats
Click to expand...
Yeah the survey and better pics were from the broker for the seller. I'm not impressed with the broker I was handed off to when I called the local marina. I'm working outside of that guy at this point.
 
rgwaltney said:
I purchased a 1989 IG40 earlier this year. It is very similar to the one in the ad. Mine is structurally and mechanically sound but does need a lot of cosmetic work. I am very happy with the boat and am impressed with the quality of the hardware installed by the builder. I am located near Smith Point on the Chesapeake Bay. (near the mouth of the Potomac River) If you purchase the boat let me know when you come down the bay.
Click to expand...
Thank you. Did you read the survey? now that you have one of it's sister ships, anything glaring in the survey that stands out to you?
 
rgwaltney said:
I purchased a 1989 IG40 earlier this year. It is very similar to the one in the ad. Mine is structurally and mechanically sound but does need a lot of cosmetic work. I am very happy with the boat and am impressed with the quality of the hardware installed by the builder. I am located near Smith Point on the Chesapeake Bay. (near the mouth of the Potomac River) If you purchase the boat let me know when you come down the bay.
Click to expand...
I bought the sailboat I had from Deltaville, VA, so not too incredibly far from where you are. worked on it on weekends for about two years to get it to the point I felt relatively safe to make my journey with it. I ran it like Apollo 13 though, bare basics as far as electrical, because it had been hacked in the wiring so bad. heard it run 15 minutes, and launched it, made it 250 miles by water to home. Adventure of a lifetime. I studied the hell out of the ICW to make sure I knew the voyage home, so from Deltaville to Washington I know what to expect. Can I stay in inland waters from New Jersey to the Chesapeake? The ICW that I'm aware of, MM0 is near Hospital Point, VA. No experience with leaving the Bay going North.
 
Arc said:
Sorry but you need a new Broker . Maybe someone that knows boats
Click to expand...


I may be wrong, however the information supplied is via the seller's broker. He represents the present owner not the prospective purchaser. What the broker really thinks and what he tells the 'buyer' may be two completely different things.

Also, bear in mind the survey has been in all likelihood commissioned by the broker. I have known a few boat brokers over the years and on the waterfront & it is known that there are 'sellers' surveyors and buyers surveyors. This may be a bit of a generalisation, and no offence to any members here who are surveyors, however it is something I have experienced personally, at some financial cost.

FWIW, the major problem I see as a possible deal breaker is the potential rust issues of the fuel tanks. Replacing IG tanks is an expensive undertaking.

On a slightly different note, referring back to Pascoe's review on handling, my experience on putting Sarawana (IG36) up on the plane, was an unsettling one. She seemed to lose all sense of stability and helming her took complete concentration. It was not a pleasant sensation. Keep her at 8 knots and she is an excellent seaboat. Perhaps IG's were never really designed to plane, despite some engine configurations that gave them the power to do so.
 
Andy G said:
[/B]

I may be wrong, however the information supplied is via the seller's broker. He represents the present owner not the prospective purchaser. What the broker really thinks and what he tells the 'buyer' may be two completely different things.

Also, bear in mind the survey has been in all likelihood commissioned by the broker. I have known a few boat brokers over the years and on the waterfront & it is known that there are 'sellers' surveyors and buyers surveyors. This may be a bit of a generalisation, and no offence to any members here who are surveyors, however it is something I have experienced personally, at some financial cost.

FWIW, the major problem I see as a possible deal breaker is the potential rust issues of the fuel tanks. Replacing IG tanks is an expensive undertaking.

On a slightly different note, referring back to Pascoe's review on handling, my experience on putting Sarawana (IG36) up on the plane, was an unsettling one. She seemed to lose all sense of stability and helming her took complete concentration. It was not a pleasant sensation. Keep her at 8 knots and she is an excellent seaboat. Perhaps IG's were never really designed to plane, despite some engine configurations that gave them the power to do so.
Click to expand...
You're right, the survey came from seller's broker. The fuel tank issues were the glaring ones to me, been repainted but rust showing anyway. As far as the stability on plane, As you said, I have no intent of planing, hence the trawler. I'm thinking more and more to go with the Albin Trawler I'm also looking at, or a whole other boat in general.
 
Having read the September 21 survey. Just the odd blister in a 1987 IG is good. Sounds like the boat needs painting, that`s not cheap,needs costing. The tanks are an issue, rust on tops may be cleaned up and painted with POR15, but ? any other non visible affectation. That said, they are not leaking, mine were not at 39 years either but the tops were painted. The engine comments suggest deferred maintenance, esp the raw water introducers. The engine hours are modest for age, genset sounds ok.
It`s an Insurance Survey done for the Owner, but quite detailed. The wear and tear on the interior is reasonable, but you have areas you can spend money on. ? water entry. Didn`t seem to find much with the decks, but rust on top of fuel tanks raises an eye.
It`s a lot of boat for the $. I wouldn`t panic about the tanks, but tomorrow, who knows. Biggest ticket item apart from tanks is probably painting. You`d want an engine survey. IGs are not the horrible boat Pascoe saw, but any 1987 boat will absorb some $.
You`ll presumably run it at hull speed, they`re really not designed for speed, but judging from the fishing outriggers someone might have.
A purchase survey will likely be more detailed, but the existing gives safety issues a good look.
 
Drummer79 said:
I bought the sailboat I had from Deltaville, VA, so not too incredibly far from where you are. worked on it on weekends for about two years to get it to the point I felt relatively safe to make my journey with it. I ran it like Apollo 13 though, bare basics as far as electrical, because it had been hacked in the wiring so bad. heard it run 15 minutes, and launched it, made it 250 miles by water to home. Adventure of a lifetime. I studied the hell out of the ICW to make sure I knew the voyage home, so from Deltaville to Washington I know what to expect. Can I stay in inland waters from New Jersey to the Chesapeake? The ICW that I'm aware of, MM0 is near Hospital Point, VA. No experience with leaving the Bay going North.
Click to expand...

Sorry for the delay getting back to you. I didn't see anything in the survey that would cause me a lot of heartache. It is an older boat and things do age and need replacement. On My boat I'm still discovering the best practice for fuel management between the tanks and house electrical loads when on the hook. Still no major concerns. As far as the trip from NJ I've never made that trip but believe most would run on the outside, just pick your day. From Barnegat Inlet to Cape May is around 65 Nautical miles. From Cape May up the Delaware to the C&D Canal then down the Chesapeake bay. So after the first day you're in good shape.

I spent a week in Washington a couple of years ago repairing tornado damage and liked what the town has done with the waterfront. Good Luck and look me up if you are up my way.
Robert
 
My concerns with the boat according to the survey would be the fuel tanks, fuel system, exhaust system, fire extinguisher system and the cosmetics. But the cosmetics can, are, be very expensive to fix. The painting of the boat could easily cost $25K+. The enclosure can easily cost $7K+. Unless you do them yourself but then they are extremely labor intensive. We spent an entire winter prepping our last boat for painting. Then sprayed it in the spring. We spent in the neighborhood of $4K for materials for the paint job. We made full enclosures for that boat for the flybridge and sundeck and the cost was in the neighborhood of $2K. But we have a commercial sewing machine. The interior wood damage will alos be very expensive or labor intensive to fix. We painted a previous boat’s interior due to the water damage to the teak paneling. We used Interlux Brightside polyurethane paint and a HVLP sprayer and it came out great. If you proceed with this boat do so with your eyes wide open. Good luck. Let us know how it works out.
 
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