# Lippincott 30 - Info wanted - PLEASE



## mimi robin (May 26, 2003)

My husband and I are looking at a 83 Lippincott 30 to buy. We''ve been trying to get any info we can about Lippincotts. We know they were biult in Riverton, NJ and are no longer in production. We''ve read about 2 opiniions (that''s about all we can find!) Can anyone give me something that helps us make a decision?


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## stm (Jan 25, 2001)

I know there is a Lippencott Marine on Kent Island Maryland. I think the town would be Stevensville and I know they are somehow related to the firm that build these boats.


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## facabrut (Jun 8, 2003)

Hello,
I saw your request & thought that I would respond.
I purchased an 81 Lippincott 30 three years ago at Willis Marine, Huntington, N.Y. It is a fully equipped beauty, and I am very pleased with it. 
There was one advertised on ebay, moored near Port Chester, N.Y. @ $14,000, last fall. I almost bought for resale, until I looked it over. It
was a derelict, with a bad knock in the engine.
There was a brand new Lippincott 30 (never in the water) at a boat yard in Riverton, N.J. I inquired about it, and the asking price was $30,000 last fall. there are also two Lippincotts docked there in beautiful condition (Maybe the owners would sell if the price is right).

Skip Lippincott is no longer in the boat building business. He currently owns a Canvas Shop in Riverton, N.J. He helped me with technical information when I bought my boat, and later sold me a bimini for it.
His phone # is (856) 764-8282.
Also, I saw one for sale in "Soundings" last month @ around $28,000 in the Chesapeake Bay area.
A lot of them were sold from dealers around 
the Chesapeake, also from Coney''s Marine, Huntington, N.Y.
I am interested in forming a Lippincott 30 Owner''s Association. Please let me know if you buy one, and if you are interested in helping locate other owners.
Sincerely,
John


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## facabrut (Jun 8, 2003)

Hello,
I saw your request & thought that I would respond.
I purchased an 81 Lippincott 30, three years ago at Willis Marine, Huntington, N.Y. It is a fully equipped beauty, and I am very pleased with it. 
There was one advertised on ebay, moored near Port Chester, N.Y. @ $14,000, last fall. I almost bought for resale, until I looked it over. It
was a derelict, with a bad knock in the engine.
There was a brand new Lippincott 30 (never in the water) at a boat yard in Riverton, N.J. I inquired about it, and the asking price was $30,000 last fall. there are also two Lippincotts docked there in beautiful condition (Maybe the owners would sell if the price is right).

Skip Lippincott is no longer in the boat building business. He currently owns a Canvas Shop in Riverton, N.J. He helped me with technical information when I bought my boat, and later sold me a bimini for it.
His phone # is (856) 764-8282.
Also, I saw one for sale in "Soundings" last month @ around $28,000 in the Chesapeake Bay area.
A lot of them were sold from dealers around 
the Chesapeake, also from Coney''s Marine, Huntington, N.Y.
I am interested in forming a Lippincott 30 Owner''s Association. Please let me know if you buy one, and if you are interested in helping locate other owners.
Sincerely,
John


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## lharmon (Jul 26, 2005)

I have a Lippincott 30 a 1981 I believe. I would like to find out about the never lauched hull in Rivertoon NJ. It is a GREAT boat. I would consider purchasing it just to get dry decks, etc. Ours sails stiff due to ballast vs displacement and fast. She points very high. 4000# balllast for a 8600# displacement. The D/L is 246 and the SA/D is 17.3 so it has good power. 

We wish they had made a lot of 36's. I understand there were only two. As usual a slightly bigger boat would be nice. Dickerson's are a similar or the same hull.

I seem to remember an article by Tucker Thompson in some mag about a cruise in an L-30. Goggle it for another view.

The Lippincotts produced a great boat consistent to the technology of the time. The fit/finish on ours is still beautiful. On older ones you need to be realistic on the upgrades that may be necessary.

First is the wiring and the electrical systems in general. Small Yanmars, 2 batteries, limited circuits. Consider boosting your storage with say two batteries on your house bank and keep a third for starting. At 20-30 years, you may want to rewire the boat as well. Using more efficient nav and interior lighting will greatly extend your usage as well. More storage capacity should be augmented with a bigger alternator and appropriate charge controllers. 

The holding tank is joke for anything other than a daysail. Some of the space under the V-berth can be used for a larger holding tank. Water is in Fiberglass tanks under the settes. It's enough for about a week for our family, but we drink from bottled water we carry aboard. 

The sail controls may not have been modified. You should invest some time/money and effort into a rig survey for both the standing rigging and also to learn about optios for sail control/reefing. Original winches were non self-tailing. That alone is a great but expensive upgrade.

The engine on our boat is more than adequate. Our's is a 15 hp 2GM (2 cilinder) Yanmar. The fuel tank is small - 10 - 12 gallons. I recommend a larger tank. Plenty of room to add one. The cockpit lazarettes are huge and allow access to the fuel tank. Our prop is a two blade and I have not wanted to make a change because the performance and handling are more than adequate to great.

This boat would not be a good dockominium. But it makes a terrific low cost fast stable fun cruising boat. For us it is a great starter boat for our young family to get used to cruising on.

LH


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## 4arch (Jul 7, 2009)

I recently had an offer accepted on a Lippincott 30. She'll be surveyed a week from Monday and I'm just keeping my fingers crossed now that all will go well!

I looked at a number of other comparable boats but found the build quality, sailing characteristics, and interior appointments of the L30 superior to other production boats of the same vintage. The interior feels like those of larger, higher end boats and the designers really seem to have thought of little places for everything.

The main weakness I've noted so far is that the stove is set into the counter rather than being gimbaled and that cockpit seat behind the wheel is only about 8" wide. I don't think the stove is going to be a major issue and I'll really have to wait and see how I feel most comfortable steering before I decide to do any mods to the cockpit. 

My plan (well, our plan) is to cruise the Chesapeake extensively and perhaps do some of the overnight bay races. I may even eventually move into weekday evening PHRF racing, but that remains to be seen. I have a feeling the L30 will be an excellent cruising boat and an adequate racing boat. 

She only comes with a main and a 150 genoa so I'd eventually want to get a working jib or perhaps a 135 that could be roller reefed down to 110ish. I would have liked to have purchased a boat with a stronger sail inventory, but in the end this boat was so well maintained and otherwise well equipped that it was worth the trade off. 

All in all I'm very excited! If the survey works out I'll share my experiences and with any luck might be able to reconnect with some of the other L30 owners out there.


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## 4arch (Jul 7, 2009)

Well the boat mentioned in the post above officially became ours as of Sunday!

The survey turned out very good. The biggest issues found were that there was an extreme amount of bottom paint buildup on the bottom and the keel will need refairing. I think for next season I'll just throw on some cheap bottom paint and let it slide one more year until we can save up to have the bottom soda blasted. After reading up on various ways of removing bottom paint, I think I'd rather pay to have her bottom blasted than trying to sand or use chemical strippers myself. Maybe if I find someone at the yard who can fair out the rough spots in the paint without going down to gelcoat I'll take them up on it, but I'll wait and see.

Other than that, the chainplates and stanchions are going to need some rebedding but that's to be expected on a boat of that age. There aren't any major leaks so I figure it's a project I can chip away at somewhat slowly. 

Long range I'd like to improve the sail inventory both with a 110 working jib and a spinnaker. I haven't decided whether I'd want asymmetrical or poled, but I'll wait and see how she performs and how much racing I find I actually want to do.


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## acdc (Feb 4, 2010)

Can anyone tell me were you fill the water tank on this boat?
Also any manuals,for plumbing and electric?
Thankyou Andrea


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## acdc (Feb 4, 2010)

*Lippincott 30*

Hi, were do I look for info on this boat?
Thanks Andrea


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## acdc (Feb 4, 2010)

*lippincott 30*

Hi,anybody own a lippincott 30 in Rhode Island?
thanks Andrea


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## acdc (Feb 4, 2010)

*lippincott 30*

If you have any manuals on this boat please let me know.


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## 4arch (Jul 7, 2009)

I don't have any manuals but I'd be happy to answer questions. The water tanks are filled through ports under the port and starboard settees.


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## elkscout (Feb 12, 2010)

*Bluewater capable?*

Would anyone go so far as to say this boat could stand up to the rigors of ocean passages? Just concentrating on the construction of the boat, assuming the crew was capable and it was properly equipped and and in a desireable condition.


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## 4arch (Jul 7, 2009)

Although the build quality is above average as compared to many other 30' racer/cruisers of that era (e.g. Catalina 30), there are several things that in my opinion disqualify the factory configuration from being bluewater capable. My main concerns would be the spade rudder, plastic portlights and molded fiberglass hatches, cockpit is a bit oversized and cockpit drains don't have seacocks, lazarette lids aren't sealed and don't have latches, the saloon settees are acceptable as sea berths but not great and would need lee cloths added, stove is non-gimbaled alcohol, the open saloon design not ideal for passagemaking and sacrifices storage on board, and there is no charting table, not even a stand-up. All that said, bluewater sailing has been done in lesser boats with upgrades and a lot of the issues with the L30 could be overcome if one wished.


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## jmovson (Jun 1, 2010)

*Need advice*

I am looking at a used 1985 boat. Hull, engine and rigging in excellent condition. Sails unknown but by report good. Interior looks 25 years old with cabin roof lining badly deteriorated and needs replacing. Floor stained and cushion covers etc old. Asking price is $14000 I am looking for first time crusing boat for narragansett bay and the local island (Block, Marthas Vineyard and Nantucket) and have some questions.
1. Do you recommend this boat for the purposes I have described
2. Is replacing the roof lining a huge job.
3. What are the negative and positive sailing characteristics of this boat

Many thanks for your replies and advice. 
JM


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## 4arch (Jul 7, 2009)

JM,

To answer your questions:

1. I'd really need to know more about the type of cruising you expect to do. Weekending, long term, full time? What kind of wind conditions do you expect to be sailing in? Are you going solo or will you have others aboard?
2. Replacing headliner is a dirty job but not hugely time consuming or expensive. The hardest part will be getting the old one without creating a huge mess. There are numerous threads on this site about headliner replacement. A bad headliner wouldn't necessarily deter me from buying an otherwise sound boat - though it might make me more cautious if it was severely water damaged/stained.
3. She seems happiest in winds of about 8-18 knots. Pros - Points quite well for her design. Doesn't have a lot of excessive weather helm. Doesn't have excessive heel - I've seen other boats bury their rails on those 8-18 days where I've been hard pressed to do so. Base PHRF is 180 on the Chesapeake but I believe she's faster and the 180's generous. She'd probably keep up with boats based in the 170's. Cons - Not a great light air performer, but she will keep moving. Foretriangle is a bit large compared to mainsail size so even with a 100 jib and reefed main you still have a lot of headsail out. 

Beyond that, I'd be a little concerned about the staining on the cabin sole you mentioned on the boat you're looking at. Usually a stained cabin sole is a sure sign of excessive water having entered the cabin.


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## jmovson (Jun 1, 2010)

*Would like to talk to you about your Lippincott 30*

Andrea,
I live in Rhode Island and am interested in buying one of these boats. Any chance of meeting you to take a look at yours and perhaps even go for a sail.
I currently own a Pearson 26 but there is one near by going for a reasonable price. My email is [email protected]. Thanks JM


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## Heartamann (Jun 6, 2006)

*love my Lippincott 30*

I have owned a 1984 Lippincott 30 for about 3 years now and its really a great boat...assuming the boat passes an inspection by a reputable surveyor, $14k is a great price for this boat...they usually go for about $25k..my headliner needs work too, just need to get to it...make sure you check the internal chainplates bolted to the bulkhead above the settes...make sure they're not water damaged...engine in good shape?

good luck!


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## McKemey57 (Jul 16, 2010)

*Lippincott 30 wiring*



4arch said:


> I don't have any manuals but I'd be happy to answer questions. The water tanks are filled through ports under the port and starboard settees.


Any idea how the mast head running light wiring gets from breaker panel to mast step? Some of my running lights work, some do not, and for the life of me I cannot figure out how to trace the wiring pre mast. Thanks.


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## 4arch (Jul 7, 2009)

McKemey57 said:


> Any idea how the mast head running light wiring gets from breaker panel to mast step? Some of my running lights work, some do not, and for the life of me I cannot figure out how to trace the wiring pre mast. Thanks.


I haven't traced wiring going specifically to the mast step yet but I'll tell you what I know about the routing of 12V wiring. On my boat, a large number of wires come out of the breaker panel and head toward the starboard side behind fiberglass panels accessible from the port cockpit locker. From there they dive down into the engine compartment and run aft behind the firewall, traversing it above the battery tray. From there they go down into the compartments under the quarterberth and continue forward in a conduit on the inboard side of the starboard settee. I haven't traced them beyond there but I suspect if they go to the mast on that side they'd go up into the head storage locker and then between the wood bulkhead and the shower liner up to the mast step. There are also a limited number of wires traveling under the lip of the galley locker shelf and forward along the inboard side of the port settee. Don't know what was added aftermarket on mine but I hope this helps!


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## jmovson (Jun 1, 2010)

*Moisture in deck of 1985 Lippincott 30.*

During a survey of an otherwise solid boat, the surveyor found significant moisture in the deck from the chainplates back to the genoa tracks. Deck feels solid and not lifting, bubling, sponginess etc. Does not sound like the dry parts of the deck suggesting some delamination of fibreglass from wood etc.

My question to all of you is how significant is this from a structural and resale point of view?
Is this common in a a boat of this age?
Is it likely to progress to something worse?

Many thanks
JM


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## ammagic (Mar 19, 2006)

acdc said:


> Can anyone tell me were you fill the water tank on this boat?
> Also any manuals,for plumbing and electric?
> Thankyou Andrea


You fill the water tanks through a inspection plate located under each pilot berth. They each hold 15 gallons and are connected to a manifold accessable from the quarter berth. This is also where the pressure pump is located. Advise installing a screen filter prior to the pump as fiberglass tanks can shed debris. I purchased mine new in 1980 and would be glad to answer any questions. I have hull #15 and it is up for sail at Willis Marine in Huntington NY. Mike


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