reasons for buying a Passport 40

[Frank Grek]

Hey Passport 40 Owners,

I'm narrowing my list of boats I'm interested in buying. I was
wondering what things you love about your Passport 40 and what other
things you don't love so much.

I am also considering the Island Packet 38 and if you want to tell me
why you think the Passport 40 is a better blue water cruising boat for
the Pacific, I'd love to hear it.

Thanks for your time,
Frank

[John Baudendistel]

Frank,
I'm sure you will get many responses.  We looked at the IP also.  We bought a P42 which is a true cutter rig and also has a canoue stern.  We have abundant storage space compared to a P40 as the water and fuel tankage is below the cabin sole.  The passports have a cut away performance keel vs a full keel as in the IP.  This diff will show up in performance.  Both will track well.  The P have lg barn door skeg hung rudders.  Some of the significant diff will be the quality of the build.  P use solid teak in the full interior.  The craftmanship is some of the best joinery you will ever see.  I'm assuming were talking about the original Passports built in the 1980's.  Mine is a 1985 and still giong strong.  Certainly you have educated yourself on the faults of the Passport boats as well as the IP.  Many P have been around the world and are now going arould again.  Value holds well.  Consider a P42 which is in about the same range as the 40.  If you want more info on a p42 Id be glad to talk to you.  John Baudendistel. 

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[robert c young]

You might want to retain Bob Perry for $300 or whatever he charges for his
boat buying consults. Yes, perhaps he would be biased toward his own design
but you can be the judge of that.

If someone gave me the choice of vessels, with the same level of maintenance
and care, there is no doubt in my mind that the passport has better
construction and character than the IP. Figure out a way to spend a week on
each and you will see for yourself.

I respectfully submit that, if you compared a passport to a valiant or
pacific seacraft, then I would say tough choices but an IP is not in the
same league.

Would you prefer a minivan or a Range Rover/Mercedes SUV for a safari?
Passport is in the latter league.

Regards

Bob

Hey Passport 40 Owners,

--

[rhp...@verizon.net]

Looks like you're getting plenty of feedback on the Passport vs IP question.

 

Aside from sailing performance and accommodations, the Passport should also impress you when it comes to maintenance tasks.  I suggest you make a list of common maintenance tasks (like changing a packing gland) and some not so routine tasks (replacing water system) and compare the tasks between a Passport and an IP.

 

I have thanked R. Perry many times over the years for designing boats with maintenance in mind.  Whether you're working with a wire run, plumbing, electronics or mechanical, I've yet to encounter a boat as friendly as the Passport to work on.  Not that maintenance or repairs are always easy, but compared to other production boats, the Passport wins hands down.

 

Bob Peahl

Anthem P40/70

Oct 7, 2011 04:32:49 PM, fran...@gmail.com wrote:

[Bill Schmidt]

Of course, there are the "warts":

  1) The trim ballast that corrodes and swells, lifting the cabin floor boards

  2) The knees for the main shrouds that pull loose from the hull and lift the deck

  3) The support cage for the upper rudder bearing...aka "the tuna tower" that corrodes and collapses

  4) the crack across the transom where the backstay tries to lift off the cockpit combing

  5) the Nanni diesel, a 1952 design Mercedes marinized by the Italians using Spanish parts, now out of business with no availability for replacement parts   

  6) the refrigeration box with insulation now turned to powder

              Lest we all forget in our collective euphoria!

Billy Manana

[robert c young]

Warts and all, let’s take a vote. Who would trade in their passport for an IP or any other same vintage vessel and why?

 

Alternatively, who wants to travel long distances on anything but a passport and why?

 

Frank, I think by now you have figured out that: (i)  the passport crowd probably could have their pick of most vessels and elected variations of the P40; and (ii) the passports are simply a nicer vessel to live or sail by….

 

Regards

 

Bob

--

[John Baudendistel]

More food for thought.  The P42's do not have issues 1 to 5, but does have 6.  6 can be solved with spray in foam. 
John B

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[louis raphael]

The Passport 43 does not have any of these issues, but does not have enough insulation in the reefer lid.
Louis Raphael

[Larry Rovin]

It seems to me that most of these are issues with respect to earlier boats.  The later 40s (Whisper is hull 134, an ‘87) had better quality control and no Nannis.

 

From: passpor...@googlegroups.com [mailto:passpor...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of louis raphael
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2011 7:49 AM
To: Passport Owners
Subject: Re: [Passport] reasons for buying a Passport 40

 

The Passport 43 does not have any of these issues, but does not have enough insulation in the reefer lid.

[P. Sherwood]

I don't have any significant experience with Island Packet, but a friend
who is a former IP owner described his own boat (a 31, IIRC) as "too
slow to get out of its own way."

Here are some points that have emerged in past discussions on this list:

P40 Cons:

Mild steel rudder cage and plate in the step at the foot of the mast.

Knees, some arguably of insufficient size and strength, some compromised
by long-term leaks through the chainplate openings.

Chain plates. The originals (and their bolts) were made of really crappy
steel, or at least mine were, and heated and bent into the hockey-stick
shape. Not good. Check them _very_ carefully for cracks and crevice
corrosion. Backstay chainplate is glassed into the transom.

Chainplate leaks.

Expanding ballast.

Hoses. The shipyard used exhaust hose for everything. Of course by now
the hoses probably should have been replaced with proper ones (e.g.,
sanitation hose for the head, etc) anyway.

Difficulty of installing holding tank Y valve.

Joinery creep (Michael M's phrase) and sticky floorboards. Annoying but
not the end of the world.

P40 Pros:

Sails well, is pretty agile and maneuverable for its displacement.

Excellent engine access; easy engine R&R

Fundamentally very solid hull and deck construction.

Pretty easy to singlehand (I have the basic sloop rig, no inner
forestay, no fancy stuff).

Comfy and spacious to live aboard and cruise in, even for a guy who
stands 6' 6". Lots of nice teak joinery down below.

Spacious galley.

Lots of storage space (for me, anyway), including lots of less obvious
out-of-the-way places and the huge space (the "garage" or "man cave")
under the cockpit.

Pleasing to behold.

Phil
s/v Cynosure ('87, #129)
Cartagena