Design and Construction
The Lippincott 30's hull is solidly constructed of hand-laid fiberglass laminates, and the deck and cabin structures are built with a balsa wood core between fiberglass laminates. Rather than adopting fiberglass liners for structural reinforcement, Lippincott used wood structural components, with full and partial plywood bulkheads bonded to the hull using fiberglass cloth and resin in accordance with good boat building practice. The deck and hull are joined on an inward hull flange with adhesive sealant, nuts, bolts, and washers. The quality of construction and finish is well above that of most moderately priced, production boats, and it is rare to find serious structural problems with these boats.
A notable detail is the builder's hardware bedding: considerable care was taken to ensure hardware was well-bedded, and serious deck problems are not typical. However, test sailors found that flat washers, rather than more substantial backing plates, are used for the attachment of deck hardware, a point worth noting for anyone planning to load the deck with modern gear.
Rig, Power, and Handling
Under sail, the Lippincott 30 presents moderate numbers that translate to forgiving behavior. The sail area/displacement ratio of 17.3 and displacement/length ratio of 246 indicate a boat that should be easily handled yet provide good performance in a variety of wind conditions. Ballast on both shoal and standard draft models is 4000 pounds, which is 47 percent of the total displacement, and combined with a 10-foot beam should make for a fairly stiff boat. Shoal and standard draft models were offered, with the standard draft still less than five feet.
Auxiliary power is provided by a 13-hp, two-cylinder Yanmar diesel with reasonably good access for service. While this may be a bit underpowered for severe conditions, it is sufficient for most likely situations. All owners the reviewer has spoken with report good performance and no bad habits, and the boat offers good sailing characteristics across the range of conditions its ratios suggest.
Accommodations
The cockpit seats four adults comfortably and features pedestal-mounted wheel steering as standard equipment. Storage is thoughtful for the size: a large locker sits below the port cockpit seat, and a small but deep locker at the aft end of the starboard cockpit seat provides handy, cockpit-accessible storage unusual on a 30-foot boat with a quarter berth.
Below, the arrangement is typically described as sleeping six — two in a V-berth, two in a pull-out starboard settee, one in a fixed port settee, and one in a starboard quarter berth aft. The V-berth provides good length but is very narrow at the forward end, and the settee berths in the main saloon are barely over six feet long. The main saloon and V-berth cabin are separated by an athwartships head, and a relatively large galley lies to port of the companionway. The interior is very nicely finished with an abundance of mahogany veneered plywood, a teak and holly cabin sole, and varnished mahogany trim, while hull sides of the V-berth and quarter berth are finished with a mahogany ceiling. The reviewer describes the boat as providing acceptable accommodations for four adults or a family of five.
Known Issues
Because all were built before it was common to use vinylester resin for exterior finishes, some elevated moisture below the waterline is common. The author has not encountered any cases of extreme osmotic blistering, which keeps the moisture issue in the realm of routine monitoring rather than structural alarm. The flat-washer backing for deck hardware remains the other documented quirk, relevant if deck loads are to be increased.
Equipment and Foredeck
Standard equipment speaks to a complete coastal cruiser: a welded stainless steel bow rail, double life lines supported by stainless steel stanchions, a welded stainless steel stern rail with a built-in swim ladder, two fiberglass composite deck hatches (one forward of the mast, one aft), and a small teak toe rail at the deck edge. The foredeck features a narrow and deep anchor locker that stores a Danforth-type anchor vertically, though the shape would not accommodate a plow type anchor — a constraint for those who prefer plow ground tackle.
The Verdict
The Lippincott 30 is a low-production cruiser from a racing-oriented yard, pairing above-average construction finish with a sensible, if numerically modest, sail plan and a genuinely thoughtful interior for its length. Its known issues are bounded and well understood, and its small fleet means careful survey matters more than market comparison.
Pros
- Hand-laid solid fiberglass hull with wood-reinforced bulkheads and rare serious structural problems
- Construction and finish above most moderately priced production boats of the era
- 4000-pound ballast at 47 percent displacement with 10-foot beam makes for a fairly stiff boat
- Thoughtful cockpit storage including an unusual starboard seat locker
- Nicely finished mahogany and teak/holly interior with separated head and relatively large galley
Cons
- Some elevated below-waterline moisture common due to pre-vinylester resin construction
- Deck hardware attached with flat washers rather than substantial backing plates
- 13-hp diesel may be underpowered for severe conditions
- Anchor locker accepts only a vertical Danforth-type anchor, not a plow
- Starboard settee not wide enough for two adults; V-berth narrow at forward end
