Overview
Bob Berg introduced the Panda 38 in 1982 as part of a family of Scandinavian-styled cruisers he developed from the mid-1970s into the mid-1980s, a lineup that also includes Bob Perry’s well-regarded Baba 30, 35, and 40 designs. Berg conceived her as a smaller, lighter alternative to the Panda 40 (originally the Baba 40). Like the rest of the Berg lineup, Ta Shing built her, a yard widely regarded as Taiwan’s best, and the interiors show it.
She’s earned a reputation for a sea-kindly motion, easy handling, and genuinely brisk performance. Only 29 were built, making her rare on the used market, and she shares the loyal following that every Berg/Ta Shing design seems to attract.
History
The Panda 38’s story starts with the Baba 30 in 1976, Berg’s original pairing of Bob Perry’s design talent with a small yard he’d just discovered, Shing Sheng. The Baba 30 proved to the American market what a Taiwan-built boat could be: a salty, full-keeled cruiser with a genuinely livable interior packed into 30 feet, quality construction that helped push the yard, soon renamed Ta Shing and operating out of purpose-built facilities, toward becoming Taiwan’s top boatbuilder.
From there the line grew to the 35, then the fast, luxurious full-keeled Baba 40, whose lines trace back to the legendary Valiant 40; a naming dispute later renamed her the Panda 40. Around 1981, Berg went looking for something smaller and lighter than that flagship. He commissioned Gary Grant for the job, a designer who’d cut his teeth in Perry’s own office and who was taking on his first independent commission with the Panda 38. Grant reworked the formula around more waterline length, less wetted surface, and reduced displacement.
Ta Shing built her starting in late 1982. Most production records were shredded in 1992, but Berg’s own recollection puts the total at 29 hulls, most of which went to Pacific Northwest buyers. The first hull off the line, fittingly, was Berg’s own boat White Bear, a literal translation of “Panda Bear.” Built under Berg and the Quicksilver Corporation, at least one Panda 38, Restless, made a real offshore passage: Mary Brandon Fox and her husband Mark sailed her from Seattle to Patagonia, an account Fox later wrote up for Cruising World, describing life aboard as feeling like living “in a fine piece of furniture.”
Construction
The hull is hand-laid fiberglass, and the decks are similarly built with end-grain balsa coring, cut into two-inch squares with resin barriers between them to contain any leak-driven rot rather than let it spread. Ballast is 6,600 pounds of iron, cast in one piece and sealed under glass.
Bulkheads use vertical teak staving, and the overhead between the laminated deck beams is finished in removable sheet laminate or spruce staving. Interior surfaces in the living areas are lined with polyurethane foam to cut down on condensation.
Under Sail
She’s a genuinely good performer under sail, sea-kindly and quick to weather even in light air; owners report 150-mile days on just ten knots of wind close reaching, though downwind performance needs more breeze to really move in any seaway. Reported speeds put her close to the larger Baba 40.
She carries a slight weather helm, and her rudder response is notably good, a real asset when maneuvering in tight quarters.
Buyers Notes
She’s held up as a strong, solid design over the years; beyond the original V-drive transmission’s tendency to leak, few chronic weaknesses have surfaced. Given how rare she is on the used market, prospective buyers should lean on the owner community for model-specific knowledge and compare condition and refit history closely between any boats they’re considering.
Links, References and Further Reading
» Baba, Panda, Tashiba sailboat Yahoo Group, information and owner discussions.» Sea Magazine, Mar 1984 (p52-p55), Panda 38 Sea Trial by Bob Vollmer» Cruising World Magazine, Mar 2004, Panda 38: Passagemaking Princess by Mary Brandon Fox
