Overview
The Yankee 30 is Sparkman & Stephens design 1999, built by Yankee Yachts of Santa Ana, California, from 1971 until the company closed in 1975; 132 were built. The resin shortage of the 1970s oil crisis ended production.
Design and Construction
The hull is solid hand-laid fiberglass with a cored deck, joined on a bonded flange under a through-bolted teak toerail. The lead fin keel is bolted to a stub keel with silicon bronze bolts, and the rudder hangs on a skeg. Double chainplates attach to knees molded into the thickened topsides. Later marks added a taller mast and about 1,000 lb more ballast. Sailing Magazine’s reviewer describes the 9/32 inch shrouds as beefy for a 30-foot boat. Two Barient sheet winches, a halyard winch on the mast and a cabintop traveler come with the boat. The cabin has a teak-and-holly sole and Honduran mahogany bulkheads.
Under Sail
Owners describe her as sprightly with a light helm, yet shouldering through chop like a heavier boat; the high ballast ratio makes her stiff and dry to weather.
Buyers Notes
Check the cored deck for moisture and soft spots and test the bronze through-hull valves. Engines vary; the Albin was underpowered, and parts for older engines are scarce. There is no bridgedeck at the companionway. Engines installed over the years include the gasoline Universal Atomic Four, the Westerbeke Pilot 10 and 20B2 diesels, the Albin two-cylinder diesel and a Bukh two-cylinder. The Pilot 10 sits under the convertible dinette table, with hinges at the back for service access, an arrangement owners have criticized. Some boats were built with wastewater holding tanks.
Sailing Magazine reports the Yankee 30 sleeps five: two in the V-berth and three in the cabin on the settee and convertible dinette. The V-berths are 6 ft 8 in long and share space with an anchor locker. The boat carries 28 gallons of fresh water and 17 gallons of fuel. Interior layouts changed on all three marks, and usually two versions were offered at the same time.
