The man to talk to about all of this is Bob Perry. Still accessible. Still
willing to talk.

The Panda 38 (or 36 depending on who you talk to) was a Gary Mull 'redesign'
of the Baba 35, yes, built by TaShing. It's a bit of a sore spot with Bob as
well as being completely shunned by TaShing with the Taswell line.

My understanding after a conversation with Bob is that the naming was simply
marketing. Though, as Bill Mentioned, there were trim differences. Bob
mentioned, and I thought this odd, that the Baba line was considered more
'upscale' with more bells and whistles than the Tashiba.

The Tashiba 31 and 36 were 'cleaned up' above the waterline, but Bob also
mentioned that he reworked the keel on both models for 'better' performance.
I do believe both draw a little more than the Baba models. Bill mentioned
all the customizing TaShing did. It's interesting to note that there were
options available that I've not seen anyone mention such as shoal draft
(available in Tashiba 31 and 36) as well as a ketch option for the 40.

There is overlap in the years between Baba/Panda/Tashiba. In addition, for a
very short time, these boats were referred to as 'Flying Dutchman' early on.
I think it's nice they didn't stick with that. Seems someone else had that
model name taken.

Of course, everyone knows where 'Baba' came from - 'Bo'b 'Be'rg. The
Taiwanese shortened his name to Baba. If you want some fun, Google 'Baba'
and check out all the holy moly stuff relating to the word Baba. Kind of a
nice feeling...

Cheers,

Rick Beddoe
s/v Sonadora, 1978 Baba 30
http://sail2live.com


-----Original Message-----
From: owner-baba-l@ballreich.net [mailto:owner-baba-l@ballreich.net]On
Behalf Of Gary Walls & Bill Healy
Sent: Monday, November 07, 2005 11:50 AM
To: baba-l@ballreich.net
Subject: [Baba-L] A Tashipanba 40


Re: What is a Panda; What is a Baba; What is a Tashiba?:

My recollection is that the Baba 40 and Panda 40 were the same boat,
designed by Bob Perry, interior layout by Bob Berg, built by Ta
Shing, and with some variations in exterior trim and interior layout
by Bob Berg for his Panda line.

The Baba had five portholes on each side while the Panda had six. The
Panda had more exterior teak trim, including teak decking on the
cabintop as standard. These items were available as extras on the
Baba line. The interior of the Panda had the angled "keyhole" galley
and smaller, slightly angled dinette - as the galley bulkhead was
about 5 inches forward of its location on the Baba. The Baba had the
"U" shaped galley and a slightly larger - fore & aft - rectangular
dinette.

In 1985 Bob Perry was asked by Ta Shing to update the deck layout on
the same hull, which resulted in the new model, christened a Tashiba.
(Ta Shing + Baba = Tashiba?) Amadon Light was built in 1985 and was
the second Tashiba deck done. Initially, we were reluctant to go with
the unseen changed design as the original Baba looked perfect. Bob
Perry said at the time that the changes were not dramatic and would
not be very noticeable: three inches wider in the cabintop, one and a
half inches more headroom, slightly angled cockpit seats, and
softened cabin sides and front.

Amadon Light is a Tashipanba. It has the redesigned deck, the "U"
shaped galley, the larger, rectangular dinette, and six portholes on
each side. The latter required eliminating the top half of the
circular bulkhead in front of the galley and replacing it with a
large, laminated beam athwartship, so as to properly fit the line of
six portholes on each side. (Ta Shing was amazing in doing custom
work: 179 changes overall in building Amadon Light. Bob Perry did
the drawings and specifications for the changes, and all was then
translated into Cantonese for the shipwrights in the factory.)

I believe the Panda 38 was not built by Ta Shing, and there was never
a Baba 38. The design is completely different from the other Baba/
Panda/Tashiba boats. Was it a Perry design?

Did not the Baba 30 and 35 morph into the Tashiba 31 and 36, with an
updated deck layout?

It is easy to understand why the history of the Crusades is so
difficult to piece together, given the difficulty of recreating the
birth and life of Baba/Panda/Tashiba yachts in our lifetimes.
Maybe Bob Berg and Bob Perry can provide some input before they take
their secrets to the grave.

Bill Healy
Amadon Light
Tashipanba 40
Scarborough, Australia

P.S. It is commendable of Cindy to give up her day job and family to
take over the World Wide Baba Net. Very nice job.






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Baba Panda and Tashiba Owners Mailing List --
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Received on Mon Nov 07 11:04:23 2005