The Chester Yawl: rowing with classical elegance !

Have a look at the Chester Yawl specifications sheet

Specifications : length : 4,58 m, width : 1,07 m, weight : 45 kg. Watertight compartments forward and aft. Deck plate with watertight joint in the forward bulkhead.

The Chester Yawl is built of Okoume marine plywood (very light) in 6 mm for the planking, 9 mm for the bulkheads and frames, as well as the floorboards, forward decking and aft seat, and 12 mm for the transom, breasthook, quarter knees and skeg. The rubrail is mahogany. The bottom planks receive a glassfiber/epoxy layer inside and out.

Floorboards cover all the "open" part of the hull, 2.80m, in 3 removable panels. The "platform" makes the Chester Yawl a highly versatile boat: you row from a mobile seat which allows you to adjust you rowing position with regard to the fixed oarlocks. A footbrace is locked in the floorboards holes, transmitting the rowing effort to the boat. With the three rowing stations (available as an option by addition of two pairs of risers and oarlock sockets, standard is one), you can choose any of four rowing combinations, very widely varying the uses of the Chester Yawl.

Adding a sliding seat rig turns the Chester Yawl into an open sea exercise rower, capitalizing on the boat's incredible sea keeping qualities. Indeed, the Yawl is not only a very elegant boat, its important volume forward combines with its thin lines to warrant a powerful and safe ride through the chop. The hull's considerable stability allows you to maintain speed when coditions get tricky. In case of real trouble, the Yawl is equipped with a very large flotation compartment forward, balaced with a smaller one under the aft seat.

The Chester Yawl equipped for double rowing: two mobile seats, two sets of oarlocks, two pairs of oars, but only one foot brace.

Getting the hang out of double rowing on the Chester Yawl

Building kit: The kit uses the patented "LapStitch" building method: the planks are stitched together and are self-aligning by means of a precisely cut groove on one side of each plank. Stitches are made with copper wire (provided in the kit) and the hull is shaped by bringing each plank into the groove of the next one. Bulkheads and frames are fitted after stitching the hull.

The building kit includes all the elements that will let you build a Chester Yawl such as you see in this page's pictures, with the exception of paint and varnish... and your own workn, patience, skill, etc... And a few tools as well as a place to claim as your shop, of course, but you'll especially need your loved ones understanding and support! All plywood parts are precisely cut on a computer controlled installation. The bevels of the "scarfs" which will allow you to realize full-length planks from 2 halves are ready to glue. You'll have to finish a few easy cuts, round some edges, but most of the work will be to drill plenty of small holes, insert wire stitches, tighten these, mix several kilos of epoxy, apply it as well as some fiberglass cloth, then take out those stitches and sand, sand again and sand some more....

In addition to the wood parts, the complete kit includes 2 sheets of plans (in feet and inches), a construction manual in English, plus an extended version in French. You'll also find the fiberglass cloth and the epoxy kit (resin, slow and regular hardener, thickener for joints). The complete kit also includes the deck plate for the forward compartment, all required hardware, one set of brass/bronze oarlock, their sockets and their pads (or risers.) No oars are provided, it's up to you to coose your rowing system otion.

See the pricelist

"Chester" is the name of a river ending into Cheasapeake Bay, near Annapolis.