Selway Fisher Design

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Selway Fisher Design

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Over 50 years of yacht and boat design, offering almost 500 plans ranging from canoes to yachts and steam launches.

Selway Fisher was started in 1982 after I had worked for almost 10 years in the design offices of McGruers and Silvers on the Gareloch (Clyde) to offer a yacht and boat design service for the home boatbuilding enthusiast modern wood and epoxy methods (stitch & tape, Cedar Strip Planking, Cold Moulding and Clinker/Ply). Most of the designs in our catalogue are individual commissions and cover canoes, dinghies, dayboats, pocket cruisers, yachts, motorboats and steam launches.
9 manuals written by Paul Fisher are also available from our web site describing the different methods of construction as well as sail making and model boat making. Paul is happy to discuss your individual boat design needs.

02/11/2026

John Flowers' 15'5" Selway Fisher F***y the Fantail Launch is fully fitted out with steam plant and launched and looking very good.
'V' bottomed single chine ply hull with fantail stern.
More photos and details can be seen at https://www.selway-fisher.com/Steamup20.htm

26/10/2026

A client recently reminded me of the boat builder Bob Fenton of Harwich Boatcraft who, with the owner Julian Garratt built 'Ursula' in 2001. Ursula is a modified Selway Fisher Edwardian 26 launch.
Julian wanted a plumb stem instead of the schooner bow and a beam reduced to 6'6".
Ursula is well travelled both within the UK (Broads, Windermere etc) and Europe. Julian fitted her out with a cabin which has 2 berths, galley, w/c & shower and the steam plant is a compound engine built by A.G. Mumford Ltd of Colchester.
Hull construction is strip Cedar sheathed in epoxy/glass.
Further photos and details can be seen on the 20' - 30' Steam Launch page of the Selway Fisher Design web site and on the Steam Boat Register of the Steam Boat Assoc. of GB web site.

19/10/2026

A boat's name can lead to untold speculation - Trevor Foreman's Selway Fisher Stornoway 12 'Dammit Janet!' almost ready for the water.
The original plans were drawn for stitch and tape construction but Trevor used the mould shapes that were eventually developed for clinker ply construction - these moulds have also been used for strip plank construction.
The standard rig is a gunter main with jib but a balanced lug and gaff cutter rigs have also been added to the plan set.
Further photos and details for the Stornoway 12 can be found in the dinghy section of the Selway Fisher web site.

12/10/2026

A Selway Fisher 16' strip planked Melonseed recently moved on to the stage of fitting out the interior with centreboard case and ply frames - this is Gerry Amies' beautiful build on the Thames.
More photos and details can be seen at https://www.selway-fisher.com/GPDinghyover13.htm

05/10/2026

Just received these photos of Matthew Hyde-Edwards' Selway Fisher 10' Outboard Motor Canoe finished and in the water.
Matthew modified her by taking 150mm off the length so that she would fit the stern davits of his motor cruiser and raked the transom slightly. So he now has a multi-role tender for rowing, paddling, motoring and sailing.
Further photos and details can be seen at https://www.selway-fisher.com/Mcanoe.htm

28/09/2026

On page 37 of the latest edition of 'Funnel' from the Steam Boat Association of GB is this photo of two of my steam launch designs together at the Bristol Harbour Festival. Both boats were built by Mike Bell. In the foreground is Annabelle one of my Edwardian 26 launches stretched by Mike to 30' and behind her is the 26'8" Michelle which I designed for Mike in 2012.
And in the background of course, is the S.S. Great Britain.
Both launches are strip planked and details and further photos can be seen on my Steam Launches 20' to 30' page - https://www.selway-fisher.com/Steam2030.htm

21/09/2026

Roger Wickham's Mk2 Selway Fisher 22' LOD Kittiwake Canoe Yawl is making good progress with the hull and much of the deck work complete. Construction is stitch and tape or, as in Roger's boat, clinker ply with the building jig forming the permanent framework for the boat.
Interestingly, because she is double ended, auxiliary propulsion will be two E Propulsion 1Kw pods working in wells each side of the cockpit which can be shut off flush with the hull when sailing.
Further details and construction photos can be seem at https://www.selway-fisher.com/Yacht2024.htm

14/09/2026

'Lady Lou' is Peter Sabire's Selway Fisher 17'3" Gdansk dayboat.
The Gdansk was based on the Puck double ender which I drew up in 1991 based loosely on traditional Polish fishing boats of the Baltic which were renowned for their seakeeping qualities. For the Gdansk version I added a transom to give more cockpit space.
Construction is stitch and tape in 9mm ply and I gave her a sprit rig with jib although several have been built using second hand gunter rigs to keep costs down.
Further details and photos can be seen at https://www.selway-fisher.com/DoubleEs.htm

07/09/2026

Peter Dalby has converted his standard plywood 15'4" F***y the Fantail Launch with it's inboard engine and rudder etc to outboard power with the Mercury15 in a well and with a bit of re-ballasting, is very happy with the result.
The last 3 photos show Mable as she was with the inboard drive.
More details and photos of the F***y Launch can be seen at https://www.selway-fisher.com/McClassic.htm

01/09/2026

Photos of a Selway Fisher 14' Kingfisher built by David Ace from a Jack Chippendale kit in the year 2000 and now based in France.
I developed the Kingfisher design with Jack back in 1995 as a modern stitch and tape family fun dayboat/dinghy. The kit is no longer available but plans are.
The plans eventually included an alternative yawl rig with short bowsprit. Additional drawings were then completed to give an alternative schooner bow - further photos and details can be seen at https://www.selway-fisher.com/GPDinghyover13.htm

Address

24 Lancaster Drive
Melksham
GL155SL

Website

http://www.selway-fisher.com/, https://www.selway-fisher.com/blog_&_latest_news.htm

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