Lyle Hess 32 Gaff Cutter

Wooden Ships Comments on this Lyle Hess 32 Gaff Cutter

Lyle Hess 32 designed by the famous American naval architect and built in Malaysia by the Haji Abdullah Bin Muda shipyard in 1991.  She was built for the son of high ranking politician Teo Eng Tat.

The Hess 32 took inspiration from the working boats and pilot cutters of the UK making them very seaworthy and capable vessels.  Her generous beam and stiff bilge sections give her excellent stability and the rocker on the keel is reminiscent of the Morecambe Bay Prawners which were renowned for their speed.

As with most yachts built in that part of the world, the very durable hardwood Chengal was used for frames and planking giving the yacht longevity even in harsh environments.

Imported into the UK by the previous owner after a period of neglect, the vessel had a lot of professional refit work carried out by Waterfront Marine in Bangor to bring her back up to A1 condition.  She then left for an 8 year Atlantic cruise, winning prizes at the Antigua Classics Regatta in 2008, 2009 and 2013.  The work done at this point included the following:

• Replacement of the bottom 4 planks either side in iroko
• New teak on plywood deck with stanchions, bulwarks, cockpit etc
• New interior joinery

Purchased by the current owner in 2016, she still had her original Bermudan cutter rig on aluminium spars.  The owner decided she would look superb with a gaff rig so he started on a 2 year refit with Waterfront Marine where a complete new gaff cutter rig was designed and made including all new spars, rigging and sails.  In the same period the systems and electrics were renewed entirely, new nav gear and many other jobs to bring her up to a high spec.

Since that time she has cruised the Irish Sea and Western Scotland but age and health has forced the owner to find a new custodian.

This is a high quality yacht built from very durable materials and maintained to an excellent standard.  Having proven herself over many thousands of miles of ocean cruising, there is no doubt she has the capability to sail across oceans as well as gentle cruising around our coasts.

Length on Deck                          32’ / 9.76m

Length Overall                           44’ / 13.4m

Beam                                            10’10” / 3.29m

Draft                                             5’10” / 1.77m

Displacement                              9 tons