BoatsHaven 12 1/2

Haven 12 1/2

Gaffhead Sloop · Keel/centreboard · First built 1984

A Joel White redesign of the classic Herreshoff 12 1/2, featuring a centreboard and wider beam for versatile shoal sailing

Designed by Herreshoff & Joel White, built by From Plans.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Hull type
Keel/Cbrd.

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

TrailerableBeam 1.85 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 454 kg of hull, so roughly 1,050 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Ramp-launchableAbout 454 kg of hull, with a keel that raises or a draught shallow enough to float off a trailer — she can go back on the trailer at the ramp, not only into the water.Shoal draughtDraws 0.43 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.
LivelySea-kindly

Her moderate displacement on a beamy beam gives 10 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 10
CoastalBluewater

At 2.43 she sits above the 2.0 line — beamy for her weight, and happiest coastal.

Capsize screening 2.43
LightHeavy

229 — moderately heavy for her waterline, a balanced cruising weight.

Displacement / length 229
EasygoingPowered-up

24.9 — a lot of sail for her weight; powered-up and eager, a real performer.

Sail area / displacement 24.9

Powered-up and quick to accelerate — this one likes to sail.

  • Narrower than ~84% of boats her size on file

Compared with 201 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions
Weights
Rig & sail area
Rig
Gaffhead Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
24.9
Displacement / length
228.6
Comfort ratio
10.3
Capsize screening
2.43
Hull speed
4.7 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
272
Hull
Hull type
Keel/Cbrd.
Construction
Wood Cold Molded
Production
Years built
First built 1984
Designer
Herreshoff, Joel White
Builder
from plans, Howard Boats

Boats like this, on the water

Nobody has filmed this one — but these are close.

Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.

Microtonner 195.50 mSame hull family0.7 m longerA high-performance fractional sloop designed by Nestor Volker to the International Micro Class rule for competitive racing
I Met the Man Who Puts Sailboats Inside the São Francisco River | #SAL #4256:23from Hashtag Sal
RS Quest4.29 mSame hull family0.6 m shorterA 140kg fractional sloop with a centerboard trunk designed for stable, versatile training and family sailing
Sea Cadet National Sailing and Windsurfing Regatta 20250:48from City Sailing
Marshall Marine Corporation Sanderling5.54 mSame hull family0.7 m longerA gaff-rigged catboat based on a 1941 design, featuring a shallow-draft keel-centerboard hull for versatile day sailing
The History of Beneteau Boats11:37from Practical Sailor
Drascombe Dabber4.72 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA John Watkinson-designed sprit-rigged daysailer with a centreboard, built since 1970 for shallow-water versatility
Getting Underway - Portland to Boston23:16from The Mariner

The family

Boats like this

Nearby designs by size, type, and era — worth a look alongside her.

Herreshoff 12 1/2A legendary gaff-rigged daysailer designed by Nathanael Herreshoff, still actively raced in both wood and fiberglassDark Harbor 12 1/2A 1915 gaff-rigged sloop with a narrow 1.62-metre beam, designed by R. N. Burbank for the Crowninshield firmHerreshoff Manufacturing Seawanhaka One-DesignA 1916 Nathanael Herreshoff design, this fractional sloop features a long keel and classic lines for one-design racingCape Cod Shipbuilding GeminiA 1955 A. Sidney DeWolf Herreshoff design featuring unique twin side-by-side centerboards for shallow-water versatility

Keep looking

Nothing filmed of this one yet

Two ways to keep looking — both search what the fleet has actually recorded.

Search the fleet for boats like thisAsk the fleet about the Haven 12 1/2

The newsletter

New boats, new stories. Every week, everywhere.

One email from the fleet — boats newly added, videos newly analysed. No noise.

Report an issue