Irwin Yachts 54

BoatsIrwin Yachts 54

See her sail

The Irwin Yachts 54, on the water

The fleet's own footage — the truest look at how she really moves.

Footage from Sailing Solé

Is it for you?

Character

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

LivelySea-kindly

Her moderate displacement on a narrow beam gives 40 — a sea-kindly motion in a seaway.

Comfort ratio 40

CoastalBluewater

1.72 — just under the 2.0 offshore line; her beam is modest for her weight.

Capsize screening 1.72

LightHeavy

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

Displacement / length 241

EasygoingPowered-up

13.4 — modest power for her weight; easygoing rather than lively, and happier with a breeze.

Sail area / displacement 13.4

TenderStiff

35% of her weight is ballast — on the tender side; she'll heel readily and want a reef sooner.

Ballast 35%

A capable offshore cruiser with an easy motion when the sea gets up.

Heavier than ~84% of boats her size on file
Draws less than ~99% of boats her size on file
Beamier than ~80% of boats her size on file

Compared with 158 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

What the fleet has seen

The Irwin Yachts 54, as the fleet has seen it

Derived from the videos the fleet has analysed of this model. ▶ marks open the moment aboard.

The Irwin Yachts 54 is a 16.5-meter (54-foot) staysail ketch designed by Ted Irwin, built by Irwin Yachts and American Yachts from 1988 to the present. This keel/centerboard sailboat has a 4.7-meter beam, a 1.7-meter draft, and displaces 20,865 kg. It was available with either a cutter or ketch rig. An Irwin Yachts 54 served as a "green room" at the Annapolis Boat Show, hosting sailing content creators and industry representatives for discussions and community project promotions.5:25

The living fleet

Sailed by the fleet

Where the fleet has filmed this boat.

Seen once across one channel of the fleet.

Basemap © Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

What broke, what changed

Gear aboard, as the crews told it

Moments from individual boats of this model that the fleet has filmed — one crew, one piece of kit, one day on the water. Not a review of the class, and not a count of anything.

ComparedGoProweighed against Insta360 Ace Pro 2
The speaker stated that a GoPro would not perform as well as the Insta360 Ace Pro 2 at night.
aboard Sailing Soléseen October 202510:57
WorkingInsta360
The camera was used to film the entire video and was praised for its night performance.
aboard Sailing Soléseen October 20250:41

Each line is one crew's account of their own boat. Another Irwin Yachts 54 may be fitted out entirely differently.

Who's been looking

Market signal

Crews the fleet has filmed weighing this model up — no sale seen, and no asking price.

1channel weighed buying one

From the fleet's own footage — our observed signal, not broker listings.

The record

Full specifications

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

Dimensions

Weights

Ballast / displacement

34.8%

Rig & sail area

Rig

Staysail Ketch

Ratios

SA / displacement

13.4

Displacement / length

241.1

Comfort ratio

39.9

Capsize screening

1.72

Hull speed

8.9 kn

Pounds / inch immersion

2410

Hull

Hull type

Keel/Cbrd.

Construction

Fiberglass

Production

Years built

First built 1988

Designer

Ted Irwin

Builder

Irwin Yachts, American Yachts

Boats like this, on the water

More boats like her, on the water

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.

Morgan Yachts Out Island 5115.70 mSame hull family0.8 m shorterA heavy-displacement staysail ketch with a keel-centerboard configuration designed for comfortable long-range cruising

Sailboat Restoration Q&A Ask Me Anything. I've done it twice 😅24:43 from Reversing Entropy

Alden Yachts 5416.48 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthAn extended-stern evolution of the 50-foot series, available in both center and aft cockpit layouts as well as cutter or ketch

The Most Unique Catamaran We’ve Ever Sailed from Gone with the Wynns

Bestevaer 56ST17.58 mSame hull family1.1 m longerA Dykstra-designed aluminum lifting-keel cruiser built for serious offshore exploration and shoal-water access

Should We Build a BIGGER Sailboat? Building an Aluminum Boat - Design Part 2 with KM Yachts | EP 206 from Distant Shores TV

Stadtship 5617.10 mSame hull family0.6 m longerA high-performance aluminium fractional sloop featuring a lifting keel for versatile access to deep and shallow waters

Sailing & Spearfishing in Brazil’s Crystal Waters — Sailing Yabá 2843:43 from Sailing Yabá

Feeling 5516.80 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA 16.8-metre fractional sloop featuring a 3.6m lifting keel and dual rudders for deep-water performance

Anchoring over the winter in Porto Heli (GR) with a visit to a spooky shipwreck #feeling5520:33 from Sailing Suria

Southerly 42012.86 mSame hull family3.6 m shorterA Rob Humphreys-designed fractional sloop featuring a versatile swing keel that later evolved into the Southerly 430

Building an Aluminum Sailboat Pt 6 - Your questions answered | EP 2241:29 from Distant Shores TV

The family

Boats like this

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

Irwin Yachts 65/68A Ted Irwin-designed staysail ketch with a centerboard for shoal-draft cruising in a heavy, comfortable displacement Irwin Yachts 46A Ted Irwin-designed staysail ketch featuring a keel-centreboard hull for versatile performance in varying depths Irwin Yachts 41A masthead ketch with a skeg-mounted rudder and shallow draft, designed for stable, long-range coastal cruising Irwin Yachts 52-2A Ted Irwin-designed cutter with a centerboard keel, offering a high comfort ratio for stable long-distance cruising

Keep asking

The fleet has more to say

Search what's been said about the Irwin Yachts 54, or ask a specific question — the answer comes back written out, with links to the moments it draws on.

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