Devlin Wooden Boat Logo  
Devlin Designing Boat Builders 
Celebrating Our 35th Year Building Fine Boats     
Last updated on: April 13 2013
About Us

My name is Sam Devlin and I'd like to briefly introduce myself and Devlin Designing Boat Builders. I'm just an average guy with a pervasive love of boats and the water. My Norwegian-Irish heritage may have something to do with it, or perhaps it was the "ship" bedroom complete with curved walls and a sea-berth that my father built for me as an infant, or maybe just the hours of play in a landlocked skiff at my father's marine store. Whatever it was, it's indelibly etched on my being.

Upon finishing my college degrees in geology and biology and working a season on Alaskan tugs, I wanted my own boat. With that project, I was captivated with new ideas about boats. Though there is little new under the sun, I had lots of "what ifs" and "how abouts", and a burning desire to see what these ideas would look like and, most of all, how they performed. So in 1977, I pooled my resources and my energies and started "Devlin Designing Boatbuilders". Over the years, it's grown from a backyard operation to a going concern with a good selection of boats in various sizes with a multitude of purposes. I have a good crew of craftsmen interested in producing a quality product they can be proud of. To date, we have produced more than 300 boats from 7ft. to 48ft in length. 

In 1982, I moved the shop from Eugene, Oregon to Olympia, Washington where we have a shop on a lovely cove on Puget Sound. The boats roll out the door and down to the bay and sail, row or motor into the sunset.

I am very happy in this business and I am still full of enthusiasm for new projects and ideas that keep me close to boats and the water. My youngest son, Mackenzie, now works daily with me in the business and the rest of our co-workers have skills that rival anything in the custom boat world.  My drafting table has seen a great deal of work done with marine plywood designs, with virtually all of them using the method of construction that I have been a staunch pioneer and advocate of -- "Stitch and Glue" boatbuilding. The boats we build and sell plans for would properly be called composite construction, combining the best of both worlds -- wooden boat building with modern epoxy technology.  

By using sheet marine plywood and epoxy technology, we can literally weld together the plywood that the hulls are constructed of. The interiors are clean and uncluttered by ribs and excessive framing. By using high grade marine materials and wood epoxy sealing techniques, maintenance is kept to a sane level and the life of the boat is greatly increased.  

The designs are meant to be used. The construction is strong, the rigs are simple to use and all the designs focus on seaworthiness. It is our intention that the use of these boats be limited only by the owner, not by the design or the construction method.

All the designs in our Catalog and in this website are available custom built by Devlin Designing Boatbuilders and on certain designs, full building plans for homebuilding, or for professional building by other boatbuilders, are available.

If you desire a boat with a special purpose in mind, please consult us for a custom design.

Countries We've Shipped Plans, Books & Videos To

  1. United States (all 50 states)
  2. Albania
  3. Anguilla Lee
  4. Argentina
  5. Aruba
  6. Australia
  7. Austria
  8. Barbados
  9. Belarus
  10. Belgium
  11. Bermuda
  12. Bosnia & Herzegovina
  13. Brazil
  14. Brunei
  15. Bulgaria
  16. Canada
  17. Chile
  18. China
  19. Croatia
  20. Cyprus
  21. Czechoslovakia
  22. Denmark
  23. Dominican Republic
  24. Egypt
  25. El Salvador
  26. England
  27. Estonia
  28. Faroe Islands
  29. Finland
  30. France
  31. French Polynesia (Tahiti)
  32. Germany
  33. Greece
  34. Guam
  35. Guatemala
  36. Hungary
  37. Iceland
  38. India
  39. Indonesia
  40. Ireland
  41. Israel
  42. Italy
  43. Japan
  44. Korea
  45. Latvia
  46. Lithuania
  47. Malaysia
  48. Mauritius
  49. Mexico
  50. Micronesia
  51. Netherlands
  52. New Caledonia
  53. New Zealand
  54. Norway
  55. Oman
  56. Panama
  57. Phillipines
  58. Poland
  59. Portugal
  60. Puerto Rico
  61. Peru 
  62. Romania
  63. Russia
  64. Serbia
  65. Singapore
  66. Slovenia
  67. South Africa
  68. Spain
  69. St. Vincent and the Grenadines
  70. Sweden
  71. Switzerland
  72. Thailand
  73. Trinidad / Tobago
  74. Turkey
  75. Uganda
  76. United Arab Emirates (Dubai)
  77. Uraguay
  78. Vietnam
  79. Virgin Islands

 
 

-- Devlin Designing Boat Builders --
3010 37th Ave. S.W.
Tumwater, WA. 98512
 
Office: (360) 866-0164
 
Email Sam Devlin

-- Map & Driving Directions To Our Shop --


View Larger Map
 

 
-- Map & Driving Directions To The Devlin Home Port --

At The One Tree Marina
Directly Beneath The Budd Bay Cafe


View Larger Map

-- The Devlin Shop --


 

 

 

 

 
 -- The Devlin Home Port ---
 

Devlin Designing Boat Builders
3010 37th Ave. S.W.
Tumwater, WA. 98512
(360) 866-0164
Email Sam Devlin
www.devlinboat.com

Click here for a map & driving directions to our boat yard & dock

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