Neville 47 - Making Metal Happen
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When we toured the Neville 47 in 2005
(PMM Sept. ’05), our focus was the
builder, Custom Steel Boats, as much as it
was the first hull of a steel-and-aluminum trawler design
from the offices of Charles Neville Associates. I recall the
almost reverent attitude of the Merritt, North Carolina,
yard during my visit, as the family behind the business
wanted the world to know it remained steadfast after the
untimely deaths of Richard and Rosa Flowers, founders
of the family-run metal boatbuilding company.
In the year since, the project has evolved, and the
players have changed roles a bit. While Custom Steel
Boats remains the builder, the boat’s designer has
partnered with Authentic Yachts, of Annapolis, to
develop the yacht line and market it to North America.
Neville Trawlers now includes the 47-footer, as well as
42- and 56-foot versions. So I thought it worth taking a second look at the project and the people behind it, who
hope to gain wider acceptance of small metal boats in
this country. While Europe has embraced steel trawlers
for well over 50 years, Americans have, for whatever
reason, been slow to accept steel as a desirable
boatbuilding material. Given today’s coatings technology,
the concerns about rust are history with a good design
that is properly executed.
“The concept behind these boats is simple spaces
that are comfortable to be in,” according to Chuck
Neville, the man behind the boats. While two heads
can be squeezed into the 47-footer, he feels it makes
more sense to have a large, roomy head for the couple
who will cruise aboard her.
Chuck got into boat design in the late ’70s, first
working with design legend Charlie Morgan at Heritage
Yachts in Clearwater, Florida. Later, Chuck teamed up with Steve Seaton, and the two shared a design office for
10 years in Florida. When Seaton decided to move to
the West Coast, Chuck continued solo for another five
years on the Gulf Coast before moving his offices to
Maryland’s Eastern Shore, where he works today.
Neville’s portfolio includes design work on USCG
boats, military and commercial vessels, and pleasure
boats in a variety of construction materials. His work
spans the gamut of boat design, from multihulls to
displacement cruisers and working boats.
“I have known many designers with huge egos who
would bristle at the slightest hint of changes or negative
comments,” Doug Coupar told me. “Which is why
working with Chuck is so refreshing and exciting. He
really enjoys getting input from potential buyers. He
leaves his ego at home.”
Doug is president of Authentic Yachts, a dealership
and brokerage that specializes in converting metal
commercial boats to passagemakers. Neville Trawlers
is a new arm of that company. And it is a partnership
that seems well meshed.
“The whole exercise of selling a boat is entirely different from the exercise of designing a boat,” Chuck
explained. So it really helps to work with a company that
focuses on customer service and support, which is the
strategic goal of Authentic Yachts.
“Getting small metal boats into the marketplace is our
goal.” That is the mantra of Chuck Neville. Both Chuck
and Doug feel there is a growing acceptance of steelhulled
boats in this country, and they hope to make it
even easier for members of the boating community to
find their dream boat in steel and aluminum. It is a
crusade that shifts Chuck’s out-of-the-spotlight, in-office
design work into a more mainstream connection with
the trawler community, up front and in person. He is
ready to make waves.
“Introducing common-sense boat construction into
the pleasure boat market isn’t new,” Chuck told me,
“but, so often, marketing clouds a realistic assessment
of what a boat can and can’t do. And that causes
confusion in the market.”
Interestingly, the original design of the 47-foot trawler
was created 20 years ago, but it has continued to evolve
to become a practical, simple cruising boat that can do most anything a couple would like it to do. What got
my attention was that the Neville 47 won the People’s
Choice Award at the 2006 Trawler Fest in Solomons,
Maryland. There were dozens of really cool boats in the
fleet, but this design hit a chord with our community.
In Jim Leishman’s revised Voyaging Under Power,
Chuck’s 39-foot trawler was included in the chapter
about the work of other designers. As Chuck recalls,
he had not named the boat when the chapter was
being written, so Jim simply called it “the Neville 39.” It
was a moniker that stuck, and the name Neville
Trawlers was born. Chuck’s 39-footer was also at
Trawler Fest in Solomons, but Chuck thinks it needs to
stretch a couple of feet, so he considers the design now
to be a 42-footer.
There are few inhabited places on this planet where
steel can’t be worked on, repaired, and maintained, and
the material is strong, heavy, and able to withstand
anything. With a displacement of almost 95,000 lb., the
47-foot Neville is a heavyweight. According to Chuck, “The heft, the mass of steel works for you. It just feels
like a bigger boat.”
And Doug Coupar agrees. “The solution to heavy
weather is heavy displacement,” he commented during
our discussion. “It is like driving a locomotive.”
DESIGN DETAILS
I’m a big fan of pushing boats and systems that are
more commercial than “yacht,” so I feel Chuck and
Doug are on a valid mission. As I walked around this
boat, which in many ways was simpler than the boat I
had toured a year earlier, I saw evidence of that design
direction. Doug’s workboat background adds some realworld
practicality to the ship’s systems, and gone are the
components of cruising yachts that one would never see
on a workboat. There is no get-home wing engine, for
example, but the fuel management system is superb. I
believe there is no substitute for workboat experience, and it remains my job to convince the pleasure boat
community that we can all learn from the men and
women who are on the water 24/7.
I recall a moment a few years back when I visited
Real Ship’s Joe Johnson and builder Joey Rodriguez in
Bayou La Batre, Alabama. Sitting behind a desk in a
room filled with pictures of fishing boats and crews
working their craft, Joey recalled the time when a 65-
foot steel shrimper headed home from a multi-week
trip in the Gulf of Mexico. Seems the skipper went
below for a cup of coffee and got distracted talking to
crew in the galley. As a result, the shrimper ran at 10
knots into an oil rig, crunching 12 feet of the bow. The
boat made it into port and to Joey’s yard, where his
men cut off the bow. In two weeks, the shrimper was
back on the water, a new bow welded in place. That
puts things into perspective for me.
The quality of the metalwork of Custom Steel Boats
is extraordinary, and the latest design techniques make for structures that can be properly sealed and coated,
eliminating hidden welds and frames that are doomed
to corrode. A heavy-duty rubrail surrounds the boat,
protecting the lovely Awlgrip paint job.
The bow is 8 feet off the water, and there are serious
anchor rollers that are beautiful in their ruggedness. A
hydraulic Maxwell windlass and large anchors make for
an all-business anchoring setup, and large stainless-steel
cleats and hawse pipes provide fine dockline support.
Watertight Freeman hatches, doors, and windows are
used throughout the Neville 47, which adds to the big
ship experience.
The lazarette under the aft cockpit is a huge, fullbeam
storage space and will hold a ton of cruising
gear, water toys, and system equipment. It has 45
inches of headroom as well. It could easily hold a
couple of Segways.
Stepping into the saloon from the dogged Dutch door,
one experiences an interesting transition from rugged steel trawler to comfortable, cherry-rich home interior.
While several layouts are available, this boat has a Ushaped
settee with storage underneath, and a freestanding
couch opposite on the starboard side. Headroom is a
minimum of 6 feet 6 inches throughout the boat.
The galley has marine-grade vinyl flooring, and this
all-electric boat has a Princess electric stove top,
convection/microwave oven, and dual Vitrofigo drawer-style refrigerator/freezers. Drawers and cabinets all
feature positive locking hardware, something I had
found missing on the original boat a year ago.
Up from the galley is the raised pilothouse, with two
Dutch doors that open out to the side decks, a central
Stidd helm chair, and a raised settee behind the helm.
The helm console is a work in progress, and I spent
some time with Chuck exploring how best to use this
electronic and control real estate. Chart table spaces are
on each side of the center helm. Visibility out the large
helm windows is excellent forward and to the sides.
An unusual feature is a door that separates the
pilothouse from the rest of the boat. On an overnight passage, off-watch crew can be cooking, relaxing, or
watching a movie in the saloon without disturbing the
night vision of those on watch. It is a nice feature seldom
seen on “true” passagemakers.
Stepping down from the galley leads to the forward
accommodations and access to the engine room. As I
mentioned in my last tour of the Neville 47, the boat has
a master stateroom forward, with a centerline queen and
lots of usable storage, and a guest cabin with two single
berths. A large, roomy head comes with a nice shower,
and there is plenty of practical storage for toiletries,
towels, and other personal items. The boat’s interior is
simple and honest, and doesn’t try to cram it all in.
Access to the engine room is via the guest stateroom, machinery. Very nice.
A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT
As I have the unique opportunity to go aboard
nearly every trawler out there, I have seen many
interesting details and improvements that can be
incorporated into a boat. I found it refreshing that
Chuck was willing and eager to spend quality time
inside the engine room, taking suggestions about
various details that would improve the boat, make it
safer, or simply make for a better experience. As our
relaxed conversation continued, I also was reminded of
just how much I’ve learned and seen since starting this
journey at PMM. Sitting with Chuck in his engine
room was a pleasant reminder of how great this life is;
the faint smell of diesel added an evocative touch. This
is an engine room I could really love.
Later, when Natalie and I took some running shots
of the boat, we commented how effortless it felt to be
aboard such a nice-looking trawler with just the right
proportions. The spacious foredeck, at almost 15 feet
long, looks great in my mind, and the pilothouse is
properly balanced in the boat’s profile. By keeping
living accommodations simple, Chuck Neville has
made the boat seem big, comfortable, and very livable
for a couple. While she has the range and mettle to
cross oceans, I doubt that is what most owners would
entertain. The Neville 47—indeed, all of the trawlers in
the Neville line—seem better adapted to full-time
liveaboard cruising and gunkholing than to round-theworld
adventure.
with a 56-by-18-inch dogged Freeman door into the
engine space. Just inside the engine room, there is 6 feet
4 inches of headroom, which is very nice, indeed. Farther
in, the headroom drops to 57 inches and then to 48
inches at the aft end of the engine room, where one
finds another Freeman hatch into the lazarette.
The single Deere 8.1 Powertech diesel sits front and
center in the engine room, with a hefty handrail around
it. There is also a minimum of 36 inches of working
space on both sides of the
engine, a fantastic feature
that is greatly appreciated
by an aging boat owner.
Four fuel tanks surround
the Deere, including one
day tank. The engine
cooling circuit uses a keel
cooler, and the exhaust is
cooled with raw water to
drop the temperature to
around 100° before
heading out the dry stack.
Little touches, such as a workbench just inside the
engine room and space for toolboxes and spare parts,
make the engine room seem inviting and generous.
Given its 15-by-15-foot dimensions, I needed to be
reminded I was aboard a 47-foot boat. I can see why
the Neville 47 won the People’s Choice Award. The
engine room has great utility and offers plenty of
accessibility to electrical systems, hydraulics, and
And that is the point that Chuck has so finely
honed: his sense of the way people really use their
boat.
In a rugged steel trawler, they may dream of far-off
fantasy but instead cruise the real world. And, as a
result, his boats excel. With the metal
boatbuilding experience of Custom Steel
Boats, the commercial experience
and customer focus of
Authentic Yachts, and
a trawler
community that is
beginning to see
that steel has many
advantages over
fiberglass, it all seems to be
coming together for the team.
Doug Coupar expressed this
sentiment: “It is supposed to be
an intelligent collaboration
of all people involved in
the project.”
Their collective
passion, in hearts
and minds, is in a
decidedly good place,
and I wish them well.
Excellent job, and
congratulations on winning the
People’s Choice Award!
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2007 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com
You are reading the text-only copy of this article. To access the article as it appeared in PassageMaker Magazine, please log in to purchase and download the PDF version of this article.