Finesse 24 Sailboats for Sale & Market Overview

The Finesse 24 is a traditionally styled clinker-built cruiser that represents a unique chapter in British maritime history. Launched in 1968 by Essex boatbuilder Alan Platt, the 24 was a direct response to the success of the smaller Finesse 21. While many of its contemporaries were moving toward the industrial efficiency of GRP (fiberglass), Platt remained dedicated to wooden construction, producing over 80 hulls at his yard in Thundersley. These vessels were specifically optimized for the shallow, silted estuaries of the UK’s East Coast, featuring a shoal-draft hull form that balances a "big ship" feel with the ability to explore tidal creeks and "ditch-crawl" where deeper fin-keeled yachts cannot go. The construction typically utilizes Iroko or mahogany planking copper-riveted onto steamed rock-elm or oak ribs, a robust method described as having "agricultural standards" of durability by Classic Boat Magazine.