There are currently listed one hundred and thirty nine plywood Jolly Boats afloat and one more will start construction in January 2019. There are a couple of dozen made with fiberglass hulls. This is a stable, safe boat for single-handed or family sailing and was designed to be home built without too much effort or cost. Jolly Boat is ideal for novice sailors and experienced hands alike.

The story starts in 1983 when the designers were planning a project which would fill their own personal requirements for a small, inexpensive and above all a safe little boat which would be often used, easily trailed and a pleasure to own and sail.

It was by sheer good fortune that the now famous Jolly Boat went on to become the successful home-build project that it is today. The construction plans include full size hull frame and stem templates, provides detailed scantlings and dimensions for the complete hull construction.  The hull planking (or lap-strakes) are described in the offset table and can be simply constructed full size using simple geometric triangulation. The full plan package comes complete with eight drawings including the sail plan of both the gaff yawl and gaff sloop, and the spars and rigging arrangements for both as well as a comprehensive set of construction notes which are easy to follow.