About Wavemaster
Wavemaster was founded by Steve Chapple, a Naval Architect and Mechanical Engineer with over 20 years of experience in aluminium kit boat design. Many of the plate boat models available on the market today - now sold under other names - were originally designed by Steve during his earlier career. Hundreds, if not thousands of his designs have been built over the last 20 years.
Wavemaster is now the next chapter, a return to the DIY and professional kit boat market, but with a sharper, more refined approach. These designs reflect not only where that journey began, but everything learned since. The focus now is on independently developed designs, using proven engineering methods and in-house tools refined long before and well beyond that earlier period. Using proprietary in-house tools combined with advanced 3D CAD workflows, Wavemaster delivers kits that assemble with precision and consistency. Every detail is engineered to save builders time and deliver superior on-water performance.
Wavemaster is now the next chapter, a return to the DIY and professional kit boat market, but with a sharper, more refined approach. These designs reflect not only where that journey began, but everything learned since. The focus now is on independently developed designs, using proven engineering methods and in-house tools refined long before and well beyond that earlier period. Using proprietary in-house tools combined with advanced 3D CAD workflows, Wavemaster delivers kits that assemble with precision and consistency. Every detail is engineered to save builders time and deliver superior on-water performance.
A Return to the DIY Kit Space
After more than a decade designing aluminium kit boats, including many models that became widely known and built across Australia and overseas, Steve sold the rights to his former brand name and a portfolio of successful kit boat designs. Those models continue to be marketed and built today.
Following that sale, his focus shifted back to the commercial marine sector, where he had previously spent over ten years as a designer in a world-leading shipyard specialising in high-speed aluminium ferries.
Working on larger, more specialised vessels — including commercial ferries and superyachts — provided the opportunity to deepen experience across all aspects of marine design: hull form development, structure, systems integration, and production-ready documentation. This was the kind of insight that only comes from complex, high-end commercial projects.
Once the trade restraint period expired, Steve continued to design the occasional recreational kit boat for a small number of professional builders familiar with the quality and integrity of his work.
A Moment That Sparked the Comeback
During a sea trial in the superyacht sector, Steve found himself onboard a vessel designed and built by Silver Yachts. Coincidentally, one of the support boats operating as a shadow vessel was a walk-around kit boat design he had created years earlier.
Watching that boat run in real conditions — how the spray broke away from the chines, how the hull stayed balanced through the chop — reinforced just how much small design decisions influence comfort and ride quality and got him thinking about refinements to plate boat hull shapes. Wavemaster was born from that mix of reflection and reinvention. The goal wasn’t simply to design aluminium kit boats again, but to do them better — with more refined structure, clearer build logic, and a stronger engineering foundation. Before making a full return, the new hull form was proven in the water. Barrier Reef Boats adopted the design for their Northern Explorer range, where it has since seen strong success. Check them out at BarrierReefBoats.com.au. Thanks also to Jim at Marineline Boat Builders, Beau at Finaly Marine Fabrication and Ryan at Brisbane Water Marine Services for their support and trust along the way.
Watching that boat run in real conditions — how the spray broke away from the chines, how the hull stayed balanced through the chop — reinforced just how much small design decisions influence comfort and ride quality and got him thinking about refinements to plate boat hull shapes. Wavemaster was born from that mix of reflection and reinvention. The goal wasn’t simply to design aluminium kit boats again, but to do them better — with more refined structure, clearer build logic, and a stronger engineering foundation. Before making a full return, the new hull form was proven in the water. Barrier Reef Boats adopted the design for their Northern Explorer range, where it has since seen strong success. Check them out at BarrierReefBoats.com.au. Thanks also to Jim at Marineline Boat Builders, Beau at Finaly Marine Fabrication and Ryan at Brisbane Water Marine Services for their support and trust along the way.