Alvin Mason

Al Mason was an American yacht designer and builder who established Mason Yachts in the 1960s. Best known for creating heavy-displacement cruising sailboats, Mason specialized in full-keel designs with attached rudders emphasizing strength, seaworthiness, and comfort over speed. His most successful designs include the Mason 33, 43, 44, 53, and 63 models, many built in Taiwan by Ta Shing Yacht Building. Mason boats featured traditional styling with canoe sterns, generous beam, and substantial interior volume. They became popular with serious offshore cruisers and liveaboards who valued their sea-kindly motion, load-carrying ability, and robust construction. Mason's designs embodied the traditional cruising yacht philosophy of the 1960s-1980s era.