[1][3][4] The Endeavour 40 was intended for both the private owner's market and yacht charter operators and was intended to compete directly with boats built by Gulfstar Yachts, as both company principals, John Books and Rob Valdes has previously worked for Gulfstar.
[5] The Endeavour 40 is a recreational keelboat, built predominantly of polyester resin and fiberglass woven roving and multi-directional chopped strand fiber, with teak wood trim.
It has a center cockpit, masthead sloop rig or optional ketch rig, with aluminum spars, a raked stem, a reverse transom, a skeg-mounted rudder controlled by a wheel and a fixed fin keel.
[3] In a 1994 review Richard Sherwood wrote that the Endeavour 40 "is a big, comfortable cruiser intended for extended trips.
"[3] Steve Knauth wrote a review for Soundings Magazine in 2008 and stated, "the 1980s hull design features a modified fin keel with a skeg-protected rudder.
The forefoot is slightly flatter than a traditional wineglass hull, and the 13-foot beam is carried well aft for form stability and interior volume.