Today was our first official sea trial day for the Sabre 48 Salon Express. The engineering team that created her and all of us here in South Casco and Rockland are smiling as they should be, given the results.

 
The Sabre Design Team exceeded both our performance and our noise abatement goals. Top speeds exceeded 33 knots and sound levels in the main salon were measured at just over 75 Db. Those are really great numbers, no matter what your point of comparison. I'll be able to post the actual test results here in a few days once we have made sure that everything checks out.

I've been doing my best to stay out of their way as their work to prove out all of the systems continues but tomorrow morning I get a turn on board and I can't wait to feel her under my feet. More tomorrow

Despite the Patriots Day holiday in Maine today, Sabre's engineering and design staff are launching the exciting new Sabre 48 Salon Express. The team was on hand at 09:00 this morning but were delayed for a few hours by the prop supplier. Hopes are that we'll be in the water this afternoon and running later in the day.

 
 
The navigational electronics have all been installed, bottom paint is done but the varnish is a day or two behind due to the recent inclement weather.

The whole team is anxious to get under way and verify the performance. More tomorrow.

Before I start talking about fly bridge stairs let me explain what has happened to the name of our new Fly Bridge boat. The American Boat and Yacht Council sets recommendations for yacht nomenclature and basically says we can call the boat by a number that represents to longest molded part, which in this case is the hull. When the 52 foot hull design was made we, for market competitiveness purposes, opted to call her a 52 footer. That's how long she is on deck. So here we are a few years down the line and 20 hulls later and we want to introduce anew model based on the same hull design and to avoid confusion we are opting to call her the 54 Fly Bridge Sedan because that's how long her hull actually is. So, if you are looking for the Sabre 52 fly bridge you will not find her.

A big topic on fly bridge boats is the method of getting people from the lower decks to the fly bridge. i.e. the stairs. I've seen far too many people quit boating or spend their days seated in the main salon simply because the stairs on many sport fishing convertibles, are too steep and un-people-friendly. So when it came time to design our stairs it was clear that a spiral was the only way to go and our engineers have come up with a beautiful piece of custom hardware for the task at hand.

So the answer to the question on how easy it is to scale these stairs is "very easy and very comfortable."

I’ve often said in this blog that I can be attracted by beautiful drawings of boats and such is the case with the exciting new Sabre 52 Fly Bridge. But, as I have also confessed the passion I feel for a design only multiplies when I see the actual boat coming together. Like many boaters I am a frustrated naval architect, always believing that I and only I can design the most beautiful craft. And I know I am not alone. I’ve seen many of you using table napkins and the backs of envelopes to draw the next incredibly beautiful “Collins 52”. But over the years I have learned that my skills do not come close to those of the real design stars; stars like Kevin Burns who has designed all of our recent motor yachts and is responsible for the bridge design on the Sabre 52.

This morning I arrived at my computer and saw an email from our head of engineering David Newcomb. The title was “test fit of the Sabre 52 bridge”, so needless to say before I even popped the lid on my morning coffee I was falling in love all over again. They say that bigger is always more beautiful when it comes to yacht designs and that is certainly the case with this one.

Keep in mind that the aft corners of the house will be cut away and glass will be placed in the recess there which will add even more to the elegance of the design.

 
Aft, where the spiral stair comes from the cockpit, the opening to the bridge level is through this sculpted cutout in the hard top and liner. Every detail, facet and curve in this design is eye-catching.

In the foreground in this image is the hull of the boat which is already quite far along with all major pieces of furniture in place and ready to accept the deck when it’s ready for mounting. I can’t wait to see this boat completed and underway. She is going to be very special.

Earlier this week our crew tested the fit of the optional teak cockpit sole in the new Sabre 46 Salon Express and wow, is it pretty ! Hull one will be getting both the cockpit sole and the swim platform in teak. It's going to look so elegant and this teak is easily maintained with a stiff brush and some liquid soap applied from time to time. No teak oil and no varnish and it will look just perfect. If you like a teak cockpit sole and you are tempted to look into having one installed contact Teak Deck Systems. A great supplier who will not disappoint.

 
The other big event of the week was the arrival and installation of the last major FRP part, the hard top and liner. Now we can really see what she looks like. Of course there are still some aft corner windows to be cut in so we can "kinda see" how beautiful she is. If you are contemplating a visit to view our progress we would welcome it. Just email brenda@sabreyachts.com to arrange a tour any Monday through Thursday.

The finishing touches are starting to be applied and the ice is melting. Can't wait!

Boattest.com is a terrific source for information on new boats and new boating gear. Their editors love and know boats well and their reviews are written by "real boaters." That's typically good for us because we build real boats and not white plastic sneakers. I would recommend to anyone who is serious about boats and boating to join boattest.com.

In this weeks e-news, Geoff Hammond, Founder and Editor,has written a very good pre-launch review of the new Sabre 46 Salon Express. We'll get Geoff back on board when we launch in April but meanwhile here's a link to his review.

http://www.boattest.com/Partners/Partner-Main.aspx?lp_id=401&t=BOAT-TEST&Videoid=2441&p=3&s=

Sea Tech Marine on the west coast of Florida has taken advantage of the elegance and beauty of our Sabre 52 Salon Express to dress up a service van for their marine electronics business. We love what they have done, just too bad it doesn't identify the boat. But people in the know will realize which boat it is. 
 

Perhaps better than the profile view is the "transom" shot where Waldo has found his way into the graphics scheme.

 
 
Could this be a whole new model for GMC?

Last week at the Tornto Boat Show had a visit from a very enthusiastic Duke the Dog, mascot for the AHL Toronto Marlies Ice Hockey Team. As you can see from the picture Duke found the cockpit of the Sabre 40 to be very comfortable and welcoming. Duke's team is currently in 3rd place in their hotly contested division.

I was in the shop today and looking at the new swim platform mold for the Sabre 46 Salon Express. One of the attributes of this style of boat is easy access to the water via the swim platform so this is one element that we knew we had to get "spot on". The 46 platform is the longest to date of any of the models we build. Measuring 48 inches in depth it is designed so suit a dinghy while retaining the use of the swing door for movement on and off the boat while at the dock.

Last summer Kevin and his engineers spent a day on the water studying the shape of these longer platforms and they noted that long and wide aft corners tended to grab the water in hard turns and so the shape is more tapered than on our previous designs.

In this image our FRP technician removes a Cure Gel which has been applied to the surface of the mold to prepare it for the first part fabrication. The gel is then removed prior to the applcation of the actual gelcoat that will be sprayed for the first platform.