- Founded
- 1970
- Headquarters
- 12 Hawthorne Road, South Casco, ME 04077, United States
- Shipyard location
- Raymond, Maine, United States
- Official website
- https://www.sabreyachts.com/
Brand Overview
Maine builder of Downeast-style motor yachts, founded in 1970 as a sailboat yard — five Salon Express models from the 12.7-metre 38 to the 20.1-metre 58, on twin Volvo Penta diesels, built in Raymond, Maine 'in the Maine tradition'.
YachtCodex Analysis
AI-generatedAn independent reading of this builder written by AI. Unlike the specifications and descriptions elsewhere on this page, it is interpretation rather than a sourced fact — treat it as a starting point, not a citation.
What this builder is
Sabre Yachts was founded in 1970 to build sailing yachts that offered, in its own words, equal measures of elegance, safety and performance; it now builds motor yachts only, and says its sailing roots still shape how it designs. For more than 55 years it has built in Raymond, Maine, and with its sister company Back Cove Yachts it employs more than 300 Maine associates; the company motto is 'Crafted in the Maine Tradition'. Sabre Corporation's address is 12 Hawthorne Road, South Casco, Maine; Daniel Zilkha, who ran Sabre, Back Cove and North End Composites for almost 35 years, is chairman, and Aaron Crawford is president and CEO. The yard describes its range as the comfort and tradition of the Downeast style blended with the performance of a contemporary motor yacht, with typical cruising speeds around 27 knots and top speeds around 30. The current range is the Salon Express — enclosed helm deck, large cockpit and indoor-outdoor flow — in five sizes: the 38 on twin Volvo Penta D4 DPI, and the 43, 45, 51 and 58 on twin Volvo Penta IPS, all built to CE Category B, NMMA, ABYC and USCG standards and networked through the Sabre Connect system. Each hull gets a dedicated 'Boat Parent' through the build, a 600-point inspection in six stages and a final 'Gold Inspection'.
Who sails them
Sabre owners are experienced coastal cruisers who want a Downeast yacht that looks traditional but runs at around 27 knots on Volvo Penta IPS joystick drives — couples and families who value Maine craftsmanship, a quiet, dry ride, networked systems they can check from shore, and the owner rendezvous and community the yard calls the Sabre family.
Signature models
The 58 Salon Express, with three en-suite staterooms and a full-beam master, is the flagship; the 43 Salon Express, which the yard calls a bold new chapter in Downeast design modernised from the keel up, is the core of the range; and the 51 adds a galley-down layout with an optional third berth.
Strengths
Sabre is known for Downeast lines with modified deep-V planing hulls, resin-infused E-glass and foam-cored construction, Volvo Penta IPS with joystick and dynamic positioning, fuel efficiency at 8-10 knots as well as 27-knot cruising, Sabre Connect digital switching, a hull-by-hull 'Boat Parent' and 600-point quality process, and more than half a century of building in Maine.
Considerations
Each model page prints a short table with imperial and metric figures, and its 'View All Specs' button opens a model-year standard equipment sheet whose figures sometimes differ (the 43's sheet gives 14.25 m overall against the page's 14.38 m and IPS-500 380 hp as standard against the page's IPS600 440 hp; the 51's sheet 17.60 m against 17.50 m); the page table is used and the sheet's differing figures are kept as notes. The 45's table prints its beam figure in a row labelled 'Air Draft' where the draft should be, and its overall length in metres (14.94 m) does not match its own 49' 5.25", so the sheet's 15.06 m is used; displacement is the sheet's half-load figure; speeds come from the builder's performance reports for the standard engines (the 38 links none); and engine power is printed in hp on the page but in metric hp in the reports.
Analysis generated 10/17/2026
Part of
Also in the catalogue
Fleet at a Glance
Calculated from the models in the YachtCodex catalog, not from the builder's claims.
- Models in catalog
- 5
- Length range
- 12.74–20.12 m
- Hull forms
- Motor Monohull 5
- Cabins
- 2–3
Models by this brand
5 models
History
Sabre Yachts was founded in 1970 with a single mission: to build sailing yachts that offered equal measures of elegance, safety and performance. The company now builds motor yachts exclusively, but says its sailing roots remain embedded in every hull it lays and inform how it approaches design, safety and the sea. For more than 55 years it has built in Raymond, Maine, carrying on the state's centuries-old boatbuilding tradition — hence the motto 'Crafted in the Maine Tradition' — and together with its sister company Back Cove Yachts it employs more than 300 Maine associates, many of them for over a decade. Its quality process gives each hull a dedicated 'Boat Parent' who follows it from start to finish, a 600-point inspection across six stages, a 12-page technical report before delivery and a final collective 'Gold Inspection'. Kevin Burns, who leads design, describes the aim as 'informed simplicity': each design must be a boat first, and the range blends the comfort and tradition of the Downeast style with the performance of a contemporary motor yacht.
History written fromsabreyachts.com/about-us· Crafted in the Maine Traditionread 10/17/2026