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I'm hesitant to deride a builder for added bells and whistles, but I get disturbed if a vessel's functionality is compromised by them. The trick is to strike a balance among functionality, safety, and creature comforts while maintaining aesthetics. During the time I spent aboard the Sabre 34 Hard Top Express, it was apparent that the South Casco, Maine-based builder understands this concept in spades.
I met Scott Shane, the sales manager for DiMillo's New York Yacht Sales, in Freeport on the Long Island town's famed Nautical Mile, a stretch of waterfront jam-packed with boat dealers, seafood restaurants, and salty types. Shane escorted me to the 34, tied stern-to among a number of other Sabre models. She cut a handsome profile: Her optional blue hull, set off with gold striping, gleamed with morning dew and contrasted nicely with the teak toerail and the creamy white pilothouse, hardtop, and coach roof. Walking alongside her, I noted the cast stainless steel fairleads midship in the teak toerails, another nice detail. As I stepped aboard via her fiberglass (teak is optional) swim platform, through a 30-inch-wide transom door, and into her cockpit, she barely moved under the weight of my 175 pounds plus the 35 pounds of equipment I was carrying.
From the 50-square-foot cockpit, it's one step up to the 34's seriously windowed pilothouse, where her owners will likely spend the bulk of their time. I unzipped the optional three-side isinglass enclosure to enter (a hard-back enclosure with an aluminum door is a $17,500 option) and passed the galley, all the way aft to starboard. While it's a simple setup—with a bullnosed Corian countertop, a two-burner cooktop, a stainless steel sink, and microwave, with a refrigerator/ freezer to port—there's enough stowage for a weekend of sundries for two. The galley-up also frees space below decks and is convenient for dining, as the standard inlaid cherry table at the L-shape settee is just to port.
The entire pilothouse is bathed in light from three forward and four side windows that offer panoramic views in all directions. For days when it's not warm enough to run the optional 18,000-Btu air conditioning here, ventilation is available from a number of sources: 2'2"x3'4" sliding windows to port and starboard, two 1'8" square Lewmar sliding hatches in her hardtop, and a slick, electrically actuated center windshield. Both the helmsman and first mate are ensured all-day comfort at a pair of standard Stidd helm seats finished in the same beige Ultraleather as the settee, which looks great against the cherry accents and optional teak sole in the pilothouse.
The handsome appearance extends below decks, where simplicity dominates: Accessed via a centerline companionway and down four steps, her saloon is homage to what Sabre calls "crafted in the Maine tradition." The cherry interior is artisan-grade, with flawless grain matching and first-rate joinery. Stowage areas are also well crafted, with dovetail joints in all drawers. In addition, many of the stowage spaces have louvered doors, a great look that also allows for air circulation, which prevents mold. A cozy, starboard-side, L-shape settee and a cherry table with gorgeous bird's-eye maple inlay set off the saloon, providing a great reading spot or premium viewing for the standard, swing-arm-mounted, 15-inch LCD TV.
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