Sabre 402 Review

The mandate given Jim Taylor and the Sabre Design Team was to design and build a sailing yacht with exceptional performance, yet still easily sailed by a couple. The Sabre 402 is fast but requires little physical effort to make her perform. She is ruggedly built and incorporates new technology such as a carbon fiber rudder post and state of the art keel designs. The Sabre 402 with her contemporary, wider beam – carried further aft than in her predecessors – has an abundance of interior volume.
The main salon is impressive and takes full advantage of the 402’s beam of 13-feet 4-inches. Comfortable settees are found to port and starboard, with the port side convertible to a double berth. An elegant yacht table, which will comfortably seat six at meal time, is located on the centerline. Storage lockers above the berth backs provide ample space for stowage. Aft and to starboard is the forward facing navigator’s table, which has all of the space required for a sophisticated electronics system. The navigator’s seat also serves as a place for socializing with the cook when meals are being prepared in the galley to port. To starboard and aft of the nav station are the head and shower. Molded in fiberglass, this easily maintained unit incorporates a marine head, a sink recessed in the countertop, and lots of dry storage in the lockers outboard. A separate shower stall with teak seat is located aft of the head. This compartment has a door providing access to the aft cabin.
The 50 horsepower auxiliary engine is located under the galley on the centerline. Keeping this weight and the weight of all tankage in the middle of the hull adds greatly to the sea kindliness and comfort of the yacht.
The galley to port has ample storage lockers. Outboard, above the countertop, there are plenty of drawers and an ice box comparable in volume to a domestic refrigerator. A double stainless steel sink with mixing faucet is located in the island above the engine. A three burner propane stove with oven is found at the aft end of the galley. The aft cabin has a large berth with storage spaces and drawers underneath. The berth’s occupants can recline with open spaces overhead – unlike the aft cabins of many boats of this type. Outboard of the berth is a long shelf with lockers, a set of drawers, and a large hanging locker. At the forward end of the cabin on centerline is a convenient magazine – book rack.
The bridgedeck – a safety feature in heavy seas – becomes a welcome interior space, providing ease of access from the head to the aft cabin. In the forward cabin, the Sabre 402’s hull volume comfortably houses a 6-foot 10-inch long center island berth surrounded by hanging lockers, storage lockers, and ample shelving; also in the forward cabin is a vanity with Corian counter, sink, and mirror. There is storage under the berth. At the bow, the custom cast anchor roller is designed to easily accommodate two anchors. Aft of the stem is the large chain locker which can also house the optional anchor windlass below deck level. Moving aft there are six small and two large deck hatches which allow plenty of light and air to fill the yacht’s interior. Along the sides of the house are eight stainless steel opening ports and two large fixed ports. Two chrome dorades ensure circulation of the interior air when the yacht is at rest.
The AwIgrip finished, triple spreader rig, with aft swept spreaders and rod rigging, is the source of power which drives the performance of the Sabre 402. This mast section was chosen for its light weight and strength. A lighter mast causes the boat to heel and to pitch less, improving performance and adding comfort and safety. Her genoa tracks are placed well inboard for close sheeting angles and superb weather sailing performance. The Sabre 402 has a second set of genoa tracks on the wooden toe rail for use off the wind or when conditions require a more wide open slot between genoa and mainsail. Her cockpit is designed for maximum comfort and security at sea. Unlike many other 40 footers where “picnic” tables have become the most important feature of the cockpit, the crew of the Sabre 402 can always find a place to brace their feet on the face of the seat on the low side. The cockpit shapes required to house these tables typically rob the boat’s interior of much needed aft cabin volume. The bridgedeck at the forward end of the cockpit serves several purposes: it prevents flooding of the interior (in the event that a wave should board the yacht), it provides a well sheltered seat when used with a dodger if the weather is poor, and it allows standing headroom in the passageway from the head to the aft cabin.

Jim Talyor Yacht Designs :  http://www.tayloryachtdesigns.com/090.php

Other JTYD/Sabre designs: Overview | 362 | 402 | 452 | 426 | 386 | Spirit
The resounding success of the Sabre 362 led directly to the development of the Sabre 402, which began later in 1994. At this point in the evolution of Sabre Corp, their in-house engineering staff was busy with their new trawler yacht. As a result, while most of the detail work for the 362 was done in house by Sabre, for the 402 much more of it was done in Marblehead, with Jim doing most of the interior and deck design in addition to the hull shape, rig geometry, and appendage details. Once again the Sabre engineers took responsibility for the laminates and overall structure, as well as the interior woodworking details.
The Sabre 402 shares design DNA with the Taylor 42, a custom race boat launched in 1991 that is still winning races today (see Design #71). The weight of cruising amenities in the 402 replaced that of the inside ballast of the stripped out T-42, and the 402’s stern overhang is a bit shorter, but overall the designs are quite similar. Like her T-42 cousin, the 402 has had a long string of impressive race results, both around the buoys (e.g. Ron Noonan’s perennial winner Wildflower ) and offshore (such as Bill Smith’s Chicago/Mackinac wins in Wooten 2, and Jeffrey Urbina’s class win in the Newport/Bermuda offshore classic with his Il Bodacious. Launched in 1996, the Sabre 402 has also been a big winner in the marketplace, winning Cruising World’s ‘Mid-Sized Cruiser’ and Overall ‘Boat of the Year’ awards in 1997. Sabre went on to build 112 S-402’s over an especially successful 8 year production run.

More Information:

• Sabre 402: A cruiser-racer with accommodations to outdo the competition. [Bob Perry]
• Sabre 402 Brochue
• Sabre Elsa Program
• Perry Design Review

 

Equipment List
Sabre 402 Specifications – Standard Equipment Hull Construction – Single unit, balsa cored, hand-laminated fiberglass of alternate layers of mat knitted biaxial roving. – ISO NPG gelcoat. – Below waterline chopped strand glass and vinylester resin are used as a back-up for ISO NPG gelcoat. – Internal deck to hull joint. – Molded-in double boot and cove stripes. – Bulkheads, berth faces, shelves and floor stringers laminated to hull providing integral, structural strength. – Choice of step or traditional transom. Deck Construction – Single unit, hand-laminated fiberglass with balsa core for stiffness and marine mahogany plywood in lieu of balsa in high stress areas. – The deck is fastened to the hull using stainless steel thru-bolts every 6″ (4″ in way of genoa tracks) – 3M 5200 Polyurethane sealant in hull to deck joint. Steering System – Edson wheel steering with 40″ comfort grip destroyer wheel, pedestal guard, and brake. – Ritchie SP-5 compass mounted in stainless steel binnacle. – Emergency tiller stored in cockpit locker. – Balanced rudder, molded fiberglass bonded to a carbon fiber rudder stock passing through a Tide’s Marine top bearing and a lip seal bearing laminated to the hull. Cockpit – Deep storage locker to starboard. – Molded-in winch handle pockets; coamings angled for comfort. – Solid teak cup holder on pedestal. – Two cockpit scuppers to bronze seavalves. – Stove fuel storage locker in aft lazarette. – Transom boarding ladder with teak treads. Chainplates – Stainless steel, thru-bolted to chainplate bulkheads bonded to the hull. – Grounded to the keel. – Mounted well inboard for optimum sheeting angles. Auxiliary Power – Westerbeke 55A – 4 cylinder fresh water cooled diesel with 2.7-1 reduction gear. – 12-volt 90 amp alternator. – 50 gallon custom aluminum fuel tank, deck filled, shutoff valve, vented and grounded. – Racor fuel filter – water separator. – Raw water intake strainer with wrench. – Remote oil sump drain. – Engine oil drip pan. – Flexible four point engine mount system to minimize vibration and noise. – Engine compartment exhaust blower. – Engine compartment light. – Complete engine access provided by sound and heat insulated removable panels. – Tachometer, hour meter, volt, oil, and temperature gauges are recessed in cockpit face. – Fuel gauge mounted at nav station. – 1-3-8″ Aquamet prop shaft passes through a glassed in log, PSS shaft seal with bronze strut and three blade sailor propeller. Keel – A modern section fin keel cast in lead with antimony added for strength. – Thru-bolted to sump with stainless steel bolts and bronze nuts. Mast – One piece aluminum, keel stepped, Hall Spar mast with triple airfoil spreaders, masthead rig with white Awlgrip finish., – Tri-sect masthead with 3 forward halyard sheaves – Internal main and genoa halyards. – Boom vang lug. – Spare halyard exits. – Pre-wired with radio cable. Boom – Aluminum, white Awlgrip finish. – Internal clew outhaul led aft. – External topping lift. – Two sets of internal jiffy reefing led aft Electrical System – Four 12-volt 110 amp group 31 deep cycle marine batteries – Sealed battery switch. – 110 V shore power system with GFI protection in galley and head. – 50′ shore power cord, – Master AC-DC panels, located in the navigation area, include AC-DC volt and ammeters, marine circuit breakers, and polarity indicator, – All wiring is color coded and tinned and meets USCG standards. – Cabin courtesy lights. Deck Hardware – Inboard and outboard genoa tracks are 1-1-4″ x 3-16″ x 12′ aluminum T-track. – Inboard tracks are recessed into the deck tooling. – Chrome cowl vents. – Stainless companionway handrail. – Outboard tracks supplied with end stops and Lewmar lead blocks – Inboard tacks supplied with end stops and two Lewmar twinsheet lead blocks. – Five part main sheet with Lewmar Ocean Racing blocks led to Harken ball bearing cabin top traveler, and aft to a Lewmar #44 CST two-speed winch. – Custom cast mast collar with provision for halyard and turning block attachment. – Two 10″ 4-bolt cleats forward mid deck and aft. – Self-draining foredeck anchor locker with drain and stainless pad eye to secure end of anchor rode. – Two recessed deck scuppers. – Custom cast mid-rail chock fitted into each toerail. – Pulpit, stern rail, and stanchions custom fabricated stainless steel, thru-bolted with backing plates. – Double lifelines of vinyl coated stainless steel cable with port and starboard boarding gates with braced stanchions. – All lifeline terminals and turnbuckles are swaged stainless steel. – Solid teak handrails and toerails. – 1-3-4″ high solid teak toerails. – Bowrail designed for ease of ground tackle handling. – Custom cast anchor roller. – Halyards, reefs, outhaul and vang, led aft. Winches – All winches Lewmar Ocean Series – Main sheet led to Lewmar #44 CST two-speed. – Main halyard led to Lewmar #44 CST two-speed. – Genoa halyard led to Lewmar #44 CST two-speed – Reefing – two lines led through a double stopper to Lewmar #44 CST two speed winch, mounted on aft cabin top. – Primaries – two Lewmar #54 CST self-tailing winches. – Two 10″ chrome winch handles, one 10″ chrome lock-in. Stem Head – Custom cast anchor roller with integral chocks. Standing Rigging – Headstay: wire size 3-8″ – Backstay: standard rod size – 12 turnbuckle size 5-8″ pin, 1-2″ on split backstay – Standard Navtec Rod sizes as follows: – D1 #12 5-8″ pin, V1D2 #8 1-2″ pin, V1D2D3 #6 7-16″ pin – V1D2D3D4 #17 5-8″ pin – Spreader boots, shroud covers, and turnbuckle covers. Running Rigging – Color coded – Main halyard with headboard shackle. – Genoa halyard with snap shackle. – 7-16″ Dacron braid main sheet. – 9-16″ Dacron braid genoa sheets. – 5-16″ traveler control lines. – 7-16″ jiffy reefing lines. Accommodations – Scandvik polished SS double galley sink. – 6′ 6″ headroom in main and aft areas, with 6′ 4″ headroom in forward sections. – Forward cabin has a 6′ 10″ island berth – Main cabin has two 6′ 5″ settee berths, port berth converts to double. – Aft-cabin with 6′ 10″ full width double berth. – Storage in aft-cabin settee. – Ample drawers in both fore and aft cabins – Flat panel doors throughout. – Contemporary curved head bookrack in aft-cabin. – Large cedar lined hanging lockers in forward and aft cabins. – Optimized area for instrument installation, storage locker space and panel arrangement at the chart table. – Main cabin berthbacks with cabinets port and starboard. – Aft head with separate stall shower. – Forward cabin equipped with vanity sink, mirror, storage lockers, and upholstered seat. – All berths provided with thick foam cushions covered with a durable fabric, zippered for ease of removal and cleaning. – Raritan PHII head. – Lights in hanging lockers. Ventilation and Light – 8 Lewmar polished Ocean Series deck hatches with wooden screens. – 4 main cabin recessed fixed port lights of Marguard Lexan. – 2 chrome dorade vents. – 8 Stainless Steel and 2 polished aluminum opening ports with screens. – Acrylic sliding companionway hatch with fiberglass spray hood and solid teak hatch boards. – Screened hatch boards. Sabre 402 Features – Fully equipped tool kit. – Cockpit locker light. – 4 type ABC fire extinguishers. – Activated carbon water filter. – Bronze flush thru-hulls with bronze seavalves. – Hoses greater than 1″ in diameter are double clamped below waterline. – Double icebox with two lids and front opening door. – Propane 4 burner stove with oven. – Hot and cold pressure water. – Varnished interior cherry finish. – Two coats of sealer only on cabin sole. – Automatic electric bilge pump. – Manual, cockpit mounted bilge pump. – Laminated trim on all counters and shelving. – Ash hull ceilings.
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