We started making sails in Camden in the 1980s. Much of our work was centered around servicing and replacing sails for many of the schooners in the Maine Windjammer fleet. Since that time, we’ve broadened our scope, incorporating practical and traditional ideas into making small boat and cruising boat sails for customers around the United States and Canada.
Although we respect the refinements of traditional sailmaking skills; hand sewn grommets, hand sewn boltropes and narrow panels, we talk with every customer about what details are best for their application. We understand that sails are expensive. We help make the choices that are durable, affordable and appropriate without “gilding the lily”.
There are no lack of capable, modern sailmakers to choose from today, either locally or on the web. What distinguishes Gambell and Hunter Sailmakers is our appreciation of an owners passion for his or her classic boat, whether it’s a Shellback Dinghy, a Muscongus Bay Sloop, or a 70 foot passenger schooner. We offer detail and durability to our contemporary cruising boat customers as well.
From the photos it’s clear that we’re not high performance sailmakers catering to racers. We don’t offer laminated fabrics or radial cuts. We do use our sail design software however, to insure our sail shapes are efficient and appropriate to your conditions, particularly for our cruising boat customers. Whether with the computer, or cut on the floor on our hands and knees, we design and build all of our sails “in house”.
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We’re a small shop that for more than 30 years has taken on a wide range of unique projects for traditional style boats. We’ve worked with many unusual sailors and made many wonderful friends in the process. Give us a call if you think we might be the right sailmakers for you.
©2021 Gambell and Hunter Sailmakers
16 Limerock Street, Camden Maine. 04843 207-236-3561