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Sea Aztec PDF Print E-mail
Written by Louise Busby   
Tuesday, 20 October 2009 13:26

Jon Vander-Molen took on more than he bargained for when he bought the 1968 prototype of the Ocean 37.  She was a decaying houseboat when he bought her in Horning in 2001, and Jon estimated the renovations and modifications would take no more than two years. After many thousands of hours labour over seven and a half years he finally launched Sea Aztec in April this year. 

Read the fascinating story of her history and this epic renovation in the Christmas 2009 edition of Sweeping Statements. 

Click the images to see bigger versions and read Jon's detailed explanations of the work involved. 

  • Lifting boat for transport home, before. Shows boat condition, at Horning, as its being prepared for lifting onto road transport. It did still actually run and was kept on the water for a month after purchase. This was to get to know what worked and what didn't with regards to the installation and the layout. Didn't dare jump about on the roofs though!
  • Aft cabin port quarter, before. Shows old sheathing and plywood removed to reveal extent of problem. The locker above, sundeck floor beams, plywood beneath teak deck, aft deck beams all required replacing.
  • Aft cabin port quarter, later. Shows whole area reconstructed and awaiting west system epoxy sheathing, fairing, painting, new teak capping and refitting of the re chromed stanchions. New teak step not yet fitted.
  • Aft cabin towards stern, before. Shows original dressing table, starboard berth viewed looking into the starboard transom corner.
  • Aft cabin towards stern, after. Shows this area finished but before it has its carpet, bedding, blinds etc. The drawers are very deep and long, the cupboards (Media centre inside) all slide out for access to areas behind. There is an escape hatch above the well set-back mirror.
  • Chart table. Shows area where structural work was needed as the bulkhead (can see trees outside) and the main longitudinal deck beam, all traverse deck beams, plywood deck base etc. all required replacing.
  • Rotating cocktail cabinet. Shows view in the direction of the chart table of finished work. This original cabinet was restored and repositioned further aft. It was originally used as the lower helm seat and made starboard engine maintenance a problem (see engine in boat shot).
  • Forward cabin roof, before. Shows the condition of the roof beams, most of the beams would disintegrate with bare hands and had a soggy decaying wood smell.
  • Forward cabin roof, later. Shows the new plywood roof with the sheathing process started.
  • Galley, before. Shows the galley area with problems in every possible direction. The bulkhead that separates it from the aft cabin had decayed (can see into the aft cabin) so had the longitudinal main deck beam and all traverse deck beams. The ceiling and stairs areas, complete side of superstructure etc. all need replacing.
  • Galley, after. Shows the nearly complete galley, with teak units, under side deck lighting and a cupboard opposite the sink. Also shows view of stairs and settee upholstery before they got the treatment.
  • Main heads, before. Shows into the main heads compartment but with the bulkhead between it and the aft cabin removed. This area was a total disaster and every associated part was rebuilt.
  • Main heads, after. This compartment has a domestic sized shower tray and over 7ft of head room. It has an electric WC and good sized washbowl. It is also wider than before as the new bulkhead was set further aft.
  • Port saloon window, before. Shows saloon roof and window area on port side looking aft towards the galley area. The roof was totally decayed and required demolition.
  • Port saloon window, later. Shows progress with the new roof. The timber for all the frames is mahogany, bit heavy really, but I had a job lot. Shot also shows the framing for the engine removal hatch. The original roof had been partially framed for a hatch but the roof was constructed without one. There was no way for a complete engine to be removed.
  • Rebuild in garage. Both engines were stripped down to their absolute barest in my garage. It took six weeks to rebuild them. The important bits were in surprisingly perfect health. They had been completely and professionally rebuilt to the highest standard, at huge cost to a previous owner. Most of the parts were as new and the engines hadn’t even been fully run in. I bought a spare pair of engines but only swapped a few components.
  • Heat exchanger. Shows the typical condition of most of the exchangers
  • Running engine. This engine was fired up just laying on a pallet, they run so smoothly that they don’t move about. The shot shows the engine actually running. The recirculation system is not in place hence the surface water. With the cooling system properly connected both engines were run for several hours before going back into the boat.
  • Engine in boat. Shows rocker cover removed on starboard engine. Originally this engine had a lot of furniture fixed above it. This must have made access a real problem. The cylinder head had also been recently taken off. Previously, someone must have thought they had a head gasket leak or a similar problem but it was a perforated exhaust manifold that caused this ingress of water.
  • Sea Aztec's first berth, after. Shows boat on the launch day, 1/4/09, at the Woodbridge Tidemill Yacht Harbour, Suffolk. Work is still ongoing, the most recent job was to fit a pantograph wash/wiper system to the upper folding screens. She's a little nose heavy at the moment due to the forward cabin installation, forward holding tank, bow thruster, upgraded anchor and chain. The fact that the engines are further forward than on a production boat installation doesn't help. Perhaps this is why I found lead ingots packed against the transom!
Last Updated ( Saturday, 27 February 2010 11:08 )
 
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