The motor cruiser Maris Stella, a EuroBanker 39, was purchased in the Netherlands as a restoration project for the new owner. The vessel was transported to Cardiff where our boat service and repair centre were employed to assess her condition and carry out the following work;
- Strip back to bare wood all varnish work and re-varnish
- Restore the teak decks
- Carry out a full re-spray
- Rebuild the badly damaged stabilisers
- Check over and repair the faulty electrics
- Repair the leaking doorway aft entrance into the wheelhouse
- Fabricate and install a bespoke teak sofa
Over a period of two and a half months the work was completed at the purpose built marine service centre at Cardiff Marine Village. The restoration was project managed by Dave Freemantle our Boatyard Manager.
VARNISHING
The project started with the varnish work being scraped back and timber repaired where necessary throughout the exterior of the boat. The damaged joints were epoxy bonded and then 3 coats of International Polyurethane Wood Sealer were applied, followed by 3 coats of Awlgrip lacquer.
DECKS
The teak decks had been sanded before and most of the plugs had been rubbed away and needed replacing. At the same time each of the 2200 screws were replaced with the next size up. The damaged and cracked corking was routed out and renewed and the damaged planks were cut away and replaced with new teak. All planks were then sanded flat across the entire deck.
RE-SPRAY
There was significant gelcoat crazing in some areas of the hull and flybridge which required some fibreglass repairs. All of the paintwork above the waterline was then sanded flat. A scaffold walkway was erected and a tent built around the boat to be used as a temporary spray booth to manage overspray, thus improving the quality of the finish and health and safety. The whole of the boat was then checked for imperfections and pin-holed. 2 coats of Awlgrip 545 High Build Epoxy Primer were applied all over and the final prep work was done. The Awlgrip top coat was then applied in 3 stages and polished back and a coat of Awlgrip Polymer Sealer was applied all over to obtain a superior finish.
STABILISERS
The stabilisers were known to be badly damaged at time of purchase. They had to be split apart and reshaped. 2 layers of fibreglass were applied all over, filled, faired and copper-coated to match the rest of the hull.
ELECTRICS
The electrics throughout the boat had to be checked, tested and rewired where necessary. In addition to the general wiring this included all the instruments, the air conditioning system and the giro system for the stabilisers.
DOORWAY
There was a large area of damp by the inside of the door to the wheelhouse which had clearly been an issue for a prolonged period. There was dry rot in the interior ply and exterior teak which had to be removed, made watertight and renewed.
BESPOKE TEAK SOFA
Having seen the quality of the finish of the exterior, the owners were keen to ensure the fittings in the interior were of the same high standard and therefore requested a bespoke sofa to be fabricated as a centre piece for the main saloon. The new sofa needed to tie in with the existing interior style whilst also offering an opportunity to disguise the air conditioning unit. The new sofa was carefully measured ensuring the radius of the existing cabinetry was copied.
“Cardiff Marine Services have been absolutely excellent. I bought a boat that was about 30 years old and it needed a lot doing to it and throughout the whole project, Cardiff Marine Services have been absolutely fantastic in term of the quality of the work and the advice given. From where the boat was when I bought it to how it is now, quite honestly I’m over the moon with how it’s gone”. Owner
Find out more information about our boatyard services
