Summary
Swan yachts are like seabirds. Nothing seems to keep them from soaring around the globe. So it was with Atem, the Nautor’s Swan 62 that last year took a break from back-to-back circumnavigations for a significant refit. The nearly 20-year old, 65-footer came to Lyman-Morse in Camden because we are a Nautor’s Swan-authorized service center.
The work included:
- Rod rigging repairs and replacement for Atem’s roughly 85-foot spar.
- Sanding and refinishing of its vast Nautor’s-trademark teak decking.
- Refitting and repair of the rudder bearings on its performance rudders.
- Corrosion abatement on its drop-down bow thruster.
- General cleaning, cosmetic and paint work.
“This boat has always been managed by a single owner, with a young family and a professional skipper, who had just finished a trip around the world,” said Simon Castle, service manager for Lyman-Morse. “Before they went back out for another circumnavigation, we gave this terrific Swan a solid mid-life refit.”
“The work included a spiffy new Awlgrip top-coat in a highly glossy Majestic Blue.”
Here, then, are the highlight work-in-progress photos on Atem before she ships out for another lap around the planet. This was bright work indeed!
Specifications
- loa 65.1'
- beam 17.5'
- draft 10.1'
- displacement 71,650 lbs.
- fuel capacity 160 gallons
- water capacity 300 gallons
- designed by German Frers
- builder Nautor Swan
- model Swan 62
- year 2001
- hull material GRP
- boat engine Yanmar Diesel
- horsepower 110 hp
2019-20 Refit
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Atem arrives at Lyman-Morse at Wayfarer in 2019, after her recent circumnavigation. Note the worn topsides, paint, teak decking, and standing and running rigging.
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Atem prior to work by Lyman-Morse in Camden, Maine.
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Nautor’s expansive signature teak decking before refurbishing. This deck would need some tender loving care by Lyman-Morse.
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Bow thrusters, for all their complexity, are basically cast aluminum parts with a motor. In salt water, such parts corrode. The Lyman-Morse team disassembled the entire unit and found significant damage.
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The rudder sleeve assembly must be carefully fitted to the rudder. Here we see the lower sleeve fully attached to the rudder, laying on its side in the right half of the photo.
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Rudder sleeves come pre-engineered from the parts makers. In this frame, the sleeve is being positioned on the rudder’s stock. The two blue funnels are placed so epoxy can flow down into a gap engineered between the rudder sleeve and rudder itself.
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Here we see both the renovated upper and lower rudder sleeves. The sleeve closest to the rudder itself rests against the bottom of the hull. The sleeve closer to the viewer, sits flush with the boat’s deck. Both sleeves slide into outer housings mounted with high performance, 1/2-inch roller bearings that control the rudder — and this 71,000-pound sloop.
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The first step in restoring an aging deck is to remove the top layer of oxidization with a vacuum-attached 8-inch sander. The process removes the top layer of gray wood and smooths out the small imperfections in the planking and caulking.
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Hardware and certain seams are carefully masked with tape.
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Sanding decks can get surprisingly detailed. Tight passages where the teak meets structures and fittings take extra care. Here we see a close-up of the helm station meeting the overall deck.
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New topcoats must meet strict manufacturers’ guidelines for thickness and quantifiable measures of glossiness. The process begins with recording the thicknesses of the newly applied primer and top coats, as well as collecting data for air temperature, humidity, and surface temperature of the boat.
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Damage in the bow thruster was particularly bad in the in-water propellers and control fittings. The fully restored parts turned out to be surprisingly robust. It’s estimated the cost of a refurbished thruster ran 1/3 of the fee for a new unit.
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Corrosion was also found in the main thruster housing inside the boat. That unit was also stripped, refabbed, and refinished. The entire structure is seen here ready for re-installation.
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Once the Bow thruster was stripped and refaired, it received a new paint job and fittings. This part is now ready for reassembly.
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Proper gloss requires a fair and firm hull, with few imperfections for the paint to pick up. The resulting shine is then measured with a gloss meter that outputs the reflective quality of the a hull as a Gloss Unit, or a GU. Here we see the finished top-coat. Can you guess what the white vertical stripes are? Careful inspection will reveal they are reflections of the shop windows, partially seen on the left of the frame. Atem is bright work indeed!
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After extensive work by Lyman-Morse’s Swan-certified service team, Atem is stunning and ready for new global adventures.
