The makeover of an Australian iconic yacht - B52

by Daniel Farmer on 18 Sep 2014 Keen sailor Daniel Farmer first spotted his dream yacht, a Sydney 41 for sale two years ago but with a Duncanson 35 and a Reinell 203ls bowrider in possesion, the dream had to wait.

Luckily Daniel and his patrner Kym Lincolne were able to sell their two boats and with extra money in hand were able to throw down the coin on 'B52' a legendary Australian iconic yacht.

Daniel and Kym took possesion of B52 in June this year from Paul and Sylvia D'Olier from Coffs Harbour. However the elderly looking racer needed a bit of cosmetic love after being used a sail training vessel for more than five years, so Dan and regular bowman 'Rocky' sailed their new prise back to Brisbane dodging a few whales along the way.

After a month at East Coast Marina it was time for the makeover, which the team decided to do at Rivergate Marina on the Brisbane River- one of the very few shipyards that would allow them to spray the boat themselves.

Regular bowman Rocky was called upon for some assistance again and for the fun of constructing an airtight spray booth after the yacht was lifted from the water and pressure washed.

Next came the sanding and removal of the old graphics made easier with nine caramel wheels, sanding, 17 rolls of masking tape, sanding and more sanding. After the International antifoul was applied the topsides were ready for primer and on it went. What next? Rain, so before the topcoat went on the team enjoyed remasking the whole boat and were finally able to apply the DNA Custom Paints 'Carbon Eclipse' basecoat and three coats of DNA Diamond Clear.

That was just the basecoat, Dan was determined this latest version of B52 would actually resemble the iconic plane so he set about airbrushing rivets and bullet holes onto the freshly painted hull.

Around 800 individually airbrushed rivets were applied by Dan and Rocky plus the custom logo on the bow, then three more coats of Diamond Clear went on top. Not suprisingly the finished hull looks pretty slick.

The result is amazing. The DNA Custom paint is a zuryllic pearl and changes in every different angle of light. We are so happy with the finished job. Not only does this new hull move faster through the water with her sleek coating, we have a genuine head turner that is race ready.

Dan says 'The main hurdle he faced was under budgeting for the job' which took 12 days in total, but with lots of help from his gal Kym, Rocky, Mick from Scaffolding Australia, Brock, Ciaron and all the team at Rivergate Marina. We sincerely thank you all and look forward to taking you on some great ocean experiences

Dan would especially like to thank his girl Kym for without her his dream would still be just that.