Project update Taeke Hadewych at VMG
Rebuilding the interior of Taeke Hadewych has started. This refit is a close collaboration with designer Olivier van Meer, who is involved in every step of the way. On his request, we are doing this refit in different phases, compartment by compartment. The idea is to keep as many traditional parts as possible, so we disassembled everything step by step. Though the idea was to save a lot, we ended up removing pretty much everything in the boat.
Old school craftsmanship
The Taeke Hadewych is a well-known yacht with lots of history. Working on a yacht like this is where craftsmanship really stands out. It is a different kind of craftsmanship, truly ‘old school’. The type of project you get to work on once in a lifetime. That one project that teaches you the most valuable things to learn in yacht building. Foreman Eschwin has worked on one project like this before, many years ago. The lessons learned working on that boat, brought him to where he is now.
Challenges
During this refit process, we faced a few challenges. The first one being the absence of references and sketches. Olivier has a clear vision of what should happen, but how to build it is up to VMG. Nothing in the Taeke Hadewych is straight, so it’s a matter of constantly measuring and checking each element. We also had to bring back symmetry in the boat after the extra hatches had been placed by Super Duplex Hulls.
Insulation
Insulation was an important part of this refit. The Taeke already used to have insulation, but we gave it an update to protect him from all possible weather conditions. The old insulation was removed and we added a damp proof insulating layer to the new insulation. Since everything has to pass through the small entrance of the boat, we could not work with the standard sheets of insulation. Instead, everything had to be brought in in small pieces.
Exterior
On the exterior of the boat, we treated and derusted all spots that were open, applied special primers and painted them off. Every single spot has now been covered again. We finished the (new) deck hatches and are currently working on building up filler on all welded spots. The special transparent dome, which is located on the coach roof, was designed especially for the Taeke Hadewych. It enables the sailor to oversee the sea in heavy sailing conditions. The dome itself turned out to be custom made, which made finding a replacement more difficult than expected. We eventually found a company that can make a new dome and it’s currently being made. We can’t wait to put it back on!
Interior
The entire interior is under construction and will be rearranged completely. The only thing staying in the exact same place is the table, which will be made out of the original table that was there. Most of the interior has to be assembled inside the boat as well, due to the small entrance that it has to fit through. We are reusing all solid wood that we took out of the boat in an early stage. The same goes for the locks we disassembled. Keeping and reusing those elements really keeps the ‘soul’ in the Taeke Hadewych. We paint the entire interior by hand, with a paintbrush. Painting by hand gives depth and really brings out the traditional elements of the Taeke Hadewych.
We are proud to perform the refit of this special yacht and are excited to see the end result!
