The fishing career of Torbay Lass ended in 1938 but she was spared the fate of most of her counterparts and, in 1939, was bought by an Essex gentleman and refitted as a luxury cruiser in Dagenham. Two engines were installed and, following her refit, she cruised the East Coast and the North Sea.

Returning from Scotland in late September 1939, she was ordered to Lowestoft with many other vessels – some being used to “stop” seaplanes landing, others used as accommodation. She was sold to socialite Genesta Hamilton in 1945 for £2,000, an enormous sum in those days and, during this period of ownership, she was renamed the Kenya Jacaranda. In 1951 she was sold to the Bermondsey Sea Cadet Unit at a very favourable price.