Feeling Ripper Off on new Quintrex 3.85

Were you measuring from the outside of the gunwhales, or the width of the hull only, at the widest point?
Maximum beam is from the extreme outside of the gunwhales.

You say that when you got it home, it didn't look as wide as you expected.

Did you look at it before you bought it? If so, what changed to make you think it had shrunk? If not, you should have, that way you wouldn't be as dissapointed.

Is it the correct length?

Mayesy.
That doesn’t sound to good. Get after the manufacture over it, forget the dealer, it’s not his fault and he is only the meat in the sandwich over the matter. Make enough noise and they may offer some free gifts to make you go away. Be wary of the very fine print regarding the “Specifications may be changed without notice”. Poor advertising though I agree.
CliveG NZ .
PS. It’s the rising price of ali you know.

Geoff,
I just Googled Quintrex and there in print on the boat details it says that measurements may vary from that stipulated, or words to that effect.
Sorry mate but It goes to show you can`t trust the glossy brochure or the dealer for the correct info. You must check everything yourself because they cover themselves with the fine print detail.

Mayesy,
Sorry to hear of your new boat not measuring up to the stated specs.and your feeling of being ripped off.
I can relate to your problems.I bought a 3.7h.d.Stessl a few years ago now,which i didnt give a thought to measuring when taking delivery.Once home, i thought it looked a narrower and not as deep as i expected. My suspicions were soon confirmed when i ran the tape over it.I forget the discrepencies in the specifacations now but they were significant. No end of chasing a result from the dealer or manufacturer recieved a satisfactory result.
Despite the boat not meeting the specifacations in the brochure it was a great boat and had years of use from it.This was back when Stessl took over Quintrex for awhile so think it was basically a Quintrex model.You should be able to buy a boat with from a reputable manufacturer with confidence it will meet the advertised specifacations.
Cheers, Tony

I've got 310 and 375 Quintrex Dart tinnys currently and have had no probelms since buying them, I also used to sell Stacer tinnys (rebranded Quinnys) and this is the first time I've ever heard of them being outside specs so drastically.

Alert both the dealer first and tell them you are going straight to the factory but if they wish to join you then jump onboard. That way you can have some clout when you give them a ring/letter. As for 'go-away' gifts hit them up for fuel tank racks, floor and gift vouchers.

As for a 7cm difference I can not see it making a disconcernable difference on a boat of that size (on my 310 maybe???) but to me it does appear like a construction oversight so if it is that important open fire on them but Quintrex are generally a very well built little boat.

Ben

Some manufacturers, marketers, retailers do this sort of thing continually, until someone "takles them on" over it. It is technically a scam in my view, but most people just accept it. I noticed many years ago that the actual viewable screen on CRT computer monitors was nothing like the stated screen size - the tube front might be 14" but with the case covering the edges you can't see anything like 14" - and the working screen area was about 11.5" anyway - anyway, if the goods provided truly do not match the stated specs, you have a "consumer affairs" case at hand.

G'day Mayesy, unfortuatnely what you have experienced is not restricted to Quintrex or any manufacturer specifically. The problem is there is no agreed national standard for hull measurements, and hence suppliers are free to quote whatever measurements they see fit.

I have done a fair bit of research on this topic after buying my own boat (rang all of the major suppliers and asked how they take the measurements etc etc). The results were that almost all had different ways of doing things.

An example is the way hull depth is measured (only Alum. boats use this measurement, fibreglass boats rely on deadrise). Some manufacturers measure from the gunwhale to the deepest point in the forefoot internally, others set the boat on concrete, level it up and drop a tape measure to the ground at the forefoot, others put it on concrete, level it up and measure from the bowsprit to the ground and Stessl it would appear adopt the latter method and even add in the bow rails or anything else in the region above gunwhale height where the measurement is being taken in some cases.

In short, unfortunately you can not rely on the quoted measurements in brochures. The only way to get accurate measurements is to run a tape over everything yourself and set up your own 'national standard' so to speak.

The boat you have bought is a good one, try to put the 6cm out of your mind if you can.

Agree it's frustrating.