Swivelfish

Main things to check are: Hull condition, Trailer condition, Motor-condition and hours if poss. 2 stroke 50+ should keep you out of trouble in a tin hull. A 4 stroke would be awesome, they're very reliable but heavier. You can get your local marine mechanic to do a pre-purchase inspection for peace of mind. Good advice from others re: actual vs anticipated usage here too. Good Luck! BOAT - Bring On Another Thousand!

I’d look at a 490 if you’re potentially loading a couple of mates with ya. I saw a topender Quintrex 490 SC on Facebook marketplace (cairns) for 24k. 4 stroke are awesome, even if they have a fail, limp mode has always got me home. Good advice here also to get the biggest motor you can for the hull. the Quintrex millennium hills are bloody wicked too, dry riding and smooth in chop. renegade is also a good option as stated 👍🏼 cheers!

I’ve used em heaps in NZ waters, get a size that suits the length of your boat, they are sold based on boat length in NZ. I used the same type of rope as my anchor for deploying it (soft warp) 5-10m should be ok, I use a snap carabiner to attach it to the vessel and they should come with a ‘lift rope’ so u can empty them when you haul it back in. I tie off depending on the running current, sometimes at the bow other times at the stern. 5m Quintrex cuddy. They can Be a PITA if you’re bring in a fish around the Drogue and yeah…don’t drive off with it deployed…as many have already said 😆…great way to wreck your prop bush…( yep..I’ve done it !)

I’m in NZ and my call sign (same as your rego ID numbers I think)is the main identifier for my boat, heaps of boats have the same name, but I have learned not to give my boats a hard to understand name..just in case the shit hits the fan and I need to repeat boat name and call sign on VHF during an event. cheers!

I’ve been trawling fb sometimes see some nice ones 👍🏼

Thanks everyone for the wicked feedback, advice and of course a freight company I can talk to...wicked job fellas. I’m from cairns, I’ve been living in NZ since 96...but now it’s time to come home

I’ve been watching prices for a while in oz for similar boats and tbh they’re more expensive than I paid over here, but at least I can weigh up my options now, which is awesome! Cheers

I’m really grateful for the lead here mate. I’ll be following it up in the morning!

Thanks buddy, will look into it! Cheers heaps.

hiya. I’m trying to find good quality information on costs, taxes etc for shipping a vessel from Auckland to QLD (cairns if possible). I’ve tried endless websites and still don’t really have qualitative info. Can anyone recommend a freight company who could give me all the costs and manage the freight? Thankyou! Boat is a 475 bay ranger caprice, cuddy on a redco.

I’m in NZ, I bought a Quintrex cuddly, since I am a bit rough on my stuff, tie up to rock wharves etc, so don’t want the hassle of trying to protect glass. The quinnie ride is similar to glass...happy with my choice 🙂

I replaced the old GME in my Quintrex with an Icom m304-fixed VHF , I initially installed a uniden fixed VHF, which crapped itself really fast, I chose the icom for its display, which is uncomplicated, easy to read at a glance or ‘distance’ and quick response SOS button. I kept my uniden handheld 5w transmittable for my ditch kit. im in NZ, east coast, Auckland cheers!

I Am no expert but I’ve seen a few cuddy conversions here in NZ. It seems to be quite tricky to get the balance right on the conversions I’ve seen. Front heavy, vs back heavy vs centre point etc...I used to run around in an open boat with canopy, clears etc...but ended up buying a Quintrex cuddy for the protection And certainly don’t regret getting it..perfectly balanced for the rough shit we sometimes get over here on the east coast. Worth checking out tho if u love your hull, it it will change once it’s converted. Hope this helps. Tight lines!

Damn! looks like a Quintrex 475 bay ranger caprice...lucky the keel is protected by a solid ally I bar..... I have the same boat..it would survive :)

Tack weld sounds perfect! My mate recommended giving the bolt a 'gentle' bash with a hammer to bend it slightly...hard to steal, but also hard for you to upgrade later I guess! I would stick to marine lock-nuts to combat any salt corrosion etc.

I had similar rust spots appear after I drilled some rivets out of my livie tank. Quintrex too. I figured I hadn't cleaned up well enough,I'd be interested to know how people get rid of them too!

Nice project! A mate of mine had a similar tinny in cairns, he had a 25hp and that did us pretty good for beach hopping, river running and cruising inshore. Personally i would keep the framework up front and build around it for anchor well, storage etc. the leads out of cairns can give you a pretty good run for your money if you feel the need to test her out! Cheers!

Good questions. I learned the ropes in a 12 ft tinny with a 15hp up in cairns, so mostly calm seas etc. i am now based in auckland and do regular trips in a 455 quinnie with my mate, 2 up is awesome, 3 is ok. 4 is a squeeze. Storage up front is sufficient for most outings. Get some mate to go with you the first few times. We go 15k offshore easily. Good info on this thread, get the max hp. A 4 stroke will give you the reliability but is heavier motor than 2 stroke, i had a 16ft fyran with a two stroke 60 on the back and it was awesome, not just for speed, but the ability to shoot out of potentially tricky situations. Get the safety gear. Lifies especially for the kids.good firm fit required. I have the old 475 bay ranger caprice with cuddy, its bloody awesome but not as easy to manhandle as the boat u r looking at. I think u will love it, but get a mate to show u the ropes ????

Have you checked out balex systems? http://www.balexmarine.com a mate of mine had them on a maclay boat, here in nz...he's a 'senior'...and he loved it!

Hi, i had simlar issues with a 250, i took it in and they found that some part had failed, not a big fix, about 60 bucks, worth getting it checked and without sounding like a tosser..presume u have got it on internationale settings eh. Good luck mate.

Imo quintrex make the best live bait tanks...! it might cost a tad more than a bucket, but well worth the investment, since you get an ergonomic bait board too.

Would be interested to know if u fixed this now? And what the issue was!

Hiya, boat info is the best i have found. It is tricky to work out how to use it, but you can download pages as pdfs from the site. From memory you can download pages in batches, so there is a limit to how many u can download at any one time. You can bring up a window which shows mini previews of the pages in sequence and u select and download from there. I cant remember what the navigation was, but also FYI the 2 merc dealers i have used here in nz both use boat info. the info on the site is priceless, u just gotta take the time to select and dl the sections you want in batches. Patience and good broadband is all u need! good luck

Cheers bud, willing to try everything!