Brand new tender has torn stitching

[shoc]

I bought a new tender last week (Aqua Marina) and the tubing down by the floor has torn stitching, see photo attached.

Its holding air pressure fine but it doesn't look right - anyone seen this before? I've contacted the online shop that I bought it and am awaiting a reply from them

Any advice?

 

[RichardS]

They will either change it or give you a full refund.

Richard

 

[[70521]]

Its the sellers responsibility. Get them to sort it out.

 

[shoc]

Yes absolutely the seller has to replace/refund...it only arrived a few days ago!

Would I be right in assuming the stitching is a key part of the assembly? I'm guessing that the glue/adhesive is whats holding the air pressure for now

 

[Caraway]

That is rubbish. You should reject it and get a refund. (A replacement may have a similar defect) You have 14 days with an online purchase.
Don't fall for them telling you that you have to pay the return carriage.
Act quickly, don't wait for a reply. Phone them
If this is the correct company their T&Cs say

If the Buyer claims or detects a defect in the goods, the Buyer will seek prior approval and return those goods to the Seller or, if the goods are retained by the Buyer, indemnify and keep the Seller indemnified against all liability and claims which may arise out of or incidental to the defect.

And

The seller will only accept goods being returned by customers if prior consent has been given by the seller. In the event of wishing to return goods customers must contact the seller to obtain a 'goods return note number' that must then be attached in an appropriate manner to the goods. The seller reserves the right to refuse to accept goods being returned by a buyer. In cases where the seller does agree to accept a return the seller reserves the right to charge a handling fee not exceeding 50% based on the invoice price of the goods.

AquaMarine > Terms and Conditions

Your rights are enshrined in law, but if you can deal with it in a reasonable manner with the vendor, it can save time and hassle.

 

[dankilb]

We work with Aqua Marina in our watersports business. If you don’t get any joy from the retailer - try their UK distributor at marineandoutdoor.co.uk

They know all the retailers and are helpful.

As an aside, I’m keen to hear what these tenders are like (as I can get them through the business!). The manufacturer are likely the world’s largest for inflatable watercraft (by volume). The products are very good. But this latest generation of PVC and dropstitch technology relies on quite a ‘highly strung’ design. We’ve had some equipment damaged by what we suspect are things as simple as compartments being (over)-inflated in the wrong order. Following the instructions can be more critical than you’d imagine/hope (not suggesting the OP caused this at all).

In short, I worry about how they’d fair after a few years of being dragged up beaches… but I’m excited by the lightweight, high performance, comparatively low-cost designs.

 

[pvb]

That is rubbish. You should reject it and get a refund. (A replacement may have a similar defect) You have 14 days with an online purchase.
Don't fall for them telling you that you have to pay the return carriage.
Act quickly, don't wait for a reply. Phone them
If this is the correct company their T&Cs say



And


AquaMarine > Terms and Conditions

Your rights are enshrined in law, but if you can deal with it in a reasonable manner with the vendor, it can save time and hassle.

Not that company. The OP said he has bought an Aqua Marina dinghy - Aqua Marina – Wonder is All-Around

They sell through a dealer in Northants.

 

[dankilb]

And on this:

I'm guessing that the glue/adhesive is whats holding the air pressure

That’s correct. It’s the glued seams that maintain the construction and hold air pressure. Very little, if any, stitching is used in the construction of most of the high-PSI watercraft (iSUPs etc.), for comparison (excluding the drop-stitch material of course).

AFAIK AM only use all-PVC construction (no hypalon) and the most common seam is a sort of PVC-‘taped butt joint’ which is glued and heat sealed.

Leaks have occurred on our kit where seams are stressed, worn, or otherwise fail. I haven’t really seen the same with hypalon/rubber seams. On the plus side, they’re easy to successfully patch-repair with the supplied PVC repair material and Polymarine 2-part.

In your photo, I’m guessing the seal is formed by that seam which also appears integral to the floor-tube join. The overlap indicates good overkill in the join and therefore the seal.

The stitching is likely only into the top layer of the PVC laminate and only there to maintain the shape somehow (although that’s only my uneducated guess).

It obviously shouldn’t fail like that! I’m sure their tech guys over in Fengxian will want to take a look, as these are new models AFAIK.