That IS a VERY valid point. In this case it came down to education
about some of the Beneteau line.

Education, or just buying into the advertising hype?

More like owner, reviewer, surveyor hype. Working for a full service
yard means I can get the straight dope on a lot of boats. See below.

but said the interior is crap compared to my boat.
Was your boat built in South Carolina or France? Could that be a
factor?

Ahhh. Either you know something more than you're indicating or it's a
lucky shot. 35s5 interiors were indeed made in overseas and to a much
higher standard. I only wish the 36.7 had the same quality or even the
bigger Firsts.

happen to like Beneteaus in general. I've never been a
Beneteau-basher.

I'm sorry to say that I'm still a Benny basher of sorts. I think the
newer boats have quality control issues and poorly fit interiors.
Design wise they are excellent. It's the execution I'm less than
thrilled with. I won't defend bad boats just because they carry the
same label of MY boat. Beneteau should improve quality to match Hunter,
who has made big improvements, even if you don't like their designs.

If you were honest
you'd have to admit that your boat is not in the same league as a
Wauquiez,
Sweden, J-Boat, Swan, or many others costing far more.

I don't know enough to to comment on the Wauquiez...have only looked at
one, Sweden quality is variable and the cabin sucks for anyone over 6
feet. J boat is no where near the quality and problem free nature of
the 35s5. J-Boat hulls are a disaster and wet decks are common. Don't
even both citing racing as a cause. J34c's are know for problems and
they are for the same market at the 35s5. But only two 35s5's were
found (by me) to have deck problems and both were in small areas due to
a mast drop and poor aftermarket hardware installation. As you know,
the 35s5 hull is NOT cored. The rig is rod rigging and the chainplates
are FAR superior to J-Boat's system on their boats of the late 80's and
early 90s. Maxprop, I don't think you realize that Beneteau has had
some above average boats score higher than others...among them the 345
and 35s5. A Swan is a true semi custome boat with a level of quality
equalled by few...along with the price. Talking with Surveyors and
yards teaches a person that the differences between a Catalina 350 and
a Tartan 3500 are not a big as Tartan would hope to have you believe.
The 35s5 is well regarded in Europe as an offshore racer/cruiser and
has very few reported problems. The ex charter versions appear to have
stood up well according to owners.
As far as Hunter or Catalina...while it's popular to bash them as well,
they're really not much different from the Tartan either when it comes
to real world quality differences. Any of these boats can generally be
sailed anywhere with some simple modifications and it's done all the
time.

RB
35s5
NY