FairweatherDave
Well-Known Member
toys toys toys....
sit on kayaks
- Thread starter Searush
- Start date
toys toys toys....
FishyInverness
Well-Known Member
However if buying two my strong advice would be to get two that stack together (like the Perception scooters) for ease of transport. My two kayaks are a very imperfect match on the roof rack and tieing them down is an art form. Ideally I'd like a third as my wife finds she cant go off on her own as the boys want them...
I hate what we look like as we tow them behind the boat but keeping the family happy is the price...
(okay, it doesn't make the family any happier....
J-Bars, or straight bars is the answer, allowing you to stand the kayak up on the roof - Also, if you pick up some Kayak straps, you can get a Kayak strapped to the roof in a matter of minutes,I’ve got a set of the little palm ones. However, this weekend I have to try and strap a Ocean Peekaboo Two and a Venture Flex to my Scenic, and I have no J-Bars, so I think I may have to be roping in another car!
TheEcho
Well-Known Member
What about a Gumotex/Innova Twist? They only weigh 7kg excluding paddles,and pack up REALLY small.
http://airkayaks.wordpress.com/2012...-innova-twist-pvc-free-3psi-inflatable-kayak/
I am tempted by one myself - our current cheapie pair of inflatable kayaks are turning into pincushions.
Searush
Well-Known Member
Well, I went off to the cut this afternoon with the mutt & a couple of boats. I didn't get round to testing the folding dinghy (again) but the Perception Scooter got a good airing & none of my repairs leaked at all. Getting on it proved a bit tricky as it is lower than the towpath & there were nettles. 
As a former kayaker, I used the paddle across the back of the seat technique, sit on the paddle (braced on the boat & the bank) & then slide forward into the seat. As soon as I put any weight on it the water came up into the footwells (no bungs fitted) but my seat was dry thanks to the sherry corks.
As stated, despite the drip rings on my quite long paddles, drips were the biggest issue, at least until the dog, standing on the gunwhales, slipped & had to be dragged from the brink of doom back onto the deck. She was clearly very grateful that I had saved her from a swim in the cut, but had put her front paws, head & chest in the water, so shared this experience by shaking herself dry all over me. Now, having bungs in the seat started to become somewhat less help, retaining the water rather than letting it drain away so I spent the rest of the trip sitting in a puddle.
Nevertheless, it paddled & tracked quite well for a short boat, & it turns quickly enough, but the lack of a backrest proved hard. Sitting almost flat with nothing to brace your knees & heels on makes it a bit like riding a scooter rather than a motorbike. You are not "at one" with it, you are simply sitting on top of it.
It's pretty light, like a grp boat & easily carried on your shoulder, but the launch site I chose had a very step path to/from the road & I was glad of the trolley I bought or I would have struggled to get it back up the hill to the car.
I was impressed by all the canal boats I met. Without exception they all slowed to a tickover & gave me plenty of room. It wouldn't have mattered a jot if they had blasted past at speed, as I can use support strokes & can eskimo roll a proper boat, but I guess I just looked to them as tho I would fall off if they had sneezed.
It will be great fun as a play boat in the sea (surfing?), on rivers or lakes, but I doubt I will use it on the cut again. The consequences of falling in are not to be contemplated - even getting out (given the steep sides & soft mud) could be a long winded & exhausting process.
As a former kayaker, I used the paddle across the back of the seat technique, sit on the paddle (braced on the boat & the bank) & then slide forward into the seat. As soon as I put any weight on it the water came up into the footwells (no bungs fitted) but my seat was dry thanks to the sherry corks.
As stated, despite the drip rings on my quite long paddles, drips were the biggest issue, at least until the dog, standing on the gunwhales, slipped & had to be dragged from the brink of doom back onto the deck. She was clearly very grateful that I had saved her from a swim in the cut, but had put her front paws, head & chest in the water, so shared this experience by shaking herself dry all over me. Now, having bungs in the seat started to become somewhat less help, retaining the water rather than letting it drain away so I spent the rest of the trip sitting in a puddle.
Nevertheless, it paddled & tracked quite well for a short boat, & it turns quickly enough, but the lack of a backrest proved hard. Sitting almost flat with nothing to brace your knees & heels on makes it a bit like riding a scooter rather than a motorbike. You are not "at one" with it, you are simply sitting on top of it.
It's pretty light, like a grp boat & easily carried on your shoulder, but the launch site I chose had a very step path to/from the road & I was glad of the trolley I bought or I would have struggled to get it back up the hill to the car.
I was impressed by all the canal boats I met. Without exception they all slowed to a tickover & gave me plenty of room. It wouldn't have mattered a jot if they had blasted past at speed, as I can use support strokes & can eskimo roll a proper boat, but I guess I just looked to them as tho I would fall off if they had sneezed.
It will be great fun as a play boat in the sea (surfing?), on rivers or lakes, but I doubt I will use it on the cut again. The consequences of falling in are not to be contemplated - even getting out (given the steep sides & soft mud) could be a long winded & exhausting process.
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Hydrozoan
Well-Known Member
These have a good quality build IMO, with a tough outer covering on the topsides - though they do weigh about 16lb: http://www.advancedelementskayaks.co.uk/section.php/34/1/firefly (No connection except as a happy user.)
TheEcho
Well-Known Member
Looks good, but doesn't having a separate cover and tubes make it difficult to dry out? I've been put off the mid price Sevlyors by stories of having to put a rubber lining in the car boot and then drag a flapping wet thing through the house to hang up in the back garden - the alternative being it going mouldy.
Hydrozoan
Well-Known Member
Yes, a bit - but we tend to dry them very carefully at the end of the season; a very small amount of moisture in the gap during the season seems to do no harm says Mrs H, who attends to their maintenance. (Well, she wanted kayaking capability and I eventually persuaded her to try an inflatable, not wanting two of our rigids on deck!) I agree with that assessment, and the overall quality of build and the tough covering seem to be holding up well. They do not have a sprayhood, but for our use in sheltered waters that's fine and the company's larger models that do take sprayhoods are much heavier - so for us it's a good compromise, and we can inflate them in less than 5 minutes - much simpler than the Avon/outboard combo.
PS If you haven't seen it, this (non-commercial, Canadian) site may be of interest: http://www.inflatablekayakworld.com/inflatable-kayak-reviews/.
PPS They come with a good bag which IIRC looks proof against a few drips in the boat/car/house.
TheEcho
Well-Known Member
Interesting, thanks. We are actually looking to upgrade both our single pincushion and our tandem pincushion - the tandem gets more use as a boat tender, but Advanced Elements only seem to do tandem in the heavier models. I think we may well continue with the duct tape repairs while hoping that next season will introduce the holy grail of a no hassle light tandem with moveable seats so it could put its extra length to use as a fast solo as well.
Searush
Well-Known Member
can I have my thread back now?
Boreades
Well-Known Member
Well done Sir!
Re "the lack of a backrest proved hard. "
Perhaps I'm spoilt, but the bucket seats on my Malibu do have a backrest, and it's adjustable to suit size and comfort. Do you have eyelets that a seat & backrest can clip onto?
The first relevant page I could find (with no preference to them as a retail source)
http://www.kayaksandpaddles.co.uk/c...oductpages/sit-ons/sit-on-top-accessories.htm
Re "the lack of a backrest proved hard. "
Perhaps I'm spoilt, but the bucket seats on my Malibu do have a backrest, and it's adjustable to suit size and comfort. Do you have eyelets that a seat & backrest can clip onto?
The first relevant page I could find (with no preference to them as a retail source)
http://www.kayaksandpaddles.co.uk/c...oductpages/sit-ons/sit-on-top-accessories.htm
FishyInverness
Well-Known Member
Of course
Excellent review Searush - The Scooter is a little more of a dynamic hull shape, it seems to follow the mould for true kayaks so your experience with it being difficult for in/outs sounds true to form. The ocean kayaks tend to have a bit more of a solid slab with keel arrangement and as a result you can actually paddle board them standing and the likelihood of coming off is minimal - then again trying to retrieve my Ocean up steep banks is a quick trip to a hernia, and seeing as you expressed that the retrieval of the scooter was difficult, it seems a fair trade off.
Nice real world test, thanks for that, enjoyed reading it!
If your preference is for more hip control as per sit-ins, I'd heartily recommend either purchasing, or making up, some thigh straps, they really make a difference.
wully1
Well-Known Member
J-Bars, or straight bars is the answer, allowing you to stand the kayak up on the roof - Also, if you pick up some Kayak straps, you can get a Kayak strapped to the roof in a matter of minutes,I’ve got a set of the little palm ones. However, this weekend I have to try and strap a Ocean Peekaboo Two and a Venture Flex to my Scenic, and I have no J-Bars, so I think I may have to be roping in another car!
The best option by a mile is a Karitec easy load roof rack...get a decent trolley and yer sorted..( decent trolley is very hard to find, most are junk...)
FairweatherDave
Well-Known Member
Of course
If your preference is for more hip control as per sit-ins, I'd heartily recommend either purchasing, or making up, some thigh straps, they really make a difference.
Funny you mention that. This thread prompted me to fit some 12mm rope thigh straps to my Scooter to try out next time, (based on a google image search). Rope burns coming up...
Searush, I'm guessing you noticed the indentations in the footwell to use as a kind of outside footrest, nothing like as solid compared to a sit-in I would agree. The back rest issue I reckon you might be able to innovate on, certainly a lot of people use them although I don't largely as I'm only ever in the thing for half an hour at a time.
Also I would be interested in your repairing techniques and materials, just in case!
FishyInverness
Well-Known Member
If I can leap in with mine as well - I use the repair rod for minor scratches and gouges, it's about a 5mm flexible rod that you can heat with a heat gun and push into any scrapes to fill them, anything bigger I tend to use a mix of the repair rod and cover it with Sugru Mouldable rubber.
FairweatherDave
Well-Known Member
Thanks Fishy, that got me googling. I know polyethylene is something not much sticks to.
Searush
Well-Known Member
I'm planning to get one for half the lowest price on that site.
Searush
Well-Known Member
The damage to mine was due to it falling off a roof rack & the drain hole tubes were cracked by the hull "popping" as it bounced. So it was very hard to get a heat gun inside the drains accurately. I bought a tube of !"Mr Sticky's poly bonder" a 2 part "glue" that is supposed to chemically bond to the poly. It didn't, but it did stick quite well & set to be like the poly;.
Hydrozoan
Well-Known Member
Of course, since you've found your needle ...
But apologies, and I hope it's at least nice to see that there have been several 'virtual' kayaks drifting alongside! I had read your "Log from the Cut" but decided not to say "I told you so" about the drips, having been surprised that you had ever hoped to remain dry in a sit-on when accompanied by a dog. I think the lack of a backrest would be a major drawback for me, but I hope you have a lot more fun with it.FairweatherDave
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the detail Searush. I can imagine the access difficulty. I have used a soldering iron and milk bottle top in the past . Reckon you have got a bargain given the normal second hand price on e bay.
Meantime I'm wondering whether stuffing some closed cell foam might be a scupper stopper solution, thinking of those learning to swim banana things as a source?
. Reckon you have got a bargain given the normal second hand price on e bay.Meantime I'm wondering whether stuffing some closed cell foam might be a scupper stopper solution, thinking of those learning to swim banana things as a source?
Greenheart
Well-Known Member
Do you mean a 'noodle'? Brilliant idea, they're just the right size for me to stuff my leaky transom-drains with. Where are they sold? I searched last year for another purpose, without success.
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