Inflatable canoes. Or folding??
Discussion
Anyone know about these? I'm after something for messing about on flat water with the kids on holidays as we now have a motorhome and getting 20kg of canoe onto the roof is a bit of a tall order. Something inflatable will go inside...
They go from £30 (presumably little more than a pointy inflatable dinghy?) to £400
Also does anyone know about the folding options?
They go from £30 (presumably little more than a pointy inflatable dinghy?) to £400
Also does anyone know about the folding options?
I have one similar to this:
http://www.google.co.uk/shopping/product/136547124...
cost a bit more so maybe its a bit more hardy, fine for 2 people or adult plus child, with just one person the front is a bit light. Fine for gentle paddling but you wouldnt want to go too far, i'd say perfect for what you need.
http://www.google.co.uk/shopping/product/136547124...
cost a bit more so maybe its a bit more hardy, fine for 2 people or adult plus child, with just one person the front is a bit light. Fine for gentle paddling but you wouldnt want to go too far, i'd say perfect for what you need.
We've got a sevylor 2 man jobbie, was about £100.
All we could do was spin round in circles on the lake. Obviously this was due to the wife's inability to paddle correctly but this theory was kind of disproved when she totally stopped paddling and I still couldn't keep the thing in a straight line.
A £15 skeg from ebay returned marital harmony it has totally transformed an uncontrollable canoe.
All we could do was spin round in circles on the lake. Obviously this was due to the wife's inability to paddle correctly but this theory was kind of disproved when she totally stopped paddling and I still couldn't keep the thing in a straight line.
A £15 skeg from ebay returned marital harmony it has totally transformed an uncontrollable canoe.
Cheers guys, currently eyeing this up: http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/sevylor-colorado-kayak...
Bill said:
Cheers guys, currently eyeing this up: http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/sevylor-colorado-kayak...
That's cracking - WANT!What I want to do is explore rivers - anyone know how I go about finding out about the legalities and practicalities of same, as well as which rivers are worth paddling up and down and best places to put the canoe in the water?
Would happily make it up as I go along - I'm no stranger to things nautical - but always best to do a bit of fact-finding first.
Hi,
I sell the Sevylors, as well as the Z-Pro kayaks, Point 65 sectional kayaks and Ocean Kayak, so any questions please fire away!
I’ve had the Sevylor Colorado, and whilst it’s good, the Z-Pro Tango TA200 is an improvement on it – better valves, better seats. If I were to buy another one however, I’d buy the Z-Pro Flash. Available in a single or a double, you inflate it to a much higher pressure so it’s a lot more rigid. At exhibitions I demonstrate it by putting a each end of the kayak on a chair and jumping on the kayak in the middle. It’s a really good bit of kit if you can stretch your budget a bit further. Also, as they’re the PVC construction, rather than having a canvas outer skin with inflatable chambers of the Colorado/Tango, there’s no need to let them dry off before folding them up.
There’s no doubting a solid kayak would be better on the water, less likely to be blown around by the wind, track better and be faster, but for most people, the inflatables are great for the job. Especially when you are away on holiday and have bikes on the roof of the car for example. I used to use my inflatable kayak as a tender when I had my RIB. The inflatables are good in white water, particularly the high pressure Flash range. Here's a good video of a chap on a Z-Pro Flash along with someone else in the Sevylor equivalent: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uC-SwDo3g4
Just remember to give yourself enough time to hose the inflatable kayak down and let it dry off properly before putting it away.
The Point 65 sectional kayaks are pretty good, as you can break them down into parts and therefore fit them inside a caravan or motorhome. It also allows you to use them as a single or a double.
Let me know if you have any further questions. Further details here: http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes-and-kayaks/z-pr... and here: http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes-and-kayaks/poin...
I've supplied a few happy PH'ers with them
Dan
I sell the Sevylors, as well as the Z-Pro kayaks, Point 65 sectional kayaks and Ocean Kayak, so any questions please fire away!
I’ve had the Sevylor Colorado, and whilst it’s good, the Z-Pro Tango TA200 is an improvement on it – better valves, better seats. If I were to buy another one however, I’d buy the Z-Pro Flash. Available in a single or a double, you inflate it to a much higher pressure so it’s a lot more rigid. At exhibitions I demonstrate it by putting a each end of the kayak on a chair and jumping on the kayak in the middle. It’s a really good bit of kit if you can stretch your budget a bit further. Also, as they’re the PVC construction, rather than having a canvas outer skin with inflatable chambers of the Colorado/Tango, there’s no need to let them dry off before folding them up.
There’s no doubting a solid kayak would be better on the water, less likely to be blown around by the wind, track better and be faster, but for most people, the inflatables are great for the job. Especially when you are away on holiday and have bikes on the roof of the car for example. I used to use my inflatable kayak as a tender when I had my RIB. The inflatables are good in white water, particularly the high pressure Flash range. Here's a good video of a chap on a Z-Pro Flash along with someone else in the Sevylor equivalent: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uC-SwDo3g4
Just remember to give yourself enough time to hose the inflatable kayak down and let it dry off properly before putting it away.
The Point 65 sectional kayaks are pretty good, as you can break them down into parts and therefore fit them inside a caravan or motorhome. It also allows you to use them as a single or a double.
Let me know if you have any further questions. Further details here: http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes-and-kayaks/z-pr... and here: http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes-and-kayaks/poin...
I've supplied a few happy PH'ers with them
Dan
Edited by zed4 on Thursday 25th April 14:43
I have a Feathercraft Katsalano S, which I bought at the Hamburg boat show back in 1996.
I worked on a large yacht at the time, and I kept it in my cabin. In the 6 years I was on board that particular ship I paddled it all over the world, North Germany in winter with camping gear, Alaska, New Zealand, Caribbean, Florida Keys, you name it and it's probably been there. It's still as good as the day I bought it.
I find the skin on frame kayaks paddle better, as they have some flex, and seem to slither through the water, rather than slap like a solid boat.
I don't realy rate the inflatables. A bit of wind and you'll be gone. I think of them as nothing more than a toy, and I certainly wouldn't use one on the sea.
However, I think you may balk at the cost of a Feathercraft. Unless you want something that will last a lifetime.
http://feathercraft.com/
I worked on a large yacht at the time, and I kept it in my cabin. In the 6 years I was on board that particular ship I paddled it all over the world, North Germany in winter with camping gear, Alaska, New Zealand, Caribbean, Florida Keys, you name it and it's probably been there. It's still as good as the day I bought it.
I find the skin on frame kayaks paddle better, as they have some flex, and seem to slither through the water, rather than slap like a solid boat.
I don't realy rate the inflatables. A bit of wind and you'll be gone. I think of them as nothing more than a toy, and I certainly wouldn't use one on the sea.
However, I think you may balk at the cost of a Feathercraft. Unless you want something that will last a lifetime.
http://feathercraft.com/
zed4 said:
Here's a good video of a chap on a Z-Pro Flash along with someone else in the Sevylor equivalent: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uC-SwDo3g4
Thanks for the good reply, hard to tell which is better of the two particularly as neither seem like great paddlers. And I'm not sure I'd want to bang over shallow rocks like that without a solid hull under my arse. 
It does look like both are nice and stable though. I have a paddle and decent pump so stretching the budget to the Tango looks like a good idea.mickrick said:
However, I think you may balk at the cost of a Feathercraft.
You don't say? The cheapest boat is over £1k.Thanks for all the replies.
I have a Pakcanoe 150. It is good to paddle, very tough and of excellent quality but a right faff to assemble/disassemble. I thing for general messing about it is best to go for an inflatable rather than a folder. I have heard good things about the Innova range and Hobie make some interesting inflatables.
How old are the children? The best fun I have had paddling on the water recently is on a stand up paddle board, the RedAir inflatable ones are fantastic and the range is getting ever bigger. You would be surprised what you can do on one of these. http://www.redpaddleco.com/ Rivers, lakes, surf anything, also because you are constantly balancing you get a real workout without realising.
20kg for a canoe? 12kg is easily achieved with fibreglass construction, 7kg with carbon/kevlar.
Would that be workable? I just think lifting one boat is easier than messing around with inflatables.
None of the canoes with the exception of the featherlite look any good watching the videos.
First off the canoes and therefore the paddle entry angles are much too wide.Very inefficient paddling like that. Also the rigitity is too low and you will be wasting energy flopping about.
Would that be workable? I just think lifting one boat is easier than messing around with inflatables.
None of the canoes with the exception of the featherlite look any good watching the videos.
First off the canoes and therefore the paddle entry angles are much too wide.Very inefficient paddling like that. Also the rigitity is too low and you will be wasting energy flopping about.
Definitely more the toy end of the market, but this looks ideal (albeit floppy and hard to paddle...)
http://www.bournemouthcanoes.co.uk/productpages/se...
http://www.bournemouthcanoes.co.uk/productpages/se...
Have always bought from these guys
http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes_and_kayaks.html
Good service and prices, highly recommended.
Phil.
http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes_and_kayaks.html
Good service and prices, highly recommended.
Phil.
Doshy said:
Have always bought from these guys
http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes_and_kayaks.html
Good service and prices, highly recommended.
Phil.
That's me! http://www.bhg-marine.co.uk/canoes_and_kayaks.html
Good service and prices, highly recommended.
Phil.
Thanks for the recommendation. We try to be competitive on pricing, but as you can see, we don't just do kayaks, we're a large boat retailer, so it's difficult to stay on top of pricing for the kayaks at times.
I will price match a genuine price from a competitor, and I can also order in the Sevylors, including the Reef.
zed4 said:
That's me!
Thanks for the recommendation. We try to be competitive on pricing, but as you can see, we don't just do kayaks, we're a large boat retailer, so it's difficult to stay on top of pricing for the kayaks at times.
I will price match a genuine price from a competitor, and I can also order in the Sevylors, including the Reef.
Ooh. I've been looking over your site for ideas - what would you say is the best boat to buy get into sailing cheaply? I'd like something I can park up in the drive, but still take 4-6 people out for a sail around the Island etc?Thanks for the recommendation. We try to be competitive on pricing, but as you can see, we don't just do kayaks, we're a large boat retailer, so it's difficult to stay on top of pricing for the kayaks at times.
I will price match a genuine price from a competitor, and I can also order in the Sevylors, including the Reef.
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