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Took the inflatable out for probably the last time this year, great to see some fall colors but the water is extremely cold. Snow is already falling on some of my favorite spots. Come back summer  
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Oct 5, 2020 19:57
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| # ? Apr 24, 2024 14:19 |
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i bit the bullet last fall/winter and bought an array of dry and wetsuit gear so i can go year-round, in any condition*. paddle boarding in the snow is great. no jet skis, usually! *assuming the rivers aren't dry, lol 2020 
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Oct 6, 2020 09:12
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 Forgot to post this earlier, but the inflatable boat from scratch is done and works!
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Dec 18, 2020 00:05
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Holy poo poo hell yeah That is awesome, do you have a full build thread anywhere? I know you detailed it a bit in here, cool if that’s all there is. I want to show this to some of my raft nerd friends.
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Dec 18, 2020 04:42
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Thanks! Maybe this weekend I'll make an effort post and an imgur album of the build. I'd like to show it off to some of my non-goon friends as well. Maybe if I get weird and build a second one this winter I'll do a proper build thread.
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Dec 18, 2020 07:44
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Looks awesome! How does it handle?
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Dec 18, 2020 07:55
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Long and hairy and easy to carry
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Dec 18, 2020 14:40
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PokeJoe posted:Looks awesome! How does it handle? Thanks! It doesn't track very well on open water and likes to spin easily. However, it does pack up nicely and inflates quickly with a foot pump. (inflation bag is on the to-do list and orally inflating is really unenjoyable) It sits fairly high in the water with me in it and is light. Does anyone know how other packrafts maintain good open water tracking? If I make a second version, I'm considering making it a little bit longer for this reason. I think having a load in the front (or maybe not having as strong of an up-tilt) would help a little also by pushing the bow down and giving some cross sectional area up front to prevent rotation. Maybe applying a tiny bit of tension to the floor would help redistribute my rear end-sag as well? There's still a couple small slow leaks somewhere, but it wasn't noticeable during a 30 minute paddle. If I leave it inflated overnight, it'll be a little limp and wrinkly in the morning, but still mostly full.
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Dec 19, 2020 05:28
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Turn on a dime is the packraft's special ability. -1 vs still water. -5 vs wind
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Dec 19, 2020 06:45
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Even a full size raft with an oar rig tracks lovely on flat water when it’s unloaded. Well, relatively speaking. Who wants a rubber boat for flat water though. That thing is going to be a blast sending through some foamy poo poo.
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Dec 19, 2020 18:55
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e: sorry, wrong thread
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Dec 19, 2020 19:28
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PuErhTeabag posted:Thanks! some packrafts have a little slot where you can insert a fin for better tracking on open water
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Dec 20, 2020 17:09
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^^ You can put a removable skeg on it yeah. My inflatable works much better with it on vs off. You can even add more than one if you like, some of the nicer inflatables ive seen have like 3 https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32920457925.html Theres a lot of types to choose from on aliexpress
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Dec 20, 2020 19:39
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It would be a substantial job (maybe not that bad since you're skilled at this now) but adding a cargo fly might help there. It's also a huge upgrade if you're traveling any distance with more than a day pack. Putting weight inside the tubes instead of on top is better for stability. It may help with tracking, and maybe butt sag too
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Dec 20, 2020 21:48
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I like the skeg idea and the cargo fly is cool too. I wouldn't rework this one with a cargo fly, but I'd consider working it into a second raft. You can get TPU zippers that will heat seal to the fabric on Amazon and some other places, which is what I think you'd want.
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Dec 21, 2020 05:12
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Does anyone know anything about drop stitched inflatable kayaks? I'm thinking about buying one this year but the price range is pretty big and also high.
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Jan 16, 2021 20:47
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I have a Bote Lono, which is their hybrid inflatable SUP/Fishing Kayak. It’s pretty nice, but is also kinda huge, both packed away and inflated. (It’s 12’6” when inflated.) An electric pump is essentially mandatory with inflatables that big.
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Jan 16, 2021 22:16
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I ended up ordering a sea eagle drop stitched tandem kayak and it's on backorder till may  glad I decided to order it early
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Feb 12, 2021 02:46
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Busted out the boat today for the first time this year (and last time till I get my new one)  Went to chuckanut island which is a little nature preserve you can wander around. I've been getting stir crazy bad this winter
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Mar 14, 2021 03:15
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Got my sea eagle a few weeks ago and I took it to lake crescent WA today. First impressions, it's huge!   It's waaay faster than the intex k2 I have, and tracks much better. Harder to put back in the bag too. I got the "upgraded" carbon fiber oars and they feel really good, nice and solid. 2 pieces but they feel like a single piece and not as wobbly as the 5 piece ones. The boat feels a lot easier to tip though, especially since the intex is pretty much unflippable. I'm gonna get some training wheel outriggers for it so I don't have to be so careful about tipping over when I turn around to rifle through my dry bag. Pretty pleased with it though, lots of leg room. I could probably fit a 3rd person in here comfortably if I took the seats out.
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Apr 23, 2021 04:35
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PokeJoe posted:Got my sea eagle a few weeks ago and I took it to lake crescent WA today. That looks super fun
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Apr 25, 2021 20:39
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I don't have any pics, but I bookmarked this thread as I own a Sea Eagle Paddleski catamaran. I just ordered the swivel fishing seat with rod holders and look forward to a float trip down the Potomac for smallmouth. I really like inflatables. You don't have to own a truck to have fun, and they've come a long way in recent years. Being able to take out and put it in the trunk of my accord is great!
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May 11, 2021 01:36
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Did some paddleboarding on an inflatable SUP from decathlon. Was a lot of fun and is way easier than I expected. There's an inlet across the bay I want to check out, but I think will need some food and water to avoid an extra stop halfway to visit a cafe. I should be fine just sticking it in a waterproof bag and putting it under the elastic straps at the front right?
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Jun 14, 2021 13:39
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pointsofdata posted:Did some paddleboarding on an inflatable SUP from decathlon. Was a lot of fun and is way easier than I expected. There's an inlet across the bay I want to check out, but I think will need some food and water to avoid an extra stop halfway to visit a cafe. I should be fine just sticking it in a waterproof bag and putting it under the elastic straps at the front right? Yup! I actually saw a couple kayakers towing a SUP with a beer cooler strapped to it while lake camping last year.
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Jun 14, 2021 21:18
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I got a Maxxon 2+1 person kayak on Craigslist a few weeks back. The +1 is a cooler full of booze in our case. My wife and I love floating Lake Union in Seattle to stay cool during these hot summer days, but god drat it’s a pain in the rear end to dry out living in a condo.
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Jun 23, 2021 06:05
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Yeah it sucks to dry these boats. I have to inflate mine a little and leave it on my balcony for a few hours and it still doesn't really get completely dry. It's annoying but eh i can keep it packed up in my apartment so it's an ok tradeoff. I took my boat sailing yesterday, it was awesome. I got a 45 square foot sail that clamps on my razorlite. It takes a bit to setup and launching it is more work but the sailing itself is pretty fun and the boat performs well enough. The equipment really fills out the car though. Took it and some camping gear this weekend and there wasn't any spare room at all in our car. Unfortunately I didn't take any pics because my phone died but I'll try to get some next time. PokeJoe fucked around with this message at 19:23 on Jun 23, 2021 |
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Jun 23, 2021 18:34
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Went out sailing again, wish it was a little windier but I was able to dick around a bit.   Amazingly this whole thing still fits in our hatchback.
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Jul 6, 2021 08:13
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Is that the Sea Eagle sailing kit? I'm asking because we have the Paddleski 435 with our own sailing kit (which we have not rigged up yet to sail with) and in case I ever need to replace it, I was wondering what you had.
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Jul 6, 2021 13:20
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it's a kit from sailboatstogo. The sea eagle one doesn't have a boom so you can't use it in as many directions.
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Jul 6, 2021 16:30
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I got my wife an inflatable paddleboard from Costco. I think I love this. I might like it more than she does. With zero experience with paddleboards at all, I took to it pretty well and can safely say this thing is pretty bitchin'
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Jul 16, 2021 19:48
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just a bump for a random inflatable SUP picture, taken from a missouri lake, I forget which. The primary motivation in buying inflatable over solid was "I didn't want to spend a shitton of money on a rack for my car" but its really worked out. They're so great.
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Jul 25, 2021 15:15
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Oh hey, it's an inflatables thread. We just bought a Sea Eagle 420x this year. We used to have a single hardshell kayak, but it was a pain to transport since we only have one relatively small car, so we'd end up doing rentals for paddling 90% of the time. I got lucky enough to demo a FastTrack and a RazorLite, too. They're both awesome boats, but we settled on the 420x because we really just wanted something stupidly big and stable. First impressions after getting it set up initially were, uh, yeah, it's loving big.  After getting it out on the water a few times, I love the hell out of this thing. We had no trouble standing up and walking around on opposite sides of the boat at the same time to rearrange the seats and grab some things. Never once did it feel like the boat was in any danger of tipping, even sitting together on one of the pontoons. We pretty much did everything we could think of to flip it over and it didn't care. On the whole, I'm surprised at how well it tracks and performs. Our primary use case is chill paddling on flatwater, and it wasn't getting pushed around nearly as much as I expected in 10ish mph winds. Enough that you notice, but not enough to make it challenging to keep the boat going straight, even with just one person paddling. Tracking is a total non-issue with two paddlers.  I'll probably get this thing out on some rivers solo next spring and I can't wait.
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Sep 10, 2021 05:26
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Just a reminder to everyone potentially winterizing their inflatable boats: Clean thoroughly, get down in the bilges, and treat generously with 303 protectant!.
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Oct 4, 2021 17:20
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Kicking off summer on the river. Buddy and I each took a little swim, whoops, maybe should have done a warm up before jumping in the big water. Got to feel extra alive, learned a few things, and all's well that ends well I suppose
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Jun 27, 2022 20:39
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I'm looking at kayaks, but I got the no-go for a regular kayak because my partner thinks it would be too ugly to keep around the house. I got pointed to inflatables from a few threads. Are they as good as regular kayaks? How long does it take to inflate with a hand pump? How long does it take to put away when you're done? I was looking at the Oru kayak, but more people were talking about inflatables. Would an inflatable fit inside a deck box well, to keep out of sight and not be ugly? I want to upgrade from renting kayaks because I don't like the hours that the kayak rental places run, and I like the idea of being able to just go to the beach and kayak without needing to find a reservation time at a place that might be sold out.
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Jun 28, 2022 03:18
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Epitope posted:Kicking off summer on the river. Buddy and I each took a little swim, whoops, maybe should have done a warm up before jumping in the big water. Got to feel extra alive, learned a few things, and all's well that ends well I suppose Beautiful.
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Jun 28, 2022 08:24
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Chainclaw posted:I'm looking at kayaks, but I got the no-go for a regular kayak because my partner thinks it would be too ugly to keep around the house. I got pointed to inflatables from a few threads. Are they as good as regular kayaks? How long does it take to inflate with a hand pump? How long does it take to put away when you're done? I'm not sure what a deck box is but your exact situation is what caused me to buy my first inflatable. If you just want to dick around in a boat you can paddle they're great. I was tired of renting too and we wanted to paddle some lakes with no rentals available. If you want to do more intense kayaking like distance or camping you'll probably want something mid or high tier. Drop stitch kayaks are more expensive but perform well in a way comparable to hard kayaks. IMO if I were to start over my first inflatable kayak would have a drop stitch bottom and regular sides, it should be a good mix of performance and stability Inflating takes ~10 or 15 mins I'd say. And you can get an electric pump but I've never bothered with one.
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Jun 28, 2022 08:57
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I have a Sea Eagle Paddleski 435, and I love it. Re: inflation time, we have an electric plug in pump that we plug into the back of our 4 runner to inflate it. It doesnt inflate it all the way, so we top it off to 3 PSI with the hand pump. Pack size - the boat we have is large, but it rolls up into a bag that's managable, although I don't know the size of your deck box. I will say that I keep my boat in a cool basement, as I wouldn't want the heat from being in a closed box on a deck affect the glue or seams. Perhaps that's not an issue.  On putting it away, I take it out of the trunk of my car, unroll it, give it a quick wipedown, let it air dry and roll it back up. I don't think inflatables perform like a hard kayak, but if you don't need performance and you're just out to noodle around, they are extremely convenient. You don't need trucks to put in and take out, only cars. They are a little more susceptible to wind, but I don't know if that really matters in the long run, it's not like you're going to go out there on an extremely windy day. Any other questions, let me know. I do love ours a lot. I have a hard swivel seat for it with two rod holders which makes it more comfortable and your butt stays dry.
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Jun 28, 2022 15:15
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Yeah this would mostly just be me noodling around. Do tandem inflatables work well solo? I would be kayaking solo like 90% of the time, but every once in a while I might be able to convince my partner to go with me. She would do very little paddling herself, she would mostly just be in the kayak to keep me company and humor me. What I'll probably end up doing to pick one out is go to REI with her so she can see how small they are deflated, and then hopefully have an REI person help us pick one out.
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Jun 28, 2022 15:23
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I have no idea, I've never paddled it solo. It'd probably be not impossible, but a handful, considering the size of the boat I have, which is 14 ft. The point of our boat is for us to go paddle together (it was her idea!), so I've not tried it yet. I may this summer at some point, but I might try it out on a lake before I go down a river with it. I'd probably go with a smaller model if it's just you but want an option for your partner to come along.
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Jun 28, 2022 15:29
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