Inflatable Kayaks

[Popmom]

Saw the Porta Bote post, so I thought I'd ask. I've got one recommendation from B and D for a Sea Eagle inflatable kayak. Anyone have a Sevylor or Intex? We are going to Anna Maria Island in May, and we want to explore the bay area.

I might be willing to consider a hard shell kayak, but I need two. Ideally, one tandem and one single. And I need to be able to transport on top of a Prius. I'm not sure I want to go to that much trouble at this point. not even sure it's possible.

Only kayaking experience I have is with my brother in his Old Town tandem. That's a great kayak.

ETA: Sam's Club has a great deal on an Oru foldable kayak. They are over $1000 on other sites. My local Sam's has them for $500. I'm looking into that option, too, but the inflatables are cheaper.

 

[BrucePerens]

I have a Sea Eagle kayak and an Tower inflatable paddle board. There's a little more care required for an inflatable because they can be punctured. Sea Eagle famously shows that you can hit theirs with a hammer, but the results would be very different if they hit it with anything sharp. For that reason, you should keep inflatables out of shallows except for where you launch them. Many shore areas are reinforced with scrap concrete, which has rebar sticking out of it and can be sharp.

You need to have a plan for what happens if you puncture the boat. And you've got to wear your life jackets all of the time you're on the water.

 

[fourteener-TMO]

Momto4girls,

A lot of opinion on which is better, in fact you can read the manufacturers sites until you will even be further confused. We have a Sevylor Colorado and camp with a really good friend and his family that have Sea Eagles, and here's what we've noticed.

First, inflatables are definitely more prone to be affected by the wind. They tend to be so buoyant that they sit on top of the water, sort of bubble-like.

Of course, inflatables aren't as tough as composite kayaks. That being said, I would say that our Sevylor CO is tougher than the comparable Sea Eagles. The Colorado has comparable air vinyl/pvc air bladders, but the Colorado is covered in a tough fabric slip cover (cadora-like fabric) that protects the air chambers. Then on top of that, the bottom is rubber coated to even further strengthen it. Don't take me wrong, as I don't think either would stand up to a box cutter or barbed-wire?!

I think the Sea Eagles may be a bit lighter and compact when packed. It all depends on the model. I think the Sevylor Fiji or Tahiti may be more comparable to the Sea Eagles, but I haven't experienced those more economic models.

Inflatables are compact, and that is why we went that route. Our Colorado fits in the bench seat (heater side) of our 2720 along with 3-fishing rods, 2-adult pfd's, and the air pump. Sometimes we also pack our 2-inflatable paddle boards on the floor by the kitchen table. Loads of fun.

We've had our Colorado for at least 5 seasons and I purchased it used out of Florida. I believe the new model (yellow) may even be better than the blue one we have. As for maintenance, I do attempt to make sure it is fully dry prior to storage. Annually I bring it inside, vacuum it out (sand & pebbles), and wipe the vinyl air bladders with 303 protectant = ready for next year's adventures.

Spare Parts - Sea Eagle is easier to get replacement bladders and parts for. Sevylor only offers spare parts in Europe, and when you factor that in with shipping, you may as well buy a replacement Kayak and use your old one for spare parts. Accessories, you can get motor, motor mount, rod holder, etc for the Sevylors, and I'm not as familiar with the options offered by Sea Eagle.

Comparable models - Sevylor, Sea Eagle, Intex, Airhead, Advanced Elements, NRS, Solstice, Aquaglide, Ozark Trail, BRIS, AIRE, Hobie,,,, and the list grows on a daily basis.

Don't rule out Stand Up Paddle Boards (iSUPs, SUPs). My wife and daughter love theirs iSUPs, especially on lakes. Also, I'm super impressed with Sea Eagles new inflatable canoe, although they are a bit proud of them.

I've attached a few pics below, First is my son and I on the Niobrara National Wild & Scenic River 06/2013, second two are a lake in the Rocky Mnts 09/2014.

I hope this helps, but if you are like me, it will only make the decision more challenging. My advice, is don't shop too long,,,,,,Just get out on the water, and enjoy. Be Safe!

 

[Popmom]

Thanks for the replies! This is very helpful to me.

I put a couple of Sea Eagles on my Amazon wishlist, and now I'm going to look up the Sevylors again.

You're right--the choices are overwhelming. I won't shop too long because I want one before May arrives.

 

[B_and_D]

I bought ours off of a site that was obscure but very reputable according to a couple of other obscure posts that I read.

We got ours for $279.99 last June (just in time for our lake trip!). Their website is inflatableboats4less.com. We got the Sea Eagle 370 Pro package with the better seats. I think they work out of their house but the guy returned my call from somewhere he was traveling from and followed up on our order in a very professional manner.

I hadn't been kayaking in 15 years and just wanted something that would be compact to store and easy to inflate, didn't know if I'd use it a lot.

Can't wait to take it to the lake again! I added some bunji cord nets that I made on the front and back to stash the life jackets in and other stuff (got the bunji cord off of amazon.com) and some along the sides of the kayak to hook things onto in case they fell off. There are a lot of (not sure what to call them) grommet holes? where you can string things all along the sides of the kayak.

I just checked their website and the price is still the same.

 

[LoveToCamp-TMO]

I also have the Sea Eagle 370. Love it! Easy to maneuver, easy to inflate/deflate, not too heavy. Have used it 4 or 5 times, and plan to use it lots more. For the money, I think it is a good inflatable.

 

[Popmom]

Yay!

I impulsively ordered a Sea Eagle 370 (pro package with upgraded seats) from VMInnovations on eBay for $280. free shipping. They let you make an offer. I tried $270 and it was declined, but they took
$280. I felt like that was a pretty good deal after looking at prices on Amazon. VMI is a reputable seller--I've ordered from them before. I should get it tomorrow and hope to take it out to a local state park this weekend.

I feel better about ordering since y'all posted. Thanks! Can't wait to try it out!

I'd like to order one more--maybe a smaller one. Looking at a sit on top type from Sevylor. I'd just like to see the difference.

 

[B_and_D]

There are videos about how to inflate it, use it, etc. on the Sea Eagle website. We had a lot of fun learning how to inflate it in the family room, but the cat didn't like it at all. He was absolutely terrified of it! Wouldn't even come into the room!

 

[Popmom]

There are videos about how to inflate it, use it, etc. on the Sea Eagle website. We had a lot of fun learning how to inflate it in the family room, but the cat didn't like it at all. He was absolutely terrified of it! Wouldn't even come into the room!

Our cat totally ignored it! I inflated mine indoors first, too. It took up part of the foyer and part of the living room. Got pfds today. Hoping to try it out in the next few days.

 

[TMfor4ofus]

Our cat totally ignored it! I inflated mine indoors first, too. It took up part of the foyer and part of the living room. Got pfds today. Hoping to try it out in the next few days.

I know its been over a year but I was looking for one more post as I went down the thread. Just looking for a report on likes / dislikes?

 

[Scubaroo]

I've been using a SeaEagle SE330 for a couple of weeks now. We got lucky and scored a free one on FreeCycle although it did have a slow leak in the bottom compartment. At first, I couldn't find the leak but I think I made it worse while testing out the boat with my dad -- the leak was right in the very center of the bottom of the boat. I used the included patch kit (original from SeaEagle) and cut one of the two big patch pieces in half and glued it on (I went oversized on the patch and gave it about 36 hours to cure before inflating/testing). It has held air well since then and is not that bad to pump up with the foot pump although the "seller" tossed in a free electric/battery/12v powered air pump too (although the lead acid battery built into it is dying)!

Now as to actual paddling/usage, one does have to give up a little to get the inflatable status. I'm used to hard sided canoes and I've used the typical plastic kayaks a bit too. When I dig in with the SeaEagle, I can feel the whole thing flex a bit and take away some of my effort. So it's hard to power it forward with hard heavy strokes/digs. But it is much better than I had expected. It tracks fairly well with some weight in the front (people or if it's just me, I put in about 3-4 gallons of water by using a partially filled 7 gallon water container). If there is no weight in the front, it doesn't track well at all plus the flopping of the front if there are any (even small) waves is annoying (it's a sound and feeling kind of thing).

I tried some solo fishing from it and it's not bad. I don't know how far I'd want to paddle it out but I grew more confident with it and it's abilities.

Now the real question is given this was free, would I still buy it for $249 or buy one of the hard sided kayaks from say Walmart? That is a tough question. If it was just me, I'd be tempted by the $248 10 foot fishing kayak I saw at Walmart the other day. But that is a single seater and this SE330 lets me take along our two young boys or even my wife and the two boys (we're under the 500 pound weight limit but it does say max 2 people...).

In end end, I feel like the SE330 isn't really great at anything except being easy to pack, fairly easy to pump up, not too bad at paddling and carrying a fair amount. I do think it's good value but if you don't need the multiple person capacity, I personally would opt for a hard sided kayak (but I'd have to deal with mounting/loading/unloading so it brings some of it's own hassle/downsides). I'd say the SeaEagle isn't quite the boat you want but it's probably a solid choice that will either satisfy you and work out great or at least solve the problem of having a boat in the short term well enough while letting you ponder which route you want to go for the next boat(s).

Edit: I forgot one thing, my SE330 came with the cheaper seats and they are fine but originally I was using them the wrong way (sitting on top of the back) and that had me in a higher position which was much nicer for paddling although it was less stable. The reason why higher was nicer is the inflatable side tubes are a bit higher by 1-2 inches (or so) than one would want for ease of padding. So with a hard sided Kayak, I think you're getting more easy of paddling as the big tubes aren't in your paddle zone. Just something to think about -- it's one more thing in the "less efficient" category for the SeaEagle. The other thing you'd get with hard sided is more glide too.

 

[B_and_D]

We are going to try ours out in the next two weeks. Last time, DH had a hip replacement, and I was recovering from a broken kneecap and arm...hopefully we will get it more together now. The hardest things were getting in/out of it, and coordinating the paddling. You can see it in the left of my avatar...