Reviews of Tandem Yaks please

[maverick]

Hi Guys, spoke with a customer who is thinking of buying a tandem yak. Wants to take his wife out with him occassionally. Just wondering if those guys who have a tandem could share their experiences (pedal or paddle), what you have, how does it go with 1 person on it, 2 people on it, carrying it, unloading it (with 2 people or 1 person) etc. Just so he can get an idea if a tandem is what he really wants. Love your feedback please.

[Jenko]

OUTFITTER
I weigh 110kgs and 6ft and the missus is 65kgs and short (not home so can't measure her)

Pros
1. Lots of room and storage points
2. I think it was designed for two person fishing compared to the Oasis although the 2010 Oasis has had an overhaul.
3. Very stable even in choppy water....... Only ever went solo once and that was in fairly rough water at Port Campbell and I never had any weight in the front which made the front lift fairly high over waves but never felt like I was going to capsize. I was actually quite impressed at how stable it was and I think a bag of sand in the front would make it a lot better.
4. Good to have someone to fish with and yak to while on the water.
5. Two people peddling make covering a lot of water real easy.
6. Handy having the other person when boating a fish
7. I change the rudder to the larger one, it now turns very fast now compared to the smaller one and stays on track much better in the wind.

Cons
1. In rough/choppy water, the front person will get spray off the front as it slaps the waves, my wife found that adjusting the paddle blades strapped to the sides helped deflect some of the spray.
2. Choppy water or when some clown in a stink boat goes past and the wake come from behind, it will ride up over the rear and leave the back seat full of water. For some stupid reason they have put drainage grooves in the rear tray area that lead straight into the rear seat. can't work out why but I'm going to block them off, sick of a wet arse.
3. Heavy, if your old, weak or a skinny whimp and your trying to load it onto the roof of a 4 wheel drive by yourself, you will soon get sick of it.
4. The rear hatch is like any rear hatch, totally useless. Only good for putting your battery in it.

Needs
1. Front and rear steering, so when someone hooks a decent fish, the other person can steer while chasing it.
2. Needs to sit higher out of the water , especially at the rear.

The Oasis was always a dryer ride and with the new upgrades, may be the better buy.

Overspent the budget this year, but when I can afford it I will sell the outfitter and buy 2 Outbacks.

http://www.vyak.net/forum/viewtopic.php ... 7308#p7308

[Yacker]

Hi Mav, I have a sprite 2 made by Q kayaks (SIK), which I purchased from capacity sports about 4 years ago [http://www.capacitysports.com.au/sprit ... kayak.html.
Great boat for calmer waters (rivers, lakes and the bay when its mellow), which was the purpose I bought it for. Less appropriate for the bays unless its fairly calm.
I bought this primarily as a one person yak though it comes with 2 seats as standard. I have taken the rear seat out and moved the front seat back to accomadate my longish legs. This works very well and leaves room for an esky and milk crate. Very comfortable and dry fishing solo or with 2. About a 20 min job to reinstate the 2nd seat (2 bolts but need wee little hands to get them in)
There is a hatch in the back which has good storage capacity and great for sleeping bag, small tent and beer and food.

As a two person boat it is sweet for calmer waters, but sits a fair bit lower than with one. Its rated for 260Kg, though I suspect that with this weight on board she'd sit very low in the water. It paddles well with 2 and the rudder makes steering easy. It weighs 32kg empty so is just ok for handling solo. I am 6'3" and 100 Kg so probably wouldnt recommend handling it solo for a smaller statured person, although a trolley and loading aid style racks should resolve this. Can be a bit of a challenge getting it onto the roof of the hilux after a days paddling; sometimes I rest it on the open front door which helps a bit.
To sum up, its perfect for day/over night trips up rivers, can carry alot of gear, but limited to reasonably calm waters.

Cheers
Tim

[momunny]

Mo battleship link... http://vyak.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=285 for photo.

Viking Tempo II

Kayak is big both length and weight and width.

Pros:
Stable, massive payload of 250kg, lots of deck space, very cost effective for those budget concsious, purpose build for kayak fishing, can mount a leecy(electric trolling motor) with transom add on kit. In lakes and estuary, it is a very good fishing platform. 10 year warranty for hull. 4x 6" hatches and 2x 4" hatches. Great to have someone to fish with. Reentry much easier with one aiding the other.

Cons: slow, wet ride due to scuppa holes draining into seat if choppy, design more for estuary/lakes/wide rivers and not for open water. Rudder kit inffective for such a large kayak. Tough to lift into on the car roof rack with 35kg with one person. Best to buy alternative seat ie Apex. than to use the original ones from Viking. Recommeded to paddle with two person...one can do with leecy but you need to balance the payload out on the yak. Foot control line through the rear of the kayak sits too low and can get water inside the kayak if there is a bit of chop. The tatches need to resealed when the kayak is new. overall finish of the kayak is ok but not as clean as OK or Hobie. Lack OEM accessories like Hobies

[FECKIT]

about the OUTFITTER

(except for referring to his missus as a "bag of sand" - even I wouldn't get away with that!)

I love the Outfitter and find it OK to load on/off the Calais by myself with the help of my trusty Rack n Roll. I never seem to have the issue with the front riding too high, mainly cos it's always got a shitload of freshly caught fish weighing the front down

Only real annoyance is the the wet arse that pretty much eventuates in all but glassy conditions - even then, a side on wake will soon have you feeling like you pissed yourself.

By the way.. did I mention how the Moonee Ponds Creek is going off lately??? Just under the Arden St bridge where all the hobo's and escaped cons live

[fishsmith]

about the OUTFITTER

(except for referring to his missus as a "bag of sand" - even I wouldn't get away with that!)

I love the Outfitter and find it OK to load on/off the Calais by myself with the help of my trusty Rack n Roll. I never seem to have the issue with the front riding too high, mainly cos it's always got a shitload of freshly caught fish weighing the front down

Only real annoyance is the the wet arse that pretty much eventuates in all but glassy conditions - even then, a side on wake will soon have you feeling like you pissed yourself.

By the way.. did I mention how the Moonee Ponds Creek is going off lately??? Just under the Arden St bridge where all the hobo's and escaped cons live

How much ballis doe you need in the front of that sucker to even her out with the twin Mercs on the back..