"echinacea" wrote in news:1147716687.628836.269740
@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

After test driving a few different manufacturers I really liked the
Wilderness Systems Tsunami 145. I am considering getting this model in
the Duralite material. If anyone has had any experience with either
Wilderness Systems kayaks or with this material please let me know how
it went. Duralite is 10 pounders lighter but has a beam installed up
the middle to keep it stiff.

I've paddled quite a few of the Wilderness Systems boats (the first "real"
sea kayak I paddled was a fiberglass Sealution and I learned to roll in an
old W.S. Alto) but in general I've not been that impressed with their
designs. The Arctic Hawk is an exception but it's actually a composite
layup of a Mark Rogers (Superior Kayaks) design.

From a brief glance at the W.S. web site there are few things about the
Tsunami I see as pluses. The site claims that it has the "Tempest" deck
rigging, which is probably one of the nicest deck rigging layouts around.

While I don't generally care for a complex, highly adjustable seat, a lot of
people really like the phase 3 seat and having adjustable thigh braces is
not something one often finds in that class. The slidelock foot pegs look
interesting and although I've never used them if they provide a fixed foot
position for a rudder equipped kayak that's a plus. That said, it seems
that W.S. has spending an inordinate amount of R&D dollars over the past
few years on "comfort" features. They seem to be trying to sell features
like the "latest technology" in foot braces, "phase 3 seats" (reminds me of
made up marketing buzz words used to sell low cost stereo equipment), and
"Gen 2" plastic, rather than marketing their models on paddling performance.

Similarly, while I really don't know anything about the "DuraLite"
polyethelene, the fact that it has a "beem up the middle to keep it stiff"
raises a red flag. It sounds to me like it has a stiffening beem to
*compensate* for the fact that the plastic is too thin. Adding the warnings
about storing and transporting the boat and keeping it out of the sun (all
good practices anyway) sends up a red flags that the material might not be
robust enough for hard use. Yes, it may be 10 pounds lighter, unless there
are some physical limitations in carrying a boat from a vehicle to the water
and back, it's not a huge advantage. I doubt that most people could tell
the difference while actually paddling a 56 pound kayak from a 46 pounds
kayak, and since most of the kayaks use is actually paddling it (rather than
carrying it), it may not be a significant advantage. I would be reluctant
in getting the Duralite version just because it's a new material (or at
least the process is) that hasn't had years of testing. I would hate to buy
a boat and find out a couple of years later that the material dents or warps
easily.