Good afternoon:

I am in the market for a Kayak and this is proving to be a nearly impossible
decision.

I have a Honda Civic so I have been looking at inflatable kayaks because I dont
see how I could get a rigid one in/on my car.

I will be doing most of my kayaking on Long Island Sound which is a local
estuary off the Atlantic Ocean. Water conditions can range from nearly flat to
2-4ft waves.
I cannot spend more than $500 on a kayak and I want a single person boat.

If someone could steer me in the right direction I would really appreciate it!
I want to know what type of kayak I should consider and how inflatables compare
in these conditions to rigid ones. Also I'd like to know if shopping for a
used kayak could be a good option.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Chris

On 26-Aug-2003, ospam (Chris) wrote:

I have a Honda Civic so I have been looking at inflatable kayaks because I dont
see how I could get a rigid one in/on my car.

Roof rack. I carry two sea kayaks (17 foot composite) on my Civic routinely.
Not a problem.

Mike

Although he did say that his budget was $500. A roofrack worth anything
will cut substantially into that....

Geoff


Michael Daly wrote in message
.rogers.com...
On 26-Aug-2003, ospam (Chris) wrote:

I have a Honda Civic so I have been looking at inflatable kayaks because
I dont
see how I could get a rigid one in/on my car.

Roof rack. I carry two sea kayaks (17 foot composite) on my Civic
routinely.
Not a problem.

Mike

Although he did say that his budget was $500. A roofrack worth anything
will cut substantially into that....

Geoff

This is true, however it is good to know that if I did chose to get a hard
shell kayak I could get it onto my roof. But for now I would like to stay away
from spending additional money. So I suppose I would have to get an inflatable
kayak for under $500. Are these any good and what type would I need for use on
water that ranges from flat to 2-4ft waves?

Chris

ospam (Chris) writes:

Although he did say that his budget was $500. A roofrack worth anything
will cut substantially into that....

Geoff

This is true, however it is good to know that if I did chose to get a hard
shell kayak I could get it onto my roof. But for now I would like to stay away
from spending additional money. So I suppose I would have to get an inflatable
kayak for under $500. Are these any good and what type would I need for use on
water that ranges from flat to 2-4ft waves?

There are good inflatable kayaks, but I don't really know what the
lowest priced good ones are -- there are a lot of cheezy ones out
there too. You'll need a couple other items of gear, too -- a
paddle and a PFD. Is $500 your total budget, or is that just for
the boat?

--
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mary Malmros
Some days you're the windshield,
Other days you're the bug.

Hi, Chris I do not want to be mean spirited, but You have a large task ahead of
you and plenty of disappointment, trying to use your budget of $500.00 for a
boat that will have to be safe enough for 2 to 4ft waves.

May I suggest, SAVE, SAVE, SAVE. then next year you can buy that sea kayak. You
will have al winter to save and research your DREAM Kayak, eh?

There many good used sea kayaks on the market, it takes some surfing.

Good Luck, I will keep my eyes open for a bargain, check out Ebay and all Kayak
Calssifieds our on a daily basis, by doing this you will not be spending any
money, so SAVING will happen, Go, Go.

Good Luck again,



CanoeArt

"Keep a Paddle in the Water at All Times"

On 26-Aug-2003, (CanoeArt) wrote:

May I suggest, SAVE, SAVE, SAVE. then next year you can buy that sea kayak. You
will have al winter to save and research your DREAM Kayak, eh?

For $500, he could build a kayak.

Mike

I agree, build it if you have the desire, skill and time (and storage
space). I just finished mine, and it is SOOO much better than the
Stearns ik116 inflatable that I alrrready had - better paddling,
dryer, FIRMER, easier to get the sand and water out (inflatable always
had sand in it, and always had to dry for 3 days to try to avoid
mildew trapped between the layers.

And I dont have to worry about hitting rocks as much, or fishing hook
punctures.... The hard shell is tippier and yet safer feeling (oh, and
I'm 6'3" and didnt quite fit in the ik116 - my toes would go numb
after an hour)

The stearns was/is a nice first boat in a small apartment, so if thats
all you can handle, do it, but realize that its a glorified pool toy,
albeit one that can handle 2ft chop due to its flexability. For towing
a bag-o-wine on a lake it is still great, but for trying to paddle
against the current even for a mile or 2....uh, i'd suggest not.

look into the less expensive rotomolded plastic kayaks, you can beat
em up on the rocks, too!

Save and get a hard shell, or take a winter and build for about $400 -
100 for lumber, 100 for epoxy, 150 for fiberglass (cloth and tape), 50
for 20 cheap brushes, varnish, and a cedar plank for carbing the
paddle (3 bucks), gloves, and 6 rolls of packing tape....

search for plans from guillemot, one ocean, pygmy,CLC, etc.

have fun whatever you decide.

On Wed, 27 Aug 2003 05:13:28 GMT, "Michael Daly"
wrote:

On 26-Aug-2003, (CanoeArt) wrote:

May I suggest, SAVE, SAVE, SAVE. then next year you can buy that sea kayak. You
will have al winter to save and research your DREAM Kayak, eh?

For $500, he could build a kayak.

Mike

ospam (Chris) wrote in
:

Although he did say that his budget was $500. A roofrack worth
anything will cut substantially into that....

Geoff

This is true, however it is good to know that if I did chose to get a
hard shell kayak I could get it onto my roof. But for now I would
like to stay away from spending additional money. So I suppose I
would have to get an inflatable kayak for under $500. Are these any
good and what type would I need for use on water that ranges from flat
to 2-4ft waves?

Chris

http://www.theboatpeople.com/iks_touring.html#solar $469.00

I have the river version, called the safari which is almost the same
boat with holes punched in the bottom for self bailing.

Awesome boat and tracks well with the skeg installed. Made in
Chekoslovakia by a large European raft company.

Inflatable boats will generally have about 25% more "paddling
resistance" than a comparable hard shell. This one though, weighs 21
pounds and comes with it's one "dry" bag backpack that it fits into.

Between shipping and a paddle, your gonna spend more then $500, but not
too, much.

I use there Cannon Take-Apart paddle, I believe it's the best value.

--
EvilTwig


"A common mistake people make when trying to design something
completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete
fools."---- Douglas Adams

Geoff Jennings wrote:

Although he did say that his budget was $500. A roofrack worth anything
will cut substantially into that....

I bought my roof rack at the recycle center. I think it was about $5.

A friend cartops his kayaks with a piece of carpet and some tie-downs.

You don't need to spend a fortune on a roof rack.


--
//-Walt
//
// "Fair and Balanced"