Considering buying a SIT-ON Kayak

Conology

Hi
I'm considering buying a SIT-ON Kayak.
I'm looking for advice on
a) what I should be looking out for in terms of faults /weakness / flaws/
b) what are the negatives in relation to a SIT-On v a SIT-In
c) any other advice welcome too

Thank you

NathanKingerlee

Sit On Kayaks are good for starting out, simple to use and stable. If you capsise you can simply right it and climb back on. Look for a sit on top kayak with a decent backrest system and a method to brace your feet in order to maintain powerful strokes. As they are just a lump of plastic there isn't much that go wrong with them.

Their negatives are that you won't push your kayaking career in a sit on top; you are kind of limited to nice days in gentle sea/river/lake conditions. So if you are thinking about really getting stuck into kayaking, or undertaking big trips, this is not the boat for you. During winter, as you are exposed to the elements, you will get colder faster.


With a sit in kayak (proper kayak) you will improve your skills quickly; with some tuition. Depending what type of proper kayak you get you can push what you do, either in terms of sea kayak trips or river kayaking. You will stay much warmer in winter months, being enclosed.

One disadvantage is that while you can learn how to rescue yourself and others in the event of a capsise, there is more involved and more learning than simply righting a sit on top and climbing back on.

With either type of boat though official guidelines say there should be a minimum of three people.

Hope this helps. Here's a recent'ish blog about getting started with paddling and staying safe: http://tinyurl.com/p5wpfku

Nathan

Conology

NathanKingerlee wrote: »

Sit On Kayaks are good for starting out, simple to use and stable. If you capsise you can simply right it and climb back on. Look for a sit on top kayak with a decent backrest system and a method to brace your feet in order to maintain powerful strokes. As they are just a lump of plastic there isn't much that go wrong with them.

Their negatives are that you won't push your kayaking career in a sit on top; you are kind of limited to nice days in gentle sea/river/lake conditions. So if you are thinking about really getting stuck into kayaking, or undertaking big trips, this is not the boat for you. During winter, as you are exposed to the elements, you will get colder faster.


With a sit in kayak (proper kayak) you will improve your skills quickly; with some tuition. Depending what type of proper kayak you get you can push what you do, either in terms of sea kayak trips or river kayaking. You will stay much warmer in winter months, being enclosed.

One disadvantage is that while you can learn how to rescue yourself and others in the event of a capsise, there is more involved and more learning than simply righting a sit on top and climbing back on.

With either type of boat though official guidelines say there should be a minimum of three people.

Hope this helps. Here's a recent'ish blog about getting started with paddling and staying safe: http://tinyurl.com/p5wpfku

Nathan

Hi Nathan - thanks for the info. I'll be doing purely recreational stuff - nothing too serious.
Any advice on what to look out for when buying second hand in terms of damage, types of structures that are more stable than others, essential bits that might be missing, extras I should get etc
Thank you

Drop the Ball

I recently bought one of these SOT kayak's, I am a novice and I found them easy to use and good fun.
http://www.islandersitontops.com/calypso.htm

NathanKingerlee

Hi Conology. Not really anything specific to watch out for. Second hand boat is fine to buy; but would suggest going for new when it comes to your wetsuit/buoyancy aid...

Maybe avoid a second hand boat that has had any kind of repair job or plastic weld done to it though.

xt40

why dont you learn to paddle in a proper comfy boat with a spraydeck first and then see if you still want to buy a sit on top. If you do, the RTM disco looks to be the about the nearest thing to a real kayak. although expensive, It is narrow and has a sea kayak hull which equals good hull speed and the possibility to use a correct stroke technique,however you would still be exposed and get soaked/freeze very quickly.