what kayaks brand reccomended???

[andyb71]

hi
was thinking of buying a boat originaly after having a a bonwitco and a 17 ft wammle(built by bill bailey of overton I think)some years ago but now toying with the idea of a kayak...what is recommended I have looked at ocean and galaxy (one horror story I read) but a lot of other good reviews on the galaxy...I know you can not put a price on your life and have been out in some sh*ty conditions when the weather has turned suddenly but have a limited budget so looking for a good/average kayak any reccomendations tips?
cheers
andy

[Paul]

Id not heard of Galaxy kayaks, bought mine a few years ago now so out of date on some of the newer makes.... just googled them....

Looking at the specs, I can't see any of the models id want to buy for sea fishing Unless I've missed some

Which one had you been looking at?

[andyb71]

galaxy cruz 2 person sea fishing kayak???

spec below
Fishing Kayak Sit-on Kayak with 6 Rod Holders Luxury Padded Seat & Paddle PLUS FREE HATCH TACKLE BOX







Galaxy kayaks are the largest uk direct retailer of kayaks with over 700 kayaks in stock you are welcome at our midlands based warehouse by appointment call 0844 415 3072.


This specially designed sit-on Fishing Package has,
•Robust super stable Kayak which usually retails for £600 +
•2, 2 piece lightweight PaddleS which usually retails for £100 +
•2 Luxury Padded Back Rest Seat AND REAR STORAGE BAG which usually retails for £30 + EACH
•4 Fishing Rod holders which usually retails for £40 +
•2 x Pro Swivel Fishing Rod Holder which usually retails for £40 +
•all stainless steel fittings
•5mm thick polyethelene
•Free front hatch tackle box
•side handles
•paddle parks
•2 locking watertight hatches
•8 scupper plugs complete with convienient easy pull handles (included)
•rear storage complete with bungee
•

[Blanko]

hi
was thinking of buying a boat originaly after having a a bonwitco and a 17 ft wammle(built by bill bailey of overton I think)some years ago but now toying with the idea of a kayak...what is recommended I have looked at ocean and galaxy (one horror story I read) but a lot of other good reviews on the galaxy...I know you can not put a price on your life and have been out in some sh*ty conditions when the weather has turned suddenly but have a limited budget so looking for a good/average kayak any reccomendations tips?
cheers
andy

I know bugger all about kayaks but I knew Bill Bailiff well Lovely bloke-a bit quirky to meet but a very talented boat builder by all accounts. As teenagers mad about shooting we decided to make our own pigeon and particularly goose decoys as plastic ones were neck end of a tenner even then.

Having procured FOC a large amount of 'glass' sheets we tapped Bill for some resin and hardener for the production of said 'deeks' A tenner lighter but carrying gallons of resin and a little bottle of hardener-with Bill's strongest warning about the % mix to be used ringing in our ears- we set on with the production line. The 'moulds' were a couple of old 'found' goose decoys,sliced in half to produce a cast of the inside- a bit rough and ready but geese are no art critics.

It all went swimmingly,the decoys rolled off the line at a rate of about 2 or 3 a day,were painted a kind of battleship grey,with a splash lighter grey,black + white dotted about and were looking very nice indeed. What was becoming apparent was that the hardener was serious stuff,a teaspoonful or two was all that was required in our 5 litre paint can that served as a resin mixer. We were getting to where we had as many 'deeks' as we really wanted to carry and so decided to make up what we could with the remaining materials ,maybe some pigeons and then call it a day.

One particular Sunday evening I had things to attend to elsewhere so with the project almost at completion I said to my mate-do 'you want to finish these off tomorrow? '
'nah, Ill knock 'em off tonight and then theyre done,just gotta paint this last lot tomorrow'

'Ok,Ill leave you to it then' I left him hunched over a mould separating half a demented bird cast from the plastic,cussing that he'd got fibreglass under his thumbnail.


On returning home much later that night I was met by very dark faces. 'What's happened ?' I asked.... 'You've caused a LOT of bloody trouble with your flamin' fibreglass!' came the reply. On pressing further I found there'd been what I'd have to call a small explosion. An outhouse window was spread across the yard along with ceramics and 'glue'

It took til the following evening to run my mate to ground. 'Shi*e mate I'm sorry, yer old mam went bloody ballistic-did she do her nut at yer?' 'Yes' I replied- 'what the hell happened?'

'I had about a litre of resin and half a bottle of hardener,so I mixed it ALL in,did 2 more pigeons and then packed it in,it was getting bloody hot in the tin. When it started smoking I bunged the hardener (glass) bottle in the tin with the remaining super mix resin and stamped the lid down. I thought I'd best bung it in that old sink in case it leaked or owt'

'So what happened then,where were you last night?'

'Well', came the reply, 'It made a few bangs in the tin and the lid started bending out,so I ran off home'


The tin had gone egg shaped,the lid glued on by the super resin mix,pressure built up til it simply burst violently open,taking a chunk out of the sink with it. This pottery missile flew through the window,across the yard and through a larch lap fence

By all accounts my mam had been hard pressed to stop the neighbours calling the armed response out,the older ones spent the night in their Anderson shelters I think. So not for the first or last time one of my schemes ended in trouble.

I saw Bill about a week later. 'How have you gone on with those geese?' ' Oh alright Bill, great thanks'

'Do you want anymore stuff?' ...'No' I replied ' We had just the right amounts of everything,you gave us perfect quantities'

'Aye' said Bill,' you just have to watch that hardener though,a drop too much and it gets a bit warm' He grinned and I knew he'd heard about my hair brained mates explosives night . Nice bloke Bill was.

[Rushy]

I've read the horror story too about the Galaxy kayak, basically the rod holder fittings were loose which meant the kayak took on water and virtually sank. I think the manufacturer has upgraded those particular fittings now, though it would be worth checking them if you do decide to buy.
Having said that, reading other reviews, the galaxy appears to be a decent entry level kayak and good value for the money. It's quite a wide and short yak, which means it sacrifices speed for stability, it'll be a hard slow but stable paddle.
One thing to consider if you're thinking of getting a two man kayak is they can be tricky to use ie you both need to be in sync with your movements. By that I mean not so much the paddling aspect but general movements, if you both lean to one side at the same time you can easily capsize. There was another horror story of just such a occurrence with a tandem kayak off rossall point in midwinter in a raging spring tide.

The Ocean kayaks are the brand leaders, and rightly so. They're a quality piece of tried and tested kit. The downsize is they're a bit pricey. One route to go down would be to keep your eyes out for a second hand complete kit, it might involve travelling a fair distance to get what you want but there are bargains to be had.

[Paul]

Id looked at the single man kayaks which are all 10ft...

The tandems seem to be only 12 foot too.....


Depends how important budget is, as Rushy has suggested, id personally look for a second hand Ocean rather than buying a new galaxy going off the specs alone....

Are you intending on buying the tandem to fish two people or just to have more space for yourself??

[andyb71]

probably more space for me and maybe me lad (teens) would come now and again....(nice story about bill blanco)

I remember going out in the 17ft wammle built like a brick sh*t house it was ...very strong had a 6hp ob on her was more than enough power.great boat

I think they may do the job the galaxy that's all I have read that the fittings are better now and I could also use it for p*ssing about on the beach on family holls(ahem with a rod of course) trying to sell it to the wife...lol

[andyb71]

also seen this version single seater with the following

This specially designed sit-on Fishing Package has,
•Robust super stable Kayak which usually retails for £350 +
•34LB THRUST ELECTRIC OUTBOARD MOTOR (leisure battery not included)
•2 piece lightweight Paddle which usually retails for £50 +
•Luxury Padded Back Rest Seat AND REAR STORAGE BAG which usually retails for £30 +
•4 Fishing Rod holders which usually retails for £40 +
•1 x Pro Swivel Fishing Rod Holder which usually retails for £20 +
•all stainless steel fittings
•5mm thick polyethelene
•Free front hatch tackle box
•side handles
•paddle parks
•2 locking watertight hatches
•6 scupper plugs complete with convienient easy pull handles (included)
•large rear storage complete with bungee
•REAR FIXINGS TO ATTACH ELECTRIC OUTBOARD MOTOR (LEISURE BATTERY NOT INCLUDED)
•FREE BOUANCY AID FOR THE FIRST 10 ORDERS

[Paul]

Have you got a link?

The single manners i looked at were only 10ft...

[andyb71]

hi its a seller for galaxy kayaks

he's on ebay member id galaxykayaks
ebay shop kayaks-4-u

all different models on there in his shop