Ep. 309: Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible inflatable kayak | RV travel camping RVlife
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- Опубликовано: 20 июл 2024
- We've sold our venerable Necky Looksha Sport and purchased an Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible inflatable kayak to accompany our Eddyline Fathom, thanks to its versatility to be used as a single or tandem kayak, with an open cockpit or closed, as well as its convenient portability for RV life. But how does an inflatable kayak stack up to a hardshell boat? We'll give it a shot in this week's Grand Adventure, so come along!
Filmed: May 22-24, 2023
CHAPTERS
0:00 Intro
0:37 Why this inflatable kayak?
3:43 Unpacking and inflating the kayak
7:02 Optional accessories for improved performance
9:13 On-water testing
11:23 Conclusions and how to get one yourself
13:39 Wrap-up
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You’re so happy playing with new toys☺️
We bought that same kayak about four years ago and it is blue instead of orange. We live in FL and use it all the time in the coastal waters. We travel about 10k miles every fall during hurricane season and take it with us in our travels north and west. We use the Dewalt portable pump to infate and deflate the AE kayak. I can have it setup in 8-10 minutes. We have the same options as you bought but seldom need the cowl. I'm glad you enjoy yours as as much as we do ours.
That's great feedback, thanks Rick! It's funny, but after I bought it sometime around March or so, I had a reason to go back and re-watch our Lake Havasu episode from 2018 and son of a gun, if I didn't film a couple paddling that exact boat. 😄I'd imagine that I'll get better at setup with experience, but as this was the first time doing so, and because I was filming (which makes anything take 3x as long) it was hardly 8-10 minutes. I *was* surprised, though, at how quickly and smoothly teardown and stowing went.
"10 k miles every fall" ? THAT's a LOT of paddling!! Of coarse I imagine paddling down wind in a hurricane would probably up your speed considerably :)
Love Topaz lake the few times I've been there.
We'll bring you there next week, Norm!
All and all, it looks like a pretty good kayak. It's nice that you'll be able to take your wife along for the ride.
That was the idea, JT: versatility.
Marc, this will be interesting. I expect we will hear how it differs from your hard shell yaks.
For many, this will be the difference between a buy or avoid, decision.🤔
Gord
Correct, Gord. As you probably already realize I'm really picky about boat performance. We bought this on a whim, sight unseen, thanks to finding it on a great deal. On paper, and with a few options added it appeared to have the characteristics to maximize the performance of an inflatable. But would that be enough? We wouldn't truly now how we felt about it until we tried it, and last week's camp at Topaz Lake in Nevada provided our first opportunity to inflate it and get it out onto the water. We'll share that experience tonight.
@@GrandAdventure Very interesting, Marc! Thanks for the early comments. I doubt you would be reviewing this is you didn't really feel it was a good value.
Thus, your review will likely cover where it lacks and to what degree, over the hard shell yaks. Together with the obvious benefits of not having to always rack and unrack a hard shell.
Nevertheless, it will pose another issue as these things when deflated fill up a good size bag that must be stowed somewhere...
Oh yes, in the back of the pickup somewhere around fifthwheel pedestal next to the folded up pet enclosure...😋.
If it employees a thin skin membrane covering... then plenty of patches to go along with it. 😉
One of these days you are going to look like one of those early pickups with everything stacked up and
tied down on your way west along the Mother Road... yes, these were the very first RV'rs🤣... should be WV'rs - Wreckreational Vehicles!🤔
Gord
I watched the promo video and agree that strategically placed Velcro would be a help. I like kayaking but couldn't figure out where to put it, so this inflatable is a very viable option; will seriously consider. Thx
Our pleasure, Larry. We try a *lot* of stuff that never makes it to RUclips because we try to remain positive. If we don't like something, you'll never see it here on GA unless we really feel a compelling need to steer folks away from something. This boat definitely far exceeded our expectations for an inflatable.
How funny Marc, I bought a kayak today! But mine seems like a kids toy compared to yours! Although it was only $140 with great Amazon reviews. I just want to get on the water and don't have a lot of $ to spend on a kayak considering that I've never owned one. So I figure I don't have a lot to lose. If I love the experience, then I might upgrade. Glad to see you at a beautiful lake!
See you out there, Claudia! Whatever gets you out on the water is good for you.
Nice video and a great insight. I will be buying this. Thanx for making a good and informative video. And i will be following you for more interesting adventures.
Happy to have you along, thank you.
Great Video!
Thank you Craig!
Great review Marc.
Thank you Frank!
We've had a pair of the single sport models for several years and they are great. I always recommend to my friends to get the Longest paddle they can find. mine is 180cm long and I'm only 5'8". that is a good combination for such a beamy boat and helps you avoid high sticking. we stow both our kayaks in the front cargo bay of our 5th wheel and take them everywhere.
That's great feedback. Thanks, Dave! As I'll be primarily paddling the Eddyline when paddling solo, I'm somewhat reluctant to get a longer paddle just for this boat. But it's a point well taken.
I bought a small 10ft "viper" kayak from Menards home improvement store a few years ago and have modified it heavily. I've padded the bottom and back of the seat, added rod holders, paddle holder and carrying handles as well as a tow line that I can tie off to things around the lakes. Action camera mounts too. It's fun to customize your rig no-matter what you got.
True that. As I told another commenter last evening, whatever gets you out on the water is good.
Geat video! I absolutely love my Advanced Elements Advanced Frame kayak - I got the lime green version. It was my very first kayak and works great! I upgraded the seat for more lumbar support and added the backbone to create a 'V' shaped hull for enhanced tracking. I also use the Dura Floor for more firmness and structure on the bottom for my feet and seat and for easy cleaning. I've recently added the foot pedals as well. This boat is durable and really stable. I use it for camping when the car is full of gear because this boat packs down super small. I use a werner Camano 235cm paddle and that length paddle seems to work great. I also appreciate the paddle holders and the seat I use clips in and stays in place until I unclip it after each use. For maintenance, I make sure the interior gets a good air dry in the summer and in the winter, I'll use a space heater and pull out the inner canvas tubes to make sure they dry well.
That's terrific, and thank you for sharing your experience with the boat.
WOW, that was a great review! I like all the features of this kayak but the biggest factor for me would be the versatility of storage. I do have a large 5th wheel but with all my outdoor cooking kitchen gear and offroad toys that doesn't leave a lot of room for a hardshell kayak. Transport on the 4-wheeler or the side by side to those remote lakes would be very convenient.
It would serve that purpose very well, Marv.
Very nice, I like it, we had the Walmart ones a few years ago but sold them because hauling them was alot of work, lol.
You would find, Dave that this is nothing like one of those Walmart boats. This is a quality inflatable that performs exceedingly well for what it is. And still prefer my hard shell kayak, but this is a very versatile alternative, especially for people with limited space.
I am still looking for a kayak for my RV. Looks like a good option. We also have two inflatable paddle boards. Thanks Don
It's definitely a solid option if you're looking for an inflatable, Don.
Thanks for a great review. I have an simpler inflatable kayak and are wondering about getting a more serious one.
Happy to help, Lars. Thanks for watching!
Thanks Marc... Very impressive performance overall.
The really big drawback is the time taken for inflation and deflation of all the various pockets.
Deflating being the biggest issue. One really needs a reversible pump that will also suck all the air out the pockets so that it easily folds up and fits back into the carrying bag.
I can see that tight fitting carrying bag will not tolerate any extra air.
But functionally, it appears to be a very good execution of a worthwhile kayak.
Given your other two yaks, I don't think you will be using this yourself. This is likely the first and last time you ever use it.
But others will no doubt enjoy it's usage... as you struggled to get it all suited up and inflated for them and then reverse the process afterwards.🙉🙄🙊
Gord
You're correct, Gord. I didn't show the deflation/teardown but it took only ~15 minutes. I suspect I can get the inflation/setup down to roughly the same time with experience. And yes, both of those pumps -- the 12V and the hand pump -- are reversible.
I sold the Necky Looksha, the yellow kayak that appears in most of our videos up until last year. Ironically I owned it for about 15 years after buying it used, and sold it for only $50 less than I paid for it. This is intended to replace the Necky for others to use, or for when Patricia or Zoe wish to join me on the water.
@@GrandAdventure Wow... Marc, I'm really surprised you sold the Necky. As long as you still need the roof track for the other hard shell, why not keep the Necky on the other side of the rack? Just curious...
Thanks for all the other info.
Gord
@@gorrdd we sold it because this gives us more versatility on the water (single or tandem, open cockpit or closed) than the Necky, which was seldom used by anyone after acquiring the Eddyline.
I positively adore that Eddyline, which will remain my go-to boat for myself. It far outperforms the Necky, so I wasn't using the Necky myself anymore. With the Necky Patricia had one choice that she didn't appreciate, or even particularly enjoy: a closed cockpit single. But with the Advanced Elements, when Patricia wants to get out on the water for a casual paddle she can have an open cockpit single, or tandem with me.
Once I decided to buy the Advanced Elements for that flexibility, selling the Necky also helped to justify purchasing the Advanced Elements. With all of the optional upgrades I'm into this Advanced Elements boat for roughly a kilobuck, and selling the Necky returned over a third of that.
@@GrandAdventure Thanks for the great explanation... versatility being the main reason. Yeah, that's a chunk of change for sure. 🤔
Gord
They only things that takes time is having to dry it, everything else Gorrdd, takes no longer than 10 minutes. Bag is oversized and fits everything in nicely so you don't have to be precise so much on folding it up. Takes a little bit getting used to in paddling but over time she will be gliding through the water in no time. Enjoy
Thanks for all the info - very comprehensive review. I'm a new FL resident, looking to make my first purchase. I need a foldable kayak, so the regular ones are ruled out given my compact vehicles. How does drying and deflation work. Not sure if this will be stable enough for photography - could you comment on that, like both hand-held and also placing a tripod on the floor.
It is as stable as any other boat, so I imagine that it will work out well for your photography needs. Happy to hear that you found this helpful!
I own the single seater and use a folding camp chair the kind sit on ground. Light weight made of foam fits into kayak perfectly i think i use it on top of the inflatable chair that gets me lo clear the sides of the boat...have fun
Interesting idea, sounds like it works well for you.
I have the same one and living in an apartment I couldn't fit a hard shell kayak so I studied up on inflatables, and this was the one I chose. Love how I can be solo or tandem. Was worried about my dog popping it but she can't due to the strong materials it's made of. Also love the accessories like drop stitch floor I can put in to stiffen it up and be able to stand up in for fishing. Thanks for the always great videos and maybe I will run into you one of the days out on the 395 or maybe overland expo pnw in Oregon this coming July 7-9th 2023. Seems like you are traveling in that direction based on videos. They also make some better seats for the kayak fyi
Thanks for sharing your experience. Have you tried the upgraded seats yourself? Do they stay put any better during entry and exit?
Yes they do. They seem to fit a bit more snug since they have the air lumbar support. Also they have the attachable foot pegs that keep me in position way better to eliminate sliding around.
Do you think it would be possible to stand on that drop-stitched floor, and even fish from it? 32" IS pretty wide!
That drop-stitch floor is extremely rigid. I'd think that you could, but realize that's coming from someone who's not a fisherman and who doesn't stand in a kayak. 😄
I say that about my Nemo chairs every time I have to pack them up. Why couldn’t they make the bag just an inch or two bigger??? 🥵
Nice video!
We have pondered getting an inflatable kayak. This one looks good.
Glad you’re finally going to take Mrs. Grandadventure out!
Thanks for doing this review.
Ram
👍🏼👍🏾
Our pleasure, Ram!
Hey Marc...I hope you are doing well. That kayak seems like a decent one for open water like what you have it in. I would be a little wary about using it in south Louisiana swamps where we have a lot of sharp tree debris just under the surface and of course the occasional gator that may want to take a bite out of the boat. What do you think ?Stay safe...
Hey George! This is about as durable as an inflatable kayak gets, with a thick vinyl skin over the hull that surrounds the inflatable bladder. Still, you need to be more careful with an inflatable than you do with a hard shell kayak.
Is topaz lake like Lahontan, as in is it all open boondocking on the beach? I’ve always wanted to head down there.
Parts of Topaz are indeed like Lahontan with paid beach boondocking for $20/night. We show that in next week's episode even though we were actually in the campground with W/E hookups for $40/night.
Would love to know what the optional drip stitch floor and single conversion cost you and where you got them
We bought both of those items from Amazon, and then subsequently listed them in our own Amazon shop: www.amazon.com/shop/grandadventure/list/3C8T2PJYB8SG6
Hi Marc, thanks for the video. I’ve had the advanced elements convertible for a couple of years now, and I really enjoyed it; however, just purchased and had delivered the drop stitched floor. I’m very excited to try it out in a couple of weeks at Wallowa Lake over Fourth of July. Quick question do you use the standard floor and the drop stitch floor together or just drop stitch floor?
I also completely agree about the seat. I’m going to try your Velcro idea!!👍
Our best advice, Kyle, is to not inflate the included floor, and just inflate the drop stitch floor. We adore Wallowa Lake, have a wonderful time up there!
@@GrandAdventure thanks for the advice! We’re looking forward to it!
Paddling comfortably is a must in a boat who's only means of propulsion is via paddles, so paddles rubbing on the sides is a huge negative as far as I would be concerned , after all it only has one job
Very true, Pat. The issue for me is that I was using the same paddle that I use with my Eddyline, the beam of which is 10" narrower. All could be easily rectified with a longer paddle for the Advanced Elements boat.
Inflatable kayaks are good if you cannot manage regular kayaks. If you lack the storage space or ability to transport full-size kayaks, these kayaks are good. Especially if you modify them for more comfort. These are awesome for backcountry pack hiking, especially if you have more than one person to help distribute the loads.
But if you can manage hard kayaks, I'd say they are pretty much superior in every way as far as performance and comfort go. The only advantage to these is portability. Pumping them up is very doable but no fun either. You definitely want a battery/12 volt pump. They're okay, they serve a purpose, but they're nothing groundbreaking. They look very cool. I definitely would not want one for a lake house or some use where a normal kayak works fine. Sooner or later you're going to rip it.
Agree on all points that you've raised. Our Eddyline is still my go-to boat. But many RVers face a space issue, or a transportation issue. For them, a boat like this Advanced Elements kayak is a viable alternative.
I think you should of waited until they sent you one. I'm just over the mountains from Topaz.
We found a heck of a closeout deal, Joe, and jumped on it sight unseen and untested.
How are the seats for comfort and back support?
To be honest the seats could be better, and velcro is needed to keep their bottom surface from sliding. I understand that the optional upgraded seats they make available are better, but we haven't tried those yet ourselves.
Hello. Can a disassembled bicycle be attached to the front of the kayak, and the wheels to the rear? Has anyone tried this?
I'm not following the concept.
What was the total setup time? And how long to put it all back in the bag?
This was our first time, Tom, and we were filming which makes everything take 3x what it should, so it felt like it took forever. But I'd guess normal setup time once you've done it a couple of times is ~15 minutes. That's about what it took us to put everything away, too.
? Have you tried folding kayak?
We have not, although we've always found those origami kayaks pricey but intriguing.