Hobie announcement on May14 is...

Yeah. I have to imagine things have improved with modern manufacturing, but at least when I was looking at inflatable boats, the seams are always the weak point and inflate/deflate cycles plus rolling them up can accelerate it.   Hobie on their forum seems to think 5-6 years is probably reasonable from the offhand comments I have read.  I guess most of us seem to cycle through boats around 5-6 years, but it would suck to end up with a  seat/drive and not have a hull to put it on.  At least with your Bote boards they were probably under 1000 each?

I always conjectured that the Hobie tax comes from them being a sailboat company originally and anythign sailboat always has a mark up.  That being said, I do feel like Hobie tends to use pretty top shelf materials.  You really don't hear about the small plastics breaking and everything is saltwater rated with the use of high quality stainless throughout.    There have been some hull failures though (especially drivewell and seat risers).

Good point about getting back on production.  From what I gather its a mix of high demand, but also delays on raw materials as well as completed parts coming from overseas.  I would assume the R&D team is probably pretty separate from the manufacturing side of the house.  On the flip side here, this is not a rotomolded hull so in theory doesn't take away capacity from the main lines. 

That being said, I do feel like Hobie tends to use pretty top shelf materials.  You really don't hear about the small plastics breaking and everything is saltwater rated with the use of high quality stainless throughout.

I completely agree! I actually don't think Hobie gets enough credit for this. And if you put in the slightest effort to maintain and not abuse your drive and metal hardware it seems to last forever. It reminds me of the software axiom: Cheap, fast or good - pick 2.

Good point about getting back on production.  From what I gather its a mix of high demand, but also delays on raw materials as well as completed parts coming from overseas.

Yeah, it's a complicated situation, that they're getting paid $3000 per kayak to figure out.

...this is not a rotomolded hull so in theory doesn't take away capacity from the main lines.

Fair point, but if nothing else it looks bad for the people who are still waiting on their orders, hence my point about consumer sentiment regarding premium brands.

(without derailing this thread too much...) Yeah Hobie needs to figure out the inventory situation. Curious if the ownership change had anything to do with it... but all the other companies faced same sorts of supply chain issues, shutdowns that prevented factories from working etc. yet Hobie can't be accurate at all on their delivery dates. 

Seems to be a wide latitude in what dealers are doing too.  Seems like some people are paying full price to hold their boat, but in my case with ordering a tandem island, I just put down 20% to hold it.  Ordered in Nov. with an estimated arrival date of Jan. Boat randomly showed up late feb/early march and the dealer had no idea when it was coming in, it just happened to be in that shipment.  On top of that they were telling me Hobie forgot drives and other accessories for certain boats in that same shipment...but the paperwork didnt reflect that...not a good situation. 

They need to figure it out. They had the pedal fishing market cornered for such a long time, slowly there was some competition but it wasnt necessarily a threat.  Old town seems to be really kicking it into gear with competitive products and a full range of models. 

  I still think the price is kind of bonkers.

I thought that also until I watched the video and saw all the attachment points and trax and standing pad and removable rudder...plus they are selling it with the highest cost Mirage drive.

Having spent lots of time on CoosBay and the ocean on an i11s, an 11' long, 36" wide platform is extremely stable.  It's going to get kicked around good in washing machine conditions...

What if this is the future and the next Lynx kayak using Ace-Tec is like 13' long and maybe 27" wide....little more of a wave cutting shape in the front...50 pound hull weight...

Uh, guys... Hobie was originally in the surfboard business.  The Hobie catamarans came quite a bit later.

Uh, guys... Hobie was originally in the surfboard business.  The Hobie catamarans came quite a bit later.

exactly, 'boards' go right back to their roots.  going forward, just add one of those lift-foil wing things with electric thruster and you could lift one of these up and skim the surface at hi speed...
1-- for low speed/trolling sitting down- Mirage drive. 
2-- cover water fast- stand up and hit the lift-foil button.

I know this is an older thread...but I did buy a Mirage Lynx from Next Adventure, and generally I'm happy with it.  I'm new to kayak angling, and I've only had it out on a few lakes.  Here's what I like and don't like so far:


Like

#1 - It's light.  I can put it up on my car by myself, despite the fact that the handles are almost worthless
#2 - It's fast and nimble.  I can almost kick up a mini wake when I'm really pounding the pedals and it turns like at a 90 degree angle
#3 - It's quiet...but I assume most kayaks are quiet. 
#4 - It's not a drift boat...which is what I used to use to fish.  I hate boat ramps. 
#5 - The free scupper hole cart that someone made/gave me fits perfectly
#6 - The track mounts make it really easy to add accessories


Don't like

#1 - Per the manual, it says to transport it flat...I'd prefer to put it into a cradle on the top of my car, but am sticking with the manual
#2 - You do miss not having hatches
#3 - It's DELICATE....Despite being EXTREMELY careful, I have lots of little bumps and nicks in the shell, and the decals are not going to be long for this world. 
#4 - Although the seat is comfortable...I recall a couple of other Hobie's that I demo'd having more comfortable seats


I likely will never go ocean kayaking...I want to be able to fish lakes, tidewater, maybe the Columbia in the right conditions...basically the same things I did with my drift boat, just without boat ramp stress.  I think this is going to be a good fit.

I really appreciate the review. Every once in a while I watch a new video on these and am intrigued. Having some real-world feedback is really useful.

It's too bad the shell is so fragile; that's definitely a minus compared to other options.

I really appreciate the review. Every once in a while I watch a new video on these and am intrigued. Having some real-world feedback is really useful.

It's too bad the shell is so fragile; that's definitely a minus compared to other options.

...and that could be just me because it's new and I'm trying to take care of it.  Perhaps I'm just over-thinking it.   I understand that there will be wear and tear...I bought some marine grade wax and waxed the sh*t out of it and I hope that this helps.  I know, though, just from reading the Hobie forums that if you puncture the skin it will need to be repaired so I'm being very careful.

With how tough (and rigid) the inflatables are these days having to baby the shell at all seems like a pretty big minus. I have a BOTE inflatable SUP and that thing is tough as nails.

I thought about the i11 inflatable, but with only a 2 year warranty and my track record for over-inflating air mattresses and splitting their seams, I thought I'd better not.