SOT Tandems

I was looking at different models of kayaks online the other day when my wife walks by and says "Oh, that one's neat!", pointing at a tandem I hadn't even seen.  She even said she'd tag along (book and pole in hand) if we had something like that...

That got me thinking...
What's the difference between running a tandem kayak solo, versus a solo kayak?  Same manufacturer, same length (approximately), SOT's only.

I know some of you have 'em...

Wife and I fish out of our tandem Oasis all the time.  It's stable, effective, and FASTER than the Revo.

I was leaning more to the paddle side of things...dropping the "Tandem" and moving the seat to the "Solo" position, how do they work out...compared to an actual "Solo"

Insayn has one that has 3 seat positions, so you can use it tandem or middle for solio. I hope he chimes in

If you're looking for a paddle tandem/solo combo you might consider checking out the Big Tuna by Jackson Kayak.  Very cool boat, I was really researching and looking into it to be able to take the wife out and do solo; but I eventually went with the shorter Cuda instead. 

As Blue mentioned....I have the Ocean Kayak Malibu Two XL.  It's a wider kayak than the Hobie or most other tandems, but is very user friendly from the center position running solo, as well as two adults front and back.  Or, add a small kid seat to the front facing back and you can have a family of 3 on it all at the same time.

Originally purchased it for the wife and my daughter to use together, but I have taken it to many locations with my son, and or myself for that matter.  It is probably the most used SOT tandem kayak you will see at rental places.  Not too expensive either.

We run our tandems solo all the time.  Works great for fishing with the extra room and good for multi day trips on the John Day.

Thanks for the feedback...
I've looked at quite a few different makes and models...think I've got it pegged down to a couple now...
Ocean Kayak Malibu 2
Perception Sports Scrambler 2
I like the really basic layout of the Scrambler 2...especially if my other (either wife or on of the daughters) just wants to kick back and read a book...it looks like it's got a little more all-around room

I've had the Malibu 2XL since 2008.  Very stable boat. Able to fish with two adults easy. The swap from tandem to solo is as easy unclip and remove front seat and move rear seat to the center seat pocket. My wife likes the idea of just hanging out in front while I fish. Only down side is your not going to win any kayak races with a length of 13' 4"and 34" wide LOL. If your interested in pictures of my setup let me know

My wife and I fished out of an OK Malibu Two XL last season together. Great boat overall, and we really enjoyed it. I'm not going to lie, it felt pretty big flying solo from the center position, but it was great for pulling up crab pots and stuff solo because of that. I probably wouldn't have wanted to go against heavy current/wind solo in it, but tandem we took on moderate conditions several times with zero problems.

I haven't tried the Malibu Two but I would definitely suggest the XL. With two adults in it you'll want the little bit of extra room.

We sold it at the end of last summer and we got a Hobie Oasis (mirage drive tandem). If we're both kicking hard we cruise at 5.5mph, but a more sustainable pace is about 4mph. I have not used it solo more than a few hundred yards so far but several other forum members have experience (including on the ocean) with the Oasis solo. It is at least as stable as the Malibu Two XL, moreso in my opinion.