473rl

Having owned and used the Sea Eagle 473rl for 6 months now, I feel I can write a fair and honest review, starting first with the pros. Fast delivery time. Superb customer service. Excellent engineering and build quality. The fact that my wife and I can kayak anywhere with any location accessible, due to this kayak's portability - is absolutely fantastic. Early on - we did have difficulty with installing and un-installing the footrests, and cleaning and folding up the kayak. However, after just a few times doing so, it all quickly becomes rather easy to do. First time out, kayak felt a little tippy, but we quickly settled into it, and found it to actually be quite stable. My only negative comment would be, after a couple hours paddling, I find the seat becomes rather uncomfortable. That can be resolved by adding a cushion or other padding onto the seat. With a 3 year warranty and 120 day money back guarantee trial period, I would highly recommend if you want to be able to take a kayak anywhere you want to.

Although we have 6 hard single-seat kayaks, we use our 473rl for long road trips where we stop for short periods of paddling. We can even fit it in the back of our Prius C along with luggage and our dog and cat. The kayak handles well but isn't exactly nimble on turns with the skeg installed. So far we have never been able to install the foot pegs. I just modified the front pare by drilling out the rear support and drilling a hole in the rod and securing them with a pin.

I can only give a 2 star review for this kayak because of INCREDIBLY unstable riding. Without a stabilizer, I'm unable to ride this kayak because it is super wobbly. I'm also not able to return it because it is past the return policy date. The motivation for purchasing this kayak was after watching a demonstration video on YouTube. After testing it personally, I have to say that it is a very unstable kayak for amateurs like myself and my wife to ride - I also recently watched another 473rl video and saw that experts also carefully evaluated the kayak as unstable. For others looking to purchase, I suggest you look at the "465ft FastTrack Inflatable Kayak" which seems like a safer option than the 473rl. I wish I could exchange. I have already spent $2,325.65 CAD(included tax, shipping ) for USED ONE. I'm so disappointed.

Hi guys, thanks again for checking in. I would like to thank you all for building a high quality inflatable. We spent 3 weeks in southwest Florida in January paddling the kayak. It was very easy to inflate and install the seats. The footrest were a little more difficult to install but got easier with time. My wife and I had never paddled an inflatable before, within 3 mile we felt very stable and understood the concept. The next day we paddled 8 mile down the calosahatchee river, best time ever. We had some light chop in the open water but never felt compromised. I had a concern about oyster beds and possible damage to the hull but that was unwarranted. I did have trouble packing it back into the storage bag to original state but I managed. I loved the way it packed in our Jeep Grand Cherokee, took very little space. I look forward to warmer weather in Kansas and putting the boat back on the water. All and all, we love and look forward many years of paddling in the473rl. thanks again.