I have recently bought a Stealth Supalite X Fibre glass fishing Kayak this kayak is designed to deal with the big surf conditions in South Africa and as a lot of my fishing involves surf landings and launches I thought it would suit my needs and possibly enable me to get out or more importantly in when conditions rough up a bit.
The quick specifications are:
Perfect For Tough Surf Launches
Fast Gliding Abilities
International Standards Safety Buoyancy Complaint
(L) 4.3m x (W) 0.63m
Weight - 25KG
Angler Weight 120KG - Maximum Load 170KG 
On the first session paddling the Supalite X in some small surf it felt strange sitting high up compared to my Dorado but after a bit of practice I was surfing the waves right the way into the beach without any problems and climbing up over them paddling out was great as the bow has a pronounced curve to it which enables the kayak to ride up and over the breakers and not cut through them as much as a sharper bowed Kayak
Then it was time to paddle out into the deeper water to do some self rescues which was very easy and requires little effort to re board even with some rollers bearing down on me
The next session was to be a short fishing session to see how the kayak faired at anchor no problems here either there was a little bit of noise as the chop hit the squared off stern but that was to be expected and as I had not yet fit a cleat to prevent the trolley from sliding back towards me it kept creeping back which lead to me being side on to the tide for a short while now and again but no trouble and easily fixed
The kayak paddles a lot faster than I would have thought all be it in decent conditions but not a lot slower than my other Kayak could be different in a strong headwind though
After the first few outings I did some modifications to the foot pedals as they needed adjusting for me as my knees were much to high affecting balance and also interfering with my paddle stroke so a morning spent with a hacksaw,drill,tape measure and some heat shrink tubing and I managed to extend the legroom to suit my needs which transformed the kayak 100% and was a lot comfier and more controllable in the waves.
Also the kayak comes as standard with velcro foot straps which I think would be great in warmer climates where you paddle in bare feet but I felt it could become a potential foot trap when wearing neoprene boots so removed them from mine which was a simple job.
The storage on the Stealth Kayaks is massive allowing me to store my C-Tug,Spare paddle and all of my gear plus rods even my 7' 6" one piece without a problem and with room to spare plus a hatch behind the seat
The small hatch at the stern is for accessing the rudder assembly
I have fit a rear anchor trolley which was easily done and utilises some of the original fittings only needing to add one extra pad eye which is only there to guide the bungee and also one cleat the main strain on the trolley will be taken on the original reinforced fittings
The cleat to lock the anchor
Also mounted a compass, scotty mount and gps mount
The fish finder install requires a little bit of work and thought as the stealths are twin skinned so mounting a transducer means you need to gain access to the hull otherwise the transducer would just be firing into a void between the inner skin and the hull the best way to do this was to install a hatch inside the fish hatch and then a marine gland to feed the cable for the transducer through you could always put the battery between the two skins but I think mine will be going in the main hatch
Not the easiest job to do as its tricky working in the confines of the hatch but well worth it when its complete
Then the head unit I am mounting using velcro pads two benefits to this method no drilling and also easy to remove so you have a clear deck either once at anchor so a fish cant knock it off or when returning through the surf the deck is totally clear so no chance of snapping the mount if you get wiped out
The cables can just be trapped under the edge of the fish hatch might need to notch out a little bit to allow them space
I used a thick piece of plastic chopping board and cut a template of the fish finder base out and screwed the mount to this which made a nice surface to attach the velcro to
And then it just needed a second pad on the hatch lid for the base to stick to
Once I had modified the foot pedals I took it out to test it in the sort of conditions it is designed for and was filled with confidence with the way it performed superb riding up and over the breakers and also really good fun riding them back in again with the bow being broader and very buoyant it doesn't bury its nose on a steep wave it just pushes on and out rides the wave in and keeps a straighter line with a bit of practice
The Supalite has fixed skeg and rudder at the rear which I thought could be a problem as its not retractable but can honestly say its not been an issue either in the shallows or dragging the kayak out of the water
As the Kayaks are built to order in South Africa there is a wait from ordering to delivery but this does mean you can pick your own colour design and extra fittings hatches,rod holders for no extra cost and for the quality of Kayak the cost is very reasonable IMHO
I know after speaking with Chris who Imports the Stealth Kayaks the shipments should be getting more frequent by next year
Full details of the Stealth Kayaks can be found here:
http://www.stealthkayaks.co.uk/
Chris Really is a helpful bloke and knows his stuff about the kayaks in the range and also knows a thing or two about rigging them
Hope this is of help to some people when trying to decide on a kayak and anything I've missed I will add to this post at a later date
Andy
