Friday 2 November 2012

Stealth Supalite X

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  
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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
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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
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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
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The small hatch at the stern is for accessing the rudder assembly
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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
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The cleat to lock the anchor
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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
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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
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And then it just needed a second pad on the hatch lid for the base to stick to
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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
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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
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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
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Andy

7 comments:

  1. Hola Andy.
    Bonito kayak,tiene una pinta estupenda,seguro que disfrutaras mucho con el,enhorabuena.
    Un Saludo.

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  2. Hi Andy

    Great review, for some reason I must have missed it when you first posted it. I've been looking at the Stealth range too. Would be interested to know your opinion about the merits of your new Supalite versus your Dorado (table comparison?). Is the Dorado still a quicker yak? Better fish storage? How do the two handle in chop? All round build quality? Best fishing platform?

    Seems the South Africans have the serious fishing kayak market pretty much nailed down these days!

    Best wishes and hoping you have a good New Year.

    Kester

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  3. Hi Kester,

    Thanks for reading, the Stealth's fish hatch is a lot bigger than the dorado and I cant fault the build quality of the Stealth kayaks my Supalite x is a lot slower than the Dorado but it is designed for heavy surf not for speed and distance and it handles big breakers with ease having a big wide buoyant bow helps with keeping the kayak straight whilst riding the bigger waves in and prevents the bow from burying and digging in, however after paddling a pro fisha 575 which is designed to cover distance I sold my Dorado and ordered myself a pro fisha 475 I would have got the 575 but lack of space in the garage wouldn't allow it the pro fisha's paddle great have an enormous storage hatch and IMHO are a lot better fishing platform than the Dorado as you can sit side saddle and move around the kayak a lot more and don't feel restricted like you do in the deep seatwell of the Dorado



    The Dorado's are a great sea going kayak but for me the Stealths suit my needs so much better



    Chris who imports the Stealth kayaks is a really helpful bloke so if you need any further info don't hesitate to contact him


    All the best
    Andy

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  4. Hi Andy

    Thanks so much for your reply, that's just the information I was after!

    After 5 years kayak fishing I've finally decided on getting a glass yak as my mate also decided he was ordering a Dorado and I might not keep up in my Scupper Pro! Tried to find some reviews that compared the latest Pro Fisha with a Dorado and could get any up to date info on how they compare. How easy is it to clean the fish storage area in both kayaks? It looks like the Pro Fisha doesn't have a separate box, it's just the inside of the yak from one of the videos I've seen, which would make rinsing it out a bit of an ordeal.

    Did you think the Dorado is still faster than the pro fisha? I guess the 575 is a very quick yak anyway and it's amazingly light. Speed for me is probably my number one requirement as I do a lot of miles, but I'd really like to be able to put my rod away safe for landing in surf occasionally. Like yourself, I don't have space for the 575, so I'm hoping the 475 will still be as quick as the Dorado.

    Hope you don't mind all these questions!

    Cheers

    Kester

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  5. I think the 475 will be as fast if not faster than a Dorado and the 575 even quicker the fish hatch has its own separate drain plug plus a drain plug for the main hull so rinsing out couldn't be easier.


    I'm seriously looking at getting a Scupper Pro for exploring and Rock hopping on the rougher parts of the coast and for my kids to use in the summer

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  6. Also the Pro Fisha's hatch is separate from the hull and very large its hard to see from photos

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  7. Cheers for that Andy, think you might have sold it to me! If i can't find a storage solution, there might be a well used Scupper Pro coming into the market this spring!

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