My kayak got punctured - Now I love it even more... here is why!

When you buy an inflatable kayak, it is always in the back of your mind, what happens if it gets punctured, what does it take for it to get punctured. Questions that are hard to answer, and noone wants to test it in a deliberate act. I finally got the answer, and now I love my kayak even more. I share this to help you with a more informed decision, when the choice is between inflatables and hardshells.

[@JamesJReid]

Great story. You bolstered my confidence about buying an inflatable boat

[@BackonTrailasia]

Will bolster it further in the near future, I am making a follow up video. :-)

[@enricakita1]

I have an Aquaglide deschute 130 and I recently got the slightest puncture and it took a long time for it to become obvious and it was dead easy to patch. So I totally agree with you. I also think it is a shame that there arent so many reviews of it around at all, just as you say. Not well known. Thanks

[@nunzioification]

This video is perfect, good product reviewers always include the destruction/torture tests I just bought a pvc aquaglide and I’m taking it out this weekend for the first time! Subscribed!

[@BackonTrailasia]

Thanks. Agree, there is more to life than just glory, and only by knowing the full picture can we make good informed decisions. :-) What kayak did you get? Going river or lake?

[@nunzioification]

@@BackonTrailasia I got the deschutes 145, a tandem with no drop stitch floor, just an Eva floor with duratex bottom, I really only planned on lakes but I’ve scene yt videos of a guy bringing the smaller version through rapids with not to many rocks and he didn’t sink but yeah I can’t wait! Thanks again for the video!

[@robsimer9296]

We've had the AG 90 for a couple years and dozens of lakes. Absolutely love ours.

[@luccote1736]

I love your video. It is important to learn from experience, and not just publicity. I own a Blackfoot160 for 1 year now, and as you say, Aquaglide is build strung. I can NOT find a default on my kayak. I chose it carfully, for my needs, and I am always looking faward to my next day on the water. The Blackfoot series have the best seats, I have ever try. Confortable, even for realy long day on the water.

[@BackonTrailasia]

I do very much agree. Though I have finally added a hardshell kayak to my collection. And although I really love the new beast, then it is a totally different world. And for laid back, safe kayaking and camping,nothing can compete with my Aquaglide. But it has been too long since my last trip, because the same 20k stretch of river in urban area is just not fun after 20+ times doing it. And that's where I realised a hardshell could be of use. Exercise and technique training.

[@BrassLock]

Very interesting discussion 👍

[@livenhfree]

Thank you for this. I saw your review of the Aquaglide Blackfoot! I think I'm pretty much sold on this 'yak, because I think it perfectly suits my situation: just retired, 66yo, don't want a heavy lift atop my Subaru, and use mostly for inshore fishing. No intention on getting technical. So, sounds perfect! Two questions for you: do you inflate the night before and load it into a roof carrier? And if so, how does that perform at highways speeds? Also, do you think it could manage an anchor? Thanks again!

[@MoeBergOSS]

Yes they can take an anchor. I’d recommend transporting it in your car instead of loading it on the top, but I have no experience doing that.

[@vencygomes4243]

Hi nice video can you tell me how long it takes to pack it back

[@BackonTrailasia]

With a bit of practice it is very fast. I have never measured it, but from full load multiple day trip, to me leaving site with everything wrapped up in my sidecar probably about 10 min. The boat itself 2-3 minutes.

[@LZ-un7ky]

Thanks a lot for this! How would you recommend parking when coming back on shore?

[@BackonTrailasia]

I slide in as I do in hardshell kayaks, it has a hardened slide at the front that will take the hardest hit, but that being said, if it is littered with glass or sea shells, I would see if I can get out of the kayak somewhere at shallow waters first.The only puncture I have I suspect happened because I ran it bov first a shore, without considering it was a place littered with garbage.

[@thatangularguy957]

FYI aquaglide doesn't use glue, they weld all their seams

[@BackonTrailasia]

Makes sense. I am in the process of making a packraft DIY. No glue involved either, all welded by heat sealing.

[@bgaviator]

Not true. Depends on the model. My Navarro has glued seems according to the response I got from their customer support when I inquired about it

[@ADKMuskyFoolonFly63]

Appreciate your review. What is concerning from your review is that you report 3 episodes of leak or puncture in the Astraglide on 2 consecutive boats with one involving the dropstitch floor. I am looking at getting an inflatable kayak. When reviewing the high quality inflatables and seeing a report like yours (which is helplful) pushes me away from Astraglide Blackfoot and looking more towards other models like NRS Pike or Wilderness systems iATAK or innovative sportsman osprey. 3 leaks/punctures in 2 boats in 3 years is 3 too many. Again, thanks for the review.

[@BackonTrailasia]

I think it is important to remember where I used my kayak. It is true it died on me at last, but I am seriously impressed how well it hold up and for that long. Nothing glued holds up for more than max 2 years in this humid and hot environment. Expensive gore Tex shoes bought in Denmark lasted less than one year and they fell apart. If I ever go for an inflatable again, then I would not hesitate a second, Aquaglide just know how things are made durable.

[@hntrains2]

That is a good hypothesis. On the other hand, when I rowed my boat without inflating the bottom, the bottom got dozens of punctures (it was a rough river section); not one single puncture in the tubes! 2,000+ kilometres later, the boat has got a few more punctures; three of them, or about a third of the total number, in the tubes. How come, when I have rowed only on high waters?

[@BackonTrailasia]

Good question. 2000 km is a lot, maybe simply worn down by UV and weather? Unfortunately I had to give up on my kayak. It lasted well, did well, and I really loved it, but once I started to get punctures it never seemed to stop, and glue came undone, and straps dissolved. So now I am in a twilight zone, get another or just stick to my Sea Emotion 505.

[@hntrains2]

@@BackonTrailasia, except one, all the punctures and cuts on my boat, now, around 110, are below the water level. Shells have been suggested as responsible for a couple of the latest cuts, then underwater dead tree branches for the rest of them. I last used the boat a month ago, at the end of last December, and it behaved just as it did on day one. I use liquid glue from Bison, made especially for flexible PVC, to apply patches on the outside of the boat and self-adhesive patches from the boat manufacturer to cover the cuts and holes inside the boat. Most of these patches were applied more than one and a half years ago and they all hold good. It is a surprisingly good boat, especially considering all the abuse it has happened to take being rowed over shallow, rocky river sections. If anything gave way, such as where the bottom of the boat and the collar connect, repairing the boat would be a very different - perhaps, hopeless? - story. I once used a cover for the bottom of the boat; made of material hammocks and tents are made of, that cover got slashed in a few places, including in the middle, almost from one end to the other, but nothing happened to the boat. But such a shield makes a boat more difficult to handle; so, next time I take the boat to where rocks are abundant, I will test applying one or two layers of duct tape to the bottom of the boat. Duct tape does not stick impeccably to the PVC inflatable boats are made of, but it can still stay in place for one day, which is exactly what I sometimes need. Such solutions do not turn an inflatable boat into the nearly undamageable thing a rigid boat is, but they take it as close to that as possible - while still leaving one with the easily-portable and -storable boat an inflatable boat is.

[@timsteele8063]

I carry a clam shell repair kit in case of a serious puncture

[@perfectgame23]

Enjoyed the video. What the heck is a “pontong”? Kidding.

[@BackonTrailasia]

Ha ha, I seem to run into language issues lately, too much improvised or translitterated from Danish. Pontong in this case was meant to be one of the side tubes. :-)

[@spokojnyMamut]

Hi. What model of folding cart is on movie?

[@BackonTrailasia]

Folding cart? Not sure I follow.

[@spokojnyMamut]

@@BackonTrailasia At 2:23 on kayak's bow.

[@BackonTrailasia]

Ohh, this photage was from my friends Gopro, so it is his kayak you can see. The cart is something he made himself. I am barely visible in the rapids further ahead. :-) His inflatable is very heavy, it was ordered custom made with all the bells and whistles. If my memory serves me correct it was more than 30 kg. Mine is only at 13 kg, does not need a cart.

[@luccote1736]

As for a Cart, it depend on your Kayak. Go with the weight of you kayak. Has for me. I have a Blackfoot160 (tandem 16' long) I tried 3 different carts, and finally use the BIGGEST wheel diameters. Because I use it on grass, sand, mud,...

[@n8goulet]

Landing an inflatable kayak is one of the biggest risks to them. Gravel is extremely sharp, rocky beaches are not a good landing site, and old tar / cement ramps with decaying material can be very sharp. Even smooth boat ramps are not so great. If your not 100% sure your landing on very smooth sand, always get out first. A few inches of water on your feet is not a big deal. Even with very durable inflatable kayaks, I've come to the conclusion that it is best to not be afraid to get your feet wet, and get off the kayak before landing. This is a much safer way for your kayak. Hard shell kayaks can also puncture and that is a misconception people make. But the likelihood is far less. One time I saw a hard shell sink, and the guy said he hit a rock. And if you capsized on the water, an inflatable would be much more likely not to take on water and sink.

[@BackonTrailasia]

Agree, but as for sinking, if you have a kayak with compartments, then it is pretty bomb proof as well. My 505 has 3 sealed cmpatments, it makes it highly unlikely to ever sink. It is different obviously with recreational kayaks, often with no or very small compartments. I might add that my passion for the inflatable has faded a bit since this video. It was strong, it is portable, but as with everything else in this climate, it just does not hold up well. Straps came loose, glue undone, and more punctures. Too many things to fix. It is not to say I do not like or recommend inflatables, just not sure I would recommend it for Thai climate. Also glue in expensive phones disintegrate as the same goes for expensive goretex hiking shoes. I am in fact working on a packraft project. I am still a great fan of the portability.:-)

[@Kliffy123]

Why in the world would you recommend a brand that has had 2 leaks with two kayaks? That's crazy. I'll stick with my Itiwit, no leaks.

[@BackonTrailasia]

It was a really good kayak for much longer than anything else I had my hands on, and the reason I bought it was legit. But nothing depending on glue will hold forever and that in particular when it is exposed to the environment of Thailand, aka humidity and heat and sun.

[@MoeBergOSS]

You missed the many parts where he says he is rough on his kayaks. In the comments while answering people he also describes how he beached his kayaks before getting out of them in areas with trash, glass etc.