Mini-X

Great little kayak, have owned it for a few years now and have put it through its paces. The pros: very stable while sitting even though I am a bigger guy at 6' 122kg or 268pounds. I am able to stand up but not very confidently, the foot placements are a little to narrow when standing for me. very lightweight, I used to walk mine about 4km to a spot with not many problems, easy to lift and put on a car top. good size center storage hatch, a lot bigger than most recreational kayaks we get here in Australia. Good quality components used such as the handles etc.

The cons: -tracking is pretty bad, even in little to no wind conditions it always wants to turn either side. -obviously, due to the width of the yak being 85cm, you won't be winning any drag races in it. Most of the clip in seats are terrible for someone my size, I dealt with it for a long time and only just recently upgraded to a universal raised kayak seat. Being higher up now, the stability has gone down a bit and feels more tippy, Although, it does beat having a wet and sore back after each session!

I traded in my 12 footer sit-in kayak that I converted somehow for fishing. I needed a really stable, compact fishing boat that's light, has more features for fishing on the variety of waters and also fits inside of my Honda Element. This boat was the only choice and fitted the bill. Not easily but I can squeeze it and keep it inside the car with taking a glovebox out of the way for fitting the bow.

The Malibu Mini-X is light, compact, has a really nice deck with great fittings. High quality hardware, handles, rod holders, hatches are all of high quality and well placed. The rough textured finish in mango color with black hardware really attracted me in the showroom. On water the boat is very stable, easy to maneuver, I can move around on board, sit wherever in any position, exit and reenter any time. Easy to reach anything and probably even stand up is possible. I feel lots of freedom after the sit-in, lots of great features here in small package.

But now the cons:
I checked the bottom only after taking it home and it was my greatest surprise and disappointment. The rough textured finish is great on the deck but on the HULL? Come on! A three year old knows smooth bottom is crucial for boat speed. Texture on the boat's bottom is like a permanent hand brake on the car! It was accomplished probably to hide the serious imperfections on the bottom; the centerline is not straight at all, obvious curves and twists, along with humps and dimps around it recalling the beach dunes. Mine is a blem or all Malibus like that? In my anger I partially sanded the bottom right away to make it more movable on water so I can't even return it, and now planning to build up with epoxy and straight out a center line then paint and sand the whole hull. Yes, that's I have to do with a brand new boat to make it work properly!!!

On water its horribly noisy, impossible sneaking up on fish. Chug-chug-chug when you paddle and when you are not. Fish will be spooked away. Yes, and this is an angler boat. The noise probably comes from the scupper holes, they are on the wrong spots, not on the lowest points, so water onboard all the time including under the seat. Yes, I'm sitting in water all the time as well as my gear. But hell, it's a watersport!

After all if you learn to look over the really badly molded sluggish hull with rough texture, wrongly spaced scupper holes, chugging annoying noise, and getting adapted to your daily Navy Seal training by sitting in water for several hours, and enjoy observing premature evacuation of fish, you'll be a happiest fisherman and happiest owner of the Malibu Mini-X.

I own and use two Malibu Mini-X kayaks. I feel they are a great fishing kayak for shorter paddling distances and grab and go trips. I can fit both of them in my mini van so I don't need to mess with roof racks or trailers.

They are very stable, I am 6' and approx. 215 lb. and I feel confident stand-up paddling in calm water. They track well for their size but I have to paddle harder to keep up with larger kayaks, which I anticipated from the get go.

My major beefs are that the front rod holders cause reels to drag in the water and the molded in foot rest. Adjustable footrest models are now offered by Malibu now, though. The Mini-X is well suited to throwing in a truck, van or larger SUV and getting on the water on the spur of the moment.

I had sold my last personal fishing boat (10' john type boat with a 6.5 hp outboard and a bow mounted trolling motor) because it was to much for the fishing I did and the lake I fished. And decided a small kayak would be better than a canoe. I spent over a month deciding which one I would be happy with. I have not been disappointed in the least.

I had it for 2 years now keep it loaded with my fishing tackle. Now I'm 64 and have learned to appreciate my comfort so I added a Crack of Dawn Apex 1 Deluxe Kayak Seat and it made the hatch completely unusable with the seat (and me in it). So I tool the hatch out and reversed it so it opens from the front and it works pretty good that way.

The rod holders are nice when paddling but a rod left in them when fishing gets in the way (they stick up to much) so I mounted Scotty rod holder on the center counsel, angled low and it holds my spare rod completely out of the way while fishing and two more right in front of the original rod holders behind the seat. They can be angled low and keep rods out of the way of casting.

This year, I mounted a trolling motor on the stern like the Bassyaks do. Stuck a battery under the seat and bought a Harbor Freight trailer (small one with 12" wheels) That I caught on sale for $224.00 and found a coupon online for 25% off any one item. I lengthened the tongue and welded it all together.

It's amazing how stable it feels and I've never felt I have ever come close to tipping it over. When the weather is warm, and I'm in a spot I want to stay awhile, I'll set sideways on the hatch with my legs in the water. I've stood up on it and have fished a few times but I'm overweight with a bad back and knees so I prefer sitting.

Overall, for the fishing I do on a 6700 acre lake full of stumps and lily pads all around the edge, it's just about perfect.

I have yet to see anything better in moderately priced SOT fishing kayaks. Light enough for easy transporting. Rod holders and tackle storage. Maneuverable and comfortable. Stable for hard hook-sets and speed-boat waves. Perfect for small rivers, lakes, & ponds. 5'11" & 225lbs. Will get a 2nd one soon.

The mini is a great kayak for many different situations. I got this kayak for my fiancé and she loves it. Its small and light weight making it easy to drag or lift. It can carry everything you need for a day of fishing. Even though it is short, it had great stability. I can stand in it no problem. Also, it's fun to play with in the surf or in small rivers because it is very maneuverable. It's hard to beat in the class it's in. It is a great paddling kayak for everyone in the family.

The best small yak I have ever paddled. Tracking was excellent speed good and stability the best! I will be buying more of these for my family members as they are so easy to transport!

Was very pleased with the Mini X as it is so light to transport etc...But very disappointed with the hatches...Leaked like a sieve.

Bought this kayak and took it to Lake Travis in Austin and it was amazing. Even with a broken paddle this kayak could move. Extremely durable. My roomate cranked down on the towstraps with his body weight (not a good idea)- no warping, and not even a scuff. Thrown off a cliff.
two people around 150 lbs a piece can sit on this somewhat comfortably. Majority of the time had a third person hanging onto it in the water. No problems encountered until third person on board, only then did it overturn (it was loaded well over 500 lbs at that point). It is extremely stable and easy to get back into.

If you want to treat a kayak like garbage and still have a solid product at the end of the day, this is the one to get. better options come standard with this kayak, so don't miss out. wide seat, plenty of room (I'd say seats someone 150 to 200 lbs comfortably).

ONLY CONS: you're giving up speed for stability with this kayak, tracking is not the greatest...

I bought this kayak with the idea of lightweight and size in mind, due to the fact that I live in a tight space. I've taken this kayak out about ten times already and I really love it. I've brought it out in San Francisco Bay in pretty high wind and rough waters and the Mini X is very stable. I've had big yacht wakes come at me that give you that uncomfortable feeling in your stomach and I was amazed at how well this little kayak handled the waves.

As others have stated it's a bit cramped if you start throwing in rod holders and depth finders, which I've done. I bought it for its compact size and ease of use. It's a breeze. I throw it in the back of my 240 Volvo wagon and it fits perfectly in it, which is reason enough for it to be a good purchase. The tracking is not good, but not terrible. I got the rec-diving version and comes with a HUGE center dry hatch (1'x 1') right between your legs which is one of the best features second to its stability.

Each stroke you make makes the front end move, but that's a compromise you make with its length. It's not the fastest kayak, but have had hours of fun on this yak and its easy to haul around. I've had huge stripers jumping feet from the bow and has served its purpose. A fishing platform and troller. You won't be disappointed for something as little and easy to use as the MINI X! I bought mine for less then $500 brand new!

We just purchased two Mini X yesterday and took them out on the Gulf today. This is only our second time in a Kayak and it was impressive. They where very stable, Just as we had beet told and read on the review sites. My wife is very unsure when it comes to water and we had a canoe that was just to tippy for her and she had a ball in this Kayak so that is saying a lot. After reading a post on this site about stacking them to hull, I gave it a try and it worked well. We are looking forward to our next time out.

I bought the Mini-X back in May to fill a hole in my fleet. I needed a very maneuverable boat with stability to fish in small to medium winding creeks with up to class II rapids. Wow what a surprise, this boat can handle anything you can throw at it. I have had this little yak in Lake Erie in 6' breakers and it handles them easily. This boat surfs the waves great and is able to climb right up the face of them as they are cresting. The stability of the boat is awesome, I have the fish and dive package and it is a great fishing platform. The only time I was able to flip this yak was when I was surfing and I was going so fast I couldn't keep up paddling and made a mis-stroke and got blown out by the wave. Re-entry back into the yak is easy even in the surf.

Because of the width of the boat I use a 240 paddle and it has surprising speed for a short wide yak. In fact I sold my Prowler 13 yesterday because this boat flat outperforms it in every way. I am actually able to get more speed out of this little 9'3" yak than the 13' prowler in part to the fact that it is 20 pounds lighter at 39 lbs. Also it handles better in big rough water and is not fazed by large boat wakes. The boat will do a 360 in place. The light weight makes it a breeze to load on a rack or in a truck bed by yourself.

The boat sits higher in the water than most SOTS and is a lot drier ride, not much spray or water in from the scuppers, I was always wet in the prowler. It does have a little hull slap once in a while on the smaller waves depending on your angle to them, but it is minor. The yak also has a surprising 350 lb. capacity. The quality and finish of the poly it is made out of is great and it is almost slick when wet and cleans easily.

The storage is ample and I can fit my 240 2 piece paddle in the center hatch. I am also able to fit a 6' rod in the front hatch after removing the bucket. The hatches are very water tight in normal use. Flipping it in the surf lets some water in, but I think it comes through the rod holders.There is a paddle holder on each side of the yak which is a nice feature because you can secure a spare rod under one of them. This is a great little all purpose yak that is flat out fun.

Yesterday, I finally launched my new Mini-X.
Weather was just a little frisky; NW winds 5-10kts with a 2ft chop and power boat wakes. The yak performed just great... even better than I expected. Tracking is very good provided you do not exert a too powerful paddle stroke. If you find the bow starting to walk, power down and the yak tracks well. Owing to the short wetted surface, it does not glide too far after a series of stokes. Not a problem for me since I'm not planing long trips. I'm more interested in short distances to favorable fishing spots(I have the fishing package offered by KFS), nature paddles into the back creeks (good platform for photography). The stability is awesome. I feel quite comfortable on board regardless of the chop. Heads into the wind well, no spray comes on board. The only water which actually did manage to get to me was only the drips from overly enthusiastic paddling.
The approx 40 lbs, while not a light weight for me, was manageable and launching went smoothly; haul out too (my wife helped me). I hope to gain more strength as I progress.

If you prefer a yak under 10ft, reasonably light in weight, very stable, useful on semi-protected bays, back creeks then I would surely recommend this craft.

I have a ws tarpon 120 and I love it. But I've been looking for a smaller, lighter boat for quick trips and kids. I bought the mini-x after a short demo and I couldn't be happier.

The mini paddles great for a short yak. The nose does want to walk a little but you can compensate by easing up on the stroke a little. It has surprising glide for its size and is super stable- I can stand and flyfish in calm water. The kids absolutely love it; even my 8 year old son can manage this boat. The mini-x makes a little man feel big and a big man feel little!

The mini has a weight capacity of 325 lbs. At 170, I had a nice, dry ride. By adding kids we loaded it to about 250 before water started seeping in the seat scuppers. The boat has tons of leg room and I found the "foot-wedges" to be very comfortable. As expected, at 9'3" long this boat will turn on a dime. It has four well-placed handles and bungee type paddle/rod holders. A nice feature for fly fishers is the large flat area in front of the seat-no place for line to tangle easily.

The mini-x weighs just 38 lbs! Easy to load or portage; manageable for the kids. For the price, features, and performance, this boat will be mighty hard to beat!