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For a while, I was looking to purchase a smaller kayak (16 ft) as a play boat for currents and surf. I finally got a plastic Wilderness Zephyr 16 RM (according to the serial # it is a 2009 model). I am 5'10", 220 lbs so I needed a sea kayak no more than 16' that could fit a larger paddler, and the Zephyr 16 was obviously the right kayak for me.

I enjoy the playfulness of this kayak in many ways. It responds quick to any paddle strokes and on edge, it makes you dance on the water. As for rolling, this kayak is effortless to roll, I can easily hand rolled the Zephyr without thinking that I might miss the roll. As for storage, do not expect to go for a multiday kayak trip other than if you are coming from a backpacking background. Because I am used to large expedition sea kayak (Wilderness Tempest 180 pro), it is not obvious for me to think that I can overnight camp with the Zephyr and leave luxury items behind.

As for quality, I had to do some work on the kayak, work that should have been done properly right from the factory but once again, buying a Wilderness kayak implies that you may (will) have to chip in for a bit of repair. The skeg blade is very noisy; I had to glue spacers for the blade to stay aligned when deployed. The skeg toggle is very hard to push back and forth; the cable does not slide easily in the housing. The foam bulkheads were not sealed properly, the water was freely going from one compartment to another and the stern was also taking on water from the skeg attachment. I resealed everything with Sikaflex, I even "gooped" the skeg attachment with Sikaflex and now, this kayak is bone dry. The hatch covers (2 wilderness - front and day hatches - and a KajakSport for stern) do not leak at all, this kayak stays dry, even after several rescues and rolls.

Overall, I am very pleased (so far) with this kayak, exactly what I was looking for - a "play boat". I expected and was ready to put some repair work on it, it is a Wilderness kayak...! I am hoping to have a lot of fun with this kayak, since winter is approaching, I just can't wait to go play in rough water.

I had the opportunity to paddle the Atlantis Titan on a Canadian West Coast adventure and I have to say that I was very pleased with the boat. There are no construction flaws on that boat, the quality is amazing. The boat is very stable even in rough conditions, tracks very well and the cockpit is big enough to allow performing a west coast entry if needed. Fully loaded with gear, it turns easily when edging, I barely use the rudder on that trip since the boat tracked well in all conditions. I found out that the rear of the cockpit is a little bit high, no way to lean back for a potential combat roll, meanwhile, the boat is easy to roll unloaded (the VI version has a lower back). I have to admit that Atlantis will have to come up with a better seat system. The fiberglass seat is not comfortable at all; I just wanted to get out of the boat after only 30 minutes paddling it. I agree with SWS, the edges of the seat pan really make your voyage unpleasant. That would be the only reason why I wouldn't buy that boat. One good thing about the seat, it can be removed for cleaning. After being swept by a wave, I had a lot of sand in the cockpit and it was very easy to clean by just removing the seat pan. If Atlantis redesigns its seat system, I would consider the Titan to be my next expedition boat, probably the VI version.

Score: 10/10 for quality, craftsmanship, performance, seaworthiness, maneuverability. 2/10 for seat comfort

After 4 summers of paddling the boat and putting over 4000 miles, I have to admit that it is a very, very nice boat to paddle BUT, I still have to fix factory defects on the boat, defects that should have never happened.

After having to sponge tons and tons of water entering my cockpit, I examined closely all the fitting and potential places where it could be leaking. I found out that the cockpit coaming was not secured properly due to a lack of glass or glue to hold it down. It was already weak, brand new, but I did not know better at that time. My friend Robin at Atlantis kayaks offered to fix my boat. To do so, he had to remove the seat. SURPRISE! He found out that the plastic pins that hold the fabric to the seat were longer than the gap between the seat and the bottom of the boat. Result: two pin holes in the boat. Now I know why I had to sponge tons of water even on glass water. We also found these problems on a Tempest 170 pro so if your boat is taking on water, remove the seat and check out these pins, the might have created holes in your boat.
These are Little BIG things that make you wonder if I should or not recommend the Tempest 180 pro.

So if you are looking for a great, yes a GREAT boat to paddle, the Tempest series (170 and 180 pro) are probably the best boat you will ever owned but for safety and reliability, specially if you are planning to do trips in remote areas, I should think about it twice since you will never know when something might go wrong. Bring a lot of fiber glass, resin, and sikaflex and a Marine Radio.
My boat still leaks as of today!

I was looking at buying an Impex Asseteague and a very good paddling friend told me to try the Tempest 180 because the store that had (still have) the Impex, never seriously invited me to test drive it. So I went to Paddle Fest in Ladysmith (BC) and demoed the Tempest 180…I WAS WOWED!

The seat is just incredibly comfortable with very good adjustments; I can sit in that boat for hours. I demoed the boat for a 4 day trip before thinking of buying it. I paddled in all conditions, surf, heavy wind, 4 ft chops, name it, I had it all and the boat has been rolled many times. The Tempest 180 handled very well in all these conditions, and barely windcocked... I never had to use the skeg in 25 kn wind. I found the boat a little piggish when loaded but hey, I'd rather compromise speed for stability…you can not have it all.

I examined the boat after the trip and found cracked thigh braces as described by "kbf" and leaky bulk heads which in that case can easily be fixed. I did not buy the boat after my "test drive" but advised the store of these problems. The store placed an order to Wilderness to build a new boat with descent thigh brace, at least strong enough to handle a heavier paddler and that can take the pressure without ripping off from the cockpit.

So far, I am rating it 5/10 or less because of the weakness of the thigh braces. Also, check the finish of the boat; it seems that the builders of the boat don’t care about quality control, especially inside the bulk heads. So before buying, put you head in there and check it out, you do not want them to rip your dry bag on a sharp piece of fiberglass sticking out. Also check the thickness of the thigh brace attachment to the cockpit, it will crack on you as it did to me.

If Wilderness can fix these construction flaws, the Tempest 180 pro will become one of the best boat out there and I will rate it 9 or 8/10. Also, make sure that your store will guaranteed the boat or at least, expect a great "after sale" bomb proof customer service, you may need it. My store takes care of all the warranty since I will not and do not want to deal with Wilderness. I am still waiting for my "new boat" but if I found any weakness in the construction, this boat won’t make it home.