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Name: Bill_Cotton

Most Recent Reviews

I have paddled and sailed the Warren Tandem Sail for the entire 2018 season. Set up to paddle-only it is a stable, fast kayak but not as fast as the tandem Chesapeake Lightcraft I used to have. Warren states that it is a 44 pound kayak but with the sailing hardware and the hard point strengthening for the akas mine weighs about 68 pounds; still lighter than most tandems. Set up as a sailing trimaran, it is a very stable(lots of buoyancy in the almas). This is a very strong trimaran, capable of blue water sailing! It is a very fast boat capable of speeds in excess of 10kts. It points well, and comes about with a little jib backwinding to help it come about. While I have trampolines and even an electric outboard, I prefer sailing without them as my wife and I are able to kayak paddle when winds die, moving it along at 2.5 to 3 mph in a dead calm. The "little wing" design gives the boat buoyancy forward so that it doesn't cut into the waves, inhibiting pitch-poling. A weak point is the non-kickup rudder. The previous owner had broken the original carbon fibre rudder and I took one look at it and had an aluminum rudder and post made up. Launching using the replacement rudder I got with it, it broke so I was glad I had the aluminum one made. It works great! This boat is a real sailors sailing kayak!

Warren Light Craft Little Wing 15.5 sail and Little Wing 12.5

I have had the Little Wing 15.5 sail for about 4 years now. It is an excellent kayak and have had no problems with it. As a sailboat it is a "sailor's" sailing kayak. It tacks well, is very fast(have had it over 10kts) and extremely stable. It takes a bit longer to setup(about 45min) than the Hobie Adventure Island I used to have, and it is in an entirely different league when it comes to sailing. Comparing them on paddling, the Hobie is like a barge by comparison. Even with the pedal-system the LW 15.5 is much faster and does not kill my knees. Moreover, the LW is a dry boat, and the seating is more comfortable than any kayak I have had(or have; I have 5 CLC's including one CLC 21 tandem and the rest 17's). We use them at our winter home in AZ and at our mountain cabin. It is not quite as fast as the CLC 17, though.

I bought my wife the LW 12.5 and she loves it. While we have dollies to carry it to the water, she just picks it up and carries it. We have paddled both kayaks in many lakes in the Colorado Plains and Mountains and in Boundary Waters.

The only downside is that these are painted boats so they do get scraped up on the shore.

BTW, my wife is 74 and I am 76, so being light is a plus.