Eclipse 17.0

After a few weeks of looking, an Eclipse/Sea Lion became available nearby. The original owners had given her a full life, and taken good care of her too.

This is a great kayak. Yeah, she's a bit heavy. So what - so am I! So far, that's the only thing I can find to 'complain' about.

I've read other reviews about primary and secondary stability and find myself wondering if I am missing something? I haven't had any problems with stability. If I do something stupid and forget that I'm in a boat, she reminds me. But I haven't been swimming, yet. A couple of 'pucker' moments, yes. But I blame myself, not the Eclipse. I'm learning and she is pretty forgiving of my occasional sloppiness.

The rudder works like it should, allowing me to focus my paddling on forward motion and making course corrections with my fever as needed.

The cockpit is roomy enough for my long legs, allowing me to paddle without getting cramped or uncomfortable, but able to effectively use the thigh braces without feeling sloppy.

The previous owner replaced the backrest and it gives comfortable low back support. It didn't come with a seat pad but, so far, the seat has been great without one. When my 3-times weekly sessions begin to last more than 70-90 minutes, I'll contact Harmony for a solution.

So, if you are a Real Grown-Up size person looking for a great used kayak that you can use/learn/enjoy, I say go for it.

The problem that we have found with this kayak is extreme weather cocking due to an insufficient rudder. The rudder looks like an afterthought. It isn't long enough and frequently comes out of the water during low rolling waves. The rudder doesn't have sufficient width to get an effective "grip" on the water.

We were not able to find a ready-made rudder with longer dimensions or wider. So we had a metal fabricator make one. Now the boat tracks well in the wind and waves. It was an easy fix and it is like a different boat.

I've read the reviews from those that say the kayak has good initial and fair secondary stability but I just can't agree. I have kayaked for years in a variety of kayaks in all types of weather and sea conditions but never had this type of experience. Maybe there are a certain few of us that the Eclipse just isn't made for, I know I'm one of those.

Starting at the cockpit, there is sufficient space, knee braces are comfortable,and the adjustable footpegs are well suited. The seat, although it looks gimmicky with the gel pads, is comfortable. Packing space for touring is restricted by a narrow nose area in the front, the hatch openings are small, so you have to pack wisely. The rear hatch is more accommodating. In heavy weather, the neoprene and rubber hatch lid combination leaks badly. The fore and aft bulkheads have not remained adhered to the kayak shell, resulting in the leakage from the hatches swishing around in the cockpit floor.

Initial stability is good, secondary stability is marginal.The kayak requires a good boot of rudder when paddling on a windy day to prevent from weathercocking. I complete in a 10km time trial every Wednesday at the local canoe club, with an average time of 75 minutes for the 10km distance.

If you are a recreational kayaker, this would be a good option.

• Tracking (with rudder) 9/10
• Speed 7/10
• Maneuverability 6/10
• Initial Stability 9/10
• Storage space 6/10
• Overall: 7/10

I am 6’6 and 190 Lbs. Before I bought this boat, I tried several other touring models and found that this one was by far most roomy for my long legs. My shoe size is 12, and I have plenty of room in this boat. Buying a kayak is very much individual thing and what fits one person, doesn’t necessarily fits the other, even if same size and build.

I didn’t paddle for 3 decades and I was a little worried about the stability of this boat. Initial stability is FENOMENAL on this boat. I read some reviews here about this boat, and some of the reviewers where complaining about initial stability of this boat. I just don’t understand. All I could say is – if anyone has problem with initial stability of this boat, they should switch to another sport. Maybe get in to the bowling?

Secondary stability is not that great but only at the highest possible speed. This is not the fastest boat around, yet it has solid speed for it’s weight and size. It is well build with the attention to detail. Wind may be the problem with this one, but show me the kayak which doesn’t have a wind problem. That’s why you have a rudder.

Overall, this is one great boat and I highly recommend it to taller and bigger people.

Enough of the nitpicking. The boat is an absolute hoot to paddle and is drop dead gorgeous, especially with the silver deck. It's fast, but not a rocket. The upswept ends make it very easy to turn, but rob some waterline length and, therefore, speed. With maneuverability, you surrender some tracking, but the rudder takes care of that. The round bottom buys some speed, but trades off some initial stability, possibly making it feel a bit twitchy to some. But, secondary stability is good, so I'd say it's a stable boat. That said, I respectfully disagree with those who disqualify it for beginners. Paddling skills and instincts progress rapidly from inception, so my philosophy is that neophytes should buy boats they'll learn from and grow into. Not skittish high performance designs, but boats like this that reward proper paddling and maneuvering technique with results.

Bottom line is that this popular design is a great balance between speed and maneuvering, and it doesn't hurt that it's a looker.

Oh yeah the seat support is the best I have ever seen even when compared to $3500 kevlar boats! The knee braces are just right. They allow for an easy exit and easy entry, but also allow for great solid knee support rolling practice!

The hatches are receded which is great. I have noticed some water leakage through the inside neo covers, but that's only doing rolling practices and very rough big choppy seas.

The deck rigging is perfect and is plentiful- could not ask for more. The boat even has a great towing clip! I have yet to use the rudder, so I cannot comment on that yet.

My overall advice- buy one. This is well made and reasonably priced boat. I am 5'10" and 174 lbs.

Putting the boat on edge is very predictable. The speed is equal to other boats of this length and design. I find the seating and thigh support perfect for me [6 ft. 175lb.] My size 13 feet are tight but ok. I usually ware wet suit socks. The weight is over come with a dolly on land and is not an issue on the water. When money allows, I will purchase a Fiber glass or composite Eclipse.

I'm considering replacing the Eclipse as my primary boat with a Current Designs Extreme, for high speed and lower weight, but I'll certainly keep it for rock gardens, surf and generally all the places a kayak can get seriously banged around. I think it's indestructible.

Keep in mind that the kevlar and fiberglass Eclipse is really a different boat than the plastic version, which has different performance characteristics and even different hardware, although there are similarities. The plastic version seems tippier, slower and less luxuriously outfitted. The kevlar version is a lot more expensive, but it is worth every penny. The Shadow is the Eclipse's little sister, basically a scaled down version, little people love them!

I am 55 years old, in fairly good condition, 5'10", 180 lbs (a little overweight), paddled for 6+ years, took advanced lessons, rate myself intermediate++.

Hull and outfitting: - The boat is 17'3", 23" wide, a featherlight, car-toppable 44 lbs. Fit and finish are excellent. Hardware/outfitting are excellent. Hatches are secure and dry, with heavy duty straps. They are fairly watertight. My back compartment leaks through the rudder cable tubes, especially when rolling. I tried a little silicone sealer, but steering became almost impossible. Steering cable is routed haphazardly through the rear compartment, binding in places (Newer models seen have corrected this). Steering gear is very sturdy, although the pedals were undersize and kept falling off and the paint on the industrial strength rudder mounting peeled off after 6 months. The dealer gave me some runaround on this, but a call to Perception produced replacements very quickly. The new design steering system on the later models is MUCH better- great, especially the pedals. There is an optional low drag rudder, which I may get.

The Perception is comfortable. The only problems I have in that regard are a slight tendency for my legs to fall asleep, which I counter by periodically flexing myself up from the seat. I have never really achieved the perfect fit for my thigh braces, although I have sufficient edging control and can roll the boat OK (I did install some hip padding). The Eclipse came with a separate stick-on seat pad, which reduces slippage. The seat back is very comfortable and adjustable. Others have complained that the back adjustment cord slips-just tie a knot and it's fine. The seat back is a little too high and gets in the way for a cowboy or paddle float re-entry. Now I see why the pro's favor back bands. With the high seat and high rear deck, it's a balancing act to get back in the boat, but some practice will do it. There is room for safety gear, jacket, food and water behind the seat in the cockpit. I keep my pump on the starboard side in the cockpit, tucked between the seat and the hull, with a cord to secure it. Storage space is pretty good, although I had gear lashed to the deck when I did a 6 day trip as a leader and also had to carry 8 gallons of water. I was able to carry 3 gallons in the front of the cockpit. The cockpit entry is fairly large, which is nice for claustrophobic people. Wet exit is a cinch.

The deck bungees and hardware are top grade, much better than, say, Necky. There are really neat soft grip carrying handles. Great on shore, but not so great in the surf zone. A couple of out of boat in surf experiences made me understand why toggles are so ingenious. There is a built-in rudder tie down bungee, nice for those 80 MPH trips back home at night.

Let's see-what else? There is a stainless steel anti-theft ring aft to fasten your lockup security cable to. The coaming has a deep recess, great for holding spray skirts on-- you have to work to get a tight one off. There is no compass mounting pad, a surprising oversight for a touring boat. I have my compass secured with bungees. Kayak manufacturers should consider incorporating a GPS mounting pad, too- Maybe a PC also J. There is lettering on the bow, proclaiming it is a Kevlar Eclipse, so they'll know which boat to steal.

Regarding performance: - It is one of the most forgiving boats I have ever paddled. With a little judicious bracing, you can handle most conditions. I have been in 18-20' seas with 4' wind waves, in 30 knot winds. It was hairy, but the boat really performed for me. Edging is good. I wouldn't agree with some of the other reviewers that the boat is a cinch to turn, but if you lean the boat hard, it will carve pretty well. Until I learned to do this, I was unhappy with the lack of maneuverability.

The Eclipse feels slightly tippy at first (more so for the plastic model), but one becomes quickly accustomed to it. I find the boat easy to edge and control. It is very predictable in anything but the trickiest surf. Speaking of surf, it really doesn't track well going down wave faces. I have gotten so I can usually anticipate what it will do and put in control strokes just before they are needed. Fortunately, the boat is very easy to do a controlled broach in.

Tracking sucks without the rudder. Cross/following seas and wind effect are considerable. I just leave the rudder down all the time, and then it's pretty good. My buddies razz me, because it's not macho to rudder, but I can run their asses into the ground on long distances. The extra rudder drag is more than offset by the improved control.

Acceleration is phenomenal and performance is excellent to about four knots, but hydrodynamics rears its ugly head above that speed, requiring exponential increases in effort to exceed that. I have had the boat up to 5.5 knots (GPS) in calm water with no wind or current influence. It required Herculean effort to do so, which I could not sustain for long. I can paddle the boat comfortably at 4 knots all day in mild conditions. As speed increase, the bow rises and tries to plane, affecting performance adversely.

The bow could use a bit more buoyancy, as it tends to plow in to waves a bit. I have pitchpoled a few times in surf, a hair-raising experience. Otherwise, it rides fairly dry, but pounds in rough water, more than boats such as the Necky Arluk (X), Current Designs Extreme and various Eddyline models that buddies have paddled alongside of me.

The Eclipse is a top quality, seaworthy boat, worthy of extended ocean open touring. The major drawbacks are the poor tracking and relatively slow speed, although the Eclipse is a rocket compared to 85% of all kayaks. It just that a few are faster.

I'd rate it at least an 8 out of 10.

One criticism I have is the boat's propensity to weathercock in the slightest cross breeze. The tracking is greatly improved when you drop rudder, but this can be annoying to do when the winds are fairly low, as it definitely slows the boat down. I suppose this is a tradeoff for the maneuverability, but it's tiring, nonetheless. The boat is quite fast and efficient; it accelerates to speed fairly rapidly. In fact, it's often deceiving how quickly you are covering distances. Storage is fine, the hatches are fairly large, and the boat seems to track better when loaded, no great surprise. The seating position is fairly comfortable; I'm 6'1'' and 200lbs. and have no complaints as far as room, etc. I may experiment with replacing the seat back that pops out of its track often, with a back band, to get a more upright position. Aside from that, the thigh braces are quite comfortable, giving excellent control and bracing.

The fit and finish is good. I opted for the red/yellow fade for visibility on the water, although I really admire the handsome blue/gray version. My wife's boat is gray, and I've found you just don't see her on the water, and the blue presents similar problems, to a lesser degree. Aesthetics aside, I'm pleased overall with my purchase. I'll be taking a rolling class this winter, so as to more comfortably explore its carving limits. I feel that as my skills increase, this is a boat I can grow with.

I rented several different boats, most by Perception, but also a Boreal Inukshuk and an Old Town Heron. The Eclipse seemed to be by far the most efficient and enjoyable to paddle. It accelerated well, handled well in all seas (I took it out of Rockport harbor, about 1/2 mile beyond the lighthouse) and, frankly, was real delight...head and shoulders above all the rest except the Inukshuk. It DID feel tender at first but I adapted quickly and soon felt at home.

I am 6'2", 240 lbs, and entry to the cockpit was tight, due to the thigh braces. But once in, the cockpit was snug and comfortable, with no tendency on my part to cramp or go numb, even though I was out for almost 4 hours. I bought it!!!

After a year of paddling, I do have some criticisms, though. The hull has a tendency to oilcan...a surprise, since the Eclipse has a keelson bar. It DOES pop out with a little heat, though. More importantly, to me, is the seat back which, though very comfortable, has an annoying habit of coming loose while underway...maybe I'm doing something wrong. The rudder controls quckly stiffened up and have been balky ever since. It weathercocks in a crosswind...not that annoying, as it just requires a correctional stroke every once in a while...

But, as I said, It is quick, sensitive, responsive, and a whole lot of fun. It handles rough water well and keeps me and my gear dry and comfortable. No boat is perfect, so if you know the faults and appreciate the fun, buy it!!!

So I bought the Eclipse, and went for my first kayak ride *ever* about a week later. I put her in at a lake on the Susquehanna River, and there was lots of current from the recent rains, so the paddling was difficult at first. I noticed that it felt tippy at first, but I love efficiency and this boat feels like it's giving me good movement for each paddle stroke.

I've done everything wrong so far: no lessons, no sprayskirt, no pump, no spare paddle, no partner. Don't follow in my footsteps, I could have easily been finished off if weren't for dumb luck (actually it was probably part of my loser ethos. I didn't want to aggrandise myself by winning a Darwin Award... &^). Since then I've bought a bilge pump and a sprayskirt, and I'm looking for lessons but haven't found them yet.

I also have problems with side winds weathercocking, and have noticed that the rudder slows me down, and have been thinking about grinding a taper into the rudder to see if that helps. I'm thinking about a cross-section that looks like this: ()

I still haven't found a good seating position, even with lots of canoe pads trimmed and glued all over the seat. The tall cockpit and my short legs are not working together yet, but I've got ideas about how to pad the top of the cockpit better.

One thing that helped me was to cut a canoe pad in half and lay the halves down on each side of the pipe for heel rests. Just put a bit of rubber cement on them and let it dry; this will make them sticky enough to stay in place, but still moveable. They help prevent foot cramps from the cold hull, and makes it possible to paddle barefoot without getting heel pain. I also cut a bit of the canoe pad (this is the gray closed-cell foam about 1" thick) and glued it on each footrest for padding. Ahhhh. Make the pads larger than the footrest so you don't bang your toes, and you may need to adjust your footrests once they're on. Love to paddle barefoot!

What I like about the boat is that it's sturdy (plastic is a good idea for a first boat), the fittings and decklines are nicely done, and it feels quick without feeling dangerously tippy. I did go over once while exiting the boat to a high dock, and it will roll very quickly! Watch that you don't raise your center-of-gravity with seat-padding, as you'll make it much more tippy.

What I don't like is the plastic "feel" in the water (just a bit sloppy) and the foot control rails for the rudder are iffy (mine got stuck early on, and Perception mailed me a new set right away, but actually all they need is a bit of sanding so the slider clearances are better). The weight makes it hard for a small guy to load and move around, although I'm getting better as I practice. And I sometimes wish it had end toggles and security loops.

All in all a thumbs-up, especially for a first boat.

Edge turns amaze me! I am impressed that a 17'2" boat will turn that quickly. Next time out will be in calm water and I need to find that point where the secondary stability holds and where it dumps me. Yes, I plan to get wet. The finishing touches are very much nicer than on the Necky Zoar Sport. (The Eclipse also costs more and you do get your moneys worth.)

There are trade offs, but I wanted speed, nice finishing touches, great looks, and I got all that. I will continue to grow into this boat and look forward to many hours of paddling in various conditions to really know all it will do.