DiveYak

I have owned this inflatable "Dive Yak" for 12 years and it is indeed very well made. I took it out in both fresh and saltwater many times the first three years (probably 40 times) and would bring all my SCUBA equipment without any problems. I weigh 200 pounds and even with full dive gear and 2 aluminum 80's it would float fine. Like most inflatables it's slow, does not track well, and is very cramped but it does the job it was intended for. After about 3 years I stored it in a closet inside my home and didn't use it for 8-9 years. I took it out recently and inflated it just to see if it would still work. The bladder is fine and holds air without any leaks. The exterior cover is in great condition and neither the upper laminated canvas-like top nor the rubberized underside had deteriorated at all. It was like I had just stored it a week before. The only manufacturing flaw in this kayak I noticed is that the straps that hold the seat to the kayak began to fray and ended up looking like frizzy cotton. They still seemed strong but looked terrible so I cut them off and slipped new polymer straps through the buckles and all was well. I purchased this dive yak from West Marine in late 2006 or early 2007 and it's still seaworthy in late 2019. As mentioned I didn't use it for nearly a decade but often times storage is worse than heavy use and I was pleasantly surprised that the interior air bladder and exterior shell had not degraded at all. A great little craft.