Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

My Wife and I are complete beginners to the "sport" of kayaking, so we researched a lot of kayaks before settling on this beauty. We wanted something reasonably priced, as well as comfortable. (Most tandem kayaks retail for over one thousand dollars, and this was far too much to invest in our first kayak.) It needed to be small enough to transport without the hassle of purchasing and installing a roof rack, yet also large enough to carry the two of us and our two children. We have a four year old and a two year old - both girls who love the outdoors - and we have a strong desire to share the joys of the water as a family. After deciding that an inflatable kayak was the way to go, this Advanced Elements kayak seemed to be the right choice. I actually went to buy this kayak from an REI store near where I work,[...] and that had me worried that we might have made a bad decision. But all of the reviews we had read - both here and on other sites - had my Wife and I convinced that this kayak would be the right one for us. So buy it I did, and let me tell you, I am glad I chose to ignore the sales associate! (She was probably trying to "up sell" me to a more expensive hard shell kayak anyway!)We took the kayak to nearby Lake Redman yesterday, and I can state without hesitation that if your goals are like ours, this is the best kayak one can buy! Not one word the sales associate said had any validity as far as I am concerned. The kayak took less than ten minutes to inflate and set up, and that was using a dual action hand pump rather than an air compressor, which is not recommended. The kayak accommodated all four of us comfortably - me and my oldest in the back seat and my Wife and our youngest up front. Paddling and maneuverability are a breeze, and stability is not an issue. The ONLY drawback I was able to detect was that the kayak could use a bit more storage room. There are no cup holders, pockets or pouches except for a small mesh "bag" attached to the back of each seat. There is an area in the front which can be used for storage, but one must remember that with two adults and two children already inside, getting to this space is a bit of a chore. Also of note: Unless you intend to buy a deck skirt for this kayak, plan to get a little wet when paddling. Some of the water drips on your legs and lap when working hard, but one does not have to work hard to get this craft moving. I also recommend purchasing a dry box or bag to store important items like cameras, cell phones and ID cards, as well as a dual action hand pump to inflate the kayak. This last item will prove invaluable. We worked this little baby for almost three hours yesterday - stopping only once to eat lunch on the shore - and we barely broke a sweat. The kids loved every minute and never once felt unsafe. Deflation and break down took only two minutes. Simply open the valves and the air comes rushing out. I just folded it back up, threw it in the back of the Xterra, and rinsed it off when we got home. Lay it out to dry in the sun and pack it away until the next trip. Maybe today!Bottom line: If you are thinking seriously about buying this kayak, don't let anyone tell you not to. Not even the sales associate. Trust the reviews and make the purchase. You won't regret it.

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

I bought this boat a few years ago and definitely don't regret it. The primary reason I got it was because it can be set up to paddle tandem or solo, but I also got it because it is so portable. I got it when my wife and I took a trip up to Montana. We wanted to do some paddling, but it was a small part of our trip. Lugging a hardshell from Arizona to Montana and back and around Montana for 2 weeks seemed absurd, not to mentioned we'd have to buy a roof rack, saddles, the whole 9 yards. We fit the boat, associated gear, and two weeks of other travel stuff in our rather small Chevy Prizm. Space was tight, to be sure, but the fact that it all fit in such a small car is amazing. And that's one of the great benefits of this boat. You can even take it on a plane! (though we haven't yet).

This boat is so stable I liken it to the Queen Mary. I can't even imagine rolling this thing under normal conditions. You'd have to get hit broadside by a pretty big wave I think. It makes a great platform for photography too, as it has plenty of flat floor space for gear.

I've found the boat to be pretty quick for what it is. I can pull 3 mph out of the thing solo, and 3.5-4 mph with my wife in front (and she's not a strong paddler). It tracks well . . . in calm conditions at least . . . I've found that wind really turns this boat around, I believe a fairly common issue with inflatables.

I do have a few gripes about the boat, some having to do with the boat itself, some having to do with the nature of an inflatable.

I did a two week trip down in Baja, doing a lot of kayaking. I got tired of inflating and deflating the boat every day, sometimes twice a day, as we moved from place to place. I tried leaving it inflated on the roof of my friends truck/shell, but the vibration from the rough Baja roads started to wear through the fabric. (For this reason and others, I now also own a solo hardshell kayak.) If you're moving a lot, you may get tired of an inflatable.

As for the gripes about the boat itself . . .
1. Since the floor is a separate piece, water and dirt gets underneath it. I have yet to find a good way to clean and dry this boat out after a paddle. I always end up packing it wet and taking it home where I let it sit all gutted out in my garage for a day or so. Even then, water holds on in the nooks and crannies.
2. Another floor problem. Since it is a separate piece, every time you take it out to clean the boat, you then have to try to get it back in to the right place. If the floor is off center either horizontally or longitudinally, the boat is either off-kilter or has a bulge in the hull due to the main tubes pushing the shell fabric down. I ended up measuring out where centered would be, and then marked the outline of the floor (deflated) on the hull piece so that I could get it reasonably aligned every time.
3. The floor again (see a pattern?). You have to be really careful not to over-inflate the floor. While the other tubes need to be inflated until they are quite firm, the floor should still be soft. this means that your glutimous maximus actually creates a low spot in the floor. (I've actually had my butt get stuck on a rock in this boat because it was the lowest part of the hull! Go ahead, laugh.) Some way to stiffen the floor would definitely be helpful.

I also blew the floor out once, though I'm not sure how. The weld between the tubes broke at the same time. I patched the whole in the floor easily and was able to continue my trip. When I sent the floor back to Advanced Elements, they thought that I had overinflated the floor, but since they had never seen the internal weld break like that, they gave me a new floor for free. They also gave me some new buckles for the seats for free so I could do a little customization. Can't complain about their customer service!

I've used this boat mostly on lakes, but have also taken it out on the ocean in Baja. I haven't had it in any serious surf though.

As I said earlier, I now have a solo hardshell (Wilderness Systems Tsunami), but plan on keeping the AE Convertible indefinitely. I use it when my wife goes kayaking with me, and it's great for out of town guests when I want to take them out. It also enables me to throw two hardshell kayaks on my roof rack and the AE in the trunk and have enough boat space for 4 people!

Oh, and I have done a 3 day camping trip out of this boat. It's a real gear hauler! I even hauled a few armloads of firewood in with all the rest of my gear (and I was able to keep pace with a more lightly loaded 12 foot hardshell).

So while it's no longer my boat of choice when I'm paddling solo, and if I were to buy another tandem boat I'd go with something like the Manitou II (which can also be paddled solo), I continue to be happy that I own this boat.

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

Hands down, this is the best boat for it's DESIGNED application.....Just ask my wife Ali, I research everything to death....before I buy I over-research every boat, tent, pack, sleeping bag, etc....I currently own a 'Nigel Dennis' Greenlander Pro sea kayak, a 'Boreal Designs' Esperanto (Tandem kayak), and a 'Necky' Switch whitewater play boat (and I have owned probably a dozen other boats in the past).....I have paddles in all types of conditions on all kinds of water including the upper north Atlantic (Quebec,Labrador,Newfoundland), the Florida Keyes, southern California, Mexico (both sides), all of the Great Lakes, Rocky Mountain lakes, the Colorado, the Ottawa, the Salmon, the Snake, the Gatineau and many, many many other rivers throughout North America....

When I began researching this particular boat it didn't take long to realize that this was the best boat for what I intended to use it for and at a great price.....The first time it saw the water was in Mexico just south of Play Del Carmen...I remeber when I first pushed off the beach in the calm waters of the bay I couldn't believe how impressed I was with how well it sat in the water, how stable it was and how light it felt on top of the water.....I took it out into the open ocean it it felt just as good as I ripped through some small white caps....We bought the boat for travelling abroad as I cannot take my rigid plastic and glass boats on the plane....I have have some amazing times in this boat and have even had all four of my boys along with me in the boat....This boat is a real beauty it makes every trip and adventure that much better...the set up/ take down time is minimal, and so what if it takes some time to dry out...IT IS AFTER ALL AN INFLATEABLE!!!

I have every accessory for this baby (****the stabilizer bar - bow to front is a must!)....

If you have any experience as a paddler you will agree that this boat paddles as good or better then most entry level to mid range rigid plastic boats....take the time to learn how to set the boat up properly, learn to paddle and this boat will give you many many years of adventure in places that you wouldn't typicallly see without an inflateable...

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

Purchased the Advanced Elements from REI in 2004, no problems and the support from the Advanced Elements is outstanding. The boat travels well, ours has gone to the San Juan Islands, Kauai, HI (checked Bags), Vancouver Island, and all points in between.

Uses, rivers (Willamette), ocean (Na Pali Kauai, HI) (Orca Island), lakes (Detroit, Clear, Hosmer, Suttle) to name just a few. This boat tracks well in five foot plus swells (Na Pali Coast) to heavy winds at Detroit Lake, with not even a hint of instability. We have not flipped or had to get back into this boat ever. The two of us can easily paddle this boat at 3.5 mph without a great deal of strain (tracked by GPS flat water). We are both senior citizens in average shape so this boat will meet the needs of any age group in our opinion.

The benefit we like off the water is storage. Fits nicely into trunk of car and stores well in corner of garage. Setup is easy, just carry boat in bag to water, inflate and enjoy. Much better then lugging a heavy 14 ft plus boat off of rack.

Only negative is the boat gets wet, well anything on water does that, you just have to make sure boat is dried completely before bagging. Not a big issue for us as we just inflate the main chambers allowing boat to dry in the sun or turned over if rain is insight.

Recommend the backbone option as it improves tracking and eliminates flexing in heavy swells. We used the boat for three years without this option (not available when purchased) and the boat did very well in Kauai, HI. Still recommend the option for most users.

Great boat, fun, easy to use and we would highly recommend to all.

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

My wife and I bought this boat in July to take on our bi-annual trips to Belize, since it was compact and at 58 lbs light enough to use as a checked piece of luggage.
We were amazed with the ease of set up and inflation (you buy a pump separately) the very first time we used it on a local class 2 river and have only been more impressed each time we use it. So far it has been used both Solo and Tandem on lakes and rivers up to class 2. We have toured,fly fished and used it as a swim platform (We hope to use it as a Dive platform this next May in Belize).
Because of it's low profile in the water, wind does not bother this boat any more than my rigid kayak and less so than our canoe.
Set up time is no more than 20 minutes from the trunk to the water. While it does take a little longer to deflate and dry ( we take a towel along to dry the inside )it fits easily back into the duffel bag in about 25 minutes.
We purchased the tandem spray deck for it and it significantly increases it's rigidity and reduces the amount of water that gets inside.
The only improvement I would suggest is to add more colors preferably an earth tone one so you could use it for Hunting as well.

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

Was originally looking at a Sevylor, but dropped into REI on the way just to look at the Advanced Elements boat. After looking at both and having read reviews we coughed up the extra wonga and went with the AE. Also the REI store and canoe staff were just so much nicer!

What we wanted:
An inflatable kayak, as we will be returning to the UK soon where we have a small house and a small car. A hardshell would be expensive to ship home and inconvenient to our circumstances. We are fair weather novice paddlers with 2 small children (5 & 3) so we wanted something with a bit of room and above all stable. All in with paddles, a pump, PFDs and some non essential goodies the whole package was well within budget, and less than the cost of a similar sized hardshell alone.

Setting up:
The packed canoe is easy to lift and carry. The instructions are clear. Be aware that the AE official pump does not fit the fancy military style twist valves. The AE sanctioned work around until they get the correct fittings is to wrap a piece of electrical tape around the pump nozzle so that it makes a tight seal. This is the only apparent evidence of poor design or at least 'not joined up thinking' about the kayak. Unpacking and inflation takes under 10 minutes (probably far less after a little experience). 50 pumps each into the main chambers, 15 into the floor and 2 each for the bow deck lifters. There is also a thwart / foot rest that we didn't use due to lack of space. Seats fit easily and you're ready to go.

On the water:
Getting in was easy, the boat is exceedingly stable. 2 Adults and 2 small boys is a squeeze, but it isn't what it's really designed for. Tracking and speed seemed perfectly adequate, though given our lack of experience and with 2 small boys sticking various appendages into the water it's kind of hard to tell. Did I mention that the boat is very stable?

The missus found getting out to be a bit of a challenge as the boat is very low in the water, but again the intrinsic stability forgave clumsy movements.

The boat is pretty comfortable. It is easy to pick out of the water and to carry short distances for portage. However it will bend in the middle if you load it with gear whilst being carried.

Breaking down:
Very easy, 5 minutes. We didn't completely deflate and pack away, just opened the valves and threw it in the back of the van loosely folded.

Drying out:
You do need space to lay the canoe out so that it can dry, before packing away properly. It does fold up into the original bag with a little effort, but they could of made the bag just a little bigger. The missus now has a project to construct a bigger bag with a complete side panel zipper.

Would I recommend to a friend? Yes, definitely if they were looking for an inflatable. We will be buying a second boat so that we can do longer trips without overcrowding. Might even invest in the deck skirts as well.

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

My wife & I have had this boat for about 4 years, and we've paddled it in lakes, rivers, bayous, swamps, and the ocean. It's been everywhere from the Florida Keys and Cape Kennedy for a space shuttle launch to the Rio Grande River in Big Bend National Park, to Mono Lake and several other mountain lakes in the high sierras of California.

This is the best inflatable kayak/canoe we've ever come across... hands down.

Drying time is quick when the craft is broken down into its basic components.

The craft is ridgid when properly set up and fully inflated. We do have the "backbone" accessory, but we've never used it, nor have we ever needed to use it.

The craft is so stable that we regularly pause for a quick swim, then easily climb back in and continue paddling... GREAT relief on a hot day.

As for storage space on the kayak, we purchased two deck bags from REI and they provide LOTS of space for jackets, an anchor & line, throw bag, first aid kit, emergency air pump, bilge pump, patch kit, water, binoculars, lunch, etc. Without the deck bags, we were pretty cramped if we wanted to bring all that stuff. Now, it's like having modular storage... pack it at home, then clip it into place and go. When the trip's over, unclip, and unpack at home.

Yes, I have recommemded this craft to several friends, and I'll buy another when (if) this one wears out from all the use it gets.

Overall, this is a GREAT BOAT!

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

This is the second inflatable my girlfriend and I bought, and we love it. We don't have a car to easily transport a hardshell, nor do we have space to store one. Our first attempt at inflatables (a Sea Eagle) failed miserably - it was slow,cramped, offered little support and was overall not a lot of fun. We decided to give the AE a shot and were very impressed - its very stable, tracks well, is comfortable and roomy. I was warned by the REI employee that as an inflatable it would still be a bit sluggish, but have not found that to be the case at all. I've raced my brother in a cheaper hardshell and beaten him easily, and matched with two-person rental kayaks that friends have tried, we've easily outpaced them. It has performed equally well for us on rivers and at sea. I'm sure higher priced kayaks can definitely out-perform it, but for the price it matches well with hardshells. Friends who have tried it out have been very impressed with how smooth and stable the AE is compared to the hardshells they have tried.

The only cons are that it is not light (but its a big boat) and can be a little difficult to dry it off well and stuff it in the bag after a trip. If you want a boat but don't have the space to store a rigid kayak or the ability to transport one, the Advanced Elements kayak is wonderful - especially since this one can function as a 1 or 2 person vessel. Even if you do have the space, it may be worth considering because in my (somewhat limited) experience, it is at least as good as many of the hardshells in its price range, and possibly more comfortable.

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

My wife and I were looking for a small inflatable boat to enjoy the lakes and rivers when camping over the weekend in the Hill Country. A lot of research led us to REI and Advanced Elements. We have had it for 3 years now and have used it countless times. Has enough space for the 2 of us, our little shihtzu, and small cooler. It is best for downstream class 1 and 2, a lot of fun when the two of us learned to make sharp turns!!! It is not easy at first, but once you get the kayak stiff enough (you gotta pump the side chambers hard) and the person on the back of the kayak uses the paddle as a tiler while the other in the front paddles hard, turning on white water is fairly easy and fun!
Bumping rocks is inevitable but a breeze, not damage whatsoever. We only capsized once because we hit a log on the side, the kayak is very stable!
On lakes and bays it takes more effort to paddle, the wind can affect directing the boat straight...
Last winter we bought the deck extension and the skirts, they work great as well and kept us warm. You really need to leave it open for a couple of days to get it completely dry for storage. I don't agree that the bag is small as others have said, if you pump the air out with the pump in reverse there is plenty of space.
For the price and versatility it is hard to beat this one!

Comments about Advanced Elements AdvancedFrame Convertible Inflatable Kayak:

The boat is exactly as it is billed - Stable, portable, easy to manage Kayak with definite versatitity.

If you are considering buying one of these; let me dispell some negative comments by prior reviewers below.

It easily fits i the bag it comes with; take out the floor before you roll it up and pack the two separately.

It is very stable with the backbone. When I take it out solo (6'4" 200lb) I experience very, very little sag in the middle - maybe a half inch.

Tough to get dirt out and get the floor dry. I will preface this comment by stating the obvious -
Having recreational equipment of any kind means signing up for maintenance - whether it's hiking boots, backpacks, mountain bikes etc. This boat is no different. When you are done with a trip you have to do some maintenance - dry it out (wipe it out quickly is best)and hang it up in your garage for a day. Make sure it's completely dry before you put it back in the bag. 15-20min max of maintenance after your trip.

Not enough storage - If you are going single; not true; plenty if you know how to pack. If two are going on extended day trip; maybe - depending on the elments you will be facing.

Too small for tall guys - I'm 6'4" - no problem at all.

Too heavy - It's 50ish lbs; that's what the package says - If you are wondering how heavy 50lbs is - next time you're at the gym.....

Takes forever to get set up an broken down. Plan on 30min in your garage when you first get it. Go step by step through the directions. Once you set it up the first time in the garage it will be a snap out of your car. 10min max prep on site; less than 5 breaking down - unless you wipe out on the spot - then plan on 10-15min.

Only conflict to watch for when you install the backbone is that instructions with the boat conflict with the instructions that come with the backbone as to when to put in the floor bottom and inflation timing. Make sure to put the floor bottom in deflated on top of the backbone then inflate the floor last.

Also; instructions say to not use a motorized pump; I have every time I've used it near my truck and have had no issues. I back off fully inflating certains parts based on the instructions guidance.

In summary; great boat for just about any water or event. Very stable. Easy to set up, take down, get in and out etc. Paddles well. Gives you nice flexibility because of it's size when broken down.

I will be strapping the boat to an exterior frame backpack next summer to go even more remote for a starting point. Probably not for everyone given the weight...to me 75lbs on my back is not a big deal and this boat will handle most recreational kayakers will want to get themselves into....