My experience in sit-in kayaking is limited to one boat, an Eddyline Equinox. 14 feet long, 45 pounds, no rudder, only paddled on large lakes, rivers, and it tracks great. The wind has to start pushing 1-2 foot quartering tailwind waves before I start getting annoyed with tracking. Bounced it off concrete and the occasional hidden tree stump with some scratches. The only major damage was catching the top of a submerged metal fence post (imagine nails on a chalk board) and it didn’t feel good and certainly didn’t sound good and, when I got it out of the water, it didn’t look good. Fixing that ugly scar is my only repair on the boat so far. My thought process when buying it was “If it ain’t easy to move, I probably won’t use it as much.” Moving it from storage rack to roof rack is not a problem nor is carrying it to the water.
Hornbeck ‘s New Tricks canoe series are very light (26.6 lbs), slender (16’ and 23.25") and should track well: http://www.hornbeckboats.com/boats_ft_16.php
It costs $2200 though.
I paid $700 for a used Pakboats Quest 135 (Skin-on-frame folding kayalk, 29 lbs, 13.5’, 23"). It tracks well in my hands and is nimble and durable. In water, it presents a slight v hull shape (which helps tracking) and good secondary stability. It takes about 30 minutes to assemble. But loading, strapping and unloading a hardshell kayak from/onto a car wouldn’t take much less time either.
Most of the drop stitch inflatable kayaks have very flat bottoms, which may not make them track very well. But experienced paddlers can probably compensate that with good paddling techniques.
You can use a light folding kayak cart too, if you like: https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/magellan-outdoors-deluxe-kayak-cart
The Eddyline Rio (35 lbs.) and Equinox (45 lbs) have been mentioned and are both solid choices. The Rio is a much smaller volume boat. Someone mentioned Current Designs Vision 130. I have one of those in the carbon/kevlar layup and it’s wonderfully versatile and weighs less than 40 lbs. The more commonly available composite layup of the Vision 130 weights only 40 pounds. It’s responsive and tracks well. The Stellars are lightweight, fast and worth a look.
i have a Pungo Ultralite…2 things i have noticed so far …ultralights don’t like the wind and the material they are made from, do not like being dropped or rammed into things …I have had to have the stern plastic welded after dropping it and putting a 6 in.split in the transom end. As Far a tracking goes ,because they are lighter overall …the input from paddle strokes seems to have a bigger effect on them directionally than on the heavier plastic boats . PS : ultra light materials DO NOT like cold, frigid waters !!!
@trout said:
PS : ultra light materials DO NOT like cold, frigid waters !!!
Maybe some don’t, but some do. 
Hi all…tried out a few and picked the pakboat quest 150. Unfortunately when I went to order one I was told that they are not available. Pakboats warehouse suffered a fire in early April. Nearly 100 brand new boats were destroyed. The Quest and Saco models were entirely wiped out. Some Saranac kayaks are now available, since the new shipment of that model hadn’t arrived prior to the fire. It will be late Spring of 2020 before any of the destroyed boats will again be available. Thought you all might like to know.
@Rookie said:
@trout said:
PS : ultra light materials DO NOT like cold, frigid waters !!!Maybe some don’t, but some do.
I heard that line in a song, but it wasn’t about boats.
Wow, that is a real bummer about Pakboat’s fire. First I heard of it. I have been recommending their kayaks to people for years – have owned 4 Pakboat models myself and have corresponded with the owner and staff on numerous occasions. With Feathercraft and Folbot out of business, having a disaster like this is a real blow to the domestic folder market.
I have two 14’ Pakboat Swifts (the model that preceded the Quests) that I will be selling soon if you might be interested. I bought them 2 summers ago from a couple who got them as wedding gifts and used them only once so the frames and skins are like new. But hey need new sponsons (the inflatable skin tightening and buoyancy tubes that run along the sides) and I got materials and Boston valves to make new ones, just have not gotten around to that yet. I set up my workspace this week and pulled together all the components so I may get around to that before the month is out.
Sterling…good, lightweight
BarracudaCool – I just sent you a private message with a link to a used Quest 150 that was just posted for sale – pretty good deal with a lot of accessories.
By the way, the Pakboat “sling” seats are really comfortable. The 150 has the same one as my Quest 135. I’lm 68 and lightness and a seat that does not make me stiffen up are big factors for me in a kayak – the Quest checks both boxes.
Thank you so much. Will take a look. There is also a used one on the pakboats site I’ve inquired about. Gad two months researching this and now I really have to have one!!
I bought my Quest 135 from Pakboat as a used demo – it was in like new condition.
Just a warning, they are not great at updating the website and the “specials” listed on it. So give them a call to check on availability. Or send them an email – they have usually gotten back to me within a day or two.
I love a good skin-on-frame kayak.
@barracudacool said:
Thank you so much. Will take a look. There is also a used one on the pakboats site I’ve inquired about. Gad two months researching this and now I really have to have one!!
The fateful words of a Paddling addict.
Marshall is 100% correct: it’s hull shape and not weight. My Lincoln Seguin is 42 pounds and 15.5 feet. It tracks really, really, well.
@barracudacool said:
Yes I understand that it’s length that determines tracking. It Seems though, in my limited experience, that weight is sometimes saved through making the kayaks shorter. I have four kayaks. Three are sit ins. Only SOT. What I’m looking for is a lighter kayak that tracks well.
Weight vs. Length. This 18’ Greenland replica skin on frame (my favorite kayak in the current “fleet”) weighs 31 pounds:
Actually, since it is volume that provides the buoyancy necessary to support the weight of the paddler, shorter kayaks have to be proportionally wider to provide sufficient volume – the boat has to displace a balanced amount of water to keep from capsizing or sinking. So a longer boat can be narrower and often is, therefore equal to or even lighter than a shorter and wider boat of the same material.
The skin on frame kayak I showed above is only 21" at the cockpit and because it is so long the hull can be shallow and still provide enough buoyancy volume.
Sea kayaks, 15’ and up, tend to be 24" or less in beam width. Most short recreational style boats In the 8’ and 10’ range (tend to be from 28" to 36" wide. KId’s kayaks (for paddlers under 100 pounds) are the only ones shorter than 12’ that can be narrow.