Have a line on a good used one. Can I get pros and cons? As you can tell from my prior postings, I do not know enough to really say what I require, so am looking for your feelings about what it does well and not well.
got everything except
a day hatch and fast speed! the susquehanna is the current name for that boat. I have seen some older impex boats wiht a tiny bit of cracking around the bolts for the fotpegs. but that’s no big deal. A grat day boat not super firm tracking. I like 'em a lot!
Diamante/Susquehanna
I have an 05 Susquehanna. Not a lot of seat time yet but enough to know I like it a lot. It’s a playful boat. Probably not ideal for long straight crossings. Holding a course is manageable but requires a bit more concentration than say, a Currituck (my other boat). The slightest bit of edge will have it veering off course. But then, a bit of opposite edge puts you right back on.
If you’re into relaxed day touring, exploring shorelines and tidal marshes, poking into coves and feeder streams, surfing powerboat wakes, etc. it’s a good choice. Close quarters manuverability is superb and stability on edge is solid.
…Mike
Old/New
– Last Updated: Apr-20-06 10:03 AM EST –
Don't know why the person selling the boat isn't clear about this or the dealer, but Impex renamed some of their boats a few years ago. Hence the diff names - same design.
The QC is worth checking. About the same time the name changes happened, the mother company's lead guy on kayaks got a lot more control over how the boats were made and improved things a lot. The ones that came out after that point have better backbands etc. We saw them the first year they appeared in show rooms, under the older names, and I'd have to agree that the quality was more variable than the last few years. But it was also a new effort - that's not surprising.
As to the design - don't know where the Diamante/Susquehanna fit into this, but it seems that the older Impex designs are basically the old North Shore boats out of (not sure where). The Montauk is one of these, with the new Force boats originating within Impex.
I found that one or a couple of their boats was a bit annoying in wind - needed more work to stay on track that I wanted to give. But I can't remember which it was. I know a lot of people who have these boats and have been extremely happy with them.
A fun boat
I purchased a much older Diamante and think it is a great boat. It is a fine entry into kayaking as it does a bit of everything relatively well, and can be used in most conditions.
I needed to replace the hatch coverings that fit under the fiberglass hatches, as they were worn out. So, I contacted Snapdragon who did a great job after I sent them the tracings.
Enjoy…
Bob
Year
The owners think it is a 2001 or 2002. Is this the problem time period?
"Problem time period"
Nothing should be taken to mean that a given boat from an earlier year will have problems. All that means is that you have to take a good look at the boat. But that’s true for any boat, and small stuff doesn’t necessarily impact the value of the boat for your paddling.
For years until they got their quality better, the advice on an NDK boat was to buy a used one where someone else had already fixed the warts because they were so prevalent in new boats. But despite that seemingly discouraging situation, you’ll see tons of Explorers and Romanys in pods in the northeast, all containing very happy and satisfied paddlers.