Kayaks Damaged During Shipping

Ordered a WS Tsunami 125 and it unfortunately was damaged during shipping. Curious about potentially fixing it and whether or not the dents can affect the performance or the safety of the kayak? I didn’t notice them until the shipper was gone so I think I’ll be stuck with a hefty fee to return it. The one dent almost looks like the plastic melted. Thanks a lot.

Where did you order from? Reputable company?

Looks like may be a blem model or repair attempt. Dents should pop out in sun with inside pressure applied. At least seek a price adjustment.

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Thank you.

I think those dents are mostly cosmetic and won’t impair safety or performance.

But I’d be contacting the company you bought it from and telling them I’d want a replacement. I presume a damaged one is not what you paid for.

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I wasn’t sure if dents on the chime would affect the tracking? Talking to the dealer again tomorrow. Thanks again.

they can take a good bit of abuse but even so it is not good you have received a damaged product.
you should of got straight on the phone to the shipping company and the people you bought it from :wink: :slight_smile:

I cringe when I see a shipping topic as this is an age old problem.
Shippers don’t like kayaks as they take up too much room, don’t weigh enough and don’t stack well. I’ve seen forklift drivers just play with them. The dealers get dedicated deliveries from the manufactures but individuals are at the mercy of idiots.
They say to inspect it before acceptance which in most cases is all but impossible.
I would insist the seller make good as they packed it and picked the shipper.
Good luck…

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That melted plastic spot is disconcerting. Did you buy a consigned or demo boat? Is it a patch of a small hole, ie can you see melted plastic on the inside too? The other dents can be attributed to bad shipping but that one’s a scratcher.

I can’t see the inside of the most concerning spot as it’s under the seat. Kind of strange. I’m just not experienced enough to know and understand different types of kayak damage. It’s that spot that has the almost small punctures that’s most concerning. Hard to tell what caused it and if it happened during shipping or not but the area had the plastic all scraped around it.

Shipping damage is all too common. Very significant percentage of individually shipped kayaks are damaged.

I agree with the others - the damage does not look much more than cosmetic.

That said, the damage has reduced the value of the boat. Definitely talk to the seller. They may offer to give you a discount or to just replace it.

That area sure sounds like an attempted repair done with heat and spreader done by the seller. I definitely would not accept that boat.
It might have been done on it’s way to the seller and the seller may have tried to patch it.
If you bought it from an individual you may be screwed.

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I bought and had a kayak shipped to me . The shipper wouldn’t let me remove the tape and card board until i signed for it saying it was ok. No more buying boat online for me. NEVER a glass boat.

I don’t think a lot of people realize that you can usually get your local indie outfitter (if you have one) to order a boat for you through them and handle the delivery through their shop. And many of them will match whatever price you found on line. A friend of mine some years ago wanted a specific model and was going to order it from a big box sports retailer on line for drop shipment. I persuaded her to talk to the locally owned shop that had supported us in the wilderness sports community for decades. Even though they did not regularly stock that brand and model of boat they had access to do so. They matched the price she would have paid from the national shipper AND gave her a 20% discount on any in stock paddles, PFD’s and accessories she needed. They got the boat within 3 weeks delivered by a dedicated truck load of boats with one of their seasonal orders. They unwrapped and inspected it and called her to pick it up. This is a win-win for the local outfitters and customers. They can often afford to match the on-line price because this is a special order that they don’t have to stock or warehouse, and when the customer puts a down payment on it, that helps their cash flow.

Seek out your independent local outfitters and If you don’t see what you want or need, talk to them about options they may have to help you get it. I say this as somebody who worked for and managed local outfitters.

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