I currently own a shockwave and paddle with the tractor seat at middle back and low front heights. This boat is a dream to paddle and extremely stable. The only downside is it takes a football field to turn around in…lol. I would like to upgrade to a lighter than 48# boat, but!
Recently I test paddled a Hemlock Peregrine & NW Solo with a bent shaft paddle. Both boats had the least amount of drop set up for the seats. I did not at all like the twitchy feeling from the Peregrine. The NW Solo had a foot brace and the narrower gunnel width made for a better fit(5’10" 200#)! It was twitchy but not as bad as the peregrine. Unfortunately I did not have time to change out the drops and try the boats again as I’m certain the comfort level would have improved but nothing compared to a shockwave!
I’d be interested if any Magic owners have paddled a shockwave and their experiences and how they might compare!
By the numbers the only real difference i see from shockwave to magic is the water line width being nearly 3" narrower for the magic.
I have a NW Solo. When I bought it I noticed a bit of twitchyness but after a few paddles I no longer think about it. The same thing was true the first time I paddled my kayak. In the case of the kayak I found that I was tensing up to every movement. Once I relaxed that went away. In the NWSolo adding the foot bar helped as well as kneeling helped.
I’m familiar with Magic, Peregrine and NW Solo but it’s been a while since I’ve paddled a Shockwave. Isn’t Shockwave a zero rocker race hull that’s wide in the middle to meet race specs? Shockwave has a lot of primary stability but no secondary stability; lean it way over and it will spit you out. All the others have high secondary stability where they firm up if you lean them…plus they are better in wind and waves and current. Magic turns much better than Shockwave. Peregrine and NW Solo would feel much more stable to a sitting paddler with seat drops made for sitting (they are 2 inches lower!). Foot brace helps too.
I’m not sure on the rocker but it’s definitely minimal at best. The stability is rock solid but then again I’ve never pushed the boat in that regard to the limit. Now the summersong is a boat I don’t care a lot for because of secondary stability issues😁