I thought I would check in here first before inquiring with the company. Looking to order a neoprene Snapdragon sprayskirt. Their boat list does not have my Avocet composite, only the Avocet RM and lists that skirt size as M. They list the Aquanaut as S but the Aquanaut RM as M. Would it be a good assumption that the Avocet fiberglass cockpit is also smaller than the RM and assume a S?
(Seals list one size for Avocet without regard to RM or composite)
that’s my experience I demoed a composite Aquanaut (few years old model) and my medium deck Snapdragon seemed to fit nicely. Went on easy but seemed tight enough (though I didn’t try rolling). However I did also notice that the Snapdragon website suggested a small.
I’ve used my Snapdragon Medium Deck on my composite Aquanaut and Nordkapp LV, as well as on Nordkapp H2O, Avocet (both composite and poly)and Romany, Explorer, Elaho DS, etc…
I’ve rolled each of these boats and the skirt held fine - though I feel the Valley branded skirt fit my Aquanaut better and my 1.4 Seals fits the best on both my Valley and NDK boats.
the company is responsible for giving you the right information about its products and backing it up with return service. PNetters are responsible for giving an opinion and nothing more. What makes sense to you?
sing
Actually Sing, I often find the opposite to be true with retail stores and companies. One would think that the person you talk to on the phone or email of XYZ company would be the most informative . . but sometimes knowledge is lacking. I’ve obtained valuable info from Pnetters on boats, paddles, camp stoves, and clothing that was more on the money than cusotmer service or sales of the company itself. In the case of Snapdragon, I’m not saying that. But the fact that they did not even have the Avocet fiberglass on their fit list meant to me that a Pnetter owning this boat might actually know better. Based on the few posts thus far, I got a decent answer and not pure opinion.
My '01 Pintail is listed but the suggested size is definitely somewhat ‘baggy’ just back of the thigh braces on the coming, somewhat loose. It’s easy to take a tracing and Snapdragon will make a ‘custom’ fitting skirt for a pittance more than normal retail. I’ve done the tracing and I’m getting ready to do such. You also measure the distance of the seat front from the forward coming and back band distance from the rear coming. They will place the tube perfectly for your set up. Good deal! Great products!
I just checked Snapdragon's online fit list and it is not consistent with my experience. Snapdragon's list gives both Aquanaut and Nordkapp LV as taking a small deck while my medium deck Snapdragon skirt seems to fit both my 'naut and Nordlow properly. I can therefore understand wanting to check with source(s) other than the manufacturer.
Just gotta weigh in - Snapdragon is a good company and you are wrong to assume that talking to them direct is a problem. I have either started out with them or, in the case of a skirt that needed an adjustment, spoken with them about an issue after the fact and they have been spot on every time. And they fixed up my WW skirt with a perfect solution, for free even though I was asking them to make it fit a really really old and out of date style WW boat.
As to whether they have a particular boat on their fit list, all that may mean is that they haven't updated the posted list. My Explorer LV wasn't listed either, but they knew exactly what size deck it took when I called.
I hear that Seals is also good that way. I have a Seals skirt for my Vela, but I didn't need to call Seals because I drove the boat to the shop and tried a couple there.
I am not saying that a fit list can't be off - for whatever reason, the Avocet seems to be a problematical cockpit size. Among our local crew that is probably the boat that most commonly takes a couple of tries to get right. But assuming that Snapdragon, or many other of the smaller paddling-centric companies, is just another retailer is off base.