Tandem advice

We’re in the market for a tandem. Saw this ad. It looks like a nice boat, but I can’t find much on it on line. What should a used Nootka go for? It looks like they don’t even make them anymore. Does that mean anything bad?



http://sfbay.craigslist.org/scz/boa/3098281626.html

Don’t know much about sea kayaks
in general, but I have a lot of respect for Necky. If they drop a model, it’s often because they replaced it with something they thought better.



“Salty” used to be a regular poster and had some association with Necky. He’d probably tell you that a glass tandem was a good bet, likely to be repairable if anything was needed.



My first issue would be, can I lift and manage it. Few tandems are what can be called “light.”

They’re still making the Nootka Plus
which appears very much like the used boat you’re considering. Weight of the FG version is ~100 pounds, a lot, but acceptable for a 22’ fast sea kayak.



http://www.neckykayaks.com/kayaks/tandem/nootka_plus/



I’ve considered tandems toward the short end, because we would use a tandem mostly inland on lakes, rivers, swamps. That Nootka is a very serious, no compromise sea kayak.



I have a touring Necky, and have found them very responsive to inquiries about problems. I think they would take pretty good care of an owner of a used Necky.



One sea kayaking lurker emailed me and said you should seriously consider buying it. For whatever that is worth. I’ll bet it won’t be on the market real long.

I thought of Salty
I’m guessing it was discontinued because it’s too expensive to make. That’s something he would have said.

I like the middle hatch
Too bad it doesn’t come with three hatches in the middle for our three kids!



I was just in Portland and missed a shot at getting one of these on craigslist!



http://www.flickr.com/photos/_henri/6029453997/lightbox/

Yeah, that’s the shorter kind I think
would be better for what we paddle.



My sister lives in West Lynn, south of Portland, and she’s a 5 minute walk from that big lake on the Willamette, right above the Falls. I’ve been trying to troll her into kayaking. She once took a bad swim from her late husband’s aluminum drift boat, and has kinda hung back from the water since then.