ADVANCED ELEMENTS Straightedge 2 Kayak

The other reviews of this product were obviously written by hair splitters. As an experienced kayak and canoe enthusiast, I was very impressed with this new offering from AE.This kayak is really a canoe with all the advantages of a kayak, but without the disadvantages of a canoe. It sits low in the water, so you don't tip over easily. It is a "sit on top" design, so your legs don't get hot, yet it glides through the water almost as quickly as kayaks, which lower your center of gravity by sitting you "below" the water line. The fact that it is inflatable(and checkable as luggage) makes it perfect in my opinion.Finally, you know anything made by Advanced Elements is as top notch and durable as products made by stalwarts like Avon.This boat deserves 5 stars all around!

We bought this boat for flat water and easier whitewater, and it's a good value boat for those uses. I wouldn't take it on serious whitewater, but for class II/III it works. Yes, it really is self-bailing, though a bit slower than the serious whitewater boats (which cost 3 to 4 times as much). But I filled it once and was pleasantly surprised how fast it drained itself. It would be nice if it were a bit more rigid, it folds a little when hitting big waves. I have paddled it solo and with a 6 year old in the front, the balance is good from the center position when paddling solo. With the 6 year old, it was a bit unbalanced, but any boat would be. Complaints? The floor tubes tend to fill with water between the air bladder and the outer skin. This makes for tough portage/takeout, since it can easily double the boat's weight. This space is also almost impossible to dry out, even with the zippers open and hours of hot sun. And extra back support would be good on the seats. It didn't bother me much, but I don't have back problems.

Well.  My second time using my 2 person straightedge and I was left stranded.  Pumped the tubes up to recommended per manual....I was in a 78 degree garage.  Loaded it up on my pickup for the 30 minute drive to the salt river.  Unloaded, launched  at 10am and did a couple miles no problem .  Pulled the kayak up on shore for some lunch and relaxing.  Returned to see both side tubes deflated, bottom tube partially deflated, one small end tube partially deflated and external skin severely torn on both sides.  Yes I live in phoenix and yeah it is hot here but this was nearly a $1300 purchase from amazon if accessories are included.

Tracks decently for an inflatable and is easy to get on the water. What I didn’t appreciate was that the retailer didn’t disclose this was inventory from 2016. Literally, the boat has a Hull I’d Number and it shows it was manufactured September 2016. That’s 3.5 years ago! If I’m going to pay for a “new kayak”, it shouldn’t be more than 12 months old.

No worries about mounting it on the car. Just deflate, fold and place in trunk. Inflate with battery powered air pump finish with manual pump.

The first time I took this thing out with my husband I thought we'd never use it again. It came with a foot pump, but no pressure gauge. Trying to determine 2 psi and 1 psi is not easy, and I was afraid of overfilling it. So it was real squirrelly on a flat but breezy lake. We could not keep it in a straight line. After a few times of trying to get the weight disbursement right and not thinking about the amount of air, I went to the manufacturer's website and found it to be of great help. We are still going to need to buy a pump with a pressure gauge (which is good anyways...the foot pump is already broken), but with the advice on the website forums from the company and other owners, we were able to make significant headway. We recently took it out on the Sacramento River in CA, and it was almost perfect. I am really satisfied. It takes a few minutes to pack, or a few seconds if the right rain storm opens up over your head like with us. We dry it in our garage overnight, seems to work well.

Great kayak. Speedy delivery!

We bought this kayak so we could enjoy the lakes and rivers in Northern Ca. The kayak is very strong and sets up in less than 10 minutes. With two people, tracking in a straight line, is almost impossible, with only one person it tracks great. We have not used it on the rivers only on the lakes. We enjoy the boat and will continue to work our skills to keep it in a straight line.