My Revo 13 review

As many of you know, I have paddled a kayak for many years. I have strongly resisted the call of the dark side.
Well,
After winning a new Hobie Mega drive 180 at the ARW derby earlier this year, I decided to give it a try.
Because the dealer (CCK Oakland) who donated the drive supports NCKA, I figured that is where I would spend my $$ even though it was over 200 miles away.
Before I talk about the kayak, let me just say how pleased I was with CCK of Oakland. Great survice, awsome staff, a real pleasure to do business with.
The Revolution 13:
L-13'5" / W-28.5" Cap. 350 lbs
My first though was man this thing is tippy, but after a short time in the very comfortable Vantage seat, it occurred that it was no more tippy than my O.K.Ultra 4.7 which is only 1/2" wider. The truth is, it is not less stable, but rather a different kind of stability. With a paddle kayak, each paddle stroke created a bracing action, this is not the case when you have no paddle in your hand, you have to trust the Kayak more. After a few trips, this kayak has proven to be a very stable seaworthy addition. One thing I was looking forward to was the hands free fishing ..... not the case! Although Hobie claims hands free fishing, your left hand is nearly always needed to control the rudder. Another claim by many pro staff members is that you can sip your coffee while trolling ..... this may or may not be true, I will never know as the cup holder is useless for anything other than a catch all for used gear. It appears that the genius who designed this kayak decided the best place for a cup holder is directly under your thigh so anything over 2" tall will stab your thigh as to pump the peddles. This brings up the storage and deck layout ..... there is adiquite storage in the hull, and a bit in the rear tank well, and this model offers two gear pockets (one on each side), but I don't understand why they designed a fabric net to cover these pockets on a fishing kayak. I suggest you do as I did, and upgrade to the rubber (hookless) pocket nets immediately (because Hobbie has to make a few more dollars on what should come standard).
The Pedles:
The idea of the 180 drive is awsome (although not really needed in open water) and could be a real benificial to a bass fisherman. The pedle system seems well built, and moves the kayak at an adiquite speed in most situations, however on the ocean, we get some ripping currents and at times I found myself having to put maximum effort to gain position ... not a good thing if you are offshore and have a distance to go. I'm told that a set of Turbo Fins would help, but as of yet, Hobie seems to think I don't need them (I'll explain in a minute).
Overall,
I'm fairly pleased with this kayak, it's a well built, fairly light, seaworthy vessel. It moves smoothly and has a very comfortable seat.
Unfortunately,  there is little to no deck space for rigging, the layout was poorly designed for fishing, and little features that should come standard at this price (pocket nets,larger rudder blade, drive leash pad eye) have to be added at extra cost to consumers.
Now the let down:
During the purchase process, I discussed choices and options with several Hobie dealers and Pro Staffers. The first option that many suggested was a larger rudder, and "Turbo Fins".
On these suggestions, I went to a local dealer to get the "Turbo Fins" and unfortunately was told that they did not have them available. After a short discussion with the salesman, it was told to me that Hobie had found a flaw in the Megadrive 180 and now it had a Version 2. The salesman instructed me to contact Hobie directly as my drive was new (never used at this time).
I called Hobie customer support and left a message and never received a call back. Several days later, I emailed Hobie asking for help obtaining said "Turbo Fins" and received a email stating that parts were not available and my drive was not broken, so they can't fix it. Feeling there was a miss communication,  I replied to email and again addressing the known flaw in V-1 and again asking how I can upgrade to V-2 or obtain "Turbo Fins" for V-1, only to again be told that my drive was not broken. Feeling frustrated, buy the lack of answer, I again called Hobie support and asked to get a CALL back as there was a lack of communication with the email.
That call has gone unanswered for over a month now. I just wanted to know when or if I will ever be able to get a Hobie part that nearly EVERY Hobie owner has told me was a MUST have.
My only conclusion I can make at this point is that HOBIE, knows they had a flaw in design and has taken the stand that they won't deal with it unless it breaks under warranty. Also, once they get your money, they have more important things to do than talk to you.

This is truly a love / hate situation,
I love the retailer and really like the product, but at this point, HATE HOBIE !
:0(

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Hobie's have pedals not peddles.

https://www.vocabulary.com/articles/chooseyourwords/peddle-pedal-petal/

Interesting review.

I can't comment on your issues with Hobie customer support (they have been very helpful when I have contacted them).

I will say that the "constant" need to have your hand on the rudder will subside. I had the exact same thought when I first got my Hobie, but it's become a complete non-issue. I think in my case I tended to overcorrect with the rudder, which meant more time/effort correcting again and setting my course. Really, though, controlling the rudder with your left hand becomes second nature - like driving a car. I don't even think about it anymore.




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I'm hoping this becomes the case, been out about a dozen times this month, and still trying to figure it out. Another issue I have is with the seat. Every time I find the sweet spot, someone has to show me how to move it, and f@$#s it all up Lol!!!
Like I said, mostly liking this yak, just a few kinks to work on.
;0)

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Haha. Definitely wish I had the new model seat... the old Hobie seats kinda suck.


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You'll come around on the use of gear tracks eventually. I don't think I'd like my Revo near as much without the tracks.

I call first dib on this Revo 

I call first dib on this Revo 

Let me call the first Dib and you get the first dib when I sell it

I think the storage is pretty minimal,without gear tracks it'll be scary.have you tried taking a piss on that thing yet?its a doozie.only reason why I got one was it's one of the few hobie yaks that'll paddle fair.

And your right,once they get your money,your sol.maybe sell it to sailfish and buy the outback?

I think the storage is pretty minimal,without gear tracks it'll be scary.have you tried taking a piss on that thing yet?its a doozie.only reason why I got one was it's one of the few hobie yaks that'll paddle fair.

And your right,once they get your money,your sol.maybe sell it to sailfish and buy the outback?

I lean back and use my hawg trough to guide the liquid down to the yakgina area  hawg trough is extra sterile for the fish

I think the storage is pretty minimal,without gear tracks it'll be scary.have you tried taking a piss on that thing yet?its a doozie.only reason why I got one was it's one of the few hobie yaks that'll paddle fair.

And your right,once they get your money,your sol.maybe sell it to sailfish and buy the outback?

I lean back and use my hawg trough to guide the liquid down to the yakgina area  hawg trough is extra sterile for the fish

Yep, this is a great idea.  The only problem is that I seem to have worn out the 12" mark on the trough 

Okay, seriously now.  I like this idea because it would free up a hand and keep the pee outta the hatch.   

I just picked up a new to me Revo 13 and am loving it. I've still been just arcing it over the side, but the hog trough idea is brilliant. Thanks for the tip!

As for the tippyness - it was a little strange on the first trip out into a somewhat confused HMB swell, but by the end of the day it felt pretty natural. I've since been out in worse and it feels great - the only time it feels a little squirrely is in a following swell that is coming in at a little bit of an angle while trolling.

Cheers,
Brad

That "Squirrely" feeling is the fins and the rudder fighting each other.
To reduce the effect, spread your fins when the swell catches you, and let the rudder do the work.
This will give you a better glide affect, kind of like surfing.
At least this is how it has worked for me.

Thanks for the review---always like to get info like this that provides a detailed and thoughtful perspective on kayak fishing products.

In my experience, Hobie was phenomenal wrt the warrantee issue I had, and that involved an entire new boat. So, I'm very surprising to hear that you've had issues like that wrt the new-style mirage drive.

Thanks for the review---always like to get info like this that provides a detailed and thoughtful perspective on kayak fishing products.

In my experience, Hobie was phenomenal wrt the warrantee issue I had, and that involved an entire new boat. So, I'm very surprising to hear that you've had issues like that wrt the new-style mirage drive.

I've always been told that Hobie was great with service, I am surprised that after a purchase and upgrades, that they didn't at the very least offer to put me on a list for parts to upgrade, or even offer to upgrade the drive for a nominal fee. The only they would say is "it's not broken, it is working".
So,
A new product, is out of production.
No parts are being produced for said product.
All parts for said product have been recalled.
Customer who went out of way to purchase said product for a large sum of $.
Manufacturer of said product will not sell upgrade parts recommended by most pre staff
Manufacturer of said product will not offer upgrade or parts unless breakage occurs under warranty.
Yep,
Customer no longer has faith in manufacturer of said product
Customer will continue to let every future customers of said product at least be warned about what may happen

Of course,
I could always create a warranty situation, but I'm not that way, I believe that honesty is the best policy.

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