Raptor Review

So, I gotta drop you all a little line about Jim and his Raptor kayaks..

First off, Jim went WAAAY out of his way to allow me to test drive one of his kayaks, he ended up driving from Santa Cruz all the freakin way to Stockton to a marina just to allow me to paddle around one of his creations. In these days of completely absent customer service, it was almost a shock to me to have someone treat a customer so damn well.

So, I showed up at the Stockton marina, and got my first in-person looks at one of Jim’s sit-on-top Raptors. I was lucky enough to see one of the camo versions, I really like the camo color blend (some camo boats are more patchy than smooth like this Raptor was) and I would be pleased to hunt over the smooth blends of this one.

I helped Jim lift this badboy off the roof of his vehicle, and was pleasantly surprised at how light it was. Jim then proceeded to lift up the front end and slap on some funky beachwheel unicycle, and was able to pick up the rear end of the kayak and start to roll the whole kayak around like a wheel barrow, all in under 5 seconds (compared to the wrangling and strapping I have to do with a normal kayak dolly..) It was ridiculously easy..

I have to mention, the Raptor was much more compact (in person) that I thought it was from the picture I had seen? In the web pictures it looks somewhat bulky, but in person it was right-sized and sleek with clean crisp lines.

So I hopped up into the Raptor, and proceeded to paddle.. I had a ton of fun, it zipped around nicely, and turned on a dime, it had a nice amount of room for storage, looked like there were plenty of places to store fishing gear, it was really a nice boat. I came into the boat ramp and Jim challenged me to try and flip it, I bent my head waaaaay the hell out of the plane of the boat, damn near got to a 30deg angle with the water before I felt it moving, and honestly the only reason I could flip it is because I am a fatguy, all of you nervous skinny folks probably couldn’t manage what I was doing..

As a matter of fact (though I will politely decline to tell you how much I weigh) I am in the upper weight range for paddlers, so the only reason I didn’t buy one of these was because I am so heavy that I was just pressing this badboy too far down in the water. Probably 90% of you would love this kayak.

The storage area behind the seat was spacious, and would be easily adaptable to some serious modification, a cooler, some milk crates, etc, etc, etc. The front storage hatch was easily accessible and looked like it would store just about anything that you could size through the hatch.

I was disappointed not to be able to throw this in my truck (it would have fit in the bed of my truck perfectly) and take it home with me, but I would recommend it for most folks. It looked like it would make a dynamite fishing platform.

As I get older, I am finding that you can find damn near anything on the internet, and you can usually find it $3 cheaper somewhere else, but what you CAN’T find is customer service, Jim treated me spectacularly well, and for that alone I would highly recommend anything he has to sell, it’s just a bonus that his Raptor is such a cool, well-designed little kayak!

 That right there is first class !     Thanks Mark.   It was a pleasure meeting you.

Jim,  if they only had pedals!  Your yaks look great and I have heard nothing but great things about them.  I'm not sure I'm as much a Hobie guy as I am a pedal power guy.  Hobie could really use some competition on the pedal powered kayak platforms.  I had a mirage drive issue earlier this week on the Delta and had to paddle my Revo against the current to shore.  It wasn't difficult but it made me even more appreciative of the Mirage drive.  Maybe when the patents expire?


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1st rate both  Jim and his Raptor. 

As a matter of fact (though I will politely decline to tell you how much I weigh) I am in the upper weight range for paddlers

so your more walter than dude huh , but seriously great review, cameron

Cameron, thanks for the laugh! 


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Thanks for the review.  Jim is a great guy and I  love my Raptor 

I'll own one of these as soon as I'm freed up from paying college tuition!

Jim,  if they only had pedals!  Your yaks look great and I have heard nothing but great things about them.  I'm not sure I'm as much a Hobie guy as I am a pedal power guy.  Hobie could really use some competition on the pedal powered kayak platforms.  I had a mirage drive issue earlier this week on the Delta and had to paddle my Revo against the current to shore.  It wasn't difficult but it made me even more appreciative of the Mirage drive.  Maybe when the patents expire?


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I agree, if more companys came up with the pedal concept I'm sure hobies won't cost as much as they do now

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so your more walter than dude huh , but seriously great review, cameron

Shut the F*ck up Donny!! 

(no disrespect intended bwod!)

so your more walter than dude huh , but seriously great review, cameron

Shut the F*ck up Donny!! 

(no disrespect intended bwod!)

1st rate both  Jim and his Raptor.

+100.

Great review!

 

Sincerely,

Jim

Jim,  if they only had pedals!  Your yaks look great and I have heard nothing but great things about them.  I'm not sure I'm as much a Hobie guy as I am a pedal power guy.  Hobie could really use some competition on the pedal powered kayak platforms.  I had a mirage drive issue earlier this week on the Delta and had to paddle my Revo against the current to shore.  It wasn't difficult but it made me even more appreciative of the Mirage drive.  Maybe when the patents expire?


Sent from Martin's iPad using Tapatalk

I agree, if more companys came up with the pedal concept I'm sure hobies won't cost as much as they do now

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 4

        I don't know about that,,,,  If you knew what all goes into kayak  manufacturing , shipping, etc.    I'm actually surprised they are as inexpensive as they are.

         Thanks guys...   Would love to see you all in a Raptor some day.     I'll get right on that pedal drive thing.   LOL.     Anybody have some $$$ they want to invest in the development phase?   Now's your chance.  Ground floor opportunity here!   

Thanks for the honest & insightful review, Mark.
I totally agree with your opinion about the importance of customer service in the current ecommerce-driven market. I also agree with your assessment on the Raptor's features--it was surprisingly lighter than expected; it tracks really well; glides effortlessly; and turns on a dime. Oh, and it's the most stable SOT I have paddled. And honestly, the price tag is very reasonable. Plus it is Made in the USA by a local kayak fisherman! 

Jim,  if they only had pedals!  Your yaks look great and I have heard nothing but great things about them.  I'm not sure I'm as much a Hobie guy as I am a pedal power guy.  Hobie could really use some competition on the pedal powered kayak platforms.  I had a mirage drive issue earlier this week on the Delta and had to paddle my Revo against the current to shore.  It wasn't difficult but it made me even more appreciative of the Mirage drive.  Maybe when the patents expire?


Sent from Martin's iPad using Tapatalk

I agree, if more companys came up with the pedal concept I'm sure hobies won't cost as much as they do now

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 4

        I don't know about that,,,,  If you knew what all goes into kayak  manufacturing , shipping, etc.    I'm actually surprised they are as inexpensive as they are.

         Thanks guys...   Would love to see you all in a Raptor some day.     I'll get right on that pedal drive thing.   LOL.     Anybody have some $$$ they want to invest in the development phase?   Now's your chance.  Ground floor opportunity here!   

I'll devote some CAD time!

Bill