How concerned would you be?

I am thinking about buying an Adventure that had a crack in the well of the mirage drive, below the water line. It was repaired by a kayak shop that is known to do a good job on repairs. I have a few questions now that I am seriously considering the purchase - How prone is it to leaking again? If the repair is below the waterline should I stay away?

Also, how much faster is an adventure than a pro angler? The only reason I am looking at buying an adventure is to use on days where I have a 5+ mile paddle to get to where I want to be. Most of the time I will still be in the PA. If there isn't a lot of difference in speed, I may as well just sick with my PA.

Thanks to anyone who can answer one or all of my questions. Also, I would be paying $900 for the kayak with a few upgrades if that puts it into perspective.

I am not going to do it, that's just me. I'll look for a another kayak.

The adventure is fast I am talking about 4.5mph with so little effort, I can keep this pace for hours.
I don't own the PA, no comment here.

_________________
Sale: 12Ah/15Ah Lithium Battery
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index ... #msg959037

I have one that did the same, only a minor crack and doesn't extent to underside yet. it was an early 2006 model. I have retired it for now even though locally we have an experienced kayak repair guy who has fixed many of these. I also have a fully upgraded GT drive to go with it.

Firstly consider its age, the earlier the model the weaker the initial design, consider if you are going to give it a hammering. Does it have the basic drive or is it going to have turbo fins?

My decision was to upgrade to a new revo 16, then maybe have the old one repaired at some stage, convert it to mainly a paddle yak with thigh braces etc, and the option to use the drive with smaller fins for "occasional tag along guest use".

The Adventure and PAs are different beast altogether. its not about outright speed, it is utility vs the ability slog back through poor conditions without being blown all over the place. The adventure also has the safety back up of being able to paddle back relatively easy if you damage the drive without the need for fixing on the water. Adventure is closer to the kayak feel, it is also a very wet ride. The PA is in effect a pedal boat.

Keep in mind if an AI cracks a leak you have the amas to keep stability and keep you afloat, if it is just the single hull you will loose stability and potentially sink.

Personally I would'nt purchase one that has previously been cracked, no matter the cost, as you end up pouring $$ into accessorise a kayak which is also wasted if it fails on you. It will also have little resale value. TBH I would not even buy an earlier model adventure due to increased risk. Use the serial number to determine exact age do not rely on owners claims

It's smart of you to ask. Welding is not as strong as the original product. Hobie hulls are made under highly regulated time and temperature environments for maximum strength -- it's much more than a little melted plastic! In a low stress area, welding can be an excellent option; in a high stress situation (drivewell), the stress that caused the first crack will cause the repair to fail in less time. Like the previous posters, I wouldn't touch it -- you don't want the risk of it opening up a couple of miles off shore!

The Adventure is about 20% faster than the PA 14 at "fast" cruise on mostly flat water with Turbofins. This difference increases with headwinds and chop -- the Adventure (Revo 16) slices through it and the PA doesn't.

25+ MPH head winds -- no problem


One of the best kayaks in conditions like this.


The PA is a great fishing boat, but if you're traveling distance, it would be good to have some auxiliary power (evolve for instance). The Adventure can be rigged pretty nicely for fishing.

Thanks for the responses. I took yalls advice and decided not to buy it.

If you think about it buying a used adventure island you get with it lots of things that aren't likely to wear out,(ie... ama's aka bars, sail, mirage drives, rudder, etc). Keep in mind I think the list price for a new mirage drive is over $800 bucks now. If you buy a used AI or TI with a questionable or repaired hull, chances are it will work fine for one or two seasons. At first sign of trouble simply buy a replacement hull. All the goodies and extras that aren't likely to break down just transfer to the new hull. Instead of paying $5 grand for a new boat, your total investment is say $900 plus replacement hull (just guessing $1400), ya got yourself a pretty much new boat for $2300 vs $5 grand (or whatever a new AI costs (I have no clue).
We have a 2012 TI with literally thousands of miles of hard offshore use (year round), and it looks like crap but hey everything still works, if the hull goes bad I'll just buy a replacement hull, if the mast breaks I'l just buy a new one, and once the mainsail wears out I'll just buy a new replacement sail.
All the parts for mirage drives are replacable, and can be upgraded to later generations, in otherwords once you have the mirage drives whether used or new last virtually forever.
I've owned a lot of boats over the years and feel my Hobies give me the most bang for the buck, and repair and maint over time on the boats is virtually nothing compared to anything else I have owned.
I have no plans to upgrade my 2012 TI to a newer model anytime soon, it just keeps going and going and we love the versatality of the boat that we use for anything and everything we can dream up.
Just my opinion
FE