Outback vs Revolution

[tufnik]

If you own/ride an Outback, did you ever wish you went with the Revo? Why?

If you own/ride a Revo, did you ever wish you went with the Outback? Why?

[moc]

I never owned an Outback. I thought about buying one when I decided on my Revo. I had already owned a 12 foot boat, my Tarpon which I loved. So I really did not want to buy another 12 foot boat. My reason for the Revo instead of the Outback, was that I wanted a longer boat. The Revo is 13 feet 5 inches. The Revo paddles better and cuts the water nicer than the Outback. The Outback is a great fishing boat, with great stability, but with the Stability comes a slightly slower speed, it is a bad paddle yak from what I am told from Outback owners. The Revo had more storage space than my Tarpon, and a better secondary stability. The Revo is deceivingly more stable than I expected. I would not stand on it like you would the Outback, unless you added those stabiliters that I see kayakers using.

[jffoley]

I've never tried the Outback but I started with a OK Drifter. Similar dimensions but 10lbs lighter. And I thought the Drifter was a barge! After extensive research I went with the Revo for most of the reasons Martin mentions. A key element for me was hull weight. Less than 60lbs and I can handle it to get it up on the roof rack. I wouldn't trade my Revo for an Outback...

[ronaultmtd]

After running my mouth early on this topic I decided to do some real research instead of looking at specs- the Revo is an average of .2 mph faster in calm waters than the Outback, but with a much compressed space in the cockpit. In choppy water the bow and hull of the Revo has less hull slap and cuts the chop slightly better making it a little more than the .2 mph difference- overall it does seem like a lot of to do about very little difference- kinda like what do you like better? Ford or Chevy? The Outback looks to be a lot more roomy in the cockpit and has a higher weight carrying capacity for a very minor loss of speed- it is much wider so you would need a 240 cm paddle and that looks like it worst element- pure paddling- if I got a good deal on an Outback over a Revo, I probably would pull the trigger on the Outback.

I was wrong in my earlier post- both yaks are pretty nice and not much separates them.

[Southerly]

that's ez - i wanted a SOT that fits inside my full size FORD van , with the doors closed. and floats me is important too.

it's not about getting what you want, but wanting what you got. - shirl crow

[mytime]

I own them both and like both..but if i had to choose, i would pick the revo mainly do to the hull slap of the outback in a chop. The revo cuts right through it.

[tufnik]

Ditto again, Ron. After thinking about it, I'd lean for the Outback now.

[ronaultmtd]

Up the creek rentals

If we are serious about trying out both Tuf, why don't we go to the Mattawoman creek kayak retails- you rent an outback and I rent a Revo and let's take them out for a trial run and then we swap kayaks to come back, see which one we like best?

They charge $35 for four hour rental for single kayaks- if we called and explained the purpose, I think they would hook us up-

[ictalurus]

I would definitely take a test drive. I've had both boats. If I recall correctly, you're built like me but maybe a bit trimmer. The cockpit of the Revo is frustrating. The rudder handle when fully turned to starboard and anything in the cup holder are under my thighs, which is irritating and unnecessary. You might not have that problem since you're a bit thinner, and I've noticed that people who are shorter don't seem to have that problem as bad because of where their knees are in relation to the rest of the cockpit. I think there's a bit more leg room (I have a 34" inseam) in the Revo, but you sit up a little higher in the Outback. I still can't use the last setting on the Mirage drive without the the pedals hitting the side of the cockpit. The cockpit is definitely wider in the Outback. I don't miss the trays as much as I thought I would because the pockets on the Revo work well and keep things more secure. I do miss the front rod holders on the Outback, which I liked better than the RAM I installed on the Revo. You'll sit in a puddle in the Revo if you remove the seat scuppers, but I don't remember that being the case with the Outback, but my seat was usually wet from sweat anyway.

I didn't notice a big jump in speed when I switched, which was really disappointing. In fact, I think my top, maintained (not sprinting) cruising speed record is still held by the Outback (5.9mph with the ST non-turbo fins and probably assisted by the current). My typical cruising cadence moved both boats between 4.4-4.8mph depending on conditions with the ST non-turbo fins, but I probably stay closer to 5 in the Revo. The turbo fins would be even faster, which you can ask Redfish and Jimbo about. However, I can continue to go faster in waves in the Revo because of the sharper bow. The Outback would pearl like crazy and scoop water and throw it in your face on every other wave if the waves were over 1-1.5ft. It also wallowed like a wounded hippo in a following sea if the waves were over 1.5ft, but my Outback didn't have the sailing rudder, which would probably help a lot with that. The Revo performs pretty well in a following sea. Aside from the wallowing, I think both boats are pretty capable in rough conditions. The Revo is a little easier to get into during re-entry practice. The high gunwales on the Outback would hang up on my PFD, but it really didn't matter that much once I planned ahead better. A lot of people complain about hull slap, but I'm not stalking fish in super skinny water. If I fished those conditions a lot, I probably wouldn't use a Hobie. I could paddle the Outback almost as fast as I could pedal it as long as I kept the rudder centered, but it would take a few strokes to get up to speed. Both boats are pretty much unpaddleable without the rudder.

Anyhow, I think that's all the high points. Feel free to shoot me questions if you have any.

[tufnik]

Bill,

What year was you OB? I think the new hull design started in 07, and the tracking, handling, etc was much improved.

There are these little quirks in yaks. To me, that noise and splash thing is another one of those minor annoyances. Not a reason to not get the OB.

If you asked me what my top three factors are, I would say roominess/storage (for comfort and to place fishing stuff here and there), dry seat (minimal splash over) and stability. Next factors are speed and wave slicing, but these don't have much weight in my book.

Sounds like a good idea, Ron. But I think I may pick something up real soon depending on my schedule.

[muldoon]

tested both revo and outback. ended up buying the outback. The revo cockpit felt cramped to me and i really like and use the gunnel trays and all four rod holders on the outback. I generally store rods in the rear holders and use the front ones to sit a rod in while retying or unhooking fish. The outback seemed slow with the regular fins but ST turbo fins made it alot faster. have only had my outback for four months but its been great fun and a definite fish-catcher. Being able to hold in current or slowly change position while fishing is the big advantage of both Hobie boats over paddling IMO.

[ictalurus]

My Outback was an '05. I checked out Rockchaser's boat, which is a '10, I think, and I didn't notice any differences at all, but it's hard to tell without having them side by side. Hopefully, Hobie just did some minor tweaks that enhanced the good things about the hull. I think the bigger rudder probably fixed my biggest gripe, which was the wallowing, although the pearling when the water is cool can be unpleasant.

Another thing that really bugs me about the Revo is that I can't really get a full pedal stroke without the flipper hitting the hull. That didn't happen on my Outback, but I'm not sure if it happens on the newer one. The bulge along the bottom of the old Outback hull let the drive extend farther down into the water than on the Revo, so there was more clearance for the flippers.

While my review of the Outback sounded kind of negative, I really liked that boat, and it was tough to switch to a Revo. If something happened to my Revo and all there was left were Outbacks, I'd still be pretty happy. There are times I really miss the Outback, especially the front rod holders and lack of fin banging. The only reason I switched is because I've gone through a lot of Outback hulls, so I think there must be some incompatibility between me and the hull design/molding process. I'm hoping that's not the case with the Revo.

[ronaultmtd]

Bill- you would think that Hobie would monitor these forums for user comments about the different models to make engineering tweaks- the stressor points on the hull from the peddle mechanism and scuppers seem to be the areas most kayaks develop leaks- other than grinding away the keels on concrete and blacktop-

The advantage of peddling over paddling for sheer distance traveled is the main attraction of the Hobie, so paddling isn't the Hobie's forte and if that is the case paddling on those boats are for emergencies or strong current situations- pretty much what the electric kayaks do, too. But emergencies do happen and like any power boat without power, paddling becomes important.

I love the hull design of my prowler- excellent rough water boat, tracks well, paddles well, but paddling while trying to fish has big disadvantages, especially in current and around structures like bridges. The kayak's stability factor usually doesn't come into play until something extra ordinary happens, big rogue wave, a fast mover runs at you, or some one anchors from the side in rough water (or gets a tow from a boat)- Then you need secondary stability to let you know before the yak turtles, that is when you want "extra."

The pearling in following seas would bother me more than anything in your review of the Outback. That is not a good thing. The bow digging in and throwing water back on you in 1 1/2- 2 foot foot seas would be a deal breaker for me.

[ictalurus]

The pearling probably has more to do with the distance between the waves than the height, but it seemed to happen a lot when I fished the mouth of the Patuxent more regularly than I do now. In the summer, the spray is refreshing and you feel like a bad a$$ from "Deadliest Catch". In the winter, you feel like an idiot with a chapped face. Whether or not it's a deal breaker probably depends on how much you go out in those conditions. During the summers when I first got my Outback, I used to fish 3-4 evenings a week as long as there were no storms, the wind was under 20mph (though, sometimes I still fished), and the waves were under 2 feet. I've mellowed since then, especially since I was no more successful on those days than on the calm days. The problem was probably worse because of the scoop-shaped bow. Putting a cooler bag or deck bag up there would probably cut down on the spray quite a bit. The bow of the Revo is more dome-shaped, so the water tends to run off to the sides when the bow digs in. It probably also has to do with how the yak is loaded. Keeping the bow light would probably cut down on that.

[Memory Maker]

that's ez - i wanted a SOT that fits inside my full size FORD van , with the doors closed. and floats me is important too.

it's not about getting what you want, but wanting what you got. - shirl crow

I love your priorities ......... it HAS to fit in the van

OH ...... and It would be nice if it didn't sink when I get in it .........

sorry ...... just struck me as funny