Out with the old, in with the new...

[ictalurus]

I had to say goodbye to the "River Horse" (my old Outback) because she developed the dread crack. The fiberglass drive well support added an extra two years to the warranty, but I got the hull in 2005. However, Hobie prorated the hull, so I only had to pay about $350, which included the hull replacement and shipping. The guys at Bluhaven took really good care of me and even gave me a nice discount on the sailing rudder, rod holder, and RAM wedge mount I bought. Plus, it didn't take them long to get me my new hull. So here's my Outback after I stripped everything usable off her:



And here's my new Revo just before her maiden voyage (report to follow shortly):



I gotta say, Hobie did kind of a crummy job designing the cockpit area. The rudder lever is under my left leg, and my water bottle bangs against my right leg if I put the bottle in the cupholder. I think an extra two or three inches or a different design of the gunwales could have avoided both those problems. Or they could've made the pockets, which I do like, slightly bigger so a slimmer bottle could fit in there. Also, the standard rudder isn't very effective, but I didn't get a chance to put the sailing rudder on yet.

I didn't put it through its paces too much because I was still getting used to the reduced width and layout, but I got it up to 5.1mph at some point without really trying. I'll have to check to see what the max was in my Outback. There was about a 1ft chop, and the Revo definitely cut through that better than the Outback.

I think I'm going to replace my PVC fish finder rig with a series of RAM attachments using the RAM ball wedge in the mast tube and a cutting board for mounting the fish finder, a couple rod holders, and my camera mount. That way, I'll be able to keep the gunwales clear. It might be tough to keep everything from getting in the way of casting or pedaling though.

Now, I need a name for the Revo. I haven't figured out its personality yet, but I'm leaning toward "Ockham's Razor", which is kind of ironic given that Hobies are far from the simplest design. But it is sleek looking. Also in the running are "Rube Goldberg", which is more fitting for a Hobie, or "Yellow Bullhead", which keeps the catfish theme going and fits my personality.

[dhmjd]

What crack did she develop? I have the outback, my brother in law the revolution. When fishing IRI he can go against the current much better than me, that is clear.

[ictalurus]

Older models of Outbacks sometimes developed cracks at the front of the Mirage Drive slot where the tip of the drive rests in a groove in the hull. This happened to me and my father several times. It's hard to get the plastic to the center of the kayak during the rotomolding process. The area beneath that groove wasn't solid, so Hobie came up with a fiberglass support to reduce the flexing in that area. The newer models (not sure when it started) are now solid at the front of the drive well, plus the mechanism that holds the drive in place was redesigned. The redesigned lock mechanism is pretty cool compared to what I had. Since I haven't had any luck with Outbacks, I thought I'd switch to a Revo with this hull replacement.

I'm looking forward to playing around in rougher conditions in the summer to see how it handles. I saw HokieDJ's and his buddy's go through some serious waves at Point Lookout, so I want to give it a spin.

[Redfish12]

Bill looks like a great ride! I'm looking forward to hearing your full review after spending so much time in an outback. I believe I would go for a Revo when the time comes, but at this point I think I'm going to spend another season in the Trident unless I sell my cobra (gf's) and my ride 135. We'll see... revo looks pretty tempting!

[rol716]

Glad the guys a BluHaven treated you well. A couple of buddies of mine run the marina. All great guys.

[surfdog]

WTG Bill. looking very good. i agree hobie could have done a better job on the cockpit design on the revo, just little things that would make a good yak into a great yak. i'm upgrading the seat and working on a good mount system for my crate. i used the ram narrow area mount to the rod holders to the rails, they are very sturdy and out of the way of the peddles.

i think you should get a new hat to match your revo

[ictalurus]

Michael--I think I'm really going to like it once I get everything set up. I'm just really resistant to change.

Rol--The guys at Bluhaven are top notch. They've helped me with a number of things, including setting me up with some discount used parts for my ancient Mirage Drive. That creek has some pretty nice white perch in it, too

Sam--That's a good way to put it. I might look into those narrow mounts, but now there are rudder control lines running all the way up to the bow. I'll have to look inside more, but I'm a little worried about whatever bolts I use interfering with the lines. As for mounting your crate, I removed the rear bungee and all the screw in cleats and replaced them with the screw in eyelets and used them as anchors for the bungees I use to hold down my crate. I might switch which holes get the eyelets, but it seemed to work pretty well.

[surfdog]

i think thats what i'm going to do with the crate also. i have no problem with the lines to the rudder just a little tight getting in there.

[MetroMan]

Congrats on the new ride!

[eastonkayaker]

Bill, I used the small ram mounts on my revo also, mounted a few inches forward of the rudder control, no problem with the rudder cable.

Bryan

[moc]

I am also looking at the Revo Bill. I cannot wait to see yours in the flesh to see how you rigged it and your official review on the boat.