SHOP: replacing the seat in Tahe Marine kayaks

Most hung seats in sea kayaks are manufactured using chopped strand fiberglass. And all hung seats made from chopped strand in my kayaks have cracked!
Incidentally I am not the only one with such problem.
Some manufacturers hang their seat from the cockpit coaming or the deck of the kayak.
This method allows for easy install and adjustment for fore and aft location with minimal modifications.

Valley sea kayaks have addressed the problem with a seat made of plastic that is much more resilient than chopped strand fiberglass.
I repaired my cracked seats by  removing them and adding several layers of quality fiberglass cloth and Kevlar in critical areas around the cheek plates. While not really difficult, it's annoying that seats are not structurally more sound.
I believe that the cracking problem is caused by the seat being able to swing side to side.
While foam packing under the seat does little to prevent them swinging, regular rolling and edging of the kayak induces the swinging. In reality all that is needed is to anchor the pan and prevent it from swinging.
A cheap retrofit solution to the problem is to use some sort of goop (I prefer the polyurethane type) to bond a small area of the seat to the hull. In the event of seat removal one needs to cut only the small section of goop with a kicthen knife.
However Tahe Marine kayaks has addressed this fundamental problem and prevented seats cracking.

Tahe Marine has anchored the seat with a factory stud set into the bottom of the hull and bolted the front of the seat securely. Tahe's seats don't swing and I assume don't brake (have not experienced or heard of it yet).

seat in Zegul_the center bolt is covered by foam pad
Tahe's method however complicates things if one finds the need to relocate the seat.
I found that on couple of my kayaks the seat was too close to the rear coaming. In my SeaBird North Sea the seat was really close to the back preventing any chance of laybacks.
The kayak also leecocked substantially and since the cockpit is very long I was able to push the seat forward and adjust the trim. SeaBird Designs seat allows fore and aft adjustment.

In my Zegul 520 the seat was again very close to the rear of the cockpit. Despite a low rear deck I could not perform easy laybacks and my back would hit the coaming. The seat was also close enough to prevent  the install of an electric bilge pump behind the seat.

no room for electric pump behind the seat
Unfortunately the seat is designed to sit in one location only. Moving it forward required modification to the seat.
I cut the seat's cheek plates and modified the front of the seat to align it with the floor stud but I still didn't like that version.
Since my butt is rather large (size 38 pants) I wanted something that would support my legs as well as and prevent the dead legs syndrome: the factory seat had to go.

I fabricated a new fiberglass seat taking the mould of my Impex kayaks. Those seats have proven to be of the perfect shape (even on long distance paddles) for myself and friends of mine.
I laid up a seat using tightly woven fiberglass cloth and epoxy, with Kevlar on the perimeter to prevent possible stress cracks. In the process of using less resin and stronger woven cloth (compared to chop strand)I saved a bit of weight. I had to create a little "well" where the stud is located so I could securely fasten the new seat to the hull.

front of new seat_depression for fastener
I also eliminated the backband to further enhance the kayak's comfort. I no longer catch myself on it when rolling or reentering the kayak.
I now have enough room to install an electric bilge pump too.

new seat with electric bilge pump behind it

Next article will be on customizing, not replacing a seat in a Tahe Greenland. Coming soon...

REVIEW: comparison Zegul Baidarka and Tahe Reval

Two expedition worthy kayaks from Tahe Marine.

Tahe Marine has recently brought on the market a new style of kayak: the Zegul Baidarka.
I wanted to compare it to the other big loader: the Reval. (Zegul is to Tahe what Lexus is to Toyota).

two very different stern styles
The view of these sterns is compelling: there couldn't be two kayaks more different.
The Reval has a typically British style up swept stern while the Baidarka..., well, there is no other kayak like it. (correction 01JUL11. Nick Shade has a valid argument; see comments)
A traditional Baidarka of the Aleut islands has a different stern than the interpretation of the Zegul.
The Reval has a decent rocker while the Baidarka has very little. Despite the low stern the Baidarka paddled OK in reverse and didn't seem to dig in below the surface.

Stern low in the water. The Aleut paddle seemed very apt for this test paddle

The bow of the Baidarka is just as unique as its stern. A very fine low volume end that up sweeps to a unique horn-like shape. What is missing from a traditional Baidarka is the bifurcated bow, but I guess that would be too much for most to take in :-)
The hull is in epoxy infused carbon/aramide core reinforced construction making it a rather stiff hull.
The kayak is large, there is no denial. The hatch spaces are huge and would swallow an insane amount of gear.
Despite the size of the kayak (of strong swede form) it appeared to cruise at 8 kph with little effort.
The cockpit coaming sits high and there is plenty of room even for the chunkiest legs to fit under the thigh braces of the keyhole cockpit. Large feet also have no problems fitting on the easily adjusted foot pegs.

interesting bow, to say the least

The Baidarka has a unique way of lashing the generous deck bungee cords: a section of teak timber provides the anchor point. There is plenty of room to stash your gear on deck.

a fantastic finish of the deck's bungees

The Baidarka rolls easily thanks to the positive thigh braces however low laybacks are hindered by the rather high rear coaming.

high brace with Aleut paddle.

The Reval is Tahe's other rudderless big-boat offering.
It has strong British style influence with a more chiseled deck look.
The cockpit has again plenty of room for large paddlers while still suited for lighter bodies. It is however not a low volume kayak. Maneuverability seemed very quick despite the size. I felt that the pronounced V shape of the keel line makes the kayak a bit tender on the primary stability. When sitting on the beach it leans to one side however the kayak felt solid when paddled. It tracked well for a rockered boat and was easily turned if edged. Weight didn't seem to slow down either kayak.

 The deck has an indent for (surface) mounting a compass forward of the front hatch.

The bow and stern have a funny shape. Initially I thought it was rather bizarre but as soon as I grabbed the kayak to carry it to the beach I realized the reason for it: it sits very well in the hand and prevents slippage. A nice little touch. The seam tape on the Reval and Baidarka is 1/2" black aramide with no gelcoat cover. It looks very neat with a perfect finish.

The skeg slider on the Tahes is superb: it slid smoothly and didn't seem to have any drag. A welcome discovery after seeing (and repairing) a few dodgy skegs on other branded kayaks.
Deploying the skeg made a strong effect on the kayak behavior and would correct the slight tendency to weathercock.

The cut-away on the deck next to the cockpit offers a paddle reach close to the hull for high angle paddling.
The cockpit has a positive space for my thighs (not just resting on little wings) and bracing in the Reval was great. The kayak rolled extremely easily for me and a fair degree of layback was possible.

Test paddle conditions;
We loaded the kayaks with about 45 Kg alternatively. They were both paddled loaded and unloaded.
Test paddlers were of mid to heavy weight (68 to 110Kg) and mid to tall height (175 to 184cm)
There was an average of 8-10 knots of wind (gusting to 15kn) and there was 1-2 knots of tidal flow in some spots. The small wind waves were little indication on how the two boats would perform in following seas.
Only an extensive test paddle over several days would give us a better understanding on the kayaks' performance therefore any firm opinions on these kayaks ability are abstained.
This review's aim is to depict the two new kayaks since public images are very hard to come by.
Test kayaks were supplied by Adventure Outlet.