All original material copyright 1997-2011 Michael J. Edelman unless otherwise noted. No material may be reproduced in any form without express written permission of the owner(s).

The Major Manufacturers

Atlatl. Following a promising introduction in 2004, this new Chinese import seems to have almost disappeared from the market. Reportedly the boat was plauged by production and quality problems, and a correspondant at the Hamburg Globeboat show tells me that the sample displayed there didn't atrtact any distributor interest. Here in the US, the sole distributor (Folding Kayak Adventures) no longer carries the boat.

Bergans (Ally) Bergans of Norway have sold folding canoes for many years under the Ally name. Bergans currently offers five canoe models and one 5.2m kayak. The kayak is a bit unusual in construction. It's around 18' long, which makes it among the longest singles made. Unique among folders, it has a cable that can be used to vary the amount of rocker in the hull by varying the tension on the cable.

Sea Kayaker gave this boat excellent marks for performance but noted it was the most difficult boat to assemble they'd encountered, and includes a rubber mallet to assist the process! (The manufacturer replied that once left assembled for a while, the hull and frame take a set and subsequent assemblies become easier.)

Aqua-Xtreme A brand new manufacturer from Israel. No user reports yet, but I hope to have a review boat to try next Spring. The makers tell me that the boat has been launched in Australia, and that they hope to hit the European and US markets this summer.

Their web site has undergone a number of changes, with more details and more photos of their boats, so it's worth a visit if you haven't seen it in a while. One interesting addition is the availability of transparent hull material. I'll try to keep you appraised of future changes. Watch this space.

Folbot. Folbot was originally an English company, founded in 1933 by a German émigré by the name of Jack Kissner. He moved the company to New York in 1935, and then to South Carolina in 1953, where he expanded the line into a wide variety of boats. Jack  passed away in 1983, but then a group of investors led by a sharp engineer named Phil Cotton bought the company, modernized and simplified the line, and replaced the old wood frame construction with aluminum and synthetics. Folbots are among the least expensive folding kayaks on the market and an excellent value for the budget conscious paddler. They're stable, great for beginners and yet have been taken on more than a few long trips. They're not of the same quality and ruggedness of a Long Haul, or a Klepper, or a Fathercraft, but they're plenty strong for most uses. A very few buyers have reported problems with skin shrinkage under certain conditions, but the company has remedied this every time it's been reported. And they assemble very quickly-  I assembled an Aleut for the first time in under 10 minutes, and I can do a Greenland II in 15-20. Phil is constantly responding to customer suggestions and  improving the boats, making them more comfortable, seaworthy and reliable. Recent mods include an excellent new seat and rigid aluminum coamings that stiffen the boat and improve performance, and new all-aluminum ribs that replace the injection molded plastic ribs and greatly increase interior room.

Folbot currently makes eight boats. The 17' Greenland II is a double that can also be used as a single ($2000).  The 15' Kodiak single ($1400) is similar to the Klepper Aerius-I in hull shape. The Aleut is a 12' single mini-kayak ($1200) that's amazingly stable for such a little boat, and the 14' Yukon is a sort of stretched Aleut ($1300). These boats are available in an "Expedition" package for $200-$300 more that includes rudder, spray deck, extra deck D-rings, paddle(s), compass, padding on the longerons and a handy repair kit.

The 12'6" Edisto, announced in October of 2003, discontinued, and just reintroduced in February of 2008, is an open canoe that could be converted into a fully decked boat with the addition of one of two different covers. One has an open cockpit intended for recreational paddling on more protected waters, and the other has a small cockpit better suited for rougher conditions. The latest Edisto also comes in a "Fish 'n' Photo" version with outriggers, a rod holder, floorboards, a mini-deck and PVC anchor. It's stable enough to stand up in, as photos on the Folbot web site illustrate.

Folbot's newst designs are the 16' Cooper, the 13' Kiawah, and the 10' Citibot. These are certainly the most revolutionary Folbots since Phil introduced his first aluminum framed boat, as well as being (to me, at least) the most exciting Folbots yet. With a slimmer profile than any other Folbot and resemblence to a pre-2000 Feathercraft K-1, the Cooper is probably the fastest Folbot yet as well. The new assembly method (new to Folbot) may make them some of the fastest to assemble Folbots as well. My own tests certainly supported both of these assumptions- see the Reviews section.

Folbot has an absolute 100% customer-must-be-satisfied policy. If you don't like your boat after paddling it, they'll take it back, no questions asked, and issue a full refund minus depreciation for damage (if any). They used to have a sale once a year (late summer or early fall) during which all prices are cut around 15% but announced in March of 2003 that they were switching to a year-round fixed price. Their web site is among the best of all makers of folders, with details on construction and a tour of the Folbot factory, and an online store, where you can order boats, accessories and parts. The Folbot web site has a handy bulletin board, the "Folbot Forum", where users can exchange tips, pictures, used boats and stories.

[Folbot Kodiak]

Feathercraft. One of the newer manufacturers, Canada's Feathercraft is probably the most innovative maker of folding kayaks out there, with many unique designs, materials and accessories. Factory support is said to be first-rate. (One correspondent, who lives a few blocks from the factory, tells me Feathercraft repaired a loose hinge pin while he waited.) Their boats use a variety of modern materials- aluminum longerons, polyethylene and polycarbonate ribs, and a variety of synthetic deck materials. The hulls were originally hypalon, but the newest boats use polyurethane, a material that's difficult to work with but has strength, weight and fabrication advantages.

Feathercraft makes a full range of boats, including a very high-performance, narrow Greenland style boat (probably the fastest boat of any of the folders), and more traditional folding singles and doubles. List prices range from a modest $2238 for the 14'6", 35lb  Kahuna up to over $4700 for the top-end double. In 2002 they announced a range of four folding sit-on-top kayaks- certainly a first for the industry. The new boats aren't folders so much as inflatables with a folding frame. The range includes a 12' single with a price in the Folbot Aleut range, a 15' single convertible to double use, a dedicated double, and the one that interests me most of all, a 19' surf ski/racing kayak with a 20" beam. This is one I'd love to test- an inflatable that rivals the fastest hardshell boats for potential speed! Definitely warm water boats, of course, like all sit-on-tops.

The older (pre-1998) Feathercraft kayaks have a reputation for being difficult to assemble- but  if done right, even the most complex of the Feathercrafts goes together in a straightforward manner. The newer boats are have a number of improvements that simplify assembly and make them easier to assemble. The first time I assembled a pre-1998 K1 Expedition it took me an hour and 15 minutes, using the factory instructions but not the video. The second time it took me 35 minutes, and since then it's I've gradually gotten it down to under 30 minutes with practice.  The 1998-99 version of the Feathercraft K1 single goes together much faster, owing to the new dimensionally stable skin and improved frame design. The year 2000 and beyond boats add a heat-welded urethane deck and hull that chops pounds off the weight and makes it easier to handle, too.  (Ralph Diaz has a sheet of  assembly tricks he'll supply in return for an SASE that can speed up assembly of this and other boats; a version of this can also be found in the Assembly Tips page.)  Randy Henriksen of New York Kayak told me some years ago that the K-light is one of the easiest boats to assemble on the market- something I've heard echoed by other K-light owners. The K-Light's replacements- the  Kahuna and Big Kahuna- are similar; I managed to assemble a Big Kahuna in 30 minutes on my first try, and I could probably do it in 20  minutes with practice. The Feathercraft web site is an excellent one, with pictures and descriptions of all Feathercraft products, and assembly manuals for all their boats.

There's a new (1/15/2010) Feathercraft blog at http://fckayaks.wordpress.com/

First Light. This is a new (2002) boat coming from New Zealand; if you're a Folding Kayak Newsletter subscriber you've already read about it. I've been speaking with First Light's Martin Ross who tells me he expects to launch the boat in the US this April or May.  They now have two boats. The first boat is a 4.2 meter boat with a maximum load of 265 pounds and a weight of  17 lbs! Quite an accomplishment. The newer 480 is 4.8 meters (15' 9") in length and 22 lbs in weight.. Martin tells me that the First Light boats will be intended for recreational, not expedition use, but in New Zealand, recreational use involves some pretty rough paddling. The line will be gradually expanded with longer and perhaps wider boats as well.

Foldlite Boats This is a folding design very different from any other folder on the market. Rather than the typical skin-on-frame design, it has a skin pulled over a hull made of a sections of die-cut, folded, corrugated polyethyne sheet (Coroplast). Hull modules are assembled in series, with a flexible frame between each pair of modules, making for a design that could easily be extended, and allowing for the sharing of parts between different models. The design allows for very lightweight construction (the 10' single weighs 19 lbs, complete) though at the cost of the strength and ruggedness seen in most other folding boats.

The Coroplast sections are held together during assembly with a number of nylon "Quick COnnect" pins (60 in the case of the 12' boat) when fully assembled by a very lightweight hull made of silicone coated 300 denier polyester, rather than the heavy 1100-1600 denier PVC/Hypalon laminate typical of most folding boats. You can read more about the boats in the Long Reviews section. Their current range includes 10' and 12' singles and a 15' doubles, as well as a 10' open canoe.

Fujita. Clicking on the Fujita name to the left will take you to Fujita's new English language web site.  They're a  new brand in the US, and currently carried only by Fujita North America (formerly FoldingCraft) (see the dealer's page). Founded in 1947 by the father of the current owner, Fujita produces several thousand canoes and kayaks every year, ranging from  short day trippers to long expedition singles and doubles. Construction is significantly different from any of the European boats on the market. Most Fujitas use tubular fiberglass longerons (similar to paddle shafts, but narrower, according to Fujitai North America) and marine plywood ribs, keels and cockpit floors. Hulls are Kevlar reinforced polyester with polyester and PVC decks, and all are RF welded. They also have a few less expensive models with aluminum frames and welded PVC hulls. Prices range from $1895 for a 12' touring boat to $2895 for the largest touring boat.  They appear to be similar to the Feathercraft kayaks in appearance, and come in compact backpacks, like the Feathercrafts. I'll add more info as I get it. In the meantime see the Fujita 500 review in the January 2002 issue of Sea Kayaker.

Innova is known mainly as a maker of high-quality whitewater inflatables, but the new Innova Seaker is a high-performance inflatable sea kayak. I'm listing it here, and not in the inflatable section, as Innova's Tim Rosenhan tells me that it's designed to go head-to-head with the high-end folders; at a price of $2499 (single) to $2999 (double) Innova is certainly targeting the high end of the market. I hope to have a sample for review in the next month, after which we'll see how accurate Tim's claim is! The boats certainly are attractive for their small packed size; weightwise, they're up there with Long Haul expedition boats.

[Innova Seaker1 and Seaker2]

Grabner. I haven't included Grabner in the past, as they've been known mainly as a maker of inflatable boats. But not too long ago they introduced their hybrid Discovery single an double kayaks which include both rigid and inflatable componants, much like the Feathercraft AIrline series. I'm hoping either one of our readers or I can get our hands on one in the near future for a test paddle.

Klepper. Klepper was for years the name in folding kayaks, and indeed it was a stock Klepper double that Dr. Hannes Lindemann crossed the Atlantic with in 1956. Klepper kayaks have probably been used on more expeditions to remote parts of the world than any other folding boat.  Kleppers use wood frames with well-made fittings that allow quick assembly with practice (and after the snap connectors are worn in a bit). I can do a broken-in Aerius I in 15 minutes without hurrying; adding rudder and floatation bags adds another 5 minutes, perhaps. (Occasionally you see misaligned fittings on Kleppers that make assembly more difficult; these can be fixed my re-mounting) One unique feature of the Kleppers (and the Long Haul) is a cotton and hemp canvas deck that is waterproof when wet yet makes the boats very cool below decks, owing to the evaporative cooling and breathability of the fabric. 

Klepper's line has long included a wooden framed double, a single,  a mini, and an aluminum framed mini.  The wooden single and double are available in basic and expedition models, with reinforced hulls and extra deck hardware, and the double is also available in a civilianized military model called the Quattro that's probably the most stable and seaworthy kayak ever made. In addition to the various Expedition features, the Quattro has a second set of inflatable sponsons that can be inflated to change the hull profile and increase buoyancy. Klepper expanded the range of colors offered in 2000, and boats can now be purchased in red, burgundy, orange, mint, olive, violet, harlequin (a mix of the other colors) and NATO's preferred color, black. (My Klepper double is red- a good color for being seen.) 

In 2002 they announced two new models and renamed one: The XXL is an enlarged version of the classic Aerius II. The XXL is 585 cm in length (19'2") and can seat up to 4 paddlers.  The A2000 is now the Tramp.

The most interesting boat, the T9/02,  isn't really a new boat, but the reintroduction of an old Klepper model, the T9. And it's not actually made by Klepper at all, but by LFM (Lychener Faltbootmanufaktur GbR), an organization that grew out of the workshop of the Folding Boat Museum (Historisches Faltbootkabinett.) and that is mainly concerned with the reconstruction and rebuilding of other boats.  LFM bought the rights to all the old T models from Klepper, so we may see even more old designs reintroduced. (Thanks to Dirk Bredow of the LFM for the details. ). The T9/02 is  a narrower boat than the Aerius I, with an overall length of 450cm (14'9") and a beam of 66cm (26") compared to the Aerius I's 72cm (28") beam. That's a custom T9 from LFM on the right. As of this writing I don't know if any have been imported into the US.

Klepper's most recent introduction (January 2004)  is the Langeiner, or long single. The Lang Einer owes much to the Long Haul Mk-I, which it resembles greatly, much as the Long Haul designs were initially inspired by the Kleppers and other German boats of that era. The Langeiner is a 4.9 meter (16' 4") version of the Aerius I, but otherwise identical. Klepper states that the extra foot of length delivers more leg room, better tracking, higher speed and more cargo carryingability.

Klepper offers a wide variety of accessories, including spraydecks, rudders, and a great selection of sails ranging from simple downwind sails to full marconi rigs with jib, mainsail, and leeboards. Quality like this isn't cheap; while the new Alu is competitively priced at $1900, the wooden-framed singles cost from $3200 to $3800. Are they worth it? Kleppers can easily last 50 years or more, with little maintenance, and their resale value is very good. Their web site has a good description of the boats, construction, company history and stories about the boats, but no accessory information.

A few years ago Klepper signed with an exclusive US distributor, but Klepper West are once again importing boats directly from Klepper in Germany. The new American Klepper distributor has a lot of information on their website but nothing on dealers; I've suggested to the owner that a directory of dealers would be a nice thing to have for prospective buyers. However, if you go to the Klepper factory website you'll find information on all the US Klepper dealers. The US Klepper distributor is also now selling Kleppers directly to consumers, as www.boatsinbags.com. I'm curious as to how this will affect the ability of their dealers to compete with them. (I'd also be interested to hear from anyone who purchased their boat direct from Klepper USA.)

Update: The US distributor is now advertising themselves as a "factory outlet store" as well, which suggests they're undercutting their own dealers.

Until a few years ago, Mark Ekhart of Long Haul was Klepper's US service agent; as of this writing, the US distributor of Klepper doesn't have a service repair organization, but longtime Klepper importer and dealer Klepper West Boats, does stock replacement parts, and Mark Ekhart still does the best repair and restoration work in the US.

Long Haul Folding Kayaks. Mark Ekhart has long been known as a Klepper dealer, the preferred Klepper repair shop, and a customizer of boats and maker of specialized accessories. In the last few years he's been making replacement decks and hulls for Klepper boats, and now he's making complete frames as well.. Mark's double hulls and frames are interchangeable with Kleppers (the singles are not), but the construction is somewhat different. The wood used is birch ply and ash, like Klepper, the Nautiraid and other quality wooden framed boats. Rather than the stamped aluminum connectors used by Klepper, though, Mark's Long Haul kayaks use stainless steel (and a few hardened, corrosion resistant aluminum) fittings that are significantly faster to attach, and yet much tougher and more reliable. (Some claim the Long Haul fittings are slower to assemble; my personal experience is that they're much less fussy and have fewer alignment problems).  The Long Haul coaming is similar to the older Klepper three-piece design, which Mark feels is stronger than the newer hinged design. The seats are Mark's novel design (see Accessories page) that can be removed from the boat and used as camp seats. And a look at the photo on the web site shows something else new- access hatches built into the skin. The construction of these is similar to the Feathercraft hatches, but rather than a removable ring he uses a sewn-in ring of reinforced vinyl, much like the hoops in his expedition tuck-under spraydecks. The  hatches run about $80 and are reportedly a popular option. Having tried them I can say they're just as convenient as the hatches on my Feathercraftt.

Mark has now been shipping kayaks since December of 2001 and has been signing up more dealers to demo and sell his boats. The basic Long Haul Mk II double sells for $2750, quite an attractive price for a double of this quality.  This Summer (2003) he added the Long Haul Mk-I, a single kayak similar to the Klepper Aerius I with with an improved, longer hull design and all the Long Haul improvements at a retail price of $2,434, although as of today (9/29) his web page still lists an introductory price of $2,200.  There are also special package prices for complete outfits with custom bags, rudder and so forth.  The Long Haul web page now has most of the entire catalog, on line, but as of this writing you really need a copy of the printed catalog to see everything Mark has to offer. The printed catalog is an exceptional resource, both for prospective Long Haul owners and for current Klepper owners, as Mark makes an amazing range of accessories for these boats, including replacement skins for a wide variety of current and past Kleppers. If you have a problem with a Klepper or Long Haul boat, he probably has a solution.

See the March/April 2002 issue of the Folding Kayaker for some notes on the Mk-II.  (See also the entry for Long Haul on the Dealer's page)  I have some photos and notes of a Mk-II boat I tested here and on the reviews page,  and of the newer Mark-I single here and on the reviews page. One interesting note: The all-black "Commando" version of the Mk-II has rapidly displaced the Klepper Quattro as the preferred choice for military special operations units. (And they can buy pretty much any boat they want.)

Nautiraid. A French boat that's similar to a Klepper (or a Long Haul), with some important differences. The hulls of the Nautiraids are similar to what you'd see on a Klepper Expedition model, but the frames are significantly different from the Klepper frames in construction. More and lighter wood parts are used in the Nautiraids, and the boats are a bit lighter than similarly sized Kleppers. Rather than the anodized aluminum snap fittings of the Klepper, Nautiraid frames connect together via thin hypalon straps that are stretched over frames and onto brass screws; this low-tech method looks simple and crude, but works well enough. Frames are connected together with hinges are made of simple sawn brass channel, and the rudder pintle is a rather rough casting. It's all very Gallic in conception.

But the boats are exceptionally seaworthy and the frames and longerons are built into subassemblies that speed up assembly- the entire frame for the Raid I single consists of only four subassemblies and one loose rib.  When you take the cost of accessories into consideration, Nautiraids are priced at about half the cost of similar Kleppers; for instance, a spraydeck for a Klepper Aerius II double costs about $450 and a rudder and pedal assembly costs $200, while the Nautiraid Raid Double comes complete with these essential accessories. Every Nautiraid owner I've spoken with seems to be very happy with their boat.

Klepper and Nautiraid each have their fans, and either group of supporters can give you excellent reasons as to why their favorite is the better choice. People whose experience and opinion I trust have given me good reasons for choosing both boats. I'll just say don't rule out one or the other without investigating both. Talk to experts (see the recommended dealers page) before you decide. (Of course the new Long Haul double is going to further complicate the decision.)

Nautiraid makes a wide range of rigid and folding boats and accessories for civilian and military use. Currently eight different folders are  being imported, including three doubles, four singles ranging from 14'  to 16', and a miniboat. (Hot news from the Folding Kayaker newsletter- there are two new aluminum framed boats. See the newsletter for reviews). One of the doubles, the 17' Grand Raid, is a version of the boat used by the French military. The smaller Raid Double (formerly the Raid II Expedition) is a little smaller at 16-1/2' , and the Touring Raid is smaller still (15') with a PVC hull rather than the hypalon of the larger boats. The singles include  a 14' , a 15'  (the recently updated Raid I Mark III) and  the 16-1/2' Greenland. These last two boats share  a novel method of assembly detailed in a 1999 issue of the Folding Kayaker newsletter.  In addition to Nautiraid's own web site, there's  information on the sites of Nautiraid importer SEDA Kayaks and the New York Kayak Company and some excellent assembly photos on Richard Mitchell's site at http://www.brunel.ac.uk/~acsrrrm/kayak/.

Flash: Nautiraid is now offering almost all their wooden-framed boats with an optional aluminum frame for about $200 less. So far it looks like every boat except the two largest doubles will be available with the aluminum frame. There's nothing on Nautiraid's home page yet, but you can see the new prices at the web site of the US importer, SEDA Kayaks.

[Nautiraid Raid I MkII]

Pakboats is the work of Alv Elvestad, a former importer of the Norwegian Ally line of folding canoes. Alv's boats are similar to the Ally boats, but with some significant differences. There's been some occasional confusion between Allys and Pakboats (including on this page) but Alv cleared it up for me in a recent correspondance.

Alv worked with Bergans/Ally for a time, and at one time sold Ally boats via his company, then known as Pakboats, but the Pakboats name is now a brand name used by his company for his own boats. Should you come across a Mad Rivers folding canoe, that's also a Pakboat, as Mad River was for a time the exclusive distributor of Pakboats, under the Mad River name. Of interest to readers of this page are his new "Puffin" kayaks- really more of  decked double-paddle canoes- that combine a low price (under $1200 for the single) and weight (22 lbs!). There are two reviews of these boats in the May/June 2000 issue of the Folding Kayaker newsletter- one by Ralph, and one by Bill Longyard. I have not seen the Puffin but I have seen Alv's earlier canoes and the workmanship is very good. In 2002 the Puffin was lengthened from the original 10.5' to 12' while keeping the weight at 22 lbs, making it an even better performing boat. 

Pouch. An East German boat, the for many years the Pouch resembled the older Kleppers, though with a reinforced vinyl hull rather than the  Hypalon used by Klepper and most other makers. However, Pouch has retooled and redesigned their boats in recent years, with new materials and designs. The new E68 single is available with either vinyl or hypalon hull, and has a frame that assembles outside the hull, not unlike the newer Nautiraid boats. Ralph Hoehn is now importing and selling the newer Pouch kayaks, beginning with the 16-1/2'  E86 single, through his company PouchBoats; see his web page at http://www.PouchBoats.com.

Peter Schwierzke of Klepper West had a few of the older Pouch singles and doubles as of Fall/02, , including some boats brought in by Seyvalor and sometimes sold under that name. I forgot to ask him last time we talked if he has any left. (According to Ralph Hoehn, Seyvalor brought in a total of about 50 boats.)

Marian Gunkel, who has a lot of experience paddling his Pouch around Europe, has created a number of excellent  unofficial Pouch web pages with very complete information.

Pouch boats have traditionally been a good value, and the newer generation of boats should carry on that tradition.

Kayak Labs is now out of the business of making kayaks. Their boats were similar to Russian boats in the design of the frame, but had novel polyurethane hulls that used zippered sponsons to allow for variable beam. I have yet to see one but you may come across a used one.

Seavivor. The Seavivor boats appear to be structurally similar to the Kleppers; they certainly are premium priced, at $3,200 for the single and $3,850 for the basic double. They have two boats at present. One is a 17 foot double very much in the mold of a Klepper Aerius II, with a wide 36" beam. The other is a high-performance single, a 17'10" boat with a 24" beam and no sponsons.

I have received e-mail from one person who bought a Seavivor used, and had some problems with construction and workmanship. He reports that the owner was very cooperative in trying to solve his problems, but overall he was not happy with the boat. Tom Hall, on the other hand, wrote to say that while he didn't own a Seavivor, he has paddled and raced them and thinks the Seavivor is "the best of all folding kayaks." Tom wrote an article on Seavivors for the Atlantic Coastal Kayaker that can be found, along with  reviews by Sea Kayaker and Paddler magazines (the latter by Hall as well), on Seavivor's web site at http://www.seavivor.com/review2.html.

Whalecraft Folding Kayaks. Appears to be defunct. Whalecraft's one boat, an open-cockpit double with cordura nylon decks and vinyl resembled a pre-1980s Folbot. At an advertised price of  $1900 (Feb 2001) for the basic boat, they were one of the least expensive doubles on the market. From what I've heard Whalecraft was pretty much a one-man shop, hand making one kayak at a time. I have yet to hear from anyone who has experience with this boat. Their web site has been down for at least two years, and there's no evidence from other sources that they're still in business.

akiak This is a new boat from a couple of Swiss industrial design students that may or may not end up as a commercial product. It's small (360cm x 65cm, or roughly 12 feet long and 2 feet wide) and from the photos on the web site, I'd call it a recreational boat, as there's no cockpit rim or provision for a spray deck. Weight is given as only 10 Kg (22 pounds) and the whole thing fits in a large backpack.

Right now it appears that the designers are looking for partners to produce and market the design. I'll be watching to see if this turns into a real commercial product.

Butterfly Kayaks Butterfly is a new name in the folding kayak market from Japan. I was contacted in the spring of 2010 by Julio Tecles of Waspkayaks (Spain), who infomed me that he was the exclusive agent for Europe of Butterfly Kayaks. He tells me that he is importing two models from Butterfly, the 415 and 460, which are respectively 415icm in length and 68cm wide, and 460cm in length and 62cm wide.

One of our members reports in the Forum that:

The whole thing packs into the cockpit, which is a separate sub-assembly. The frame is then assembled around the cockpit, which is then inserted through the rear deck opening into the skin. The tensioning device is a winch, and the frame is secured to the skin by five web straps under the rear deck. There is a unique hatch on the port side of the foredeck for gear access. It is a slit-style with what looks like a drybag type closure and has three straps to secure it. The cockpit/seasock looks like it has plenty of room. The frame is composite FRP pipe, and the skin is urethane, probably something like Feathercraft uses. Wheels can be attached to the cockpit sub-assembly for portability. Prices are about $2400 for the Crusoe 415, and $2700 for the Crusoe 460 model. Not bad. They come in red, turqoise, blue, yellow, and black.

Neris Neris is a Ukranian maker of some sophisticated looking folders. I haven't seen one in the flesh (so to speak) but they look well designed, with both wood and aluminum frame member options and a PVC hull.

Neris got their start making replacement hulls for Russian boats (see the Russian Boats section), but have obviously moved far beyond that. Hopefully one of our correspondants will get a chance to review one some day.

Payanca. Here's a Japanese boat that, until recently, I was only familiar with in the pages of some Japanese kayak magazines that Tsunami Chuck was kind enough to send me. But peripatetic correspondent Eric Kunze found a web page belonging to Tim (propane.guy@lycos.com), a kayaker who found his Payanca used at a swap in Vancouver. Here's Tim's report on the boat:

I bought this kayak 2 years ago, and I was puzzled as to the name myself. I've tried searching the web to find any info regarding this particular brand, and all I've come across is a couple of Japanese sites on this kayak. ....  The workmanship on the kayak appears quite professional ex the stitching and the frame.

This particular kayak has good initial and secondary stability and is quite easy to maneuver; partially because of its shorter length too.  My 8 and 12 year old boys can handle it ok, and we've never had a problem as far as accidentally tipping over in rough water...the inflatable sponsons really help with that. The beam width is 26", and I've found a 240 cm paddle to work well with this kayak, although my kids use a 224 cm and that works well too.  The frame is basically assembled into 2 sections, put into the kayak, and then the hinged pieces are put together.

The Japanese site that I'm forwarding to you is actually a site that shows how to assemble this kayak...lots of pictures, which is good, because I can't read a word of the Japanese text.  There were a couple other sites that I found that had pictures of people on outings with a payanca.  Again, it's all in Japanese, so it's a bit difficult to figure out the nature of the sites.  However, since the site that I'm sending you appears to be a site from the maker of the payanca, I would make a safe bet that this kayak was made in Japan.

The hull is finally assembled using Velcro and heavy duty zippers behind and alongside the cockpit.  There are also a few straps with buckles for fastening gear down as well.  The hull material is a double layer of what appears to be cordura nylon coated with a rubberized compound like hypalon.  The hull is actually navy blue. Hopefully this information helps you out.

Predom (also sold as Neptune), from Poland. Jose Ignacio Fernandez-Mendez writes from Mexico:

"I like paddling and own a fiberglass ww kayak and  I'm planning to get an Innova Safari inflatable. Let me tell you about my  other boat, it's a foldable made in Poland (which I got when I studied  there in 1986-87), a double Predom Neptun. I think it could be compared  to the double Pouch, although I have seen that one only in Ralph Diaz'  book. I have used it in lakes and rivers, although it's the only  foldable I have ever used so I cannot make a comparison with others, the  boat is a strong and rugged one, it tracks very well, it's very stable,  roomy and  can be easily assembled in less than 15 minutes. The hull is gray hypalon  and the deck blue cotton. It has a sail rig with something like 30% less  sail surface than the Klepper S-4 rig. I like this boat and it cost me  400 USD, including the shipping from Poland to Mexico.

"I don't know if  the factory still exists or if they are still making kayaks.  I have not used it in the sea for two reasons : 1) The instructions  booklet says it's to be used only in fresh water, I think that only the  metal parts (quite few of them) are in risk here but a friend of mine  there used a single of the same brand in the Spitbergens without any  trouble. 2) It's somehow messy for one person to take it on a plane ( it  weights around 25-30 kilos in two bags, the original bags were a disgrace  I have two made on design) if you have still to carry your luggage but  I portaged it with a friend for some miles easily. A note on the price of foldables, I'm a fishery researcher with an  average salary for Mexico; a Klepper Quattro would cost me six months of  my salary. "

Here's an English language web site with pictures of  Predoms touring in Poland.

You can find a lot of information on the Tamien and other Russian boats on my new Russian Boats page.

Igor Sokolik reports that he is importing new Triton Russian kayaks; see the dealer's page.

Thanks to Damir Akhoundov and Erik Kunze I have these links to makers and distributors of Triton  folders from Russia.

http://www.real-thrill.com/Folding_Kayaks.htm   A Swedish dealer of Russian-made Triton folding kayaks.  The page is in English but states they don't ship outside the Scandanavian countries. Even stranger, the backpackability of these boats is illustrated with a picturetaken from the Klepper web site, showing a couple carrying Aerius 2000s in backpacks! Prices  range from 13,000 Kr to 16,000 Kr, or roughly $1600 to $1800 US.

http://www.triton-ltd.ru/Baydars.htm (manufacturer)

http://www.vengrov.ru/3/3.html(distributor)

http://www.whitewater.ru/shop/s0104.html (distributor)

Damir reports that the boats sell for between $250 and $400 US in Russia, so many people wonder why there's so much markup in imported boats. It's not all profit. There's transportation costs, duties, warehousing, insurance, warranty service, quality control (a lot of imported merchandise arrives damaged), costs of credit and so forth. That $400 boat can cost the importer well over $1000 by the time it's ready for sale.

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