Ze Zephyr

pfunked07 · Post by **pfunked07** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 4:55 pm

I've read topics that include information on this boat(zephyr) but none that elaborated enough on the material of and how to repair it.

How strong is Twin-tex compared to whatever you know in comparison? Anything to shed some light on the material is good stuff. I just don't want to buy a boat that has to bake in the sun for a year or two before you can really use it on a river without babying it. Is this material strong enough not to baby?

I am strictly interested about Twin-tex's durability and repairing it.

thank you all

FullGnarlzOC · Post by **FullGnarlzOC** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 5:00 pm

Repairing isn't easy - As the twin tex will flex and crack off your Gflex/Kevlar patch if you were trying to patch the easy way -

I believe the Twin-Tex has gotten a little more resilient from when they first started coming out with Zephrys - but Durable - it is on the lower end of boat durability - compared to what is out there.

You only really asked about repair and duribility -

so I feel its important to add for other people that read this thread - that while durability on the Zephry ain't the best - it is a great boat - fast, stable, edgy, and light....just don't go boulder bashing like you would in some other boats - clean is key

ncdavid · Post by **ncdavid** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 5:44 pm

When the Zephyr came out, Esquif hoped that Twintex would be the material of the future. There is a reason that the Zephyr is the only whitewater boat ever made by a North American manufacturer. It is a great boat. It is light. It will get damaged. You can't fix it.

Smurfwarrior · Post by **Smurfwarrior** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 5:48 pm

ncdavid wrote:There is a reason that the Zephyr is the only whitewater boat ever made by a North American manufacturer.

Huh?

TheKrikkitWars · Post by **TheKrikkitWars** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 6:33 pm

Smurfwarrior wrote:
ncdavid wrote:There is a reason that the Zephyr is the only whitewater boat ever made by a North American manufacturer.
Huh?

I think he means the only twin-tex ww boat made by a north american manufacturer... the only other twin-tex ww boat is the Robson Homes which was German, and that was IIRC made at the behest of Frankie (who had been part of the team working on twintex at Robson who developed it as an alternative to pressure moulded glass for making paddles)

Smurfwarrior · Post by **Smurfwarrior** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 6:47 pm

Yeah, that makes more sense. Thanks for the history lesson

pfunked07 · Post by **pfunked07** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 7:51 pm

so now that we have learned the history on the zephyr and why only one company in north America makes a c boat of twin-tex, what about twin-tex made that happen. Does the material fall short of what canoes need? does it just not make the cut?

ncdavid · Post by **ncdavid** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 8:06 pm

Yeah, I meant the only whitewater Twintex boat. I think the reasons that no other whitewater boats have been from Twintex are pretty clear. It will get damaged. You can't fix it. Esquif can fix it. It will get damaged again. Boaters can repair Royalex, Royalite, glass, kevlar, HDPE, etc. Their are a few runs where the Zephyr is the only boat I'll take. I really like the boat. There is no way that I'd buy another one.

griffen_williams · Post by **griffen_williams** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 8:26 pm

What is the difference between the Twin Tex used in the Zephyr and the T form used in the Taureau? I always thought they were made out of the same thing.

pfunked07 · Post by **pfunked07** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 8:38 pm

I'm really looking at this boat for a female friend that is 5'2'' 100lbs. The fact that this is her first ww boat makes me think it wouldn't really be a good idea. The weight was something she really liked but the price and the material are really big negatives. She might just have to have a heavier boat. Had anyone dealt with this before?

Smurfwarrior · Post by **Smurfwarrior** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 9:13 pm

She might do well in a Zoom

ncdavid · Post by **ncdavid** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 9:58 pm

The Taureau is made of plastic. Twintex is glass and polypropylene. The Zephyr is a great design. Fast, stable, friendly, dry, light. I've never seen one without impact damage in the stern. Mine took damage the second day I used it. It is one of the first Zephyrs and we didn't know about the tendency to crack in the stern. Otherwise, I'd never have paddled it on a steep, rocky creek. I've used it a lot since then, but I try to be careful about where and how I paddle it.

DougB · Post by **DougB** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:09 pm

Zephyr seems to have the same impact resistance of a glass boat, with more abrasion resistance. Treat it like a glass boat and you will be fine. Bounce of rocks a lot and you won't. A friend of mine has a Zephyr and we are fortunate to live close to PSR who can repair twin tex if the need arises. It's held up so far for us on easy runs but the previous owner had it repaired more than once.

Side note, the Zephyr (with bulkhead and vinyl) actually weighs slightly more than my Outrage (with saddle and wood). I also think the Outrage is a better hull, so if you want a light boat - look at an Outrage!

Second side note, I wouldn't recommend the Zoom to anyone as a first WW boat![/b]

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 1:21 am

I'd love to do a boat in Twintex... LOVE TO

If you treat it like a Kevlar or Royalex boat... it'll last and it can be light and stiff while having a bit of flex to it... if you hit something with it while full of water just wrong you can puncture it. I've personally seen a repaired boat at Esquif that had just such a thing happen... not exactly a DIY repair but to say it's not repairable is incorrect.

If I were going to go out and paddle a lot of big water... I'd like a Zephyr... it's an extremely popular boat in Canada fwiw.

If the boat is ordered Esquif will lower the gunnels at the center and ends at the customers request... for short and light paddlers I'd highly suggest having this done. I'd suggest wood gunnels as well as it seems the Zeph is noticably stiffer overall with them.

A review from Wayne Dickert
http://nocpaddlingschool.blogspot.com/2 ... canoe.html

clarion · Post by **clarion** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 11:51 am

If you can find a Bell Prodigy, they are pretty light.

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Ze Zephyr

Ze Zephyr

Twin Tex VS T form