Comments on 'RobFin' inflatable canoes?

[the great gonzo]

Got a question here, particularly for our cboaters from the Czech republic. Has anyone experience with the inflatable canoes from the Czech manufacturer RobFin? The Canoe 1 as well as the Canoe America both look very promising from a whitewater paddlers prospective aand the fact that they are both designed by the former C2 olympic medalist Tomas Mader sounds promising.
Any feedback on performance?
How is the build quality?
How is the pricing?

TGG!

[Sir Adam]

Those do look interesting... any US dealers?

Edit to add: http://www.robfin.cz/product/kanoe-america/?lang=" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[the great gonzo]

by the looks of it they do, outside of Iran of all places, not have any dealers outside of Central and Eastern Europe.

The Solo boat looks interesting, too. Might be the ticket for overseas travel to places where OC1 or C1s are not readily available for rent.


TGG!

[zralok]

Got a question here, particularly for our cboaters from the Czech republic. Has anyone experience with the inflatable canoes from the Czech manufacturer RobFin? The Canoe 1 as well as the Canoe America both look very promising from a whitewater paddlers prospective aand the fact that they are both designed by the former C2 olympic medalist Tomas Mader sounds promising.
Any feedback on performance?
How is the build quality?
How is the pricing?

TGG!

I'll try to find someone who spoke English. Canoe is tested at our meetings OCmanie
http://www.ocmanie.cz/fotoalbum/ocmanie ... photo_1515" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[JimW]

Never seen them before, the Czech version of the site has prices in Czech Krona, the Canoe 1 works out at about £490 (UK pound) which is about what you can get an older secondhand hardshell OC1 for here so I'd say the price point is OK, at 17.5kg shipping should be feasible through regular parcel carriers, much heavier and it can be more difficult.

You know I'm half thinking about trying one... It's lighter and slightly shorter than the Ocoee, I bet it doesn't handle as well, but maybe good enough for tripping abroad?

[sbroam]

Looks, perhaps unavoidably, like the SOAR inflatable canoes...

[the great gonzo]

Scott, I disagree with you on that they look like SOAR inflatables. While the more tripping oriented boats like the YUkon series does have similarities with the SOAR canoes, the Canoe Amerika tandem and the Canoe 1 solo boat are distinctly different IMHO. They have , by the looks of it, instead of one big diameter tube per side 2 smaller diameter tubes one above the other. This makes them, for a similar interior width, narrower on the outside. While boats with single tubes behave much like rafts when edged, this should make them handle more like canoes. They also have, judging by the pictures, more flare, whiuch schould keep more splashes out. Rocker seems to be higher, too, as seems freeboard. Overall they look like the most whitewater specific inflatable canoe design I have ever seen. Definitely an interesting design, and by the looks of the pictures the tandem seemed to handle the Grand Canyon really well.

TGG!

[sbroam]

Ok,. I looked at another picture,i see what you are saying.