Congratulations on your purchase. The illusion is an amazing boat. I have easily done 10 days out in mine with no problems packing. I also have a boreal baffin and find i can get more in the illusion than the baffin due the skeg cable setup in the baffin. The illusion is the closest thing to a "does it all" boat.. As you are finding out, the illusion really shines in surf. Its the only kayak i've been able to lay right over on its side while surfing. Not just edged, but laid right over. Its also a lot of fun to back surf ! The progression would be a killer second boat to own just for surfing. (if i won the lottery) Sterling and Marsha are top notch folks. Cheers.
@benjaminwurtz1811
3 жыл бұрын
I live in the area where these are built, sterling brings a level of pride to this part of Washington with what they build
@Outdoorsnb
6 жыл бұрын
Absolutely was blown away by Chris' boat. The way it lays when upsidedown was so new for me. I want one, I like these and I'm impressed by the build quality.
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
OutdoorsNB Inc absolutely. The way his progression feels is so different than anything else I had tried up to that point. And yes, it’s very strange to find yourself upside down and slightly lower in the water than expected. But once you get yourself to the right side if you’re not there already, it’s almost as if half of the roll is done for you...
@ckrandomness
6 жыл бұрын
One of my favorite things about getting people into Sterling's boats, is watching them smile uncontrollably. I tell people that it is like it rekindles the joy of kayaking for folks (even if they've never lost it).
@Outdoorsnb
6 жыл бұрын
Chris, if your boat was a little bit wider it wouldnt have left NB.....lol
@ckrandomness
6 жыл бұрын
Jeremy, if the boat was a bit narrower, it wouldn't have left NB either, lol!
@KingJorman
6 жыл бұрын
Nice video! I have an Illusion and I had that rolling issue for some years on the set up where the boat didn't fall over all the way. That 3/4 over thing. It was disconcerting and did make me more cautious, which was a drag. But Tsunami Ranger Deb Volturno with her great eye noticed that on my setup I was bending forward a bit too much and suggested I rotate my torso more and face directly to my side. That little change cured the problem for some reason. You might try that.
@truenorth365
6 жыл бұрын
Very intresting to hear your thoughts on your "new" boat! It looks sleek and fun to paddle with. 👍 Would like to know more about the packing volume. Maybe in a future video with all of the things you manage to pack and to what kind of expedition. Nice review video Luke, thumbs up from Sweden!
@amazingplaces7557
6 жыл бұрын
GREAT VIDEO LUKE GREAT REVIEW THAT IS ONE CLASS TOURING KAYAK IT IS ON MY BUCKET LIST 👍👍
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
KAYAKING KEVIN 👌👌
@joeycmore
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks. No discussion is complete without touching on costs. Especially comparisons to others you'd considered...please give us a ballpark of cost comparisons?
@Outdoorsnb
6 жыл бұрын
YES!!! WISKS FOOTAGE!!!!!LOL Smiling right now.
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
OutdoorsNB Inc haha, yes! I have so much footage from that weekend to go through still.
@evanburgeson
3 жыл бұрын
Great review! curious because you mention being on the lower end of their weight range about how much do you weigh?
@brucenovotny5924
3 жыл бұрын
Hi, another great video. Thanks. I'm really thinking more and more about getting into kayaking. Greater Vancouver area. 🙂👍🇨🇦
@shish99
5 жыл бұрын
Would you mind posting what your height and weight is? I'm wondering if this would suit me. Thanks!
@mljcool1916
6 жыл бұрын
That is cool to have a kayak tailored to your size. I would love to have one made for me.
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
mljcool they have several sizes for every model, to try to fit different paddlers. This wasn’t specifically for me - it’s something they do for paddlers that are on the lighter side. Similar to how other brands might have LV, MV, HV.
@mljcool1916
6 жыл бұрын
I paddled a lot of kayaks in the last 8 or so years I have been paddling. I put on some weight and i have been most happy with the Gulfstream by Current Design. But like you said, not one kayak can do everything. The Current Design fit me well and does everything well but not anything very well.
@williamdykes2750
6 жыл бұрын
If you don’t mind my asking, how tall are you and how much do you weigh?
@mljcool1916
6 жыл бұрын
I am 5'-11" tall and now I weigh 234 lb :(
@behrensf84
4 жыл бұрын
I used the reflection and yes, all of the sudden you feel like your surfing skills are upped from amateur to semi professional. I thought it was better than the Aries for wave control.
@kayakninja
6 жыл бұрын
Great vid, and lots of info, thanks for this!!
@ernstbohm3295
4 жыл бұрын
TRAK! does it all
@ThePioneerChannel
4 жыл бұрын
I got a delta 17 kayak! What you think of those?
@tedgraves6366
6 жыл бұрын
Got my A#$ handed too me in Monterrey Bay, this is a very helpful video. . . My 18' Azul is more touring, then wave boat. . .
@ScottEdwardsKayakbirder
6 жыл бұрын
Great job as always Luke! Are you at Delmarva this weekend?
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
Scott Edwards thank you sir! No, sadly I could not make it this year. I think it’s going to be ridiculous. Such an amazing group going this year.
@ckrandomness
6 жыл бұрын
FYI: It was ridiculous. Eventually some of those ridiculous videos will get edited and show up. Great times.
@tvcrider
5 жыл бұрын
Hi Luke, do your three compartments remain dry after a wet day on the water (rolling, surfing, etc.?). I have heard some anecdotal leakage complaints about the hatches that Sterling uses on his boats.
@grace4today542
2 жыл бұрын
I just purchased one of these, and spoke with Jim at the shop. He said that there is a 1/8 drilled hole in the bulkhead to release any pressure from heat/weather change to prevent the hatches from “popping off” due to expansion, as I complained about a tiny bit of water being in my forward hatch after I had flooded the cockpit trying to roll, (I don’t know how yet🤣). I thought the bulkhead had a leak. But this made perfect sense!
@grace4today542
2 жыл бұрын
I LOVE MY ILLUSION!💜
@markscott4059
6 жыл бұрын
Great video... looking for a more playful boat as well, however, can not afford a glass boat. Did you ever get a chance to surf your WS Zephyr?
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
mark scott I did not surf the zephyr much bc my skills were not there just yet - but here’s my buddy Daniel surfing his WS Tempest kzitem.info/news/bejne/2INjr6Oubp2XaWU And the zephyr is a lot more playful. You can certainly surf and have a blast in that kayak. One more thing to mention though, budget isn’t everything with plastic vs glass. You can find some awesome used glass boats that will surf beautifully for the price of a plastic boat. Plenty of NDK’s, P&H, Valleys, Necky, so many options - those have been around longer so there’s a lot of used options around. If you keep an eye out you could find a gem that’s well taken care of. For example, you could find a used Romany because they’re so popular and it’d be fantastic.
@ByronWalter
6 жыл бұрын
Fantastic boat. How did you manage to get that critter from the west coast to the east coast? And do you prefer it for rolling over the Isel (I have one and it rolls just great). Thanks in advance!
@barrier4910
5 жыл бұрын
Hi, great video. I'm looking at the Illusion or reflection 2, have you any comments on the differences between the boats. Also have tried a Zegul Arrow play for comparison.
@behrensf84
5 жыл бұрын
Hey, I went to lumpy waters this year, but didn’t get a chance to check the sterlings. Do you know where in the east coast we can try them?
@jondoig
6 жыл бұрын
3:43 hull shape reminds me of my TRAK with full rocker.
@shamingolee1659
3 жыл бұрын
Trak Owner here too!
@behrensf84
4 жыл бұрын
Darn, you fit in an ice kap?
@TVjohnny00
5 жыл бұрын
Forgive me if this is faux pas, but how much did it cost?
@shamingolee1659
3 жыл бұрын
Have you paddled P&H Cetus? I'm curious what is the difference between those two. Cetus have a great reputation from Northseakayak Channel. I have seen one Grand Illusion and the owner speak high about it
@TheDcrocks1
3 жыл бұрын
That's what im interested in aswell. What's the difference between a new year boat, compared to a older model? I beleive it is just the characteristic. Hard chimes, soft chimes. Rocker vs no rocker. I think thats about it. He mentioned his boat picks a side to roll. Obviously with that amount its going to tip over to one side or the other. But i think its just that. Characteristic. This weekdn, i tried a wood boat with multi- chimes amd on edge it sat like a damn rock. It was a bit different to edge it and turn in but ot still can be edged amd turned but you can feel a slight resistance compared to a soft chime.
@behrensf84
6 жыл бұрын
Do you think that for learning to long boat surf, is it better to learn on a forgiving kayak, or the kayak you have (I’m buying a taran 18)?
@TheDcrocks1
5 жыл бұрын
Start small. He has a video where he started on small swells and worked his way up to bigger water. Its more about the conditions you get your self into. The type of conditions determine your boat choice.
@dunneryak
6 жыл бұрын
i would kill for a Sterling......8^0
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
Richie Dunne it’s fantastic.
@mitchtownsend11
6 жыл бұрын
What kind of cost it initials
@KayakHipster
6 жыл бұрын
Mitch Townsend they have a wide range depending on options and layup. And they also have demo boats go on sale from time to time as well. Def worth checking out their site. www.sterlingskayak.com
@TheDcrocks1
6 жыл бұрын
$$??
@joethi4981
7 ай бұрын
They are good but WAY too expensive.
@LoLoo-wg3wj
4 жыл бұрын
seriously ditch the cricket..annoying
@millerslanding2310
5 жыл бұрын
:)
@joem13yearsago73
3 жыл бұрын
:(
@nikkynam9423
2 жыл бұрын
$6400 for a glass layup and $7200 for a carbon kevlar layup. No thanks I rather get an NDK explorer/ Romany or NOrkaap forti all British made $4,500 for glass and $5500 carbon and it work well for them as performance Kayak works well for me. If I wanna go budget but still high performance I would get seaward Kayak complete hand made in Canada. This is example of American craftsmen as soon as they realize someone else can charge good money for handmade products they would up the ante and charge another $2k for few extra hours of standing around "work". because why not . If I wanna get the ferrari of kayak I would buy Skim kayak that hand made in Germany at least you get the german ingenuity rather than paying top dollars for a "sherman" of kayak
@ascar77uk
2 жыл бұрын
so the boat you got was a custom made one and not a standard illusion so this review is aload of crap as it is for a totally different boat than the one listed and how many folk do you think have access to custom fit boats = very few
@KayakHipster
2 жыл бұрын
While it might seem that way, it is simply not the case. This is a low volume illusion, and along with the regular volume illusion and high volume grand illusion all share the same general hull design. So essentially the three models will behave and have the same characteristics to a smaller, medium and larger paddler respectively. So how this version paddles for me at my low weight, a regular volume version will behave similarly to someone with more weight than I. Similarly, the only other custom item is my seat back. Before I got this model, the one I paddled to test had the regular seat. They are made and felt the same - the only difference is with mine having extra padding in the back for layback rolls. So while this might be a custom model, the overall review is for the illusion hull in general and what I personally have seen it can do having paddled both the regular volume and low volume. Cheers.
Пікірлер: 60