Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

[cobalt79]

I am looking for a 10' inflatable floor and am looking at Mercury, Walker Bay and Zodiac. I do like the Zodiac but it is a lot more expensive, does anyone know if it is realy worth the extra? Any advice or experiences would be much appreciated!

Thanks
Jack

 

[TOHATSU GURU]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

No, it's not.

 

[cobalt79]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Thanks Elvin:

I find the pricing very confusing, so what is your take on why the Zodiac is so much more and are the Merc and Walker Bay high quality boats too?

Jack

 

[TOHATSU GURU]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Zodiac is one of the more expensive boats due to the fact that the "Zodiac" name is synonymous with "inflatable". It has nothing to do with quality of construction or durability. Zodiac uses heat welded PVC construction, has lots of warranty stations and honors their warranty to the letter. No more and no less.

Walker Bay isn't a bad boat, but sells very few boats in comparison to Zodiac(number 1 worldwide) and Mercury(number 2 worldwide). I understand that Walker Bay has now shifted production to Mexico and that doesn't inspire confidence in the quality control, but QC depends on the guy with clipboard at at the end of the production line, regardless of where it is made, so..........

Mercury offers boats in both PVC and Hypalon and if you compare Zodiac to Mercury in PVC I would say they are equal in quality, but that Mercury is a better buy due to price, number of warranty service outlets and better response to "borderline" consumer issues. If you compare Mercury Hypalon to Zodiac PVC you might as well declare Mercury the winner and go home before the game starts...Hypalon is simply better, no ifs, ands or buts.

 

[Luvinflatableboats]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

After doing a lot of research it seems that Mercury gets their product from China from the same factory that a lot of the lesser named boats however, Mercury and Zodiac do have the best warranties in the business and if you have a problem they will fix it and you can find a warranty location almost everywhere you go. They are kind of like buying an IBM computer (now Lenovo) you know you are paying a premium for peace of mind.

I have no direct experience but Walker Bay seem like great boats too. If you are buying from a dealer of them who will honor the warranty I would have no hesitation.

Zodiac for the most part is manufactured in France and are priced originally in Euros. The Euro until a few days ago was very high against the US Dollar making a Zodiac product more expensive than comparable products.

In terms of Hypalon versus PVC the answer is less clear than in years gone bye. Hypalon is definitely more UV resistant than PVC and if you were planning a trip to the Carribean or were using it in a high UV area Hypalon is a must for the average boater. Hypalon's achilles heel (pun intended) is that it must be glued and the glue will fail in 20-25 years if the glue was done correctly. Hypalon is also more resistant to gas and chemical spills. However the newer PVC fabrics from Mehler and Heytex in Germany have improved PVC substantially. Also the newer protectants such as 303 which is akin to putting sunscreen on the material makes the argument even greyer. Dupont the original manufactuers of Hypalon have ceased manufacturing it and also the US navy has moved away from hypalon. PVC can be welded and chemically bonded by two methods. Heat welding when done properly makes a seam that is stronger than the material itself. Chemical bonding can achieve the same results if done correctly too. So here again there is no easy answer.

I have a Rave Bongo water trampoline for my kids at the lake. The tubes are PVC heat welded in China. The one weld the guy operating the machine must have been sleeping since there was a hole in the tube. I complained and another one was sent over. The new one too had a hole in the same weld. I fixed the the hole and we have been using the trampoline ever since. This is a case of bad welding. I use 303 once in a while on it and we have had it for about 4 years and I see no UV degradation, stickiness on the material and it sits in the sun the whole summer.

I owned a Zodiac Zoom that was made in France. The front seam has a leak which the dealer latexed twice with no fix. They admitted that it is a manufacturing issue and on the last time I brought it to a dealer who honored the warranty since the original dealer is out of business. They said they could fix the seam however if I wanted to purchase a RIB of the same size they would give me a good deal. I bought a Titan. The boat is terrific so far and I am loving it way more than the Zodiac and it has lots of extra features not found on the Zodiac. Admittedly the Zoom is the lowest end Zodiac.

Good luck on your purchase

 

[cobalt79]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Thanks for your comments, has anyone had experience with or would recommend Achilles?

 

[Luvinflatableboats]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Achilles are a premium manufacturer of inflatables. THey are all made from Hypalon. The quality is unquestionable and they are made to last but you will pay a premium for it.

If you are prepared to pay the premium then you will have a premium hypalon inflatable.

If you are cheap like me then a Chinese, PVC boat will have to do.

D.

 

[minnetonka]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Ever considered Sea Eagle? I owned a 12' hard floor for 14 years and recently purchased my second one. Great boat for the moneyl

 

[cobalt79]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Minnetonka:
I have considered a Sea Eagle, but as far as I can find we have no dealers in my part of B.C.
Thanks
Jack

 

[Trotter]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Achilles are a premium manufacturer of inflatables. THey are all made from Hypalon. The quality is unquestionable and they are made to last but you will pay a premium for it.

If you are prepared to pay the premium then you will have a premium hypalon inflatable.

If you are cheap like me then a Chinese, PVC boat will have to do.

D.

Now now. I have a Chinese made PVC boat and I have to say that I'm very satisfied. I purchased a Seamax 10.5' inflatable and for the price I paid it was a heck of a deal. They even throw in a bow bag, bench bag, and I like how you can fasten the oars to the sides and row with them attached.

Minnetonka:
I have considered a Sea Eagle, but as far as I can find we have no dealers in my part of B.C.
Thanks
Jack

Aren't they doing free shipping as a promotion?

 

[Luvinflatableboats]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Hi,

I have a Chinese inflatable myself and I am completely satisfied. All I am trying to say is that labour rates are cheaper in China therefore prices are cheaper independent of quality. My statement says "if you are cheap like me"

 

[cobalt79]

Re: Help! What Inflatable floor do I go with?

Well everyone, thanks for your help. After a lot of research and soul searching as to what I really wanted to spend I decided to go with what I know, a new Achilles LSI 310. I have an old blue Achilles that has taken a lot of abuse and is still in good shape (might have kept it if it hadn't been for those darned wooden floorboards). A (somewhat) local dealer made me an offer on the LSI and a Yamaha 8 hp two stroke (only 60 lbs, yeah) that made sense and I went for it. The package will fit well with our wanting to go very portable and light weight, after all I am not getting any younger!

Thanks again

Jack