Question For Inflatable Guys

[Preytorien]

Hey guys-using-inflatables....

 

I have a Sea Eagle 8 Fishermans Dream package.

 

I've got it all set, registered, motor/battery mounted and ready to go. I'm pretty excited for the weekend since this will likely be the weekend for it's maiden voyage.

 

In the ever-present quest to make something good even better, I'm asking you what you use for an inflator.

 

The boat came with the Sea Eagle pump that you hook to your battery, but it's not the best. Now I use this Coleman QuickPump - but I'm always on the prowl for something that'll inflate it faster (of course), and also not shut off when it reaches a certain PSI (since the Coleman shuts off prior to the recommended PSI level), with the motormount/transom/motor, the boat needs to be inflated nice and tight.

 

What do you guys use?

 

My dream inflator would be something that inflates faster, and hits just a bit above the recommended PSI so I can get the boat nice and "tight"

[HeavyFisher]

Totally off your topic here but what happens if you accidently hook your boat? 

[Preytorien]

Totally off your topic here but what happens if you accidently hook your boat? 

 

Yea I thought about that at first. But man, the material this stuff is made of (33mil PVC) isn't nearly as thin as say a tubing donut. It's pretty thick. When inflated I can't imagine a hook can accidentally penetrate it by say a missed fish hookset flying back at me.

I'm also sure they considered that when they created it as a fishing vessel. I know that was my first concern and I can't find it now, but when I was looking at these to buy there was a video of a guy driving a pickup truck over it, and then also attempting to puncture it with the claw end of a hammer, just pounding away at it. They're pretty tough, even rated for Class 3 whitewater.

 

But to answer your question, most hook-holes could pretty easily be repaired with the patch kit they include with it. The kit will repair a hole 1/8in in diameter or less. But the Tackle Tour guys actually TRIED to hook it, and couldn't unless they purposely pushed it in, much like a bulletin board pushpin. Now that I've inflated it, there really aren't any areas the hook could snag and puncture. The hull/surface is really smooth.

 

I don't plan on trying it anytime soon though

[Preytorien]

Thanks for the info Ron. That's probably little more extensive than I want to use for now. Maybe for Christmas my wife will buy it for me!

 

I have this one from Sea Eagle. It's not part of a package, but the guy I bought it from included it.

 

http://www.seaeagle.com/accessories/pumps/mb-50-electric-pump

 

The Coleman I use is the one they use for their air matresses. It seems to be about the same as the Sea Eagle model, it just seems a little sturdier. None of them get the pressure to what Sea Eagle recommends, and that's checking with the little clear gauges they provide for checking.

[Preytorien]

I know that the first time I took this out I think it was underinflated. Maybe you can give me a good idea of what ideal inflation is.

 

When I sat on the bench seat, it depressed about 3 inches. It made me a bit uncomfortable, but I never felt the boat was in danger of being dangerous in the water, and of course I only took it on a small shallow pond in case I needed to bail overboard.

 

Would you agree that it wasn't inflated enough?

 

I put it all together this week in my garage and used the Coleman inflator, which also had Boston valve adapters. The boat was able to inflate a bit more, only depressing about 2in when I sat on the bench seat.

 

What's your experience with the level of inflation? I know they say you should be able to depress the rubber about 1/2in, but that's actually pretty firm. Right?

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

I use Airhead AHP-12HP for my 124SMB works very well. Has a pressure relief (the red thing connected to hose) that lets air out after 1.4psi is achieved but without it will pump to 2.5psi. I think the SE need only .75psi but not 100%  that is the amount needed.

 

Oh its loud

.

 

[Preytorien]

I use Airhead AHP-12HP for my 124SMB works very well. Has a pressure relief (the red thing connected to hose) that lets air out after 1.4psi is achieved but without it will pump to 2.5psi. I think the SE need only .75psi but not 100%  that is the amount needed.

 

Oh its loud

.

 

Yeah I saw one of these on Amazon.com and wondered if it would be a good one

[carlm01]

I use the 2 stage H/P pump and have a battery pack with it, wasn't cheap ( 240.00) But I'll tell you when your at the water it takes about 5 minutes to bring it to full pressure and it shuts itself off , and deflating it is a breeze  ...

[greentrout]

I owned the Sea Eagle 8 years ago. I liked the boat but did not love it. I never had a problem with tears or deflating and I took it into some nasty areas. I had the wooden floors so I could stand up and cast.

 

I got tired of the inflating and putting together the boat. Plus, it was not too good in very windy conditions. But all in all, it's a good boat to fish ponds and small waters. Small waters: I used it on a 600 acres lake and even put a small outboard on it, too.

 

 

My fishing gravitated to very small waters and I went to The Briefcase Boat promoted by Ken Cook. It's a one man boat that can be kept in the trunk of the car and is very easy to assemble and put a trolling motor on.

 

Sea Eagle seems to be making some refinements and this is one many might find tempting. Sea Eagle claims it can be assembled in about four minutes.

 

 

Good fishing.

[carlm01]

I have that boat and love it, I had it out on a local lake yesterday and had a great time , As ive said I have the 2 stage electric pump and it makes a world of difference...It does gey blown around in the wind but I have a 5lb anchor that works perfectly...  Good luck