Sea Eagle SE370 inflatable kayak review and mods. Trolling motor, plywood floor, cleaning, repair
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- čas přidán 29. 08. 2024
- amzn.to/4duP2f6
Thought I'd post a more detailed look at my SE370 inflatable including the wooden floor, trolling motor and some general ownership thoughts after using the kayak for 2 years. It's a good boat, but never had a chance to be my main kayak for of a few reasons. Because of that I really only used it when it wasn't windy, excessively hot or cold AND when I wanted to take my wife or daughter along with me.
TOPICS:
Plywood floor 2:50
Repairs 6:38
Cleaning 10:00
Trolling motor 10:50
On the water 12:45
You know I got to the part where you were sitting on the plywood on the ground and I already knew you had a great idea there, even before you put it in the actual boat. Good job
Thanks very much. Made a big difference in overall enjoyment for me.
Thanks for taking the time to record and post all of these useful tips and observations. Great job!
Thanks very much and happy to help!
Thank you. I've imagined something similar for my se330. I'm well over 200 lbs and the 330 bends more than I like and I have the standard seat which I need to upgrade. Thanks for providing this information.
you're welcome. Same design principle would apply to the 330, just shorter. Definitely helps with weight distribution
Great video!
Inventive solution to the lack of foot rests, truly a great idea.
Btw, few men have ever fully read the directions before getting to work, lol
I appreciate and respect your willingness to share, as I would have just as easily grabbed my heat gun instead of using a hair dryer just as you did :-)
Many thx
Wow, your modifications are extreme! Might as well just go with a rigid kayak? Anyway I agree with your findings, I have the 330, seats are too bulky, rudders to shallow to successfully track the kayak.
Yes absolutely go with a a hard shell kayak if you can. I switched over to hobie pedal kayaks years ago but the SE was fun to mod
Thank you this is brilliant experience and having just got a330 and having kayaks before this is a great idea - I’m going to try floor brace with the -plastic real estate signs and see how that goes ( reuse - these are lying around everywhere!)
That should work great too, except adding strong foot braces may be a bit hard. Just make sure to tape the sharp edges. And thanks
Hi From the UK - Wow I absolutely love this idea so many benefits and solutions. I'd really given up on trying to find a way to fit a trolling motor to a Sevylor Waterton inflatable kayak. I like the idea of a side mount looks easier to control. As we will be traveling in a camper van I wondered if it was worth creating a base like yours that was either in two parts or folded. To save space when travelling? Once again thank you so much for the idea and inspiration. This really is within my capabilities.
Hi there and many thanks. If I remember correctly, someone else in the comments was either building a 2-piece or considering one. I think it can certainly be done, perhaps by using strong stainless steel hinges - but would need to take care to countersink the screws up from the bottom so that the heads don't puncture the inflatable. Another idea may be making a simple 2 piece floor that locks in place using slide-in wooden slats on the top.. kinda think the hinged version may be more rigid. Good luck and hope it works well!
@@mojobudgiekayakfishing Thank you, I read a tip that recommended putting floor in before inflation. Would definitely put the foam insulation around the edges .I like the idea of full length version, so many more possibilities folding or otherwise. I imagine it add another level of stability? Thanks Tony Maybe a layer of canvas stuck the bottom of insert for protection? What glue would you recommend and what thickness of ply for insert? That's it last question 😇 and how much extra weight you estimate it adds?
@@mojobudgiekayakfishing I so excited about this project I'm going to invest in a table top saw for this project.
Am sure you’ll find more uses for the table saw afterwards - as I did. Very useful. Would love to see how your project turns out! I’ve moved on to different kayaks for ocean fishing but May go back to an inflatable along with a camper van when I retire in about 10 years!
I just bought a Bote tandem kayak and about to install something I bought from Amazon for trolling motor mounts that glue to the pontoon tubes. Using a Minn Kota 34 thrust with 36” shaft. It’s gonna be a really nice setup for Washington state rivers. For this setup though, your kayak needs to be durable enough for the weight of those mounts plus motor. Kayak must be made of PVC material to withstand
Brilliant brilliant idea! Exactly the inspiration I was looking for as I change my inflatables config between me fishing and taking my partner and son out as a family rig.
Would you be able to explain how you fixed the foot pegs so that it can brace the weights of paddling feet pushing up against them?
I’m 100% going to give this a go! Thanks man.
Hey there, so glad this was helpful. If you take a look around 3:42 in the video you'll see a visual of how I attached them. Basically I took longer (3.5") galvanized exterior screws (stainless may be better) and screwed them upwards through the bottom of the floor into the foot braces, countersinked so that the heads don't stick out and touch the inflatable floor. Then I dabbed latex caulking on top of the screw head as well.
For the back/larger brace I used 5 or 6 screws along the width of it - holds perfectly. For the shorter front brace I could only fit 3 across the width of the floor so I built an additional shorter support directly in front of that foot brace and countersinked it through the floorboard. You can see what that looks like around 6:08 (you'll need to pause the vid to get a better look). Then from the back I added few more screws through the shorter brace into the additional, shorter support. Both braces hold up great - very sturdy.
If you want a REAL simple adjustable foot brace for an inflatable kayak, send me an email, and I'll send you some pics of what I did, that works awesome mike.jordan4188@gmail.com
Wish I saw this before lumber prices shot up.
Great video
You are a genius adding the board, do you sell the boards for the tolling motor? Would you create one for me and ship it? How much would you charge for materials, labor and shipping? Thanks so much Mojo Budgie for any response.
Way too nice but thanks. In short no, not really setup to build more plus I sold the 370 a couple years ago and moved on to hobie pedal kayaks for ocean fishing
I wonder if you could show a local carpenter the video and get an estimate. I used a lot of scrap wood in my build but if you purchased new maybe the parts would be 40-50$ and labor 2 hours?
Good luck and thanks!
does regular plywood hold up against water? do you need to add any water resistant paint or anything to make sure it stays good?
I used latex house paint because regular plywood definitely wouldn’t hold up well
Just get the sea eagle 385fta FastTrack angler with the trolling motor package.
That one looks sweet. So does The 350 with the watersnake too
@@mojobudgiekayakfishing I just got one with the 2 tall back seats package. Might add the swivel seat, motor mount and trolling motor later. I like that you can add on and customize. Ordered the Elkton Outdoors tandem steelhead 150 and it came with defects so sending it back for a refund. I think the sea eagle will be a better overall platform. Also noticed the drop stitch floor in the Elkton was very smooth and probably gets quite slippery when wet. Sea eagle has the non slip crocodile floor
It’s time I make this mod on mine. Do u remember what motor you used or what size would be comproble?
Oh jeez. Years ago. That was a Newport vessels 36lb I think. If you’re going budget today look at watersnake. If you have more flex I would look at a bixpy of some sort. Would love to see your take on the mod!
Great design and execution! Does the addition of the rigid floor improve tracking in one person mode? Have only taken my 370 out twice, once with 2 people and once with just myself. It seemed to track a lot better with two people and I wondered if the solid floor equalized Wright distribution.
Hey thanks very much. Unfortunately tracking is still bad...but the foot braces make it easier to correct the bad tracking. With a trolling motor tracking really doesn’t matter too
Totally agree about the tracking being better with two people.
This summer I passed on my 370 to a buddy and got the FishSUP 126 by sea eagle. That’s awesome, but $$.
Once motorized, don't most states require you to register it with the state?
That’s correct. Massachusetts definitely does
I'm having trouble with the seat sliding backward as I'm paddling. Will the floor board minimize that problem?
If you attach a block of wood in back of where your seat is placed it’ll help for sure. Sort of how I placed the foot braces, but I’m back of the seat
Great job, I have the 2 seat SE 370 too, Can upload a DIY of your contraption?
Thanks. Really sorry but I didn’t film or photo the buildout process years ago and I no longer have the kayak. That said it’s basically taping together a template out of cardboard, trimming it to fit then using that trace the cut pattern onto a 4x8’ sheet of plywood. Sand every edge very well, drill in foot pegs (countersunk from underneath the floorboard) and then prime, paint everything with a couple coats of exterior grade paint (or better)
amazing work ! can you stand comfortably after adding the plywood?
Hey thanks. I personally can’t stand on it but I don’t have the balance I used to. The inner width of the hull is only 13 or 14”.. the sidewall tubes are 13” each.
I have their packfish 7 raft and can stand comfortably on that one though
what weight is the battery needed for the motor? Love the idea of adding a motor and the floor.
Thanks. Standard(cheap) SLA 75ah battery weighs about 40lbs and costs $80 or so. LiON batteries weigh a fraction for the same capacity. Maybe 15lbs... but will cost over $500.
It is ridiculous that adding a little trolling motor to this most states will require you to title and register the boat
Completely agree!!
Shoot in Oregon you have to register anything over 10’ long.
In ohio when i registered mine, i had to decide whether it was to be motorized or not. So i said not. Thereafter, i cannot motorize it and, if i remember correctly, i cant change the title. Fwiw
The weight distribution problem why don’t you put the battery that powers the electric motor on that side motor on one side battery on the other
With a lithium it would probably work as the weght would’ve been around 15lbs. Those SLA batteries 75ah weighed 40, so it would’ve been 20 pounds heavier than the trolling motor
@@mojobudgiekayakfishing yes you are right I have the same kayak I am going to do this you are brilliant my friend great idea you came up with
Trolling motor? What kind of battery will you use?
That was a 75ah SLA 12v motor. LiThium would’ve been much lighter weight but that Newport vessels motor doesn’t recommend LiON batteries
Way to heavy but very cool....
Please take my money; build me one.
Love the comment! I seriously think sea eagle should consider making one for sale, it could be one size that fits both the 330 and 370 models
Or... it's simple.. build it yourself.