mudgkin1 Posted September 15, 2012 Report Share Posted September 15, 2012 Hi All, I am strongly considering building a Mess About kayak BUT wonder what are the real benefits or "Pro's & Con's" of 12 ft vs 15 ft ?? any insight into this conundrum will be appreciated. Thanks, Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HonestKen Posted September 15, 2012 Report Share Posted September 15, 2012 Dave, As they say; the only dumb questions are the ones you don't ask! What type of paddling do you anticipate doing? River/creek or larger open water, how big are you? how much gear do you want to carry? how fast do you want to go? Jeff (aka Kudzu) might be able to give some insight. Try this forum as well, lots of kayak builders and designers there. http://kayakforum.com/cgi-bin/Building/index.cgi Ken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudgkin1 Posted September 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2012 Hi Ken, Answers in order, Purely lazy fun, I'm 72 Protected (somewhat ) ocean 5 ft 8 Lunch bag and a couple of cool ones Fast is not a consideration, see # 2 LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hirilonde Posted September 16, 2012 Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 Fast is not a consideration, see # 2 LOL Another way to look at fast is "moves well with minimal effort". A good cruising design will keep a fair pace for little work. 12' will take real effort to keep moving well. 15', assuming it is a good design will be much easier. I suggest visiting the Kudzu section of the forum to follow up on this, I even recommend a Kudzu design to meet your needs. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HonestKen Posted September 16, 2012 Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 Dave, The other Dave is right. Longer will paddle more effortlessly, and track better (which means go straighter), in most cases. My favorite kayak is a 19 footer I built 10 years ago. It's fast(efficient) and stable. I'm also a lazy paddler, I just appreciate being in the outdoors, experiencing nature. There is usually no need to rush. That's what I tell my paddling buddies anyway. Although a smaller, lighter kayak would be easier to load and unload. Ken 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudgkin1 Posted September 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 Thanks fellows , suspicions confirmed , A 15 Ft Jeff (Kudzu) Mess About is the one for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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