Submitted: 04-27-2006 by samo 
Just bought the SE 330 to supplement my 2 other hardshells. I needed it as I was going on a sailing trip in the Bahamas and there was no room for a hardshell. It's not a bad boat for an inflatable. Hard too believe it hold 500 lbs but that's the rating. I went solo and fit in nicely, 2 persons would be very tought though. (albeit, I'm 6'5")
The dinky inflatable seats are better than I expected and keep your butt dry. so I would use them. And you can pack some stuff behind the seat to keep your leg room free.
Paddling in a wind it a tad tough but I assume this is common with any inflatable or high sitting boat. Tracking also was a little iffy. The 'lil skegs don't seem to do a lot, mind you it could be a lot worse without them.
The 4 piece paddles that come with it are not much good but will serve as handy emergency paddles for my hardshells! I took my 2 piece asymetrical 240cm aquasport and it worked much better.
Inflating and deflating worked very well. The vavles work well and the pump is pretty fast.
My boatmate had a 395SE and my lil boat had a higher capacity than his but the 395 took 2 paddlers much better.
Not much else to say about it. I bought the used hull from Sea Eagle for US$200 and think I got a good deal amd am happy with the convenience it gives me.
I would recommend the 330 to someone to supplement their boating experience but not to be all of it! |