Seabird Discovery vs Rainbow Oasis 430 Expedition (IT, EN)

Ecco a confronto due dei kayak da turismo a medio raggio più venduti negli ultimi tempi, Seabird Discovery e Rainbow Oasis 430 Expedition, la lunghezza media li rende agili, facili da trasportare ma abbastanza veloci da permettere buone medie giormaliere.

Cominciamo dagli allestimenti, a parità di prezzo Discovery offre di più, puntapiedi regolabile, un porta canna a sinistra dietro il pozzetto, due ampi gavoni, gavone piccolo davanti al pozzetto per telefono, snacks etc sempre a portata di mano e timone, l’Oasis si presenta di serie con due gavoni e una comoda rete in coperta davanti al pozzetto,  puntapiedi a pettine, molto comodo per i noleggiatori ma meno per il kayak personale, per quanto riguarda le finiture, in generale, Rainbow è superiore.

Il sedile della Rainbow è in polietilene rotazionale, comodo, ma si muove lateralmente quando incliniamo il kayak sul fianco, da spessorare con degli espansi per eliminare il difetto, quello della Seabird è ricavato in fase di stampaggio, comunque confortevole, la posizione delle gambe è buona nella Discovery anche se il premicosce è in una posizione totalmente inutile, meglio toglierlo (sono 4 viti) perché ostacola l’entrata e l’uscita, discreta la posizione nella Oasis, anche se la coperta arrotondata e l’assenza di premicosce tende a far scivolare le gambe verso il centro del kayak, non proprio comodissimo, i poggiaschiena sono discreti in entrambi i casi.

Discovery ha una struttura a sandwich che lo rende più leggero della Oasis, di circa 3 chili, non male..

In acqua, Discovery, grazie al rocker pronunciato  risulta molto più maneggevole mentre l’Oasis con meno rocker e la chiglia molto pronunciata, mantiene più facilmente la direzione, non si può parlare di pregio o difetto, dipende dai gusti.

La sezione del fondo della Discovery è rotonda, quella della Oasis più piatta, la prima presenta minore stabilità primaria e maggiore stabilità secondaria, sul piatto meglio la Rainbow, sulle onde la Seabird.

Nessuna delle due soffre particolarmente in condizioni di vento laterale, anche se l’Oasis, con la linea di coperta più bassa tende a spruzzare più acqua sul canoista.

Prestazioni velocistiche molto simili, entrambe raggiungono facilmente gli 8,5 km orari e mantengono senza problemi un’andatura media di 7 kmh, l’Oasis è comunque un po’ più veloce.

Nel complesso direi che entrambi gli scafi si confermano validi e adatti al turismo a medio raggio per il quale sono stati progettati, a voi la scelta.

A disposizione sul blog per qualunque informazione aggiuntiva.

Pietro Linda

The manufactures’ word:

OASIS 4.30 EXPEDITION Sea kayak, very stable and fast. Easy to use and very reliable for sea and lake

excursions even for multiday trips. It comes standard with an elastic net, 2 large watertight compartments,

padded adjustable back band, padded adjustable ergonomic seat and pedal footrest.

cm 430x63,5 - cockpit cm 86x48 – volume lt 370 – kg 20

Complete Rudder System ( OPTIONAL)

DISCOVERY SeaBird Designs Discovery is the best choice for people who appreciate stable and responsive kayaks. Want to paddle on sea, lake or river – it doesn’t matter, you will handle them all with the Discovery model. The kayak is responsive, stable and it features a distinctly-shaped hull, great for bridging a wide choice of day trips. The Discovery is light and very easy to handle, additionally providing extra fine-tuning options to meet your personal preferences. This mini sea kayak is exactly what you need for exploring open, choppy waters on the sea, the lull of lazy rivers and wild beauty of lakes. The Discovery is fantastic for fishing excursions. A high level of stability allows you to feel assured while turning your attention to reeling in a catch. SeaBird Designs Discovery is the ultimate recreational kayak on the market!

Length: 420 cm - Width: 63 cm - Depth: 35 cm - Internal cockpit: 82.5x42.5 cm -Volume: 293 L - Weight: 22 kg 

 

Seabird Discovery vs Rainbow Oasis 430 Expedition (EN)

Here we go, let’s compare two of the best selling day touring kayaks, the Seabird Discovery and the Rainbow Oasis 430, the mid length makes them manoeuvrable, easy to transport and still fast enough to do a good amount of kilometers a day.

We start from the out-fittings, at nearly the same price, Discovery offers more, adjustable footbrace, rod holder left on the back side of the cockpit, two large dry hatches, a small hatch in front of the cockpit for easy getting your phone, snacks etc, and the rudder, Oasis comes with two large hatches and a useful net in front of the cockpit, notch foot rest - very good for rentals but not so comfortable for  personal kayaking, generally, the Oasis finishes are better.

The Rainbow seat is rotomoulded, comfortable, but when leaning, it moves sideways. We suggest to put some foam to fix it. The Seabirds one is moulded in, good enough, the leg position in the Discovery is good but the thighbrace is in a useless position, its better to take it off (only 4 screws) because it makes it more difficult to get in and out from the boat, in the Oasis the position is okay, but there is no thighbrace and the rounded deck makes the knees sliding to the center of the boat, the back bands are not bad on both kayaks.

Discovery has a sandwich construction, that makes it about 2/3 kg lighter than the Oasis, not bad.

In the water, Discovery, thanks to the high rocker, is more manouvrable while the Oasis with its very pronounced keel tracks better, we can’t discuss the pro's and con's, it depends on the individuals' taste.

The hull section of the Discovery is rounded, the Oasis' one is more flat, primary stability is better on the Oasis, secondary stability on the Discovery, on flat water the Rainbow wins, on waves - the Seabird.

Both are quite good in side wind conditions, the Oasis, with it’s lower water line, sprays more water on the paddler.

Average and top speed is pretty similar, they both get to 8,5 km/h easily and you can paddle all day at about 7 km/h, the Oasis is anyway a bit faster.

Overall I can say that both kayaks are very good for day touring and small expeditions as well.

Feel free to write on our blog to know more about these kayaks.

Pietro Linda

The manufactures’ word:

OASIS 4.30 EXPEDITION Sea kayak, very stable and fast. Easy to use and very reliable for sea and lake

excursions even for multiday trips. It comes standard with an elastic net, 2 large watertight compartments,

padded adjustable back band, padded adjustable ergonomic seat and pedal footrest.

cm 430x63,5 - cockpit cm 86x48 – volume lt 370 – kg 20

Complete Rudder System ( OPTIONAL)

DISCOVERY SeaBird Designs Discovery is the best choice for people who appreciate stable and responsive kayaks. Want to paddle on sea, lake or river – it doesn’t matter, you will handle them all with the Discovery model. The kayak is responsive, stable and it features a distinctly-shaped hull, great for bridging a wide choice of day trips. The Discovery is light and very easy to handle, additionally providing extra fine-tuning options to meet your personal preferences. This mini sea kayak is exactly what you need for exploring open, choppy waters on the sea, the lull of lazy rivers and wild beauty of lakes. The Discovery is fantastic for fishing excursions. A high level of stability allows you to feel assured while turning your attention to reeling in a catch. SeaBird Designs Discovery is the ultimate recreational kayak on the market!

Length: 420 cm - Width: 63 cm - Depth: 35 cm - Internal cockpit: 82.5x42.5 cm -Volume: 293 L - Weight: 22 kg