Hi Jonathan, I finally used my Paddleski for the first time. It took me a bit of time installing the transom so I decided to store it the 'Kayak Cliff Burito way" meaning keeping the transom in and rolling it out like a Burrito. It takes a little more room but it will be much faster to setup on my second trip. Thanks a lot for your input. It is appreciated.
That's great. I completely understand where you are coming from. That is definitely the easiest way to put it up. With two kids and a truck full or other stuff 😀 I try to take up the least amount of room as possible. Most quick trips by myself or with my son, I'll probably just roll it up as well. I hope you enjoyed your first run with the PaddleSki.
Thanks for sharing this useful info Jonathan. My boat is fully inflated in our condo since a good 5 weeks. I think it is time for me to deflate it and store it but I was wondering if I should remove the transom. It seems a little more complicate to fit the 4 screws in even when the back section is not totally filled with air. Do you have any tips on installing the transom? That would be mostly welcome.
It is no problem at all. I honestly wish I had some better information for installing the transom, but I normally start with mine deflated and I install the transom on the pontoons as it is inflating. I don't tighten the knobs down on the bolts just yet. When both of the pontoons have been inflated, I then start inflating the floor and as the floor is rising, I do my best to line up the holes for the floor section and insert the bolts. There are times where I get everything lined up without any issues and there are times when It takes slightly longer. I haven't found any trick just yet for getting it in every time, but this process has worked for me since I normally take the transom off.
One way to make reinstalling the transom easier in the future is to outline the fittings on the transom with a pencil. Next time around, it will take much less time to match up the holes.
If you want to go even more compactly, I follow your procedure up to timeline 3:56. Instead of folding the second half over the first half, I fold it so that it lays next to, but not over that first half. This way it's not nearly as tall rolled up. I can probably get it into that 20x30x12 package, and that's about the only way I was able to do it. I can also say I have an inflatable pump that I use on deflate, and I suck all the air out of mine, which helps it fold up more compactly as well. And of course I remove the transom. I can certainly see if you're using it frequently to just leave the transom in place and fold It much larger. I'm sure it would be a lot faster to roll up that way, but I store mine in my RV and I want it as small as possible.
Awesome points there. I have a lot of space currently so packing it this way it works great. I don't get a chance to use it too frequently but if I did I would have to leave the transom on for sure. It stores really flat this way but it does still take up space width wise.
