2014 AI or wait...

Hello I'm in the market for an AI, eventually upgrading to the TI. My question is, I have the opportunity to buy a barely used 2014 AI for considerably less than retail with extras or should I keep my 2013 outback (id have to sell it to get a new boat) and wait....for the new AI release. This will be my first AI experience so I just want to ask you fine folks what your opinions are.

Thanks

If it's in great shape and a good deal, grab it!

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Hobie Island Sailing since 2006

That's a tough question for somebody who doesn't know you to answer.
Have you tried sitting down with a piece of paper, draw a line down the center with pros on one side and cons on the other then list everything you can think of and put in the proper columns ?
It's a great help in making tough decisions and will allow you to get a good sleep at night because you're now not worrying if you made the right decision or angry that someone gave you bad advise.

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This is good advice.

A brief introduction on myself, at 28 years old I'm not getting younger! I discovered saltwater kayak fishing a few years back and I find myself wanting to catch bigger and tastier fish off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Aside from fishing I'd love to seek out adventures around the country with this boat and of course I wouldn't want to do it alone!

The only cons I can think off is ill be spending more time cleaning and maintaining vs my outback. And I may have to get my teeth whitened from smiling!

Howdy Tex,

If there are no issues with the used boat, buy it and have a blast. Especially if you think you can get most of your money back. You can buy a new one later, whenever it moves you. Keep the extras.

Hobie is likely to hike the price of these boats anyway, by several hundred dollars. They did this last year, with no meaningful improvements.

The only reason I would wait, is if I was going to load up the AI with crap, or carry someone regularly. The extra floatation would be helpful then. A TI would be even nicer.

Whatever you do, ditch the outback and don't lookback.

The 2015 AI has enough positive changes to warrant waiting till September IMHO unless you get a SCREAMING deal. In a few months there will be a lot of great deals on 2013-104 AI's.

local dealers around here asy 4499 for the new AI

As there was nothing wrong with the 2014 and older AI's, you may want to jump on in, get it,and start enjoying it.

Otherwise you will spend more on a 2015 and may not even be able to obtain one prior to your local fishing season ending for the year. Of course, if you already have an Outback you can bide your time, I suppose, if you know for sure that a 2015 is what you want.

Thanks for all the responses, I reckon I'll jump on it. The boat is 700 under retail plus lots of extras, I'll let y'all know hopefully by Monday week if I sealed the deal. I understand the pre 2014 AIs will drop in value after the new release...but I can't imagine how signicant, hobie kayaks generally have great resale if they have been well maintained.

Im positive this is the boat I want to end up for years to come. I'm also considering doing the water tribe Everglades challenge next spring if I feel conditioned for the challenge.

Well it turns out someone had beat me to the punch, i wanted to make sure i had the cash first before scheduling a time to take a look at the boat. The seller will let me know tomorrow whether or not the guy will have the money which may not be a bad thing! After some serious thought, I may reconsider my decision and wait for till the 2015 AI! Ahhh...first world problems I tell ya! I usually never buy new, but may make the exception with the new AI!

Now another question for you all. With the 100 lbs increased weight capacity, would I be safe if bringing a fishing buddy on board? I weigh 180 lbs myself and he weighs approx. 200 +/- lbs then plus gear would easily reach 450 capacity limit. Would this be safe fishing the rigs a few miles offshore with perfect glassy conditions? I was thinking of making a quarterdeck for him to sit on while sailing to and from.

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2 relatively big guys is a bit much for the AI even with the new capacity. Once and a while and short trips maybe no issue but get at TI if you have 2 aboard. IMHO of course

Most likely that 450 pound weight capacity is for a 200 pound person plus another 250 pounds evenly distributed in the hold of the boat.

I can tell you that last year I had myself and two kids on the aka boards out on Inks Lake. Together we were around 450lb. This weight was all towards the rear, which caused the deck of the boat to submerge until the waterline was up to the rear hatch while the bow of the boat was tipping out of the water slightly.

This increased the amount of water leaking in through the steering line holes and caused the sailing performance of the boat to suffer a bit.

Probably fine if you are cruising around within easy swimming or paddling distance from land. I would not want to get a few miles off shore with the boat compromised in such a way.

Maybe you could try towing the other person in their own kayak?

https://www.hobiecat.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=85&t=41751&view=next

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2015 TI
2009 AI (sold)
Lake Travis, Ladybird Lake, Rockport/Aransas/Padre Island
Texas, USA

I hope you realize that the Tandem Island sails perfectly well solo as well as with two full size adults. If you have lost that second hand bargain, make sure you try both the AI and the TI. I don't see much point to your idea of an AI then upgrading to a TI.

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Cheers, Brian in South Australia
Tandem Island -

I agree wholeheartedly with changeman... definitely sounds to me that you really should buy a TI. That's what I did, and while I sail solo 95% of the time, it is great being able to take 1 or 2 passengers, or go camping with plenty of carrying capacity. Being a fat b****d, I have to sit in the front seat, but it works just fine like that, as my weight is very close to the centre of the hull. You can see from the pic that trim is just about perfect.

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Tony Stott
2012 Tandem Island "SIC EM" with Hobie spinnaker