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Tributary Tater Single Inflatable Kayak
Overview
Tributary Tater Single Inflatable Kayak.
As of mid-May we and AIRE are out of the Taters. We're not sure on the exact timeframe for the next shipment, but we will update this page when they are available again. We do have some of the little-brother Spuds in stock.
This boat is a scaled-up Tributary Spud, or perhaps looking at it another way, a scaled down solo Tomcat. Both the Tater and Spud were modeled after AIRE's discontinued Bakraft models more closely than anything else though.
This little boat is quite wide at almost 38", and that combined with the relatively large diameter side tubes means the stability is excellent for both kids and adults. AIRE gives the weight capacity as 275 pounds, though we feel this is pretty optimistic. We've been advising more around 200 pounds as a good figure to keep the bailing speed high, the floor dry, and the performance where it should be. Speaking of bailing, this affordable little boat has the same large mesh drain vents as its larger cousins in the Strike and Tomcat line. This, combined with the fairly small cockpit area means it drains quickly after big rapids as long as you don't grossly overload it.
One detail to be aware of with both the Tater and Spud (as well as AIRE's American made & very pricey Force kayak) is that the entire side tube perimeter, or "collar" in boater-speak, is all one air chamber. These models do not have separate left/right chambers as most of the bigger inflatable kayaks do. The second thing to note is that while both the main chamber and the floor chamber have 1" Summit II poppet stem valves, the pillow backrest has something different. It has a tube affair with a small one-way valve that you deflate by reversing the little dust cap & pushing it in to hold the valve open. While this valve is both super reliable and plenty adequate for the smallish backrest (which is also used on the Tomcat models), should you use a pump that requires the included Summit adapter for the two main valves, you would have to pull this adapter back off again to inflate the stem-mounted backrest valve. And generally speaking, K-Pumps don't work great for the Tater/Spud/Tomcat backrest valves, even though K-Pumps let you avoid using the Summit adapters. In a way, it almost makes sense to pick up a small cheap foot pump to keep handy for just the backrest.
The hull material used is the same as the larger Tributary models, a beefy 1000 denier pvc that inflates quite firm. The tater weighs 25 pounds with the backrest, and rolls small for those long hike-in runs. It is 8'4" long with an 8" bow and stern rocker. It pivots fast so it's a great little creek boat. For the same reason, it would also be a poor choice for going long distances on flat water. This is a whitewater kayak, not a touring model, and even if you jerry-rig a skeg it is still too wide & slow for this purpose. One year warranty, two underside-mounted D-rings for towing or tie-down. And again, you can have any color you want as long as it's red!