Thoughts about the Zegul 550

After last summer in which I have used the Nigel Foster Shadow a lot, I took the Zegul 550 on a few trips lately. The last trip was a crossing of the lake IJsselmeer from Trintelhaven to Urk and back. We made this trip with 3 men. Soon, the wind developed to a 4 Bft with gusts to 5. Nice circumstances to get a better impression of the Zegul 550.

departure at Trintelhaven

The pointed bow of the Zegul likes to point into a steep wave instead of going over it. This gives a wet ride but doesn't seem to slow down the boat too much. Also when surfing this happens. Despite it's length the Zegul surfs quite well. That is, it is quite easy to get it in a surf, controlling it is much more difficult as the boat is very eager to break out.

on the beach at Urk

The long waterline makes the Zegul difficult to turn. Edging does work a little but you feel that you have to turn a long boat. Turning on top of a wave is always a good idea but 'within' the waves the sharp stem and stern lock themselves in the water. That could be an advantage like it is with a Baidarka: just going straight no matter what. But not the Zegul: the stem and stern are easily pushed away by the waves. In a three quarter or following sea I couldn't control the boat very well without using the vario skeg. It just wants to break out. You really need the skeg and if for any reason the skeg wouldn't work you would have a hard time then. 

To make matters worse the stem is also pushed aside very easily by the wind and waves resulting in bad pointing against the wind. I have managed up to bft 5 now but this would probably develop to a severe problem in stronger winds. 

Lighthouse Urk

Because of the high and narrow cockpit in front of the seat, the boat contact is not as good as other boats like the Shadow or even the Baidarka. For use as a sea kayak some extra padding for the thighs/knees would be a good idea. This would also help for rolling. Otherwise, this cockpit shape fascilitates a racy way to paddle with both knees together. I am not used to that but may be I can.

on the beach at Urk

Stability was never a problem for me. The initial stability is clearly better than the Shadow or Baidarka. The Zegul feels quite safe also in the waves.

What really is quite impressing is the speed. The Zegul 550 is certainly my fastest sea kayak that I have owned until now. Especially when using the Kinetic Wing paddle it is easy to leave all other group members behind you.

My current impression of the Zegul 550 is that it is mainly a fast sea kayak. Good for training and fast expeditions but on relative flat waters. It would have been perfect for the last circumnavigation of Flevoland e.g. For wild water and sea I would prefer other boats like the Shadow or Baidarka. These boats do sacrifice some speed but are far more comfortable and manageable under rougher circumstances.

Zegul 550 leakages

Unfortunately the Zegul appeared to have leaking front and rear compartments. This was a reason to not take it on the Flevoland circumnavigation.

The leak in the front compartment was easily found: a partly loose hatch rim

leaking front hatch rim

The first attempt to glue with epoxy didn't succeed, probably because I had added to much white pigment. Also, the hatch rim is made from ABS and that is not the ideal material to glue with epoxy. So I tried he second time with 2-components PU glue. This did a good job, no water entry anymore!

glueing the rim again

However, the leakage in the rear compartment was not that easy to find. Only after two trials with filling the compartment with water I discovered the leak was at the skegbox. Even with low level of water it was leaking so the leak must be somewhere at the junction of the box to the hull. A first layer of epoxy on and around the skegbox didn't help. The last days I added two layers more. A trip to Edam would be a good testcase. Unfortunately, still water had came in. Further investigation showed there was still a leak around the backside of the skegbox but also at the stern at the hole for the toggle rope. To be continued...

Zegul 550

After owning about one and half year I decided to sell the Skarabee. I no longer needed it. It is a good boat but for the real sea kayaking the Shadow is better and the Shadow can take also a lot of gear for expeditions. With the Amarok as a 'daily' backup I sold the Skarabee. Only a week later I saw a Zegul 550 for sale. I didn't know much about that boat but after some internet searches it looked like a fast sea kayak that may give me the speed I had hoped for with the Skarabee. To make a long story short: here it is:

my Zegul 550

The 550 shows a long, sleek hull with low rear deck and high front deck. With the largest beam after the cockpit it has the "Swede" form. The length is not surprisingly 550 cm and the beam is 54 cm. The hull shows hard chines around the middle that smooth out to the bow and stern. The information I found claim for a fast boat that still is stable and maneuverable. As I am quite satisfied with the hard chines on the Nigel Foster boats I had confidence that this could work out well on the Zegul too.

from the Zegul folder

After some refitting of deck lines and elastics I made a short first trip. The first leg I paddled together with a club member. The Zegul tracked well and seemed fast when you wanted it. Stability was okay, no problem at all. The boat reacted good on edging and was indeed quite maneuverable on edge. Not as good as the Shadow of course but much better than e.g. the Amarok. On the second leg I was alone and I made more speed. The first results show indeed a speed of  around 9 km/h and that is certainly promising! 

my Zegul with skeg and rudder

The rudder did work well but the pedals were quite obstructive for a good foot brace. As the boat is maneuverable enough without rudder I decided to remove it. My plan is to fit a new foot brace with foot pump as this is typically a boat to make some solo trips with.