Epic v10s versus Kayak centre zeplin II

I have a epic v10s ultra and when the sea is rough I do not feel confident on it.(to tippy for me)
I am thinking now to buy the zeplin II who looks me more stable.
Can anybody told me the diference between the two in stability.
Many Thanks
Hermano

Just in case you never found this

The Zepplin looks more stable judging from the review, havent seen any in Western Australia.

Just out of curiosity, did you try the V10sport in a glass lay-up?

My understanding is that the lightness and stiffness of the ultra lay-up could have been the reason it felt "tippy".

Hi Hermano

I took my nose off my fenn elite about 2 weeks ago and whilst it has been in the doc - my one mate has Zeplin and the other a v10 Ultra light- I was really enjoyed paddling both skis - in fact i was supprised how much i enjoyed the Zeplin - thought it would be sluggish - but it was not - in fact no difference in the down wind. The V10 was also fantastic down wind , slighly more twitchy into the wind but also an excellent ski - The only critism i had with the Zeplin - is the steering was slightly heavy but solid as a rock - Tough choice - Good that we have so many good skis on the market - cheers

The Zeplin has quite a bit more volume and is longer than the V10S, so it works really well for bigger paddlers.

i was also surprised by how much fun the Zeplin was downwind. Great ski, little tendency to broach, picked up the runs very readily.

I would say the Zeplin is quite a bit more stable than the V10S.

On the flat the Zeplin seems surprisingly fast too. I have been paddling with a training group recently where a number of the guys have traded "down" in skis. Without exception they are all going faster on the more stable boats - and what is really annoying is that the three fastest paddlers are now on Zeplins. I can smoke 'em downwind (where I have more experience than they do) but on the flat they are simply faster than me. (Of course they're a lot younger too!).

The Zeplin's nose does catch the wind more than the V10S and it's quite tricky to turn into a 30kt breeze.

In summary, the Zeplin is a great boat, more stable (in my opinion) than the V10S. Make sure you use the big elliptical rudder with it though, rather than the standard underpowered rudder. (Same recommendation for the V10S actually.)

robin.mousley wrote:

I have been paddling with a training group recently where a number of the guys have traded "down" in skis. Without exception they are all going faster on the more stable boats - and what is really annoying is that the three fastest paddlers are now on Zeplins. I can smoke 'em downwind (where I have more experience than they do) but on the flat they are simply faster than me.

I'm not surprised by your observation Robin, I have made what I consider to be a very slight "trade down" moving from a V10L to a Carbonolgy Vault and I am now giving some of the paddlers I used to just hang on to in the flat a run for thier money. It's a nice feeling when a K1 is drafting you for a change

Much like you they would still be able to flog me downwind due to experience but then again I dont have the time with multisport training to do a lot of downwind runs.

I am glad to see apart from Carbonology, Fenn have bought out thier intermediate "swordfish" and can see a lot more paddlers "trade down" in order to improve.

robin.mousley wrote:

I have been paddling with a training group recently where a number of the guys have traded "down" in skis. Without exception they are all going faster on the more stable boats - and what is really annoying is that the three fastest paddlers are now on Zeplins. I can smoke 'em downwind (where I have more experience than they do) but on the flat they are simply faster than me.

I've had a V10S for almost three years, and I bought it after learning on an XT. I also have a V10.

I'm big -- 250 lbs + -- so I don't fit in the seat of most surfskis, but I do fit in the bucket of the V10S and V10.

Recently, I had the opportunity to paddle the Zeplin II in Socal. It's a massive boat with a tiny seat. I was shocked to find that I could barely cram myself into it enough to paddle. After one mile, I was in agony.

I'm sticking to the V10S even though the build quality is shitty. I've had to replace the rudder, the rudder tube, and the cables. The rudder hatch fell off one day. One of the new carbon / carbon rudders I bought from Epic fell apart in the water (the fin slid off the carbon shaft). Also, the gel coat is the worst I've ever seen. After several polishings, the cloth is starting to show.

For what it's worth I have both the zeplin II and this year's V 10 Sport.

To be absolutely fair to Epic in South Africa I have had no defects with this boat whatsoever. The same can't be said about the zeplin. I found during my first race that the cables came adrift and I had very little steering. This has since been rectified.

With the V10 sport (I weigh 107 kilos) it is definitely more tippy than the Zeplin. One of the reasons I am told is that the new V 10 s has been far more strengthened than previous models and comes in at about 13 kgs.

Tthe Zeplin is a fast stable boat and the larger surf rudder is highly recommended.

I plan to keep the V 10 s until I become more efficient as a paddler.

Wayne

After several polishings, the cloth is starting to show.

Gel coat isn't thick, it's not meant to be polished all the time.
Simply rinsing the boat and wiping it down will keep it in fine condition.

All I do is wipe off any scum when it is still in the water and wash it with a watering can of fresh water and throw it on the roof.

What did you polish it with?

I have other boats -- older than my 2006 V10S -- that I have never had to polish and the gel coat is still intact.

The gel coat on the V10S oxidizes quickly and turns chalky. I use an automotive glaze instead of harsh cleaning products, yet the gel coat is wearing thin.

My V10S Ultra is an early Flying Eagle product. I've heard rumors that a lot of those early Chinese Epic skis are flimsy and some hulls have failed in rough conditions. Is it true that Epic improved the hull strength because of quality and design issues? Makes me wonder if my ski will crack next time I take it out in the bumps.

I have no issues with the design and fit of the V10S. I'm a heavy paddler and it fits me just right and the performance is good enough. In fact, I recommend the V10S for novice, intermediate, and heavy paddlers, but I would not recommend buying one of the older Chinese V10S boats. I'm stuck with mine. Can't sell it because I won't pass a problem boat to another paddler. I wrote Epic about my concerns and they pretty much told me TS (except they did replace the aluminum shaft rudder that corroded so badly that it destroyed the carbon rudder shaft tube).

Too bad that I don't fit in the Zeplin. Robin billed it as the big boat for big people. No. It's the giant ski with a tiny seat.