Nelo 520 XXL review

I haven’t found a real review of the post-2020 Nelo 520XXL, especially a beginner’s review, so I’m putting this up here in the hope that it will help someone.

TL;DR: Boat has scads of secondary stability, does not have primary stability. Very easy to keep keel-side down if you know how to brace. Better beginner boat than pre-2020 models. Probably not as easy to stay in as a V8, but not bad at all. Can be tough to remount due to high cockpit sides, lack of primary stability. Good speed for a beginner boat. Surfs well. Excellent maneuverability. Bucket fits wide people, not quite as wide as a V8 will. Does not grind up your coccyx.

Actual review:

About me—I’ve been sea kayaking for 20 years, but obviously this doesn’t translate all that well to surfskis, so I’m still calling myself a beginner. I’m a big boy, 5’11” (180cm) and 225 lbs (100 kg), big enough to narrow down the list of ski buckets I can fit into. Back in February 2024 I bought a used Nelo 510, one of the older and narrower ones, mostly because the price was right and I fit in it. The day I tried it out there were waves just barely big enough to for the boat to half surf on them, and that might have played into the decision too; all my other boat trials were in totally flat water. I also hadn’t had the opportunity to practice realistic remounts before.

After a few months paddling/remounting the beast, I wanted something with both more speed and at least a little more stability. Long story short, I found a used Nelo 520XXL in Southern California, and made the long, depressing drive down Interstate 5 to check it out.

The first thing I noticed, when I fell out of the thing trying to board, was that it has less primary stability than the 510. The second thing was that the bucket was narrower than I’m used to. In spite of this I took it out into Newporsche Bay, wobbling along in best newby fashion. Surprisingly, I didn’t fall out again once I got it going, even when I took boat wakes broadside.

Back in the Bay Area, I took it out on Redwood Creek after work, and fell out again trying to board it. But after that I stayed in the whole paddle. After a couple more paddles in easy conditions, we visited the Berkeley Sailing Basin, which fronts on San Francisco Bay. Inside the basin I practiced running broadside the waves, wobbled all over the place and didn’t fall out. Then I went out to the edge of the Bay and tried to catch some waves back into the basin. I’d been out here before in the 510 and had surfed some on the waves, but this was my first time truly surfing, without needing to paddle, and the first time I linked onto a second wave. Unlike when I rode the 510 there, I didn’t fall out. A few more times paddling out and surfing back in, wobbling and bracing all over the place every time I turned around to head downwind, still stayed in the boat. Then back over to the dock for some remount practice in lighter chop, and blew half of them, not very reassuring given what I’d been doing five minutes before.

So, after three months of ownership, still haven’t fallen out of it except when mounting/remounting. I haven’t been able to get out on the water as much as I’d like the last six weeks, but I think I’ve got a good handle on how the boat behaves. It has no primary stability at rest, and not much when moving. Secondary stability however is excellent, and the ski gives you plenty of time to throw a brace if you do start to go over. If you’re not that good at bracing, you may have a different, and less pleasing, experience. The 520 is at least a half mile an hour faster than the 510, and correspondingly easier to get onto a wave. Maneuverability is ridiculously good, the turning radius must be two thirds that of a V8. Maybe less. The bucket is wide, but not quite as wide as a V8. A smidge wider than Fennix Bluefin, and Nelos all have a cutout for your coccyx/spine (very, very unlike the Bluefin). You will find a V8 much easier to mount/remount, and more reassuring in rough water. I think ultimate stability must be pretty close though, and as I said before it is easy enough to keep the keel underneath you. Remember that while the Nelo lacks the flat section of bottom behind the V8 cockpit, you sit lower in the Nelo. This seems to counteract the more rounded bottom. There is also a weird hollow, almost like a pointy backwards NACA duct, on the bottom behind the bailer (see the last picture). Presumably this creates a low-pressure area to help stability.

Because Nelo lowered the bucket, they had to lower the footplate as well to keep a good paddling position. If you look at the pictures, you’ll see plenty of rocker, the footplate area being the deepest point. As far as I can tell, this is not slowing the boat down, and may help maneuverability by creating a solid pivot point. The low bucket, and the higher sides of the XXL model, also means that remounting can feel like crawling over a wall. This is not ideal, but if you’re willing to do a kayak-style remount (get up on the deck behind the bucket, turn so that you’re straddling the boat with your legs in the water and belly on deck, and inchworm forwards until you can drop into the seat), you’ll be OK.

Is the 520XXL a good beginner boat for a larger guy? Yes, I think so. Not as stable and reassuring as a V8, but not too bad either. My older 510 is probably about as stable as a V8 Pro (maybe a little less?), while the 520 is like a V8 that requires more active management, if that makes sense. When I started paddling the 510, it didn’t take long for me to get the idea that I wanted a better boat. I do not want a different boat now.

Nice write up! Nelo in general makes very lively boats. I have paddled the old 520 and was impressed with how playful it was. Would like to try the new one some time.

Really clever username wrote:

I haven’t found a real review of the post-2020 Nelo 520XXL, especially a beginner’s review, so I’m putting this up here in the hope that it will help someone.

Nice review, it's a shame that so little info is passed on about skis. It's a super fun sport.

Here's an xxl on the water. Boyan mentions a few things in the comments.

It's definitely a fun boat. I'm going to have to get more secure in my rough- water remount to really have fun though. Needing a couple tries to get back in can be stressful.

Very good write up.

Regarding stability in your 510; it is a very stable boat, I think you are just too heavy for it.

My Son in law took my 510 out and struggled on flat water. He's used to paddling kayaks, but really not comfortable in my boat.

He would have been over 100kg and the boat was really really low in the water with him in it.

Overload a kayak, and secondary stability just vanishes. There's no freeboard to be submerged when you heel the boat.

mrcharly wrote:

Very good write up.
Regarding stability in your 510; it is a very stable boat, I think you are just too heavy for it.
My Son in law took my 510 out and struggled on flat water. He's used to paddling kayaks, but really not comfortable in my boat.
He would have been over 100kg and the boat was really really low in the water with him in it.
Overload a kayak, and secondary stability just vanishes. There's no freeboard to be submerged when you heel the boat.

Do you know what year that 510 was made in? The current 510 is 21.7" wide (55cm), while my older 510 is about 20.5" (52cm). That makes a difference too. I'm not sure what the weight limit is for the older 510 is supposed to be, although having a cargo hatch kind of suggests a little bit of margin. I'd rate the old 510 as being in the neighborhood of a V8 Pro, or maybe a little worse, for my weight.

One thing I didn't mention explicitly in my review is that the 520XXL has more freeboard than the other sizes, which probably contributes to stability in rough water.

I don't know the year, but the hull number is 033 - so it is an older model.