Zodiac Fastroller 360 Acti-V mini-review

[Fenlander]

After my fairly recent thread about what to buy http://www.rib.net/forum/f50/upgradi...car-41728.html here is a mini review of the Zodiac 360 Fastroller I bought... with a twist at the end!

As I said in the previous thread when the Mrs said why not get a new Zodiac to last us the next 10yrs I didn't need any more justification so bought a Zodiac 360 Fastroller air-floor from Pennine Marine. I was lucky I'd just picked up a really nice 2001 Mariner 15 which would be the ideal motor for it.

First outing was confined to the river but we had a great day on that really hot Sunday a few weeks ago. Inflated in the car park, fitted transom wheels, lifted the outboard on and wheeled it down the slip easily single handed. Used the £11 Gelert pump that Max showed us for initial inflation... does a great job up to a point but those last few minutes getting the air floor to pressure with the standard footpump are a bit frantic.



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The 360 is amazingly roomy after previous smaller Zodiacs.... particularly the Mk.1 we've had for the past 3yrs. We were 100% happy with the feel of the air floor to move about and stand on. Out of respect to the river we didn't try and get it on the plane... just had a couple of short bursts. The true performance test will come in just 4wks in Scotland but actually our main interest is going places so out and out speed isn't the priority.



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Two position seat is something new to me and useful. The storage "locker" in the front tube is a bit of a gimick but it does at least take all of my basic emergency kit and outboard tools. The only pain with it is that the locker is a plastic tub that comes seperate to the boat and has to be fitted before inflating. The boat must not be inflated or used without this in place. As it doesn't fit in the boat bag you must remember to take it or a car journey to the water could be wasted.



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Bit of an unexpected twist though. On this river trip, the first time I'd had the tubes up to full pressure, I noticed a seam on one cone that wasn't 100%. No leak or anything but it just looked like it could give trouble as the boat aged.

Mailed an image to the supplier Monday am and within 6hrs Zodiac had agreed to send me a new boat from the factory. Excellent service.

The replacement arrived the other day and everything's 100% with it. I've transferred the Zodiac transom wheels over so it's ready to go. I chose the Zodiac wheels as they leave just one small rounded bracket per side when the wheels are off meaning there's little to catch or rub when the boat's packed.



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Something I'd not expected on the new one is they've changed the air floor material. For 10yrs it's been a very rough material to touch that's a pig to clean. Now it's a non-slip but smooth wipe-clean material. Big improvement.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Hope that's of some interest.

Roll on the Kyle of Lochalsh in August.

[Flyguy]

Nice setup and good report. I have the 340FF which has the bucket compartment on the side of the front tube. To be honest whilst it is useful it is a pain remembering to put it in before you inflate each time. I prefer the position of it on yours.

I love my Zodiac. I've been out in some snotty conditions and always felt safe, even when I left the bung open and it filled up!

[Max...]

Excellent report David, glad you got the new boat sorted - enjoy it in August!

[LWman]

Good read, looks a really nice setup. Have fun in August

[homer]

I purchased a Zodiac 360 in Sept (after Boat Show) and have been delivered a model with the bow locker box which seems to be a waste of time. As you have rightly said if you go on a journey without the box you are in difficulty. I also wonder whether it makes the inflatable more prone to problems in this area of the pouch. I gather the 2012 models no longer have this - I wonder why?
I have not yet put the boat in the water but like you last Sunday installed the brackets for the wheels.
I am curious to see your photo of the seam? for which Zodiac replaced the boat.
Thanks
H

[homer]

Originally Posted by Fenlander

After my fairly recent thread about what to buy http://www.rib.net/forum/f50/upgradi...car-41728.html here is a mini review of the Zodiac 360 Fastroller I bought... with a twist at the end!

As I said in the previous thread when the Mrs said why not get a new Zodiac to last us the next 10yrs I didn't need any more justification so bought a Zodiac 360 Fastroller air-floor from Pennine Marine. I was lucky I'd just picked up a really nice 2001 Mariner 15 which would be the ideal motor for it.

First outing was confined to the river but we had a great day on that really hot Sunday a few weeks ago. Inflated in the car park, fitted transom wheels, lifted the outboard on and wheeled it down the slip easily single handed. Used the £11 Gelert pump that Max showed us for initial inflation... does a great job up to a point but those last few minutes getting the air floor to pressure with the standard footpump are a bit frantic.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

The 360 is amazingly roomy after previous smaller Zodiacs.... particularly the Mk.1 we've had for the past 3yrs. We were 100% happy with the feel of the air floor to move about and stand on. Out of respect to the river we didn't try and get it on the plane... just had a couple of short bursts. The true performance test will come in just 4wks in Scotland but actually our main interest is going places so out and out speed isn't the priority.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Two position seat is something new to me and useful. The storage "locker" in the front tube is a bit of a gimick but it does at least take all of my basic emergency kit and outboard tools. The only pain with it is that the locker is a plastic tub that comes seperate to the boat and has to be fitted before inflating. The boat must not be inflated or used without this in place. As it doesn't fit in the boat bag you must remember to take it or a car journey to the water could be wasted.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Bit of an unexpected twist though. On this river trip, the first time I'd had the tubes up to full pressure, I noticed a seam on one cone that wasn't 100%. No leak or anything but it just looked like it could give trouble as the boat aged.

Mailed an image to the supplier Monday am and within 6hrs Zodiac had agreed to send me a new boat from the factory. Excellent service.

The replacement arrived the other day and everything's 100% with it. I've transferred the Zodiac transom wheels over so it's ready to go. I chose the Zodiac wheels as they leave just one small rounded bracket per side when the wheels are off meaning there's little to catch or rub when the boat's packed.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Something I'd not expected on the new one is they've changed the air floor material. For 10yrs it's been a very rough material to touch that's a pig to clean. Now it's a non-slip but smooth wipe-clean material. Big improvement.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Hope that's of some interest.

Roll on the Kyle of Lochalsh in August.

Zodiac 360 Cadet Fastroller
I purchased a Zodiac 360 in Sept (after Boat Show) and have been delivered a model with the bow locker box which seems to be a waste of time. As you have rightly said if you go on a journey without the box you are in difficulty. I also wonder whether it makes the inflatable more prone to problems in this area of the pouch. I gather the 2012 models no longer have this - I wonder why?
I have not yet put the boat in the water but like you last Sunday installed the brackets for the wheels.
I am curious to see your photo of the seam? for which Zodiac replaced the boat.
Thanks
H

[Fenlander]

Homer did you see my follow up review mentioning that the replacement boat suffered transom issues and other problems so that boat was returned and refunded? I was dissapointed to have two faulty boats in a row. I'll try and get an image uploaded of the cone seam problem asap.

[Fenlander]

Homer you asked by pm where I'd mentioned the issues with the second boat. It was a brief mention but it was at the end of my initial post in this holiday report after we'd had the replacement boat on the sea for a week...

http://www.rib.net/forum/f50/zodiac-...ort-43922.html

Just found the cone seam image... you can see the bad one compared to the other which was OK. This was on the first boat, the second boat's issues related to failing HP keel attachments and a splitting transom adj to the tubes.

[Hobartian]

I live in Australia and have just bought a Zodiac Fastroller 360 which is brand new but old stock. The reason I decided to buy this particular boat was that it had welded seams and a five year warranty and was a big name brand. I searched the internet for information to help me but did not find this site until I had made my purchase.

I started reading the above review and was re-assured I had made the right purchase until I read the most recent posts where the boat had been returned for a refund.

The fact that the initial boat was replaced very quickly and that a refund was given for the second is re-assuring. When I was searching for a boat it was very confusing as the prices vary considerably for boats that look very much alike. However, in Australia the warranty on cheaper boats varies from three to twelve months and very few have the five year warranty offered by Zodiac.

When I inflate my boat I will be looking for the type of fault found in the first reviewed boat but I need to know about the issues with the transom that were experienced with the second boat.

[Fenlander]

I have to say an excellent dealer attitude kept me calm over these two faulty boats which I'd absolutely not expected having had good service from older Zodiacs going back to the 70s.

The second boat had better cone seams but sadly after just a few days on the plane in choppy waters on our Scottish holiday the transom plywood started to de-laminate a couple of inches away from where it joined the tube each side. Water was already getting in and obviously it was totally unnaceptable.

I'd also noted the keel would not sit straight unless you pushed it into position when inflating by lifting the boat up and setting it straight from underneath. Then at the end of a run it would have twisted itself off-centre again. When cleaning the boat up ready for return to the dealer I noticed the HP air tube from air-deck to HP keel was stiff enough to hold the keel out of position. In just this one week holiday the effect of that was to rip away one of the keel to floor skin attachments and chafe the others. In no time at all the keel to floor attachments would all have ripped allowing the keel to move well off centre.

You can see if your boat would be prone to the keel issue by taking the air floor off the boat and inflating floor/keel to pressure. If you lay it down with the keel upwards and the keel doesn't make a right angle with the floor then it will stress the PVC lugs that hold it to the floor skin and over time they will break.

Regarding the transom in truth it is very thin to stand the stress of a motor driving it along at 15-20mph in bumpy water. For example the one on my Honwave is an extra 50% thicker.

I would still buy Zodiac in the future but for now will give the Honwave a chance to prove itself over a few years.

Hope that helps.

[Hobartian]

Thanks Fenlander for your prompt and informative response. I now have the information I need to to check potential issues with my boat. Hopefully, it was not constructed on a Monday morning! In my case I will only be using an eight horse power Yamaha motor which may not stress the transom as much as a larger outboard.

[Hobartian]

I have contacted the retailer about the issues raised in this thread.
In fairness to the manufacturer and for the information of prospective buyers and current owners I will advise you of the response I received.

Hi ,

If the boat is assembled as per instructions this is a non issue.

With these boats the floor/keel is to be inflated first and that enables you to ensure the keel is straight before inflating the rest of the boat.

Once inflated it is just a case of reaching under the floor and moving the keel to either side to centre it.

Once the boat is inflated this in nearly impossible to do which is why it’s done first.

With most inflatables the keel is the last thing to be inflated which is why we have a tribe of people who complain about this issue.

When really it can be solved by reading the manual.

By reading the review published on this site I now aware of possible issues and will be in a good position to arrive at a positive outcome.

[Fenlander]

>>>If the boat is assembled as per instructions this is a non issue.

>>>With these boats the floor/keel is to be inflated first and that enables you to ensure >>>the keel is straight before inflating the rest of the boat.

>>>Once inflated it is just a case of reaching under the floor and moving the keel to either >>>side to centre it.


Sadly wrong.

If a boat was suffering the issue I saw where the keel was set off vertical when inflated in free air then how on earth could you hold the keel straight while inflating the boat without a couple of helpers to hold the boat off the ground and push/hold the keel straight while a third person used the inflator for the main tubes which would need an extended hose as the boat was up in the air.

Then once on the water the natural movement of the boat will allow the keel to wriggle out of line to its natural rest angle.

Trust me I've spent time inflating and deflating again, prodding the keel over until it looks straight but after a run the keel was always back to the off-centre again.

[Flyguy]

I have the FR340. I'd be suprised if the inflatable keelmade any difference at all once the boat was on plain. In mine 2/3 of the 'hull' is flat with no keel.

[Hobartian]

I inflated the boat for the first time and everything appeared OK from the top. However, when I lifted the front of the boat to look at the keel I saw that it was not upright and the lowest part of the keel was about eight to nine centimeters away from the middle of the floor. I released the pressure from the tubes but found it difficult to get the keel to lay straight.

I followed Fenlander's suggestion to remove the floor to check the keel.

The attached picture shows that is close to right angles to the floor when no pressure is exerted on it.

The big question is how do you get it to remain at the right angle when you are inflating the tubes

[Fenlander]

>>>The big question is how do you get it to remain at the right angle when you are inflating the tubes

Exactly... if you inflate the floor first as they advise then how do you lift a floppy boat prior to inflation to set the keel straight??

That's why I said it needs two people to hold the boat up in the air as it is inflated so they can both support it and push the keel into position so it is correctly aligned at the point the boat is firm enough to hold the keel straight. Because you are holding it up in the air then you can't reach the inflation points easily and need a longer pump hose.

Effectively it is near impossible and completly goes against the major advantage of a air floor that they are easy to set up with 1/2 people.

This wasn't a problem with the earlier air floor Zodiacs as they had a normal sausage keel uder the air floor and that was no problem.

[willk]

Hopefully you'll be writing a nice arsey reply to that condescending pr**k of a Dealer who dismissed the problems of a whole "tribe" of customers who had no satisfaction from his product.

[Hobartian]

I reinstalled the floor into my Zodiac Fastroller 360 after checking the keel inflating balloon was at a natural ninety degree angle when inflated.

After inflating the floor to the recommended pressure I lifted the front of the boat to look underneath to check that the keel balloon was still at right angles to the floor and in the center. I then inflated the tubes and the boat looks fine.

The next test is to check the bottom of the boat after some use on the water.

The attached pictures show the keel is reasonably straight and true.

[AGD21]

I bought a Zodiac Fastroller 360 in July 2013. I power with a Yamaha 15 hp 2-stroke, which moves the boat at 16 knots with 200 kg on board in addition to the 45 kg motor. I have had the boat out several times in the waters around Vancouver. This is my tentative review of the Zodiac FR 360 Acti-V (PVC fabric):

- I concur with the issues with the keel that Fenlander discussed earlier – the keel doesn’t align in the center of the boat. When the boat is all inflated the underside looks similar to the photo by Hobartian (above in his 22 September 2012 post), i.e. there are noticeable wrinkles in the hull bottom fabric to one side of the keel. Another issue is that the hose connecting the high-pressure floor to the keel kinks easily, which would slow the deflation process.

- I also agree that the storage cylinder that Zodiac built into the forward hull tube is a problem – it’s too small to store much, the cylinder doesn’t roll up with the boat so it must be removed and hauled separately, and the large plastic lid permanently attached to the hull tube prevents the deflated boat from being rolled up into a tight package. This boat would be better off without this built-in storage compartment.

- The water drain with shut-off built into the transom is too high to drain all the water out, hence when dismantling the boat I had to sponge out the last several cm of water before rolling up the hull. My old Futura FR had the bottom edge of the manual drain plug flush with the inner floor and always drained water to the last drop.

- The foot pump that came with the boat was problematic. The hose was not flexible enough to prevent kinking when pumping the boat; the high-pressure pump feature didn’t work properly so I could get to the full 11.2 PSI for the high-pressure floor, and the hose fitting did not wedge adequately into the tube valves so kept falling out when pumping. The dealer was nice enough to exchange the foot pump for a proper hand pump.

- The FR 360 only comes in white color, which shows every little smudge and scrape mark.

- As has been my experience with all Zodiacs I’ve owned, the documentation is terrible - poorly translated from French and lousy drawings. You would think a company as large as Zodiac could hire a native English writer to pen their manuals.

Other than the above issues the boat seems to handle well in rough seas, and is a little lighter and faster than the similar-sized Futura Fastroller 380.