Hi all,
Its probably me you are thinking of poly, I asked you a while back (think you were polwart back then?!) about your funyak prior to having a good mess about with them myself. I am very impressed by them. If its ok with you, I will copy the PM here as i found it very useful. The message was very comprehensive - I have picked out the very best bits (still an enormous amount!) and also, here is a link to a review of a whaly rotomoulded boat that poly found for me some time ago.
imgur: the simple image sharer
Ultimately, had I not had such a great deal on my current boat - I would have a whaly 435 today. I probably will end up with one soon anyway - at 4.5k brand new with an engine and trailer its a hard deal to beat.
"Not sure if Morton Boats are the only supplier in the UK, when I bought mine I got it from Atlantic Focus near Inverness, he was at that time the sole UK distributor and still lists them on his site. Perhaps they've split the UK into England/Scotland or one of them is a "second tier" of reseller.
I've had no problems with UV damage - mine spent a whole year sitting outside on the West Coast of Scotland (rain damage might be more likely!) but otherwise used to be in my garage and now lives in a big shed (as I've no garage now). I have the mottled grey coloured one. The brighter coloured ones are more likely to fade, and if storing outside might be worth considering a cover. However the pioneer (same material different manufacturer) boats are usually bright orange or dark green and seem to last fine. Loch Morlich RYA dinghy school have a similar idea (not a fun yak) as a safety boat in dark grey and it seems fine, stored outside all year round. In essence I'd be more worried about a typical rib than the funyak in the sun.
We use ours for family day trips mostly on the West Coast of Scotland. With a 20HP engine it is not super quick (1 person, flat calm 22 knots) and by Zap Cat standards rather sedate - but it still feels pretty fast on a wee boat (like a go cart versus a car). It turns very sharply and I've only managed to get the prop to cavitate once! With 2 adults, 2 kids and associated gear on board then max speed is more like 18 knots (note these are real speeds not FIBnet speeds!)
We tow it behind a car (and have done with a 1.3L Mazda 323F; A 1.8L Citroen C5 and a 1.8L Vectra (all petrol)). The C5 was totally effortless, with the other two you are aware it is there (but it quite often is loaded with 4 bikes and other crap too!) but the car doesn't struggle.
If you meant do we tow toys with it, then no. But this is because our kids are still too young for that/the water is too cold up here. It was bought with the intention of towing a ringo but never got round to buying one or finding a victim. It would probably tow a skier if you maxed out the transom HP rating (30HP).
WHAT WOULD I CHANGE:
When I bought mine there was only a bench seat console arrangement available (I think that is all that is on the Morton boats site - but if you hunt the atlantic focus site you'll find a jockey seat). Personally I would prefer a jockey. However when I mentioned it to *** she thinks the bench is much more practical for family use.
Budget, and a limited understanding meant I bought an engine without Power Trim and Tilt on it. I regret this, as I think you could get a drier ride (and maybe a knot or two extra speed) if you could dynamically change the trim.
It is on a bunked trailer; it would be interesting to try it on a roller as my wife gets really stressed during launch and recovery - but it works fine and I have launched and recovered it single handed.
A few of the fittings are a bit flimsy (locker hatch screws/hinges) and if you jump on the deck from a harbour ladder you can feel it bending slightly - but what do you expect at the price.
My trailer wasn't set up right when I got it. This was a PITA - and if buying again I'd insist the supplier did it right, but was actually easy enough to fix.
