Innova Twist II Touring Inflatable Kayak review by TBP

[Lee Arbach TBP]

The Innova tandem Twist II (2) Double Twist inflatable kayak is an all-litepack boat, which means the material it’s made with is uncoated with rubber on the exterior. This uncoated material has both benefits and some obvious issues. No tandem inflatable kayak made packs smaller or is lighter than the Innova Twist II, so this works well for air travel, or even in a bicycle trailer or for motorcyclists. Anyone packing in miles to a lake or stream would enjoy the low 23 pound weight as well. And just how small is the packed size of the Twist II Kayak? The boxed size from the factory is a mere 1-1/8 cubic feet (9″ X 12″ X 18″). As we said, nothing else comes close.

Innova Double Twist Inflatable Kayak

There are some potential problems with an inflatable that lacks exterior rubber. The main one is a lack of abrasion resistance, which means you should step into this boat from a dock or push it out into a foot of water before boarding. Another thing with the litepack material is that it can be harder to keep clean, and after salt water use you should always wash it off with a hose.
Innova Twist II Litepack Tandem Inflatable Kayak Acid Test

Tim from Innova has an old solo Twist that he has paddled in salt water for a number of years now, and he has deliberately left the boat unwashed after using it. So far, this acid-test Twist is holding up fine, and it’s air retention is still perfect. None the less we believe in erring on the side of caution if you want your inflatable to last. In our 32 years experience anything short of high grade hypalon does not dig salt crust much, though pvc can do pretty well.

The stiffness will not be quite the same with a Twist or Innova Swing as it would be with any of the fully coated models (Sunny, Solar, Helios, Safari, etc) because the base fabric of the others is 1200 denier, whereas the litepack material is 500 denier. More base fabric means less stretching.

Despite the short 11’9″ length (they usually measure a tad less actually) the tandem Twist holds two reasonably tall adults. The rear seat is so far back compared to the other, longer Innovas that there is leg room even for a person up to 6’6″. This boat can hold 400 pounds, but it is better with 350. The Twists feature lift handles at the bow & stern, and two more in the middle. These center interior handles are very handy for climbing back into your Twist if you happen to be swimming.
Innova Twist II Litepack Tandem Inflatable Kayak Colors

For now, along with the red color mentioned up top, camouflage color is available too but we don’t stock that one. These do not come with the fancy shoulder-pack drybag of the other Innovas, just a canvas stow pouch, but the removable tracking fin & patch kit are included.

Please note that any accessories purchased with your boat are 10% off, and also note that our shopping cart as yet does NOT reflect these discounts – it will show a higher total so we will adjust the bottom line before ringing the transaction through.

Manufacturer’s Specifications Innova Double Twist Inflatable Kayak

RIVER RATING: Class I
LENGTH: 11ft. 9in.
WIDTH: 36 in.
WEIGHT: 23 lbs.
AIR CHAMBERS: 3 Main
CAPACITY: 396 lbs (2 persons)
PACKED DIM: 17x11x7 in.
MATERIAL: LitePack™ – No PVC!
INCLUDES: Drybag/backpack for transport, tracking fin, repair kit

• This topic was modified 10 years, 6 months ago by Lee Arbach TBP.

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