Decathlon Itiwit X500 Kayak - DO NOT Buy! (Material fatique leads to leaks / holes)

I've had my x500 only a few months, but I've used it more than 15 times with no sign of this fatigue including a three night kayak/camping trip in the Okefenokee Swamp. You don't want your boat to fail when you're alone and miles deep in a wilderness surrounded by alligators with no way out by foot ... I didn't deflate the boat on this trip, and I took a repair kit with Gorilla tape for quick repairs but never needed it. I'll go again in October for five nights and will have used the x500 30+ times by then, but I'll check it carefully for this sort of wear first. The Okefenokee experience is worth the risk. It's now my favorite place on Earth. I hope it'll last longer, but if I get two years (and a hundred+ uses) out of the x500 without serious fatigue issues, I'll be happy enough. If I need to repair leaks in the meantime, that's fine. I have another inflatable (Advanced Elements AF Sport, not a drop stitch) and haven't had problems folding it either, but I don't expect these things to last forever. I'm very happy with the x500 at this point, but my next kayak will be a modular hard shell like the Pakayak or Mercury GTX. I almost bought one instead of the x500, but I decided to try a drop stitch, and I don't regret it ... yet. The x500 is a beautiful boat and gets many compliments. I only fold the kayak to transport it. After each use, I inflate it to 5 psi, clean it, and hang it on the wall of my garage. Looks cool and makes a nice place to store stuff. I was at the ocean last weekend and had the boat in my car for several days, so I cleaned it more thoroughly than usual when back home to remove sand and salt water. In general, things last longer with extraordinary care. I don't use the backpack much either since I can carry the boat and store it in the back of my hatchback easily enough without the backpack, but it's nice to have. This fatigue issue may be an Achilles heel finally, but I'm nonetheless very impressed by the design of x500. Also, I don't fold the boat completely in half along its length so the valves on top lie flat rather than on their sides. This way, it packs a little flatter (though also wider), and I'm not folding it along the seam in the center of the bottom where you seem to have your worst fatigue issues.

The v2 version is better, i have one and no problems

Thank you SO much! I was just about to buy one second-hand (used), but I have now decided to buy a SOLID Kayak. Thanks again my friend....:)

I have had one for over two years and have not had this problem. Also, I'm a member of the X500 facebook group and have never heard of this problem. I think you have been unlucky, However, the customer service is so great at Decathlon if you had gotten in touch with them straight away they would have sent you a new Kayak No questions asked. Also these seem to look like the Version 1 and Decathlon don't sell them anymore, they now only sell the V2 But I could be wrong hard to tell from the video. Either way sorry you had a bad experience

Thank you for sharing. I already thought I should have bought one instead of a Nautiraid 405 cross. But now I think I'm better off with the Nautiraid and my AE1007 is 10 years old, well used, always stored in the bag, not one patch on the hull, only the orange deck colour faded.

You are right to point out how fragile the pvc of the X500 is. Insted of throwing the kayaks away, could you not put a large pvc patch right across the floor, glued down with a 2 pack adhesive?

use tubeless mtb tire fluid. this tip saved my itiwit 500 ;-)

Sorry to hear. While issues you bring up are serious, i have not seen any similar complaints from others. But maybe it is true .. there is now a v2

It IS mentioned in the X500 manual that something like (not owning a X500 anymore so I need to rely on my memory) in order to extend life it is advised to not fold and store. I really had to laugh when I read that as it kind of defeats all purposes.

I haven't seen others post similar complaints..that doesn't mean that you criticisms are not true; LESSON for me is to avoid folding when storing.

Thanks for sharing! I have my itiwit x500 inflatable all the time, of course I will travel with them sometimes. Mine are not that flat when I fold them, how do you do to get them so flat in the bag? From which year is yours x500?

Thank you for sharing. When both kayaks have the same problem, the problem is most likely the same, material fatigue. Is there any other possible cause of the leak? For example, an animal (rat, cat, dog, etc.) or bug chewed the kayak, or did it cause a puncture during storage and transportation?

Thank you very much, nice to know. It's V1?

Don't store in bag,only keep in bag for transport...I know it is inconvenient especially if you like in apartment

You seem to be two hefty men. I'm a 5ft1" very strong woman but I don't use my strength to crush my ITIWIT. So far no leaks. Just as a point of reference mine only just fits in the bag with pump and seat fitted alongside. I've bought a trolley so baggage is separate. It works well. Of course I wouldn't climb a mountain with all that baggage, My back is too small.

Okay but what did you really do with these kayaks?