Coleman 4-Person Colossus Inflatable Boat with Oars Reviews

• Nice Raft

  
  By AVCW0CSPUCJVJ on 2005-08-12
  This 'four person boat' is big enough to fit two people [or 4 if everybody sits on the sides]. There is a nice line that runs around the boat, as well as oar locks on the sides and oar holders. The plastic is heavier than your typical inflatable raft and is advertisides as puncture resistant. The interior measures about 65'' in length, so a little room to move around. The paddles are not too short and assemble nicely. The boat can be inflated by mouth or using any coleman quickpump. It is easilt inflated by mouth due to the double locking valves which let air pass freely without a squeeze like on similar inflatables. Great for the ocean, lakes, ponds, any water!!
  
  

• raft so-so, oars a bust

  
  By A2GRT5D1SESUGN on 2006-07-28
  The raft is fine for two adults; not as big as you might think given the weight capacity. On our first use, one of the oars broke and is unuseable. We will be purchasing better oars.
  
  

• Just for floating.

  
  By A1DS25F1P5VBUE on 2008-06-17
  This is a great boat at a great price. (I paid $50 directly from Amazon) I intended to row down a local river for a few hours and drink some brewsky with my lady. But "rowing" is cumbersome in this boat. I am 6'4" (she's 5'8") and there was just enough comfortable space for the two of us, two backpacks, and her two-year old - it was a great afternoon. The inflatable bar in the middle was somewhat annoying but you can use it as a perch if you so desire.
  
  Rowing, with the intent of covering a lot of distance, is not such a great idea in this boat. You have to screw the oars together which means that the range of motion is somewhat compromised with the various parts and how they interact while in the process of rowing. The oars are short as it is, and the boat spins very easily, so it takes quite a bit of correction rowing if you intend to be facing, and moving, in one direction. This will require you to be quite energetic; it is much more annoying than fun.
  
  So we ended up kneeling in the boat, or on the edge, and treating it like a canoe - because we didn't want to go at the speed of the small river we were on. And that's when the fun started - really. We were moving fast! We like canoeing a lot, but this boat fits in the trunk of an Accord with room for the oars (that became paddles!) and all of our stuff, including her munchkin; but my girlfriend wanted her munchkin in the carseat instead.
  
  One more "idea" about the oars: I broke one, without too much exertion, so if you intend to use it like a portable canoe get bigger, sturdier paddles. These are somewhat small for paddling anyway. But they're great if you don't expect much. And paddling will require two people working together, unless you want to spend the day switching sides every other time you stick the paddle in the water.
  
  So if we had two more munchkins, and they were all splashing around within earshot, out on a small lake that doesn't have a lot of larger watercraft, while I was cooking up on the grill, or we just wanted to lazy-float for an afternoon down a river, I would feel like I was getting maximum value - at this price.
  
  You could buy three to four of these, plus some cheap PFDs (get good PFDs if the water is rough - this isn't the time to save cash), and have yourselves a great time with a bunch of like-minded individuals. Like I said this is highly transportable aquatic fun and if you parked a car(s) at the end of a given point on a river and everyone piled into the other car(s) and drove to the beginning point of a river trip you could do it all with very little hassle and not have to strap anything onto your roof.
  
  You'll need to get a pump, too, and the Coleman dual-action pump is an excellent choice - you can use it on your inflatable matress, too.
  
  One more note: we did get a quarter-inch hole on our second use, but nobody else complained about it so I imagine I should have been more careful. We discovered it out on the lake, but because of the multiple chambers we weren't worried about sinking before we got to shore.
  
  

• lasted 2 months! waste of money

  
  By A2M6Z24J0IBI39 on 2008-05-31
  i dont know whether this was just my bad luck, but mine tore in just a month or two. i wanted to get out on the lake and fish, and an anytime inflatable rely sounded great, and easy. so i bought this raft, then 80 bucks, last summer. i probably used it les than ten times. i tried pumping it up once, i herd a leaking sound, but the time i found the leak, the boat blew up and the smal tear became a 3 foot tear. it wasnt my fault of overfilling, cuz the seam didnt tear, it was off the seam, and i didnt pop it, cuz it looked like the material actually just teared, and not punctured. by the way, this stupid boat is too smal for 4 people, and not much room for any other things like tackle. with no warranty, this product is crap, and useles, a waste of my 80 bucks. DONT BUY THIS PRODUCT, AND DONT BUY ANY OTHER JUST BECUZ IT SAYS GUARENTEE, LOOK FOR A WARRENTEE!!
  
  

• Fun on the Water

  
  By A1U0QNEI6XMAK5 on 2007-10-10
  We purchased this 4 person raft for vacation and loved it. We were going on vacation to a place with a lake and wanted something to use to enjoy the lake. It was perfect. It fit into our van without taking up much space. For a packable boat it worked well. It says it is a 4 person boat and I would say it works great for 2 adult or 2 adults with 2 small children. Or one adult and 3 pre teen kids. We also allowed our teenage children to take the boat out on the lake and they were able to row it and handle it just fine.
  
  
• Great buy!
  By A25U8VB9P0ZWJJ on 2008-07-10
  This is a great deal on this boat. I bought ours from the local hardware store about 4 years ago. We do a lot of camping and my 4 kids get a lot of use out of this boat. It was the best $69.00 I have spent on toys for the water. The oars are not that strong but we have only broke one I think. I would pay this price even if it didn't come with the oars. It is very heavy duty although we did get a hole in the bottom, hard to say what it was from but I patched it with some silicone and it has held up just fine. It is very easy to inflate and deflates fast. We use the Coleman electric pump (the same one we use for the air mattress) and it inflates in minutes. I am seriously thinking about buying another one at this price. I hope you find this information helpful.
  
  
• Great Product
  By A13478EU8LBDSJ on 2007-05-25
  Very Happy. Great product for a great price and the paddles are included too!
  
  
• Coleman Inflatable Boat
  By AMXLEF73A2R0B on 2007-10-17
  I received the Coleman Inflatable boat in a very short period of time. The instructions were very clear and understandable. The boat was purchased for a very specific job. I had to replace a filter in a pond behind our home. we use the filter to provide water for irrigating our lawn. The boat provided exactly the transport to carry the filter to the center of the pond and deposit the filter on the bottom of the pond. The task was completed and in the future I will use the boat to keep the alge from collecting around the filter. In the mean time I will use the boat for lounging in the swimming pool.
  
  
• So far so good
  By A1HKYFOKUBO00Z on 2008-06-19
  Arrived on time and in good condition.
  Used it twice and enjoyed it very much. I don't know how this could be a 4 person raft... 2 people fit in it comfortably but I can't see any more people in it unless they are sitting on the outside edge.
  
  
• Good product. However Mis-labeled.
  By A2HM5JV2Q95J9C on 2008-06-26
  I like Coleman products. 90% of my camping or outdoor items are Coleman. I had been thinking of buying this boat for a couple years. It's well made, however it is NOT a 4 person boat. 2 adults can fit comfortably, and 1 child at most. The oars are cheap and small, I may end up replacing them. If you're looking for a boat for 2 people or you and a couple kids, this is great! If you want to fit the whole family ... you might want to look elsewhere.
  
  
• Great deal...
  By A3UFYA147E12TG on 2008-07-16
  Real tough construction. Took this thing to the beach for a week with our four children. It was played with all week..It held up very well to the beating teenagers can dish out..Great item.
  
  
• Very sturdy for the price.
  By A1X4BKH887PA8Z on 2008-08-02
  We just returned from a camping trip on Monarch Lake, CO and used this raft with great success! I would say it's worth every penny. Don't forget to buy PFD's, especially if children are using it.
  
  
  
• nice 2 person boat
  By A3JY8N9D4L2XGY on 2008-08-04
  
  
  This is a very nice boat. It has three inflatable compartments: bottom, inside, and outside. Feels safe. Looks very cute too. My kids love it. It is however very far from 'colossus'. The wings in the back artificially increase its length while shortening internal sitting space. I doubt that 3 ppl can fit sitting inside. Even 2 adults and 1 child is unrealistic. I mean it (I tried it). 1 adult and 1 child sounds optimal. Even with the wings the boat looks tiny. If 4 ppl sit on the sides they will most likely let water inside. There is a bit of false advertisement there, therefore the four stars.
  
  The oars look cheap but out of 8 oars we had NONE broken after a 5-hour trip. The key is to keep them screwed together tightly at all times. We went around and checked from time to time, because they have a tendency to get unscrewed when you paddle.
  
  Overall wonderful boat for the price.
  
  
  
  
• Fun 2 person boat
  By A3LWHOLBP06K55 on 2008-08-05
  Finally got to take the boat out. First of all, ya gonna need bigger oars, secondly we are somewhat small people and don't think we could've squeezed two more people on this boat comfortably. Was on the river and what people pay to rent a canoe, we had bought this for the same. Would like to find someway to sit up a bit higher and to find a protective liner for those really shallow parts of rivers. Great fun and would recommend that pump, it only took less than a minute to inflate but my car tire pump didn't have it aired up in almost 2 hours.
  
  
• review
  By AZS2K4Q0AX1S on 2008-08-09
  Great & inexpensive inflatable raft - use it on the Yaak River with the grand kids for rafting and fishing. It's great that it comes with 4 oars - kids have that keen ability to lose an oar overboard. I purchased this raft without the dual air pump by Coleman. Big mistake. I have since ordered the pump and love it. It sure beats the other pumps I use -hand, foot and electrical.
  
  

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