Hand bilge pump

[Kayak_ben]

Hello, new around here and relatively new to sea kayaking, I'm looking to upgrade my bilge pump, any recommendations as to which is best? Looking for one to move large amounts fast and with a metal shaft as the one I currently have is plastic

[pathbrae]

Not a lot of difference between the hand pumps - although they do differ massively in price!
I've had both metal and plastic shaft versions - metal corrodes (eventually) and plastic breaks / bends (eventually) so now I just replace mine with the cheapest I can find, knowing it won't last long.
A cheap plastic baler is another option - and can be used with one hand while a pump usually needs two. The baler can also be used for building sand castles or digging holes for "other things" which might occasionally need a hole to be dug.......

[richb250]

My experience has been a bit different - we own two bilge pumps and the difference in performance is substantial. The image below (taken, coincidentally by someone else) shows both:

The middle pump takes several pumps to prime and seems to move water slowly. The bottom pump starts moving water immediately and the flow rate is much greater - I'd recommend it. However, there's a review: http://kayakdave.com/2012/10/22/harmony ... mp-review/ which goes into more detail on its pros and cons. And the site that the image came from: http://www.sherrikayaks.com/2010/08/04/ ... le-floats/ rates a few options.

[pathbrae]

The harmony pump might not be big enough to clear your cockpit in a sea kayak - especially as you would rarely have the pump completely upright.
Have a look on some of the chandlery web-sites - they often sell a bilge pump with an extension hose which can be used on either end, either to clear the cockpit rim or to poke down a spraydeck to pump - but remember - you will need two hands to use one......

[MikeB]

I've had the earlier version of the Kajak Sport hand pump for about 15 years. It has a metal shaft and has worked well for me.

Hard to find in UK but worth trying the various KS dealers and if all else fails I've found KS will supply direct although you do need to pay in euros. The last time I did this my bank wanted to charge a ridiculous fee for the privilege of allowing me to spend my money, so I acquired cash and posted it.

Some of the budget / cheaper brands readily available in UK are less than wonderful. One such uses an aluminium rivet to secure the handle. This, inevitably, will have corroded just at the time you need the pump for real. So worth either not buying, or checking frequently.

[Irish Sea]

I've been using a pump made by Scotty for a couple of years now and the difference in ease of operation between this one and the cheapo all plastic pump I had before is very noticable. The Scotty pump uses a stainless steel rod and can be taken appart to clean and replace the seal if needed. They are not cheap but well worth it imho.

http://www.scotty.com/boating-supplies- ... /pumps.htm