I am looking into buying a kayak to fish out of. The problem is they’re so many different brands to choose from. Google can only get you so far so I thought I’d ask some experienced fishermen. I’m looking to spend around a thousand dollars for a kayak. I’m a pretty heavy guy at around 270 pounds so need a kayak that will hold my head above water. I was also wondering if they make kayaks you can stand up in? Thanks for any info.
For your size, a wilderness systems ride 135 might be a good choice. Go see the guys at Timout Sports. You can demo different yaks
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
Thanks Freedom. I checked out Timeout sports and have it narrowed down to the Atak140 and the Big Rig. I would appreciate any ■■■■■■■■ from anyone who owns one of these or experience with one of these models.
Agree on the Ride 135!
I have a buddy who fishes from the Big Rig - he enjoys it. It paddles good for it’s size. The Ride 135 is a excellent kayak for big guys.
-Lewis
http://www.lowcountrykayakanglers.com
http://www.facebook.com/groups/lowcountrykayakanglers/
Paddle, paddle, paddle before you make any decisions
All are not equal – storage, stability and especially weight along with weight capacity
We do many On The water demos
Capt Dave
www.facebook.com/FishingKayaksSC
SC MALIBU KAYAK DEALER
I demo’d the ATAK, Ride 135, Native Slayer 14, and Coosa Hd. I’m a big guy, like you. None had water in the floor while I was testing. If I had the budget, i would have the ATAK. I ended up picking up an Old Town Predator while they were on sale for $1179 to have enough cash left over to rig it. I fish rocky rivers, open lakes in the midlands and inshore in Charleston. i needed a do-it-all boat and I like the predator design and 13ft length. Only thing is, when I stand and moved fwd on the boat, i get an inch or so of water coming in the front scuppers onto the deck. When sitting, water is close to the deck in the scupper, but not flowing onto the deck.
One thing to remember is warranty- Jackson is 1 yr, Wildy and Old Town is lifetime to the original buyer.
Time out is a great store and Dave is the best. if I had bought a wildy or jackson, it would have been from timeout.
If people concentrated on the really important things in life, there’d be a shortage of fishing poles. ~Doug Larson
'88 Henry 'O Challenger
Malibu X-13
WS Pamlico 120 Angler
Thanks guys. I appreciate the input.
The ATAK 140 would be a really good fit. I was fortunate enough to be part of the design and test team on that model. A lot of thought went into the design to make it a good paddling user friendly boat.
I’d still suggest paddle everything you possibly can before you buy. I think that Time Out applies rent toward purchase with some simple rules. Talk to Dave.
Boat drinks, Waitress I need 2 more boat drinks!
I’m not a big guy, but I can attest to the quality and stability of the Ride kayaks. I have a Ride 115 and I stand and fish 90% of the time, the other 10% of the time is usually because I’m paddling. I’ve had mine over 3 years now and taken it through rivers, lakes, even a few trips to the salt marsh in Gulf Shores and around Hilton Head where I’ll be returning to tomorrow morning for 5 days of hopefully sunrise to sunset kayak fishing. I’ve landed everything from bluegill to 20 pound Striped Bass as well as my PB redfish last Fall out around HH, it was just shy of 30 inches. It’s super stable and will get you anywhere you need to go without having spend almost 2k on the ATAK or other really expensive models. I’d suggest getting a good quality, but less expensive than the best, kayak to start out. Paddle as many as you can before you pick, everyone is comfortable in different kayaks. Aside from the Ride series, the FeelFree Lure kayaks are great and have much more comfortable seating as well as stability. Jackson makes some great fishing kayaks for just over 1k with great seating and stability.
I will say, the Jackson Kilroy DT is probably going to be my upgrade. It’s pricey, but I want a tandem to take my wife along sometimes or a buddy. It has tons of room when going solo for duck decoys and I do plan to kill some ducks out of it.
I had a Ride 135 and a Tarpon 140 a few years back and they were great yaks. I bought the Ride after only trying a couple others. After boat fishing for a couple years, I am back in yaks with a 12’ Ocean Kayak and a 14’ tandem FeelFree Corona. While these yaks are fishable for my purposes, neither is the joy that the Wilderness yaks were. If you try a Ride, you will be hard pressed to find a more enjoyable yak to fish and paddle out of.
BC
Mt P, SC
Wag more. Bark less.