User Panel
User Panel
User Panel
|
Posted: 9/3/2013 8:40:40 AM EDT
And my wife still loves me!! (Just called to check, lol.)
 I just ordered my first kayak, an Ocean Kayak Trident 13 Angler in Urban Camo (from Austin Kayak). Got a Lowrance X-4 Pro coming with it also. I've spent the last week and a half obsessing over this crap, reading everything I can find, asking questions on forums and watching YouTube videos. I'm friggin' tired! The decision came down to a few contenders: Trident 13, Wilderness Systems Tarpon 140/120 and Native Manta Ray 12/14. I waited a few hours too long (I think a Labor Day sale was on) and the price went up on the Tarpon 140, then the Tarpon 120 was out of stock, and decided the Manta Ray didn't have that much access and storage (near seat) for crap. Trident 13 was the winner, and is what I had originally set out to get until I started trying to educate myself.  Will post pics when I can. I have from this weekend through the following weekend off- planning to be on the lake as much as possible! |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/3/2013 12:48:54 PM EDT
[#1]
That is a great kayak! I had a "Scrambler" from Ocean Kayaks when I lived on the California coast and I loved it. Had we stayed in California, I was planning on getting one of the longer "Trident" models as they could carry more gear......
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/3/2013 1:01:06 PM EDT
[#2]
Quote HistoryQuoted: That is a great kayak! I had a "Scrambler" from Ocean Kayaks when I lived on the California coast and I loved it. Had we stayed in California, I was planning on getting one of the longer "Trident" models as they could carry more gear......  |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/3/2013 1:45:48 PM EDT
[#3]
Ah bummer. They called and said the Urban Camo model won't be ready till the 10th, even though it showed in stock on the website.
 Going with the Sand color, which I was going to get in a different model anyway. Still happy, and she threw in a few scupper plugs due to the issue. 
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/4/2013 1:34:44 PM EDT
[#4]
I carried an ice chest, fishing gear, and an ammo can packed with survival gear on my kayak. I the longer boats do track better, so I was looking at a 13 or 15 foot kayaks. As I did a lot of boating in SF bay, the Pacific ocean and on the many lakes in the area, my boat was international orange, so it would be easy to spot if something went wrong.....fortunately I never had any problems out on the water, but I always made it a point to have another kayak buddy with me when I went out....
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/4/2013 7:12:33 PM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I carried an ice chest, fishing gear, and an ammo can packed with survival gear on my kayak. I the longer boats do track better, so I was looking at a 13 or 15 foot kayaks. As I did a lot of boating in SF bay, the Pacific ocean and on the many lakes in the area, my boat was international orange, so it would be easy to spot if something went wrong.....fortunately I never had any problems out on the water, but I always made it a point to have another kayak buddy with me when I went out.... Even though I went with a toned down color of boat, I went with a brighter color vest. I've got a whistle; was thinking about picking up a flare as well. Good idea? I went to Wally World today and bought a bunch of stuff to rig it up when it shows tomorrow. Tips/tricks are always appreciated!
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/4/2013 7:48:25 PM EDT
[#6]
 |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/4/2013 10:25:51 PM EDT
[#7]
Quote HistoryHahaha, saw that one the other day! I'm thankful to be staying in lakes!! |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/5/2013 12:32:02 PM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
{SNIP} I wish I knew someone around here that was into kayak fishing. I'd rather go out with someone, especially as a beginner. Maybe I'll get lucky and meet some people out on the lake. Even though I went with a toned down color of boat, I went with a brighter color vest. I've got a whistle; was thinking about picking up a flare as well. Good idea? I went to Wally World today and bought a bunch of stuff to rig it up when it shows tomorrow. Tips/tricks are always appreciated! Ha ha ha......I reserved my fishing trips for lakes as well because of exactly that! The coastline in the area that I lived was called the "Red Triangle" for a reason......It was a breeding ground for Great Whites! As for my survival kit, I carried a whistle and a Spyderco serrated folder clipped to my vest along with one of those flashing beacon lights. I also used a paddle cord to keep the paddle attached to the boat. In the plastic ammo box, I carried a first aid kit, flashlight, canteen of H2o, space blanket, waterproof matches, BBQ fire starters, a length of paracord, paddle floats, signal mirror, and a fixed blade diving knife. Flares sound like a great addition to the kit! |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/5/2013 12:53:33 PM EDT
[#9]
I added two cane cushions(rubber thingy on bottom of canes..lol) to mine. One bow and stern. When fishing or kayaking at night I insert chemlights or battery operated chemstyle light so damn boats dont run me over. Also 2 rod holders.
Out of all the boat toys out there, the kayak has been my favorite Good luck with it and enjoy  |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/5/2013 5:02:41 PM EDT
[#10]
Good tips fellas! I have several of those things already. Just need to pick up a couple other pieces and should be good to go.
BTW, she's here!!! Just picked it up from the Estes Express location a couple of hours ago. I probably looked like a bumbling buffoon trying to get it all strapped down to the truck, but I got it done pretty much on my own. Obviously, since it will probably be just me I did want to do it all by myself. Wife helped a bit getting the Malone inflate-a-rack thingy squared away. I need to figure out how to tie the front down. The backside is tied securely with ratchet straps through the scupper holes. May end up doing something similar for the front. Oh, I guess I need to get use to saying "bow" and "stern." Will post more photos as I progress with the rigging. I'm taking a break right now... it's friggin't hot and I just had to remove the truck's bed lid. What a PITA that was.   |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/5/2013 5:18:50 PM EDT
[#11]
Congrats. When I used to roof carry I had these strap loops connected to like a large garden hose section. It goes in the engine compartment, trunk, whatever and gives you a tie-down point. Then I'd run a line from the bow handle to the loop.
Now I trailer it.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/5/2013 11:21:06 PM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Congrats. When I used to roof carry I had these strap loops connected to like a large garden hose section. It goes in the engine compartment, trunk, whatever and gives you a tie-down point. Then I'd run a line from the bow handle to the loop. Now I trailer it. I don't have a hitch at the moment, but that's not a huge hurdle. Actually, I've looked at the Harbor Freight trailers that someone in another kayak thread mentioned. I think I'll try that route when I get the money. Will probably be a while...
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/6/2013 7:34:56 AM EDT
[#13]
Mighta been mine. I have the HF folding trailer. Love it.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/6/2013 9:25:26 AM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Mighta been mine. I have the HF folding trailer. Love it.  Quick question and photo for you guys. I'm gonna post it in Team as well for more views, but thought you fellas may have wired up a fish finder before. So, I've got this transducer mounting kit which has this little holder for 8 AA batteries. The instructions with it were somewhat weak, as is my electrical wiring knowledge. I think the layout I have is correct, but the fuse holder has me thrown off because it was not in the instructions. Do you know if the wire connectors (little gel-filled kind) can accept the larger wire from the fuse holder AND the smaller wires from the batteries/transducer at the same time?   |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/7/2013 11:17:09 AM EDT
[#15]
When I had my kayak, I used a set of Yakima "Hully rollers" on my crossbars. It made loading and unloading the boat much easier (Especially for one person). I would strap the kayak to the crossbars and also to the front and rear bumpers.
Hully Rollers Another piece of equipment that I found mighty handy was a folding Kayak "Roller Cart".....They are made of aluminum and had large inflatable tires that made traveling over rough terrain really easy. These make getting your boat from the truck to the water and back a piece of cake. I don't recall who made mine, but it looked like this one: Roller Cart |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/7/2013 11:27:07 AM EDT
[#16]
Quote HistoryQuoted: When I had my kayak, I used a set of Yakima "Hully rollers" on my crossbars. It made loading and unloading the boat much easier (Especially for one person). I would strap the kayak to the crossbars and also to the front and rear bumpers. Hully Rollers Another piece of equipment that I found mighty handy was a folding Kayak "Roller Cart".....They are made of aluminum and had large inflatable tires that made traveling over rough terrain really easy. These make getting your boat from the truck to the water and back a piece of cake. I don't recall who made mine, but it looked like this one: Roller Cart I bought a Malone Handirack (inflatable) and it seemed to work great. It has some really good reviews, including one guy who did 600+ miles with it. Loading it wasn't too difficult though. I lifted the bow up on to the tailgate, then went to the stern and pushed it up on to the roof. I rotated it upside down and slid it into position. Pretty easy, really. Learned a couple of things as well. I need to thread the straps through the Handirack BEFORE putting the yak up there, and I need to be careful of the boat's footrests. I knocked them both out during loading. As for the cart, I'd LOVE one of those. This thing is a good 70 lbs; I can lift it and move it, but it's not fun. I thought splurging on one of those carts might be too much for the wife's sanity. I'm hoping I'll be able to unload pretty close to water though. I Google Mapped a bunch of boat ramp areas and it looks like I can unload near the shore and move my truck to the nearby lot. I did see a video on YouTube of a guy that made a slick little cart from PVC and lawn mower wheels. The PVC slid through the scupper holes and then he cotter pinned them so they wouldn't hop out. Really nice setup. Might try something like that.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/8/2013 10:00:27 AM EDT
[#17]
Well, we made the ~90 mile trip (each way) yesterday to the inlaw's property! It was a great day, pretty warm (upper 90s) and a light breeze.
The kayak rode pretty well up on the roof. I stopped a few times to check the security of the rack and tie downs, and made adjustments where needed. The two straps that come with the Handirack are not the greatest- the buckles allow a bit of slippage. I had the bow and stern tied down through scuppers (actually, ALL tie down points were through scuppers) and it was pretty darn secure. I am going to replace one of the Handirack straps (front) with another good ratchet strap. I loaded and unloaded it all by myself twice yesterday, both at home and at the pond. All went smoothly. My wife got video of the maiden launch and voyage of the USS Failboat, but I'm not gonna post it here. OpSec. I never turtled it! Well, I should say I never accidentally did so. I did roll it twice, intentionally, to practice flipping it back over and re-entering. Went smoothly and not that difficult, though I could tell it was a little harder the second time as I'd just used a bit of "umpf" on the first one.I paddled around for a while and gave rides to our two kids (7 & 4) at separate times, and they had PFDs on of course! Then I let my wife take a spin (no pics, she'd shoot me) as well as my FIL. All had a good time and I think we've all decided we want to get one or two "baby" kayaks to keep out there all the time! Once the rides, etc. were complete, I came back in for the fish finder. I hooked it up and went around the pond for a while looking at depth and structure. The deepest we found was only 12' or so, which my FIL is skeptic of- he suspected it to be around 20' in the middle when they did some digging yeeeeears ago. I couldn't tell if I was seeing fish on the FF or not. I kept reading where fish were shown as "bows," or boomerang looking things. I saw several "blobs" and "blips," but thought they may be floating muck and crap. I tried out my anchor (I don't have a trolley) and that worked well. Once all that testing was complete I took the poles out and practiced rigging them with my Planos stored below. Threw a couple lures and set up a bobber ass'y for bluegill. The only thing I caught was a fluke (it was mid-afternoon during most of this, afterall); a little 6" largemouth hit the worm while I was reeling it in, haha. As the sun was getting lower on the horizon I put the kayak back on the truck and broke out the dove slaying gear. The numbers were pretty decent, but I was rusty. I downed about 9, found 6.  I stopped shooting once I realized I was having horrible luck finding them. The grass was TALL this year, thigh high in areas. We're gonna cook those guys up today most likely.Moments before the first launch. Was going to christen it with a Shinerbock, but that would be a waste!   |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/8/2013 10:49:09 AM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I am going to replace one of the Handirack straps (front) with another good ratchet strap. Quote HistoryQuoted:
I am going to replace one of the Handirack straps (front) with another good ratchet strap. I used to use ratchet straps. The guy in town that's a master of plastic welding/kayak repair suggested not to use them. He said he's seen too many repair jobs from people cranking down on the ratchets. Now I only use the non-ratcheting straps. I haven't had any problems and they seem very secure. Just some food for thought. Moments before the first launch. Was going to christen it with a Shinerbock, but that would be a waste! Glad you came to your senses. If it weren't before 11 I'd probably go pull a Shiner from the fridge to congratulate you. 
Sounds like y'all had a fine day. |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/8/2013 12:23:04 PM EDT
[#19]
That is a great looking boat and it looks like you had a good time! Our kids loved kayak rides too. We ended up getting a Perception two person kayak which worked perfect for taking the youngsters for rides at the lakes. One word of warning though, don't ever take your spouse with you in a double kayak.......The lovely bride and I took a kayak trip on a double boat when we were in Alaska and after that, I sold our two person kayak...... They call them "Divorce boats" for a reason. I am not sure exactly what happens when they sit in the front seat, but they tend to lose all sense of coordination and direction. I would never recommend anyone getting a two person boat unless they were only going to use it for paddling little ones around.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/8/2013 1:19:45 PM EDT
[#20]
Quote HistoryQuoted: That is a great looking boat and it looks like you had a good time! Our kids loved kayak rides too. We ended up getting a Perception two person kayak which worked perfect for taking the youngsters for rides at the lakes. One word of warning though, don't ever take your spouse with you in a double kayak.......The lovely bride and I took a kayak trip on a double boat when we were in Alaska and after that, I sold our two person kayak...... They call them "Divorce boats" for a reason. I am not sure exactly what happens when they sit in the front seat, but they tend to lose all sense of coordination and direction. I would never recommend anyone getting a two person boat unless they were only going to use it for paddling little ones around. |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/8/2013 1:25:10 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I used to use ratchet straps. The guy in town that's a master of plastic welding/kayak repair suggested not to use them. He said he's seen too many repair jobs from people cranking down on the ratchets. Now I only use the non-ratcheting straps. I haven't had any problems and they seem very secure. Just some food for thought. Glad you came to your senses. If it weren't before 11 I'd probably go pull a Shiner from the fridge to congratulate you. Sounds like y'all had a fine day. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: I am going to replace one of the Handirack straps (front) with another good ratchet strap. I used to use ratchet straps. The guy in town that's a master of plastic welding/kayak repair suggested not to use them. He said he's seen too many repair jobs from people cranking down on the ratchets. Now I only use the non-ratcheting straps. I haven't had any problems and they seem very secure. Just some food for thought. Moments before the first launch. Was going to christen it with a Shinerbock, but that would be a waste! Glad you came to your senses. If it weren't before 11 I'd probably go pull a Shiner from the fridge to congratulate you. Sounds like y'all had a fine day. |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/9/2013 8:05:23 PM EDT
[#22]
Got it out on El Dorado lake today for about 5 hours or so and had a blast! The forecast last night showed winds gusting to ~26 kts and it was every bit of that as I was heading back in. I'm a bit thick headed and didn't plan it out too well... I ended up paddling back into the wind. AND. IT. SUCKED.
Never rolled it though!!Still trying to get used to my fish finder (Lowrance X-4 Pro). The manual shows "fish arches" and talks about them a lot. I never saw a friggin' arch, just blobs and specs. A lot of the stuff I saw looked like it would be fish, but who knows. I could pick out some bait school and structure on the bottom. Pretty cool, really! It was so windy that my anchor wouldn't hold. I ended up cutting some rope, tying loops on the ends and throwing it around random stumps/branches sticking out of the water. Worked well! At one point (under the bridge in the second picture) I saw, what looked to be, quite a bit of fish. Dropped anchor and got said anchor hella stuck. Whoever invented that cool little zip-tie method of tying an anchor IS A GENIUS!! I pulled hard enough that I broke the tie and the anchor came right up. Even though I got shut out on fishing (couple of damned bait thieves down there) it was still a great day. I now know I can paddle through some larger waves and how my gear's working out. Hope to head back out in a couple of days! Back on shore. Looks rather calm in this little cove by the ramp, but you can see some white caps out there if you look closely.  Lunch time break since I found a somewhat sheltered spot for the anchor to hold:   |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/9/2013 9:49:42 PM EDT
[#23]
At least you got her wet.
So what's this zip tie method you reference? Keep in mind I'm usually in water 4' or less.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/9/2013 10:32:31 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted: At least you got her wet. So what's this zip tie method you reference? Keep in mind I'm usually in water 4' or less. Anyway, with these folding, galvanized anchors, you tie a knot through the bottom hole. Then run the rope from the bottom up along the shaft, but NOT through the top eye. Instead, take a zip-tie and tie the rope to the eye opening. Remember, not thru or it won't work. The idea is that if it gets stuck, pulling hard will break the tie, which makes the bottom knot the only point of force. You'll then be pulling the anchor up from the bottom letting the claws all fold inward. GENIUS, I say. GENIUS!!! Here's a link to a picture I found. They're using a chain, but same idea. You can see the zip-tie pictured. |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/9/2013 10:40:28 PM EDT
[#25]
Very interesting indeed. Thanks. I'll have to remember that.
Usually I just use a stakeout pole. |
|
|
|
Posted: 9/9/2013 10:44:26 PM EDT
[#26]
Gonna suck when that zip tie breaks .
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/10/2013 7:41:43 AM EDT
[#27]
Um, that's the point. It's by design.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/10/2013 10:12:48 AM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Um, that's the point. It's by design. I'm planning on getting a stakeout pole at some point as well for shallower waters. Most of what I was in yesterday was ~20+ feet. That lake reaches 60' in areas evidently.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/10/2013 4:15:57 PM EDT
[#29]
In order to see well-defined arches on the fishfinder, either you or the fish need to be moving.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/20/2013 3:28:43 PM EDT
[#30]
Damn, that's actually the kayak I'm currently looking at, that or the Wilderness 115 or 135. Just happened to run across this thread.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/22/2013 11:01:40 PM EDT
[#31]
Let me know if you have any questions about it. I didn't think weight would be a huge issue, but with the Trident being the lightest of all of those and now feeling how heavy it actually is, I'm GLAD I chose it! Most of those yaks are way off on numbers according to most people. The Ride 135 looks to be a friggin' Dreadnaught in the weight class, lol.
I found this forum and they've got an "actual weights" table of certain models. http://www.kayakfishingstuff.com/community/showthread.php?t=84848&highlight=kayak+weight I can move the Trident around alright, and it's not too bad to carry with the handles. I can get it up on the roof of my truck easily, but I don't need to worry about messing up the paint of the truck because it's already in horrible shape. If it's just YOU loading and you're trying to take care of your car, you may want to consider a lighter yak. I love my Trident though. I've had it out 5-6 times now and it's really enjoyable. The Mod Pod is great. I don't store my poles in there as I just fish lakes, but I keep a plastic tub in there that holds 5 Planos, some line and other stuff. I can sit side-saddle easily and have stood up in it, though it feels a bit tippy...of course, I'm a noob so after a bit of practice it'd be fine I'm sure. It's also pretty darn quick and very easy to paddle. My butt gets a little sore after ~5 hrs, but shoot, that's 5 hrs in a yak! I need some new scupper plugs. The plugs they sent me, which nice, let a bit of water pass through and my butt gets wet. Speaking of scuppers, the recessed transducer-shaped scupper is nice if you're putting a fishfinder on! If you are I can take some pics of how I did it. All for now, gotta get to bed.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 9/23/2013 9:35:54 PM EDT
[#32]
I got a camo 13 trident a couple months ago. I love it and just got a trailer last week.
My Wife and I are going to the keys next month and taking them with us. My Wife has a Precision Sport Pescador 12. Here is a little video of me paddling through some mangroves down in Cape Coral. |
|
|
|
Posted: 3/2/2014 5:51:21 PM EDT
[#33]
My Trident 11 angler
|
|
|
|
Posted: 3/12/2014 9:38:13 PM EDT
[#34]
I got a yak today, my first one
I also picked up a Lowrance Elite-4x HDI to go with it.
My fist outing, tied up at the marina for a few beers
|
|
|
|
Posted: 4/3/2014 10:09:15 PM EDT
[#35]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I got a yak today, my first one I also picked up a Lowrance Elite-4x HDI to go with it.http://i.imgur.com/XRm9gxX.jpg?1 My fist outing, tied up at the marina for a few beers http://i.imgur.com/34lTspB.jpg?2 Can't wait to get the yak out again!
|
|
|
|
Posted: 4/7/2014 10:03:57 PM EDT
[#36]
OP, I'm getting ready to do the same on an Ascend (bass pro line) 10ft SOT. I had considered a decked out fishing setup, but im going for bare bones and I'll customize as needed. Not every day will be a day fishing. Their new SOT 128 is a beast.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 4/13/2014 9:29:52 PM EDT
[#37]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
OP, I'm getting ready to do the same on an Ascend (bass pro line) 10ft SOT. I had considered a decked out fishing setup, but im going for bare bones and I'll customize as needed. Not every day will be a day fishing. Their new SOT 128 is a beast. Let us know how it works out. Have my eye on the FS10 or FS12 |
|
|
|
Posted: 4/14/2014 10:49:03 PM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Let us know how it works out. Have my eye on the FS10 or FS12 Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: OP, I'm getting ready to do the same on an Ascend (bass pro line) 10ft SOT. I had considered a decked out fishing setup, but im going for bare bones and I'll customize as needed. Not every day will be a day fishing. Their new SOT 128 is a beast. Let us know how it works out. Have my eye on the FS10 or FS12 Will have mine on the water either wednesday or friday. gonna see what i need to add to it before i take off for a 3-4 day vacation with it. |
|
|
|
Posted: 5/10/2014 10:08:19 PM EDT
[#39]
16ft Native Watercraft. Don't use it much anymore since i purchased a boat.
|
|
|
Win a FREE Membership!
Sign up for the ARFCOM weekly newsletter and be entered to win a free ARFCOM membership. One new winner* is announced every week!
You will receive an email every Friday morning featuring the latest chatter from the hottest topics, breaking news surrounding legislation, as well as exclusive deals only available to ARFCOM email subscribers.
AR15.COM is the world's largest firearm community and is a gathering place for firearm enthusiasts of all types.
From hunters and military members, to competition shooters and general firearm enthusiasts, we welcome anyone who values and respects the way of the firearm.
Subscribe to our monthly Newsletter to receive firearm news, product discounts from your favorite Industry Partners, and more.
Copyright © 1996-2024 AR15.COM LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Any use of this content without express written consent is prohibited.
AR15.Com reserves the right to overwrite or replace any affiliate, commercial, or monetizable links, posted by users, with our own.
