First Kayak Recommendations?

[flyrodman]

I am in the market for a kayak and wanted a few recommendations. I am looking for a kayak that is relatively small (10-12 feet), has a good amount of storage, ability to add rod holders and accessory mounts and is $500 or below. The Old Town Vapor 10 Angler on sale at Academy for $399 and the Emotion Stealth Angler look like good choices for the price. What do you think? Thanks!

[Wayne SW/MO]

There are many choices, but I would avoid the angler models. More often then not you can add any rod holders, etc yourself cheaper and put them where you think they should be.

[UnCivE]

There are many choices, but I would avoid the angler models. More often then not you can add any rod holders, etc yourself cheaper and put them where you think they should be.

This is perfectly sound advice, and will likely save you some money. I paddle a Bass Pro Ascend kayak that's 12 ft, and they have similar models for under 500 that I can heartily recommend. I'd also recommend seeing if you can lift the thing by yourself before you go get it wet and try to carry it anywhere... speaking from experience of course..

As to your two choices there, I don't have any first hand experience in those models so I'll not be much help there, I'm afraid.

[Jack Jones]

Flyrod, I have both a sit in kayak and a solo canoe. My advice.....try a solo canoe before buying a Kayak. I found an Old Town Pack used and its got tons of space, is lighter, and works well for fishing. If you are intent on a kayak, I would steer away from the sit in ones. Mine was my first paddlecraft, and although it got me out on the water, I found it bulky to deal with and a pain to get in and out of. Admittedly the pack is a little more expensive, but they also make the Discovery 119 that I've seen around for about $500.

[Stoneroller]

it used to be that companies just took a hull they already made, put a couple of flush mount rod holders on it and called it an 'angler' model. Those days are long gone. The quality manufacturers have fishing specific kayaks now that have the hull design and features that are not only helpful but long needed for kayak anglers. boats steer, track, haul, carry, and fish better now than the original 'angler' models did.

a quality kayak for less than $500 is going to be tough. Yes, there are kayaks under $500, but I would be extremely wary of their quality and they value that you get. There is a reason the vast majority of quality kayaks are in the $600-1000 range. Good materials and design aren't cheap. A cheap kayak is going to wear out faster, be less stable, probably impossible to reboard while in the water, have very little storage space/weight capacity, and in the long run usually ends up being a poor buy as you quickly 'outgrow' it.

consider buying a blemished kayak or maybe one on sale. hook1.com and austinkayak.com both frequently have great deals. ack can't be beat for customer service! and you get expertise, which you absolutely do not get when you buy from a chain store.

[flyrodman]

it used to be that companies just took a hull they already made, put a couple of flush mount rod holders on it and called it an 'angler' model. Those days are long gone. The quality manufacturers have fishing specific kayaks now that have the hull design and features that are not only helpful but long needed for kayak anglers. boats steer, track, haul, carry, and fish better now than the original 'angler' models did.

a quality kayak for less than $500 is going to be tough. Yes, there are kayaks under $500, but I would be extremely wary of their quality and they value that you get. There is a reason the vast majority of quality kayaks are in the $600-1000 range. Good materials and design aren't cheap. A cheap kayak is going to wear out faster, be less stable, probably impossible to reboard while in the water, have very little storage space/weight capacity, and in the long run usually ends up being a poor buy as you quickly 'outgrow' it.

consider buying a blemished kayak or maybe one on sale. hook1.com and austinkayak.com both frequently have great deals. ack can't be beat for customer service! and you get expertise, which you absolutely do not get when you buy from a chain store.

Thanks for the advice. On Austin Kayak, do the blem models just have dings and scrapes or is there something seriously wrong with them? The deals there are great, the only downside is the shipping costs.

Tight Lines!

~Luke

[UnCivE]

I'm almost certain that ACK blems are 100 percent functional unless states otherwise.

[UnCivE]

If your budget has any room in it, the Wilderness Systems Ride 115 and 135 are both excellent fishing kayaks.

[Wayne SW/MO]

I've bought 2 kayaks from Appomattox canoe in VA. They have excellent prices and sales and I believe the still ship for $50, which is offset for the most part by sales tax savings.

Here is the web site.

http://www.paddleva.com/

[ollie]

I would second Waynes suggestion about looking into Appomattox Canoe. Good company to do business with.