ApacheGuns515

Wow I'm an idiot.... Hours of researching online and never even thought of that....Centered it up and now all is well. Thanks for the help. This is a classic example of why it's sometimes better to have a second set of fresh eyes look at something that's stumping you lol. Thank You

Hello all, Just purchased my first boat, I've always been a kayak fisherman, and I'm having an issue with the steering. The motor will turn fully to the right but will only turn barely a quarter turn to the left before the steering tube maxes out. I'm not very familiar with boats but I'm relatively mechanically inclined so I measured everything and it seems like my steering drag link is too short. I searched online and everything I came across points to the link being the correct one from the factory so I'm assuming something else is going on. I've tried disconnecting the cable from the transom and the helm and centering everything up but in order to get full play it looks like my steering link arm needs an additional 3 inches of length. But the steering controls and everything are factory from Evinrude. I've read the cable could be the issue but the cable is brand new from the previous owner as well. Any ideas? I've attached pictures to show what I'm talking about. Thanks

Sometimes there really is nothing you can do to save a fish. I'm pretty sure all of us have experienced this at one point in time, it's unfortunately a part of the sport that we all wish we could prevent but we accept as inevitable if we fish long enough. You did the best you could and made a genuine effort to save the fish beyond what many others would have likely done. You should take pride in that and rest easy. One thing I do is when I know that I am strictly fishing catch and release that day I forgo treble hooks and use single hooks only and depending on the species I'll cut the barbs off the single hook as well.

It will depend on a variety of variables such as wind, speed, current, etc. But a 100ah battery for a 45lb trolling motor should get you around 5 hours at a constant running medium speed. 20 hours on low and about 2.5 hours on max speed. This also depends on the type of 100ah battery you are using, lithium vs AGM. Lithium will yield much better results but you are going to pay around 25-40% of the total cost of your entire Sportsman 106 for one of those in the 100ah range. https://www.trollingmotors.net/blogs/selection/86961351-calculating-motor-run-time This link should help you a bit.

A few things you may want to consider here before making a purchase. If you are SURE you will enjoy kayak fishing even having never experienced it before then you may want to think about saving a bit more money and getting the kayak that you actually want. If you want a pedal kayak but want to start off with paddle for financial reasons then I'd at least look at the kayaks that can accept a pedal drive kit later down the road. That will be much cheaper in the long run than trying to buy 2 boats. Almost all of the kayaks that either have pedal drive or can accept a pedal drive kit as an add on are going to cost a little more than $700. In saying that although you are used to a pond boat with a paddle a kayak is still much different than even that. I had a one of those Bass Raider plastic boats that are pretty popular here on this forum for years as well as my fishing kayak. Although my kayak is about 2 feet longer than my plastic pond boat the boat was still more comfortable and roomy than my kayak and they nearly weighed the same. I much preferred fishing out of the 10' bass raider than the kayak due to the space and the fact that it had a trolling motor on it. It's not necessarily the space per say but the ergonomics of the space. I can fit just as much stuff on my kayak as I could my bass raider but I have to actually pack my kayak properly whereas I could just toss stuff on my boat and go. Also remember that YOU are the motor on a kayak and paddling a purpose built a fishing kayak is closer to paddling your childhood pond boat than it is paddling a "normal" kayak. So if you are going to be primarily river fishing be aware of that and remember that when paddling yourself down the river you also have to paddle yourself back up the river. Paddling upriver, in wind, and/or over long distances are the 3 main things that make kayak fishermen curse out mother nature lol.

I agree with all of this and this is good insight. The things you've mentioned here are the reasons why many kayak owners tend to treat their yaks more like small jon boats instead of semi "portable" kayaks. Lot's of trailers being purchased for kayaks which for some defeats the purpose but these fishing yaks are heavy. For me I have a pickup truck and I strap on dolly for the kayak so I don't have to load and unload gear. I can load everything into the kayak same as a jon boat while transporting and then simply pull it out of the bed and roll it to the water. Time from pulling up to the launch to being in the water is about 60 seconds, longest being walking back from the water to toss my strap on wheels back in the truck. Same when loading back up. If I had to car top this thing and load and unload all of my gear each time then I'm sure that will significantly reduce the amount of fishing I'd want to do from it. Folks just have to ask themselves their reasons for wanting a kayak over something like a small jon boat. For me it was the ease of use and having basically zero maintenance to do. No outboards to mess with was the main one. Almost every single time I go to a public boat launch I'm paddling by somebody stuck at the launch fiddling with an outboard that doesn't want to start... However, that little internal smile of mine does tend to go away the second I see that guy cruising past me towards the other side of the lake while I'm cussing paddling against the slight breeze at 3mph tops and realizing that if I want to go "over there" I'm going to have to paddle this heavy thing "back" lol. "The water gets too frustrating to continue long before it gets dangerous". That's about the most accurate statement I've ever heard regarding kayak fishing lol. Many of days I have gotten up early and planned an all day fishing trip only to stop and set anchor after about an hour because I simply didn't feel like paddling way the hell out to that sweet spot I found on google earth after all. You are 100% correct, expectation management is key when thinking about a kayak purchase. With every passing year you are noticing more and more kayak folks strapping trolling motors to these things...Just saying..

I have a Feelfree Lure, same basic hull design and I believe FeelFree hulls are made in the same factory as the Shadow Caster, or at least it used to be or it's outsourced to them or something. Yeah they're tanks. With that stability and width something has to give which is why it's slower than the Sea Ghost. You aren't going to find very many kayaks that are more stable than the Shadow Caster/Feelfree but you also won't find many kayaks slower and heavier than those either so... Just be careful in rivers and know the currents. There are some river currents that a jon boat with a 30lb trolling motor could get up that you wouldn't be able to in your kayak, that's how "well" they paddle lol.

Yeah it's pretty unfortunate honestly. FeelFree does indeed make a great kayak but these things are heavy and aren't pleasant to paddle. I love the stability and space of the Lure but I waited anxiously for years for them to release the pedal drive system only to find out that the overdrive costs almost as much as the kayak itself and isn't exactly designed very well. I'm pretty sure even with it's flaws it would be better than paddling but I just can't justify spending $900 on a system that has numerous reported design flaws.

I've been doing some serious research into the overdrive system for mine as well and unfortunately from what I have gathered among the Feelfree community your money is better spent elsewhere. These are just the opinions of those I've spoken to with them but from what many overdrive owners are saying is that the system is pretty poorly designed. Needs a bit more maintenance than it "should" and Feelfree didn't do a very good job on the handheld steering for it. Every time I have asked for opinions regarding the overdrive from the community I've been advised to put a trolling motor on it instead or if I'm keen on pedal drive then to just sell the kayak and purchase a purpose build drive kayak like a Hobie instead. These are just the things I've been told by the community. I have no personal experience with the system to give my own opinions.

They certainly are. I've taken my Feelfree Lure out in the Gulf of Mexico before but it depends on the conditions. I've also had it caught out in the middle of a massive mountain lake where the weather turned foul in a matter of minutes. Went from glass to white caps and 30mph winds in about 5 minutes. That was the day I really appreciated the stability of my kayak with waves crashing over the bow and slamming into me from all angles as I made my way to shore. The only real downside to them is their width which makes them a pain to paddle long distances, but there is a certain comfort in knowing that even in inclement weather with my yak fully loaded with fishing and camping gear I'm still not in any real danger of flipping over. I'm more comfortable in my Lure if the weather turns to crap than I would be in a jon boat.

I'll echo what the others have said regarding the Feelfree series of kayaks with a bit of a caveat. They are great rigs and well built, however, know what you are getting yourself in to with the Feelfree yaks. Where do you plan to fish most of the time? Lakes or ponds? Perfect. Rivers? Depends on the current. Most fishing kayaks are heavier and wider than traditional recreational kayaks but Feelfree makes some absolute tanks that will give you one heck of a workout trying to paddle against a current or a decent wind. You may see some recreational kayak folks venturing into places you think you can follow because you have a "kayak" also, be careful with that. FeelFree yaks are closer to small jon boats than they are to recreational kayaks as far as maneuverability is concerned. You can load tons of gear on all of the Feelfree series yaks with storage space rivaling that of a canoe if you pack correctly. However, a canoe it is not so don't get into the mindset of trying to portage a fishing kayak like this. How will you transport to and from the water? Truck bed? Roof rack? trailer? Realistically assess your physical capabilities when thinking about this. Yes you "can" car top a quality fishing yak but they weigh much more than the 20-30lb sit in recreational kayaks. If you visit some Feelfree forums you'll see that a good chunk of the community invests in trailers for these things because they are heavy. I personally use my truck bed with a strap on kayak cart. I figure I could lug it to the roof rack if I had to but that's not something I would enjoy very much. Just some things I wish I would have known prior to purchasing mine years ago. In saying that, I absolutely love mine. Stability is second to none, you'll seriously fall out of it before you manage to flip it over. But I'm noticing more and more of the Feelfree community are putting trolling motors on them and after paddling one for years I certainly understand why.

I have a Feelfree Lure 11.5. Pro's: -Extremely comfortable seat that I've dozed off in on more than one occasion when the bite was off. -Very stable, you will fall out of this yak before you will flip it over even if you have never been in a yak before. I was able to confidently stand up in this thing 30 mins after first getting it on the water having never been in a kayak before. Nice layout with the removable sonar pod that is perfect for my fish finder as well as built in rod holders. -Has a wheel in the keel which is helpful for some to transport but the yak doesn't balance well on it for me so I've found myself tipping it over more often than not. -Rugged design, it's built like a tank. Con's: -Heavy, that seat is nice but it has some weight too it but it's easily removable if necessary for transport. -Due to the width it's not the most pleasant craft to paddle. My buddy in his sea kayak was able to literally paddle backwards and shout mocking words of encouragement at me faster than I could paddle at full speed going forward. But he ended up taking a dip in the drink later that day after turning around too fast to retrieve something from the back of his yak which is something I don't think I could do unless I specifically tried. So a pro and a con. -In regards to the above, it's a pond/lake kayak that you can get away with on some rivers if the current isn't too bad. Last year I made the mistake of going on an unfamiliar river and I crossed a bend in the river "of no return" and I was pretty screwed. With every once of energy paddling at full strength for 45 mins straight I wasn't able to get more than about 10 feet. So I ended up having to get out and drag this heavy thing up a heavily wooded steep bank and then drag it miles back to my truck. Meanwhile recreational kayaks were able to paddle right on by me upriver without issue. -No factory rudder came with mine but I added the rudder kit which made a HUGE difference in tracking. I know it seems like there are more cons than pro's but it's a great craft for what it's designed to do. As with anything as long as it's kept within the limitations of the design it does quite well. I wanted stability over maneuverability at first but if I could go back in time I would have met somewhere closer to the middle. If you only fish lakes and ponds and calm bays then it's almost perfect. If you like rivers then I would highly recommend you have somebody waiting to pick you up at the next boat launch downriver because even if you can paddle back upriver if you weren't someone who uses profanity before you certainly will be after about 20 strokes lol.

I learned that Coho Salmon are the most A hole fish on the entire planet who will literally jump all around you like dolphins yet decide to eat absolutely nothing that you toss near them. Seriously, 30+ anglers standing side by side tossing everything from live bait to egg sacks to spoons and the Salmon just jump on by giving everyone the middle finger. Even had one jump on the boat ramp then just jump back in the water lol. That was my first Salmon fishing experience...I guess now I can understand why just scooping them out with a net is illegal. I could have just waded out there and grabbed one by hand.

Indeed. The plan was never to actually anchor in the current. I fish that river often and I know exactly where my buddy nearly drowned because it's where I lost my own anchor I described. The problem with kayaks and watercraft in general is the loss of situational awareness that can happy pretty quickly when you have your head down being distracted. I too am guilty of this, there have been plenty of times when I'm heads down in the yak trying to remove a swallowed hook and I'll look up and notice I've drifted far down river without even noticing because my anchor let go at random. I've even damaged a rod or two in my rod holders while accidentally being drifted into a low hanging tree while I'm heads down changing a lure. I try to make a point to look around every few seconds or so when I'm heads down but things happen. The problem with yak anchors is their small size. They are usually 3lb claw anchors, maybe 5lb max, and sometimes one of those claws will catch on something and stop you and you think you're secured then it will let go and you don't notice. Or you may hook on to a feisty fish who can pretty easily take you a long for a ride. Controlling a strong fish with one hand while trying to maintain control with the paddle in the other hand can be tricky sometimes.

In his case I don't believe anything would have been able to change the outcome besides him having the anchor line directly in his hand during the accident. Most people don't fish with the anchor line in one hand. He has a 10ft sit in kayak which was anchored off of the bow. The time it took for that anchor to catch and pull the nose under was about 1 second and once that cockpit filled with water rapidly he was sucked right under. He basically tied the anchor line to the bow through the carrying handle and kept the anchor in the cockpit with him. He would toss it over when it wanted to anchor and then paddle up a bit and retrieve it when he was ready to move and put it back in the cockpit. In strong current like that there is no way to paddle upriver to get it so when it snagged he was done immediately. Having the loose end of the rope in his hand would have helped had he tied the bowline knot, however him drifting into the strong current wasn't intentional and he wasn't expecting to have to quickly release the anchor in a split second.

Yeah that was one of the first things I asked him when he told me the story. Did you have a quick release? He said no which was why he was unable to release the anchor as he was being pulled under. He didn't have time to grab his knife and cut the rope before it was too late. He said that he would be getting an anchor trolley as the first thing if he decides to get another yak. That is why I always advocate anchor trolleys as the first modification any yak fisherman makes. You NEED the ability to quickly release that anchor if things turn south. It has happened to me on more than one occasion. About 3 months ago I was fishing in a local river with a 5lb claw anchor and I miscalculated the amount of line I needed for the anchor to hit bottom when I tossed it over. I ended up drifting right into some rapids with water rapidly spilling all over my kayak. After about 10 seconds of trying to frantically free the anchor I just unclipped it and let it go and was able to paddle my way back to shore. A PFD is an absolute must for anyone on the water in my opinion. Especially kayak fishermen. An anchor trolley with a quick release is equally important for kayakers fishing in rivers. I live on a river, if you look at my river from my backyard it looks like glass most of the time. But if you go to the middle of it the current is deceptively strong, so strong that my 10ft plastic boat with a 55lb trolling motor is literally unable to traverse upriver in that current. But unless you toss something in there and see it looks like it's completely calm. We have had at least 2 people die in the river running behind my house because they thought they could swim in it and ended up getting sucked into that current and drown because it just looks like it would be a great place for a summer swim because it "looks" relatively calm. The local authorities found a dead body in the dam upriver 2 years ago from a young man trying to swim across that river behind my house. Respect the water, know what you are doing, and be safe.

It can happen when anchoring off the front of the kayak. It's happened to me before but I have a sit on top kayak with scupper holes and they were enough to let the water drain out as I frantically tried to get my anchor in which was stuck with required me to release it from my carabiner and let it go so that I wouldn't sink. Kayaks are small boats, when they start to go under they go under quick in strong currents. I know the river he was fishing in well. I go there all the time in my own yak. Close to the banks the river is completely calm but out in the middle it's absolutely terrible. If you want to get to the other side in a yak you basically have to paddle upstream in the calm part then make your way out to the middle while frantically paddling and get pushed out on the other side somewhere down river on the other calm side then paddle back up to where you wanted to go. What happened to him, from what he told me, was that he was anchored on the calm side of the river. He had his head down while tying on a new lure and didn't notice that he was drifting which is understandable as it happens to me often as well. His anchor had let go somehow and he ended up drifting into the middle of the river in the extreme current to where his anchor decided to grab onto something which subsequently pulled him right under. He wasn't trying to anchor out there, he was just distracted as he floated to the middle of the river which caused his accident.

So a good friend of mine nearly lost his life yesterday. He decided to head out to a local river after work in his kayak for some evening fishing. He gets out on the river near a bridge and drops anchor upsteam in about 30ft of water. The anchor lets go unexpectedly and he begins to drift towards the strong current in the middle of the river and then snags on something hard and pulls the entire front of the kayak under water. Before he could even react the entire kayak was pulled under water and flipped upside down with him inside of it. His leg was caught on something and he had to rip his leg free then float back to the surface and attempt to swim across the current to a boat nearby. Luckily he was able to get the boats attention and they pulled him out. They head back over to where his kayak was and they couldn't even find it, the current was so strong that it pulled his kayak so far under water that they couldn't see it from the surface. And he was trapped inside of it that far under. He shows up to work today with a terribly lacerated and bruised leg and a horror story and telling me he is so grateful that he had his life jacket on because without that extra flotation there was no way he would have been able to stay above that current and call for help. The boaters nearby said they didn't even see him go under and never would have noticed had he not been yelling in their direction once he resurfaced. I know folks say it all the time but seriously, always wear your PFD. They really can and do save your life if you find yourself in an unfortunate situation like my buddy did and currents can often be a heck of a lot worse than they may seem on the surface. He ended up losing everything in that accident including the kayak itself as well as all of his gear, keys, phone, etc. But he walked away with his life.

What size truck to you have? Full size or midsize? If full size then it should fit in the back no problem but if you have a Ranger or a Tacoma or something then the pontoons will have to sit above the wheel humps in the bed. As far as loading it goes simply lift it front end up and set it on the tailgate. Keep one hand on it as you transition to the rear to lift it up as they tend to slide back in that position. Lift the back end up and slide her on in there and strap it down. Unload the same way. Just remember to always keep a hand on it while you are moving to lift it up or slide it out when it's on the tailgate. You can either bungee the seat down while it's on the boat in your truck bed or remove the seat and stick it in the cab if you have room. Enjoy! These little boats are fantastic.

If it makes you feel any better Derek I just went out on my little boat and..... Tossed a line, got my expensive lure snagged, tried to back up to get it, turn around too quick in my swivel seat and accidentally kick other rod in the drink, try to go get my lure, hard snag, cut my line, tie on a new expensive lure, head back to park the boat, toss another line for the heck of it, get other lure snagged, back up boat to get it, line gets stuck in motor prop, cut that line, get extremely livid, back the boat up to the parking spot, step off the boat, slip, fall in the drink, get up, throw things and cuss up a storm, tie boat off, walk back to the house, clean up, get on bassrecource. We all have bad days man....lol

Keep at it if it's what you enjoy doing. I know everybody obviously goes fishing to actually catch fish but some days are going to be worse than others. I know it can be frustrating to spend days fishing without catching anything but it's all part of the sport. Trust me I know, earlier this year I went on vacation and spent the better part of every single day out on the water. The results of my week long fishing adventure? A 4oz Pumpkinseed. Literally, that was the only thing I caught after 5 consecutive days on multiple bodies of water. Some advice I can give may sound funny but give it a shot. Next time you head out fishing don't go "fishing", just go out there and enjoy being outdoors. Bring some other activities out there to do and toss a line in the water every once and awhile. There's obviously no science behind this but I swear I catch more fish when I'm not actively fishing than when I am actively trying. Like this morning for example, I woke up and decided that my little 10 foot boat anchored in backyard that I hadn't used in months would be a great place to have my morning coffee. So I dust it off and grab a rod with a random lure I found in my truck and hop in the boat and just cruise around drinking my coffee. I decide that I'll toss the line in the water and just troll with it while I putt around for a little bit. I caught 7 3+lb smallies in about an hour and a half by simply holding the rod in one hand and my coffee in the other and putting around enjoying the morning air. I caught the largest one last as I was reeling the line in to head back home, not reeling it in as in a swimbait but reeling it in as in I'm ready to go. That was with one random lure old lure that I just found and a random rod that I don't even know what line is on it. The last time I went out fishing in my little boat I brought my entire tackle box, a cooler, and 4 rods and a portable fish finder and I caught nothing but a cold which is why that boat has been sitting there unused for months. Sometimes the best way to catch fish is to not go fishing but rather just go "outside" and bring a rod with you.

Sad day indeed, sorry to hear. Something similar happened to be a couple months back. I was leaving a local lake with my kayak in my truck bed and I mistakenly just sat my tackle bag on top of the yak and drove away instead of putting it under the bungees. About 5 mins later while driving up the road a biker came riding up beside me and pointing at me to pull over. I do and he pops open his saddle bag and hands me my entire tackle bag that had fallen off of my truck. He said he saw it laying on the road and figured it obviously fell off of someones vehicle so he just turned around and started back this way looking for someone who looked like they might be a fisherman. The kayak hanging out of my truck bed was a dead giveaway lol. Still some good folks left out there. About 75% of all the tackle I own was in that bag, I'm glad he cared enough to try to find who it bag belonged to...

So mine's not nearly as purdy as the rest of yall's but she does the job quite well for what I need. Bought it years ago for like 100 bucks from some guys back yard. I think it's an old model bass hunter or something like that. Either way it floats and the thing is virtually indestructible. I leave it in the river behind my house where you see it most of the time. In fact I accidentally left it in the water back there last winter and the river actually froze with the boat in it lol. Spring came and it thawed right out and kept on floating right there. Prior to that it sat in that guys yard out in the elements for like 10 years. I'm pretty sure that thing will remain in tact for the rest of my life unless I take a shotgun to it or something lol. Not even a crack in it... Anyway, here's a few pics from this morning. Nothing fancy, no mods, most of my fishing money is spent on my kayak, I just toss random stuff in the little bass boat and roll out.

I have a pair of high top waterproof boots that work well enough to keep my feet dry when I'm getting in and out of the yak and simply wear a pair of jeans. I'll just get in before the water is over my boots and use my stakeout pole to push off into the deeper water if necessary. I wouldn't trust a pair of waders in a yak but that's just my opinion. They are bulky and heavy and will probably make it difficult to re-enter if you fall out. This is fall weather mind you. If we're talking about below freezing or something like that then I don't go out. I've never fallen out of my yak but I don't want to take that chance in freezing water.

No all trolley kits are basically the same. You have a kayak, not a yacht, so any system with some normal screws will be just fine. Some kits recommend marine sealant for the screws, some don't. I used some on mine just to be extra careful and no problems so far. Unless you plan on anchoring down in some white water rapids or something then any trolley system will work just fine. They are all the same thing for the most part. Just a set of pullys with some cord on it to allow you do move your anchor along the side of your yak along with some screws.