ThatZX14Fella Posted July 13, 2015 Posted July 13, 2015 I've had my quad on Craigslist for sale for a while and today I got offered three nice (to me) kayaks. Two ten footers and one eight footer. The one I'm gonna keep for myself is a 10ft sit in Pelican. How are the sit in's for fishing? I've been wanting a fishing kayak for a while and this one I'll just do my best to set up for fishing. Also, any tips on gear I should get for it or any kind of handy tips to make it more fishing friendly would be much appreciated. He's going to throw in paddles for each kayak as well and I'm gonna buy a nice life jacket. I'm a good swimmer, but drowning is my second biggest fear. Lol Quote
Hanover_Yakker Posted July 13, 2015 Posted July 13, 2015 I personally wouldn't just on principle of the Sit Inside Kayak - too risky for my tastes. You as the paddler can do everything right and all it takes is someone in a powerboat screaming around a bend in the river or a point to catch you unaware. A wake is easy to manage with experience in a SOT, a swamped sit inside kayak, canoe or small boat is quite different. Sit on Tops are much safer. I'd pass if it were me. While the Pelicans are decent hulls, you can find better values out there. The local warehouse store here sells new Pelicans for under $300. 3 Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 13, 2015 Author Posted July 13, 2015 I personally wouldn't just on principle of the Sit Inside Kayak - too risky for my tastes. You as the paddler can do everything right and all it takes is someone in a powerboat screaming around a bend in the river or a point to catch you unaware. A wake is easy to manage with experience in a SOT, a swamped sit inside kayak, canoe or small boat is quite different. Sit on Tops are much safer. I'd pass if it were me. While the Pelicans are decent hulls, you can find better values out there. The local warehouse store here sells new Pelicans for under $300. I'd definitely prefer to have a sit on, but everyone with the sit on tops are wanting to trade for other kayaks. Lol this is only one of two decent deals I've been offered for the quad, and I wish I would've taken the first, but my dad screwed that one up. I may wait. Having troubles with the quad right now anyways so I'm sure that'll deter the guy if I change my mind. Quote
Super User Darren. Posted July 13, 2015 Super User Posted July 13, 2015 I second Hanover's comment. My first kayak was a Pelican SOT that I picked up for $299 at BJ's Wholesale. Served me well for a while, came with rod holders, car top cushions and straps, plus a paddle (h.e.a.v.y.). That kayak helped me determine how I wanted to fish from a kayak and led me to my current yak. I had to upgrade the paddle as the cheap one that came with it tired me out after mere minutes.... Quote
Caliyak Posted July 13, 2015 Posted July 13, 2015 I would take it. This could be a good starter yak. You can upgrade later. You also have some extra yaks for friends and family. You can add a fish finder, rod holders and go into spots boats can't. Plus, the fish don't discriminate on sot or sit inside. LOL Key to a yak, catch fish and have fun doing it. 1 Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 13, 2015 Author Posted July 13, 2015 I would take it. This could be a good starter yak. You can upgrade later. You also have some extra yaks for friends and family. You can add a fish finder, rod holders and go into spots boats can't. Plus, the fish don't discriminate on sot or sit inside. LOL Key to a yak, catch fish and have fun doing it. Any good accessories I could throw on? Fish finder may not be an option for a while. Lol I'm giving the smaller of the three to my mom, the blue one to my dad, and the red one, which is the newest and my favorite color, will be mine. Lol I've been looking to get rid of my quad for a while and I've been wanting a kayak for even longer. Quote
Caliyak Posted July 13, 2015 Posted July 13, 2015 See, one quad made three people happy. I'm a simple person so fish finder under $70 is enough. Two rod holders from Scotty. Again, its about fishing not the toys. LOL Make the deal and start your addiction. Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 13, 2015 Author Posted July 13, 2015 See, one quad made three people happy. I'm a simple person so fish finder under $70 is enough. Two rod holders from Scotty. Again, its about fishing not the toys. LOL Make the deal and start your addiction. Lol I didn't know they made fish finders that cheap. I thought the cheapest would be around a few hundred. Quote
Caliyak Posted July 14, 2015 Posted July 14, 2015 I got the Garmin 100. I got a plastic cutting board and created an arm for the transducer. Put it together and bam!!! Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 14, 2015 Author Posted July 14, 2015 I got the Garmin 100. I got a plastic cutting board and created an arm for the transducer. Put it together and bam!!! BTW, the red kayak is a Pelican Maverick 100 I believe. Red on top, white on bottom. Quote
Caliyak Posted July 14, 2015 Posted July 14, 2015 I just googled it, nice. You need a milk crate for the back storage area. You can place you finder and holders on that front panel area. A lot of potential. One important item to have, the sham-wow to pick up the water that will collect inside your yak. 1 Quote
kjfishman Posted July 14, 2015 Posted July 14, 2015 I fish out of sit in and happy with it. Someone mentioned concerns about being trapped in the kayak if you dump it. Not a concern if your fishing out of a kayak with a large cockpit.(yes I know from experience) Also when the weather is on the cool side you stay much drier. And when i when it is extremely hot you stay a bit cooler when your legs aren't completely exposed. I wouldn't trade of my Loon 138 for a sit on. There are times a sit on would be nice and if I bought an additional yak I would get one. You should find some folks from this forum in your area that will let you take their yaks for a spin and see what will work for you. 1 Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 14, 2015 Author Posted July 14, 2015 I just googled it, nice. You need a milk crate for the back storage area. You can place you finder and holders on that front panel area. A lot of potential. One important item to have, the sham-wow to pick up the water that will collect inside your yak. Thanks for the suggestions bud! I fish out of sit in and happy with it. Someone mentioned concerns about being trapped in the kayak if you dump it. Not a concern if your fishing out of a kayak with a large cockpit.(yes I know from experience) Also when the weather is on the cool side you stay much drier. And when i when it is extremely hot you stay a bit cooler when your legs aren't completely exposed. I wouldn't trade of my Loon 138 for a sit on. There are times a sit on would be nice and if I bought an additional yak I would get one. You should find some folks from this forum in your area that will let you take their yaks for a spin and see what will work for you. I would, but I don't like using other peoples stuff. Lol Quote
Super User flyfisher Posted July 14, 2015 Super User Posted July 14, 2015 Thanks for the suggestions bud! I would, but I don't like using other peoples stuff. Lol it could be a real expensive lesson just because you don't like using other people's things. You can generally tell in a short period of time if you will like fishing out of a kayak or not, or at least that is my experience. Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 14, 2015 Author Posted July 14, 2015 it could be a real expensive lesson just because you don't like using other people's things. You can generally tell in a short period of time if you will like fishing out of a kayak or not, or at least that is my experience. I'm sure I'll enjoy it, mainly because the bank fishing here isn't all too great and even if the fishing sucks I'll enjoy kayaking. If I get tired of it after a while, I can just sell them and get a rifle like I was wanting. Quote
Super User flyfisher Posted July 14, 2015 Super User Posted July 14, 2015 it's not about enjoying kayaking as much as it is enjoying the kayak itself 2 Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 14, 2015 Author Posted July 14, 2015 it's not about enjoying kayaking as much as it is enjoying the kayak itself If you don't enjoy kayaking then you can't enjoy the kayak. Quote
Super User flyfisher Posted July 14, 2015 Super User Posted July 14, 2015 I'm sure I'll enjoy it, mainly because the bank fishing here isn't all too great and even if the fishing sucks I'll enjoy kayaking. If I get tired of it after a while, I can just sell them and get a rifle like I was wanting. If you don't enjoy kayaking then you can't enjoy the kayak. My response was based off your comments but yo can do whatever you want because i have a feeling you will anyways no matter what kind of advice anyone gives you on here. Quote
Super User J Francho Posted July 14, 2015 Super User Posted July 14, 2015 I don't enjow kayaking AT ALL. I do like fishing from a kayak. Good luck in your search, gonna be hard to find what you like without seat time. Otherwise, you'll just get used to what you bought, for better or worse. Lots of advice that you asked for, so take it. 1 Quote
FrogFreak Posted July 14, 2015 Posted July 14, 2015 I have two sit ins and enjoy them. I find that they are stable since you sit lower than a sit on top. My advice is to wait to rig your yak until you've went out a couple times. I've talked to folks who rigged before they knew what they wanted and where they wanted things and they regretted it. I have really simplified my rigging over the years. Less is more! 1 Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 14, 2015 Author Posted July 14, 2015 I have two sit ins and enjoy them. I find that they are stable since you sit lower than a sit on top. My advice is to wait to rig your yak until you've went out a couple times. I've talked to folks who rigged before they knew what they wanted and where they wanted things and they regretted it. I have really simplified my rigging over the years. Less is more! Yeah, I probably won't go too crazy on the rigging anyways. Maybe a cheap fishfinder, rod holders, and some stuff for storage. Plus a paddle leash, rod leash, and a net. Quote
Super User flyfisher Posted July 14, 2015 Super User Posted July 14, 2015 Personally i hate leashes in a kayak. It is just one more thing to get tangled and can create a safety hazard should you flip. Paddles float and there are rod floats if yo are concerned about losing them. In my first year or two of kayaking i did lose 2 rods but that was my fault as i did not think through the layout and rod locations. Since then I have been lucky not to lose any. Now if i was fishing a lot of rivers where flipping was common i would get floats and not leashes but for now, I am good. Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 15, 2015 Author Posted July 15, 2015 Personally i hate leashes in a kayak. It is just one more thing to get tangled and can create a safety hazard should you flip. Paddles float and there are rod floats if yo are concerned about losing them. In my first year or two of kayaking i did lose 2 rods but that was my fault as i did not think through the layout and rod locations. Since then I have been lucky not to lose any. Now if i was fishing a lot of rivers where flipping was common i would get floats and not leashes but for now, I am good. I didn't think about the leashes being a safety hazard, but now that I think about it I can see why. I gotta get a decent PFD. I also would like an anchor since I'll be fishing rivers and the current drags you around. Quote
Super User J Francho Posted July 15, 2015 Super User Posted July 15, 2015 No anchor in current, unless you want to sink your boat. Use a stakeout pole on the slower, inside of bends. 1 Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted July 15, 2015 Author Posted July 15, 2015 No anchor in current, unless you want to sink your boat. Use a stakeout pole on the slower, inside of bends. Alright, thanks for the tip. I may say a lot of stupid things. Don't know much about these... Quote
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