$800 or Less Kayak - Jackson Bite Reviews?

[cheezledzul]

I may be coming into some money due to unforeseen circumstances (wont be for at least a month). Therefore what kayak should I buy for less than $800?

 

Also any news on the Jackson Bite?

I have narrowed it down to basically the Bite as far as new kayaks go. Ill still take any recommendations though.

What used kayaks would you recommend that would fall in the $800 or less range and why would you choose it over a new Bite?

The Bonafide RS117 looks interesting also but im not sure I need the dry wells and I kind of like the open deck of the bite. Plus its 2"wider and almost 10lbs lighter I believe.

Any reviews on the RS117? Its a little out of my price range as well.

 

I'm 5'6" 160lbs and must be able to stand. Aside from that I usually prefer new but idt used kayaks will have hidden problems like other things would. What used options could I find for that price?

 

I AM LOOKING FOR QUALITY AND VALUE OVER BELLS AND WHISTLES. If I can spend less that's great. Standing and durability are my specific desires but my balance is pretty good and im not too heavy as is.. Thats why the Bite at 35" wide and lack of moving parts seems attractive. I will only have 2 rods, 3 at most in the distant future. I will transfer most accessories from my current yak so dont need to factor that cost in aside from maybe a paddle. My current yak is 30"w I believe. I dont carry a lot of items that need to be dry so a dry bag will do in most scenarios, dry wells are not a factor that is make it or break it.

 

Ill be fishing a local tournament series this year. I primarily fish small lakes and some medium (local lakes are not that big). I will occasionally be fishing larger lakes especially when I start fishing in KBF events. 

 

I wont be able to use a trailer so for now I will have to strap it to crossbars or my J bars.

 

I would love a pedal but do not want to and can not spend well over $1k for one. I dont mind paddling for that cost.

 

Sorry for the long post. I will have this kayak for a handful of years before I can even think about buying a new one so I would like to be thorough, even more so than usual lol.

I dont have the ability to test kayaks, the closest shops are 1:30 from me and they are scarce.

Thanks in advance!

[J Francho]

We are close in size - I'm 160, 5-7.  I have a Jackson Coosa for about four years.  It's not the same boat, but the hulls are very similar.  It's the least liked boat by my family for a few reasons.  It's has no secondary stability, and no warning that you've gone too far, before turtling.  The bottom of the hull oil canned after the first year.  The hatches open in the wrong direction when you're actually in the boat (Not an issue for the Bite).   There are two scuppers below the seat, and if left unplugged, water shoots up them, rendering a bidet effect.  The seat is one the most comfortable in the biz.  I used to bring to my son's soccer games it was so comfortable.  The rod stagers are really cool too.  Just be careful with spinning rods.  They seem to work better with casting setups. For what this boat cost back then, a Wildy Ride 115 would have been a slightly more expensive, better option.  You could probably find a gently used one in your budget.  Keep an eye peeled, most pro staffers are unloading this time of year, in anticipation of getting their 2019 models.

[cheezledzul]

13 minutes ago, J Francho said:

It's the least liked boat by my family for a few reasons.  It's has no secondary stability, and no warning that you've gone too far, before turtling.  The bottom of the hull oil canned after the first year. There are two scuppers below the seat, and if left unplugged, water shoots up them, rendering a bidet effect.The rod stagers are really cool too.  Just be careful with spinning rods.  They seem to work better with casting setups. For what this boat cost back then, a Wildy Ride 115 would have been a slightly more expensive, better option.  You could probably find a gently used one in your budget.  Keep an eye peeled, most pro staffers are unloading this time of year, in anticipation of getting their 2019 models.

What do you mean by oil canned? The stability is worrying me, a big reason I like the bite is that it is 35" wide and seemed very stable from a video I saw. I loved the rod stagers they built into the deck of the bite. I have a rod holder between my legs and I dont see many that have that on the bigger yacks. It dosnt have a lot of compartments but that is something I seem to like.

Ive heard that the Jackson hulls are sturdy and just as good as any other company. Ive also heard that they are questionable. Durability is a huge deal to me so Im not sure where to go from here as far as durability goes.

[J Francho]

Bottom of the hull has a dent in the middle, like an oil can.  It's common in thinner hulls.  It's a cosmetic flaw.  I will say, it's held up fine.  No better or worse than my other boats.  Also, since I worked in kayak shop that dealt with them, I've seen some mold issues come from them with other models.  So, do a vigilant inspection of the boat you plan to buy.  Video, uh....get some seat time on the water.  I watched the video of the dude doing 360° jumps in the Coosa vids.  Turns out he's the size of typically horse jockey.  I'll even admit, I stand in boats that probably aren't made for it, just due to my smaller stature.  Standing is more about confidence, and I'm not always confident in the Coosa like I am in other boats.  One other thing I forgot to mention: the high bow.  The wind loves to push it around.  The Bite has the same high bow.  On a lake, I'll actually end up spinning in circles without drag chain.  Like I said, not a horrible boat, they're solvable issues, but I've been in better boats.  It is hard to ignore the price point.  That's a heck of a deal on a basically fishable out of the box boat.

[Fishingmickey]

Might check out the Feel free Lure 11.5. Vibe makes a pretty good Kayak IMHO and they have a excellent seat.

FM

[J Francho]

I've had seat time in both boats.  I really liked the Lure. 

[cheezledzul]

1 hour ago, J Francho said:

Bottom of the hull has a dent in the middle, like an oil can.  It's common in thinner hulls.  It's a cosmetic flaw.  I will say, it's held up fine.  No better or worse than my other boats.  Also, since I worked in kayak shop that dealt with them, I've seen some mold issues come from them with other models.  So, do a vigilant inspection of the boat you plan to buy.  Video, uh....get some seat time on the water.  I watched the video of the dude doing 360° jumps in the Coosa vids.  Turns out he's the size of typically horse jockey.  Like I said, not a horrible boat, they're solvable issues, but I've been in better boats.  It is hard to ignore the price point.  That's a heck of a deal on a basically fishable out of the box boat.

If or when i ever get the chance to check out a kayak before i buy it how could I check for mold issues or flaws? is it just dents or waves?

The video I saw the guy appeared much bigger than myself. I doubt over 300lbs but not a horse jockey.

For $800 its hard to argue like you said. But durability and stability are the main deciding factors like I said. Since I dont think any shops demo by me I was just going by the 35" width for stability. But the lack of dry storage and "extra features" does have me questioning why it is only $800 compared to some kayaks that have more bells and whistles for only a couple more bucks. Thats the question that is making me most hesitant I guess. Why do other kayaks in this price range seem tp have more features???? Its basically an open deck. Youd think that would make it even cheaper.

[cheezledzul]

2 hours ago, Fishingmickey said:

Might check out the Feel free Lure 11.5. Vibe makes a pretty good Kayak IMHO and they have a excellent seat.

FM

 

2 hours ago, J Francho said:

I've had seat time in both boats.  I really liked the Lure. 

Ive been told to look at the feel free and sea ghost but I have not heard much about vibe compared to jackson. Also someone in my club swears by feel free (he has higher end models).

 

This is what I mentioned earlier. the SeaGhost is $830. It comes with a rudder system, 2 sealed hatches (although i only see 1 dry well), a center console and a paddle. why is this only $30 more than the Bite when it has those extra features? the paddle alone is probably $20 give or take.

[lmbfisherman]

You should look at this link. 

 

 

Although it says under 1k, there are boats there that are under 800.  The Feel Frees and the (Can't remember the manufacturer) Big Fish looks interesting.   

[CountryboyinDC]

On 2/19/2019 at 12:47 PM, cheezledzul said:

 

Ive been told to look at the feel free and sea ghost but I have not heard much about vibe compared to jackson. Also someone in my club swears by feel free (he has higher end models).

 

This is what I mentioned earlier. the SeaGhost is $830. It comes with a rudder system, 2 sealed hatches (although i only see 1 dry well), a center console and a paddle. why is this only $30 more than the Bite when it has those extra features? the paddle alone is probably $20 give or take.

I've seen a bunch of guys (and one gal) fishing the Sea Ghosts, both the 11 and 13 footers.  I've looked them over closely, and they're pretty solid at that price.  The paddles that come with them are pretty much a back-up and the earlier consoles were not the greatest, but otherwise, they are hard to beat.  Their fit and finish might not be Jackson level (I haven't seen a Bite yet, but I run a Coosa HD for river fishing) and they're not made in the U.S., but they're a solid boat for the money.

The Lure likewise isn't made in the U.S., but I doubt you'll find one for $800, either.  You see a lot of them, too.  They have a wheel at the aft end of the keel that allows you to get it to the water without a cart if you aren't going too far.  The other things the owners like is the seat, which has a bunch of adjustments, height-wise, and is supposed to be really comfortable.  They're also pretty easy to stand in.  A couple of people that have I fish with had issues with the seats that took Feelfree a while to fix (I think the demand for the kayaks was really high at that time).

Jackson boats are nice, but probably the priciest for what you get after Hobie.  I am sure I will see and try the Bite once the rivers I fish warm a bit.  The seat for the all the models I've fished are great (Coosa, Coosa HD, Cuda 14, Mayfly).  J Francho has obviously fished his Coosa a lot, and the stability thing is something I can attest to (never saw one dent, though).  I actually like the high bow.  When you shoot a small falls, the bow pops up in the lower pool rather than 'digging in'.  I like the HD version a lot better.

On a budget, the Sea Ghost (and  maybe the Bite) options are great for under $1,000, and over the winter I saw some great deals for boats like the Ride 135 Max, Tarpon 130X, Predator MX, and some others that are normally a lot higher coming in at the $1k or lower mark.  It's a great time to fish from a kayak.