texasfishingforum.com logo
Main Menu
Advertisement
Affiliates
Advertisement
Newest Members
TraeMartin, Power-Pole CS, T-Rigger, JoeGoes, EcKo
119150 Registered Users
Top Posters(All Time)
hopalong 120,565
TexDawg 119,510
Bigbob_FTW 94,875
John175☮ 85,892
Pilothawk 83,259
Bob Davis 81,465
Mark Perry 72,280
Derek 🐝 68,311
JDavis7873 67,416
Forum Statistics
Forums59
Topics1,037,798
Posts13,934,678
Members144,150
Most Online39,925
Dec 30th, 2023
Print Thread
Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions #12366095 07/31/17 05:57 PM
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 37
S
semicole Offline OP
Outdoorsman
OP Offline
Outdoorsman
S
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 37
I have my roof rack for my car set to get here this week and then I need to decide on a kayak. I had a couple of questions for you guys before I decide on a boat.

1) I want to use J mounts for my rack, can anyone recommend a cheap set?
2) My budget for a kayak is <$500, what good fishing kayaks do you guys recommend?
3) I found a deal on a Hobie Mirage Revolution for $400, but it doesn't come with any of the accessories (no seat or mirage drive). Is this a good deal? I was thinking I could start with it and use it without the mirage drive until I'm ready to fork over the cash for the mirage drive.

That's about all I have. I look forward to you guys' responses!

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12366326 07/31/17 08:08 PM
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 843
I
IslandJim Offline
Pro Angler
Offline
Pro Angler
I
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 843
Unless you're really big and strong, hull weight needs to be a consideration, since you're gonna be loading it on your car top. Mine only weighs 62 pounds, and it's about all I can lift after a four-mile paddle. But, I'm short and old(72).

IslandJim


I'm an Eighth Day Adventist. On the Eighth Day, God went fishing!
Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: IslandJim] #12366430 07/31/17 08:56 PM
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 37
S
semicole Offline OP
Outdoorsman
OP Offline
Outdoorsman
S
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 37
Yeah, I'm driving a VW GTI that's pretty low to the ground, so I think I should be ok lifting it onto the rack.

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12366447 07/31/17 09:04 PM
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 43,998
T
Tallgrass05 Offline
bill maher's protege
Offline
bill maher's protege
T
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 43,998
Have you priced a Mirage drive?

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12366458 07/31/17 09:14 PM
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 6,067
F
fshng84 Online Content
TFF Celebrity
Online Content
TFF Celebrity
F
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 6,067
Originally Posted By: semicole
I have my roof rack for my car set to get here this week and then I need to decide on a kayak. I had a couple of questions for you guys before I decide on a boat.

1) I want to use J mounts for my rack, can anyone recommend a cheap set?
2) My budget for a kayak is <$500, what good fishing kayaks do you guys recommend?
3) I found a deal on a Hobie Mirage Revolution for $400, but it doesn't come with any of the accessories (no seat or mirage drive). Is this a good deal? I was thinking I could start with it and use it without the mirage drive until I'm ready to fork over the cash for the mirage drive.

That's about all I have. I look forward to you guys' responses!


Hi semicole,
Had a question come up from one of Readers about the kayaks we used in a video we posted on YouTube. Not experts but gave some suggestions to keep in mind when buying a kayak... here is our Blog Post that has a link to the article. Hope it helps!

Good luck in the kayak shopping!

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12367206 08/01/17 11:13 AM
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 3,723
C
christian myrick Offline
TFF Team Angler
Offline
TFF Team Angler
C
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 3,723
Things to think about are
1. How you fish, dont want a revo if you need to stand...
2. Weight cap and your load. Generally speaking you want to stay about 100 lbs less than weight cap after you and your gear is loaded.
3.demo, demo, demo. Kayaks are pretty task specific. A kayak that works well for me may not be the one you like. Plenty of stores offer demos.
4. Cost. Cost is the last on the list for me simply because its affordable doesnt make it the yak you need. Lots of people buy yaks based on price and second hand advise. This is always a mistake.
5.resale. you most certainly will get one yak, sell it to upgrade. If you get a good solid name brand kayak it will sell faster and for almost what you pay for it. My father had a canoe for 30 years and sold it for 100 dollars less than he originally paid for it.
Many of us have buddy yaks, would let you try some, places to rent yaks etc. I see it all the time, people buy a kayak, hate the first experience because they weren't properly fit to the kayak.
My family likes to paddle, that will never change. We also like to cover a lot of miles. We fish both fresh and saltwater. We focus on big game species like catfish, kingfish, shark etc. We use viking kayaks. We have almost all of the models they sell in the usa. Your welcome to test them out. 500 is gonna be a tight budget for kayak, seat, paddle, pfd ......the list goes on. Pfd and paddle obviously the most important. Its tons of fun once you find what you need. Great luck enjoy.


Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12368907 08/02/17 09:41 AM
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 22,416
L
lconn4 Online Content
TFF Guru
Online Content
TFF Guru
L
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 22,416
If you want to save some money, just get the cross bars/feet and carry your kayak hull up on it. No need for J rack or saddles doing it that way. I wore out to 2 sets of J racks over a 10 year period from a combination of salt water corrosion and stress. The first time you get passed by an 18 wheeler you'll notice how much twisting occurs with cross winds.


A good rule of angling philosophy is not to interfere with another fisherman's ways of being happy, unless you want to be hated.
Zane Grey, Tales of Fishes, 1919

https://vimeo.com/73372194
https://vimeo.com/72859045

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12369147 08/02/17 01:52 PM
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 37
S
semicole Offline OP
Outdoorsman
OP Offline
Outdoorsman
S
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 37
Hey guys,

Thanks for the advice - Shannon from texasflycaster was getting rid of his Tarpon 140, so I bought it from him. I will be picking it up on Thursday.

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12369780 08/02/17 07:58 PM
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 3,723
C
christian myrick Offline
TFF Team Angler
Offline
TFF Team Angler
C
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 3,723
Originally Posted By: semicole
Hey guys,

Thanks for the advice - Shannon from texasflycaster was getting rid of his Tarpon 140, so I bought it from him. I will be picking it up on Thursday.

Nice yak. Gonna be a speed deamon. I love great paddling kayaks.


Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12369894 08/02/17 09:20 PM
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 43,998
T
Tallgrass05 Offline
bill maher's protege
Offline
bill maher's protege
T
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 43,998
Sleek.

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12372217 08/04/17 02:22 PM
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,937
F
Fish ZoMbiE Offline
TFF Celebrity
Offline
TFF Celebrity
F
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,937
Revos arnt rated to hold much weight. What is yours? Revos r fast. They r also narrow so u need decent balance. If the hull is in good shape(no holes cracks and doesn't leak), it's a good deal IMO. Best way to know if ur gonna like it is to demo it. Before u take it for a spin, look inside the hull. If no water take it out for approx 30 min then check the inside again. There should still b zero water inside wink If u can, take someone with u that is more familiar too.

THE DRIVE IS GOING TO SET U BACK!!! So until then u could just paddle it. I'd use cross bars and secure to front and rear of car very well.
Always always always wear your vest. A decent paddle and PADDLERS vest will run u $150. Out the door.


Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12372445 08/04/17 05:34 PM
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 60
Z
ZzzKing Offline
Outdoorsman
Offline
Outdoorsman
Z
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 60
A larger kayak might be questionable on j-hooks. I've heard anything over about 10'. I know my son's 10 footer gets buffeted pretty badly when a truck passes.

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12372605 08/04/17 08:04 PM
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 22,416
L
lconn4 Online Content
TFF Guru
Online Content
TFF Guru
L
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 22,416
The Tarpon 140 will be fine on J racks, my kayak was 14+ in length. On windy days always position your vehicle so that wind will not blow kayak out of J rack... either directly up or downwind.


Last edited by lconn4; 08/04/17 08:12 PM.

A good rule of angling philosophy is not to interfere with another fisherman's ways of being happy, unless you want to be hated.
Zane Grey, Tales of Fishes, 1919

https://vimeo.com/73372194
https://vimeo.com/72859045

Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: semicole] #12373284 08/05/17 04:10 AM
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,937
F
Fish ZoMbiE Offline
TFF Celebrity
Offline
TFF Celebrity
F
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,937
Icon that's some real nice lookin water where where u at?


Re: Getting ready to get my first kayak and have some questions [Re: Fish ZoMbiE] #12374567 08/06/17 03:12 PM
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 22,416
L
lconn4 Online Content
TFF Guru
Online Content
TFF Guru
L
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 22,416
Originally Posted By: Fish ZoMbiE
Icon that's some real nice lookin water where where u at?


https://goo.gl/maps/6GhDiyctHdQ2

That is Hollywood Beach, 10 minutes south of Ft.Lauderdale Beach, 15 minutes north of Miami Beach. Spent 25 years in south florida and give it 5 stars for kayak fishing. cheers There is a three story lookout that you could climb to check the ocean past the breakers if you had any doubts.


A good rule of angling philosophy is not to interfere with another fisherman's ways of being happy, unless you want to be hated.
Zane Grey, Tales of Fishes, 1919

https://vimeo.com/73372194
https://vimeo.com/72859045

Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread

© 1998-2022 OUTDOOR SITES NETWORK all rights reserved USA and Worldwide
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.3