my Older 160 but new to me!

OK, so after hearing lots of folks recommend the ride and construction of Wilderness Systems products, I found an older one (still in great shape, and, well, it is just an elegant boat) on Craigslist and managed to sell off enough plasma and redundant organs at the free clinic to afford it!

Late night last Tuesday, after some creative strapping exercises (PS. Holy crap 16’ is a lot longer than is seems) I managed to strap the vessel to the top of my truck and drive home (at 15mph on the freeway, on the egde of my seat, hands at 10-2, chin on the steering wheel….)

I have spent the last three days just salivating over the thought of taking it into the water.. Currently I am trying to figure out the minimum rigging I can get away with in order to have a decent day fishing the Port. I am down to, strapping a milk-crate over the hatches behind the seat, and roping the QRAS in to some (e) loops, and using a quick-release knot I used with horses until I get an idea where I want my clam-cleat….

I notice there seems to be a serious aversion to drilling to mount things? Do they leak that bad or does it seriously cut down on resale value of older boats?

A lot of you folks out there have a lot of experience with these kayaks, is there anything with these older 160’s that I should be aware of or look out for?

Oh and if there is anything you have found helpful with these kayaks (I am working on a Wiemer-bait-bucket as we speak) I would appreciate your input, thank you!

Well you will get there first... Those are FAST boats!!! Going to be a little tricky to milk crate that one with out the well in the back but it can be done... My crate has a 2.5 gallon bucket and the plano bucket topper. The pole holders are black PVC pipe and I hang the bubble'r on the crate. Not fancy but works great. Drilling is permanent and I try to hole mine boat ONLY above the loaded water line. Industrial Sticky back Velcro works wonders and holds great. Paddle leash is a must! they sell Molded plastic Consoles and I have a scotty three mount thing I'm trying out. http://www.nrsweb.com/shop/product.asp?pfid=4334&utm_campaign=shop_comp&utm_source=google&utm_medium=buy_now&utm_term=goog_product_4334&gclid=CIHGnNySrLQCFSTZQgodRmkA6w

I think it is going to work well... Maybe we can fix you up with the flip out type I have on mine... Have fun

congrats on the NTY boat, love those old 160s, they did make an insert for the rear hatch that turned it into a tank well, they are hard to come by, pm racin rob, he may be able to help you track one down, cameron

The biggest thing to look out for is the drain plug......don't ever take it out, ever, for any reason, even when you think you should, don't. I epoxied mine in place.

Bilge pump is a must and keep it mounted topside or leashed in the hull.  My plug backed out and my hull flooded when I was about a mile offshore.  The water in the hull floated my bilge pump to an inaccessible spot in the hull.  I nearly lost the boat.  I know of at least two others that experienced the same.   

Aside from the drain plug design flaw it's probably the fastest yak on the water and a killer rig for the ocean.  I wouldn't mount a crate up high, it's a narrow boat  and gets squirrelly in crossed swell.  A crate would be tough to deal with

For the milk crate that I use on my Wilderness sit in, I just use 2 of the cam cleat bungees from Home Depot.  Works great.  Quick, easy and removable for transportation.  No holes, etc...  Useable intil you find what is right for YOU on this kayak.  I'd set it up for how & where YOU fish if you plan on keeping it for a while.  If you plan on reselling, then I'd go with velcro, straps or bungees.  Just my opinion...  Otherwise, holes, mounts, etc. limit your potential buyer if you decide to sell.  Those are the times to put on the 'ol song & dance to close the sale.

~Bill

I'm curious to see what the hull looks like on that one. It looks long long and narrow, fast and dangerously "rolly" to me for a sit-on-top.

What are you used to paddling?

I'm curious to see what the hull looks like on that one. It looks long long and narrow, fast and dangerously "rolly" to me for a sit-on-top.

What are you used to paddling?

Right now i have a 14' Perception Prism, that is also long and thin, and I am really not a fan of how tippy it is, i was hoping this would be more stable, if it isn't, well I am either going to have to rig an outrigger or sell it **crap** to get a more stable one. Goddamnit, that was two comments about 160's being tippy, which was exactly why I want to get rid of my current one......

Looks like Saturday is going to be the LEAST rainy of the next two days, so i am taking this beast out to the port in the morning see how she rolls.

Well here is a bad photo of the underside, just fyi.

I think it is going to work well... Maybe we can fix you up with the flip out type I have on mine... Have fun

Yeah the only reason I don't have my scotty base mounted yet is because I don't want to mount it until I can sit in it in the water, i've been looking at those three-mount sets, they look promising. I remember that rack across your seating area, have to bumm a picture off you for that?

I am going to try and run insulation under the bottom edges of a milk crate and then strap it down behind the seat, nothing permanent until I see how it fishes, if it is too tippy for me to reach behind me (like my current boat is) then I am screwed anyway..

PS. I just found my 3-gallon bucket today as well  now all I need is a bubbler!

Ironically, the first kayak I paddled was a prism too.  I haven't encountered a more tippy kayak than that one. 

The only time the 160 ever felt tippy was in mixed direction swell. And that was on days with 5-7nw and 2-3 s , washing machine for sure but not undoable.  It's not gonna be as stable as a wider boat but its not that big of a deal.

Ironically, the first kayak I paddled was a prism too.  I haven't encountered a more tippy kayak than that one. 

The only time the 160 ever felt tippy was in mixed direction swell. And that was on days with 5-7nw and 2-3 s , washing machine for sure but not undoable.  It's not gonna be as stable as a wider boat but its not that big of a deal.

+1 my first yak was one generation later than yours and it was fine.  I also have crappy balance

Thanks for posting the picture of the hull. It looks much more stable than I was thinking it might be.

Now it looks like a good, fast boat!

I'm curious to see what the hull looks like on that one. It looks long long and narrow, fast and dangerously "rolly" to me for a sit-on-top.

What are you used to paddling?

I have this boat and a newer 06 also. They are not very tippy like some of you think. I can reach around mine to get in the back no problem. I can neel in mine to pee if I want to. I can crawl up to the front to get in the front hatch also. When I first got it I took maybe two trips to get used to it, but it was my first yak too. Just paddle it and you will get used to it.

congrats on the NTY boat, love those old 160s, they did make an insert for the rear hatch that turned it into a tank well, they are hard to come by, pm racin rob, he may be able to help you track one down, cameron

Those were only made for maybe a year. They are next to impossible to find. I have no contacts for that insert. It is nice to have. I found mine by doing a google search for t160 tank well. To a year to find it. Came from a guy in Texas. Post up on different forums for the insert. Somebody might have one they would sell you. If you get one don't use it in the ocean. It does not drain and will fill with water.

I think the DH is the fastest SOT out there. Ravensblack may disagree and say his scupper pro is faster. I don't know for sure. It is a bit hard to rig. I fished for a year with a little tackle bag between my legs. Bottom line is you will like how it paddles I think. Use it for a while and if you hate it someone will buy it.