Old Town Big water 132 Peddle vs. Hobie outback for a first kayak ?

Old Town Big Water 132 vs Hobie Outback . 
13" 2"  Vs.  12' 6".   Propellar drive or Fin ?
Two major differences.  As well as lenghth.
Savings of a 1000 bill. Used demo oldtown
Brand new hobie ?s.

Saw a deal on a demo and wanted to save a thousand dollars.
And be safe and happy too.

So i want to crab,  rock fish, chase salmon, halibut in the ocewn waters.
Would i be safe and happy in the Old Town Vs the Hobie Outback ...

It would be my very first kayak and kayak purchase.
Ive spend hours on Youtube and on web watchin and learning and ive narrowed it down
To something like these.

Thioughts ?

I love my old town pdl120.   It is very stable but it is a pig.... never tried a hobie but most of the folks I fish with have them and like them as well.... think they are lighter than mine and my guess is that a big water 132 is probably even heavier and likely even more stable.

Troy

I have an old town pdl120 and a salty.

As troy said, PDL is so stable it's almost comical. When I had to do self rescue training, my kid was laughing at me because I had to work so hard to get the thing to tip.

The salty (despite being same size and similar dimensions with a lot of similar rigging) is an entirely different beast. Lighter, less stable, and blazing fast on the water. I really like both yaks, but now that I'm more experienced, I tend to favor the Salty because I don't worry about tipping that much these days. I wouldn't call the Salty unstable by any stretch (you'll find videos of people standing up and fishing on them, though I personally wouldn't do that, my balance isn't great).

I have never been on the Big Water 132 but from what I understand, it leans much more towards the Salty design than the standard Sportsman/Topwater PDL120. It sacrifices stability in favor of speed.

As far as propeller drive, I'm very happy with them (all the Old Town yaks have the same bullet-proof drive). Reliable as hell (as the warranty reflects) and they even float if you manage to drop it in the water for whatever reason. Instant reverse by just backpedalling is great too. I know Hobie owns the market but the only major advantage I see to them (and it is a significant one, depending on where you fish) is the fact that the fin-style drives can easily glide over vegetation without getting stuck, while propellers are definitely going to get stuck in heavy weeds. This is almost never an issue for me, but depending on the waters you frequent, may be a big deal.

Okay fantastic thankyou for the comeback .

I bought the Old Town Demo 132 PDL Sportsman Big Water.
Its from the sportsman show this year at Cal Expo Display boat.
Never seen a drop of water.  Minor scuffs not even scrapes.
I went thru everything top too bottom. Got too pedal it dry while
It was up on the stand.  I have nothing to compare it too so
can say much about the dry pedaling.

I paid 2200 plus tax.  It was listed for 2250 but i got
An extra 50 bux off just by asking for 50 extra bux off.  Hell Yeah.
So i think i got about 850 to 900 dollar total discount.  On the deal.
Even though its never been in the water they still have too sell it as
Used.

The seat seems kinda no frills but comfy enough.  Time spent will tell all.
My back is in good enough shape.  Not prone too pain.

Pro rated 5 year warranty on the drive.  And life time on the hull.  Hell yeah.

Tomarrow will be maiden voyage .  Just a put put around the local lake.
Ill post here with a report tomarrow.

Congrats...hope you can sleep tonight...don't forget to bring a fishing rod...

Congrats! Definitely let us know how you like it.

I will absolutelty drop a line here tomarrow.
It started too rain nicely tonite.  Either way im
Not scared.

I dont thinkmthe weeds are going too be much of an issue
For me because i fish the ocean and the kelp rite now seems
Too be at a minimum.  If i do fine some ill have see weather
Or not it hangs up the prop .  The bull kelp is very thick and heavy
Very wide long leafs that grow from the stipe and bulb.  So maybe it
Will just slide off the prop.   But thats just the bull kelp not sure about the
Other species.  Or maybe the jelly fish tenticles would be an issue.

But tomarrow is just a put put day around the lake.

We like pictures, congrats my father in law got a smoking deal on a 1 year old Outback last year $1100 we got him a watersnake set up because he’s a double amputee and peddling was a task.

So maiden voyage was fantastic. This was the  first this boats has seen water and my first time in a pedle
Drive kayak of any sort OTW. 

The drive itself seems very tight somewhat of a task too peddle.  I havent looked into the mechanics
Of this drive im hoping its just in need of some adjustments on a screw or bolts .  Let me explain it like
This. 0 it feels as if its in the low gear of a bicycle .  Heavy too peddle but much faster once you get going sort
Of thing.

Steering is right to go left and left to go right.  I can carve out figure 8s well enough.
Fast turns right or left while underway feels a bit tipsy. The seat sits high.  Some what
Of a concearn for the future of the ocean conditions.  Ill just have to take balanceing
Pills.

Theres some after market upgrad3s out there for this make and model.  Navarre kayaking is all
Ive found so far.

Its 100 lbs. @ 13' 2" in lenghth. I was able too load and launch into the bed of my truck.
A 2005 Dodge Ram 1500 short bed 5.6 f5 short bed quad cab.  I use the max haul bed
Extender worked fantastic.  Loaded into bed. . 
The second position is top of cab too bed extender so ill have room for camping gear
But thats later.

All in all its been a terrific day.  Im sooo excited .  And look forward to the 40 incher club.
Heeeere Ling Cod SOOOOOWEEEE..
And meeting all of you.

Here is another.  As you can see it does sit high a bit conearning but.
I think ill still be safe for the ocean on a rocky day.

I doo plan on classes at Clavey Water Sports.   Become proficint at self
Rescue and riting my wittle wessle.

Excellent.

A few tips from an Old Town owner....

the stiff pedaling I've heard about before, and I am not entirely sure what to think about it. I didn't have that experience myself with either OTPDL120 or the Salty, though the OTPDL120 as I mentioned already is a barge, and naturally is harder to pedal. I didn't register it as problematic, but just the basic design of that yak means it's gonna be hard to pedal.

That said, I HAVE heard many people in the Old Town FB group talk about getting a brand new yak and finding that the pedal drive starts out stiff, but after 2 or 3 outings started to loosen up. As I mentioned before, I think the Bigwater 132 should handle similar to a Salty, so it's entirely possible the pedaling will get easier as the drive breaks in.

Navare: They are awesome. Their stuff is so useful I think Old Town should probably partner more closely with Nick or just acquire his business or something lol. I've gotten a handle-mount bracket from them as well as a garmin-compatible scupper hole mount for fish finder tranciever which I consider a must-have. They have a bunch of other useful stuff too.

The height of the Old Town seats put people off but it's never been a problem for me. Again the OTPDL120 is so stable I've never felt the least bit tippy. The Salty is a bit more wobbly but I got used to it fast, and have yet to take a spill except when surf landing (which really didn't have much to do with seat height at all). If anything, one of the most common "upgrades" I see people getting for Old Towns is seat risers which seems insane to me considering how high it already rides, but man people do love their comfy sitting positions lol

Its without a doubt difficult too Peddle.  AKA Hefty workout.
They wouldnt let me demo the boat due to liability reasons
Is what i was told.  Im hoping i havent made a mistake.
Its just the drive .  Maybe if i operate it while im sitting around
On the couch may loosen it up break it in.

I dont like facebook but want too join the group discussions on
Old Town PDL Drives.  I hope theres otheres that will chime in here.
Navarre Kayaking on YT has a few maintenance vids but i havent
Found anything about break in periods or regreasing the pinion gears.
If theres PDL Drive mechanic please give us yours thoughts.
Ill have too call. Them tomarrow.

Now im over too my PDF discussion i started a feew days ago.

Saw a deal on a demo and wanted to save a thousand dollars.
And be safe and happy too.

Its without a doubt difficult too Peddle.  AKA Hefty workout.
They wouldnt let me demo the boat due to liability reasons
Is what i was told.

Something seems fishy if this was a demo and you weren't allowed to try it out? Was this a private seller or a dealer?  If it's a dealer, I would demand answers and that they try the drive out or let you try another so you have a comparison.  Going on a stretch here, but if it was a dealer demo and maybe it got tumbled in the surf and sand or it's messed it up from abuse.  Sorry you got handed a problem either way...  Let us know the details especially if a dealer did this to you.

You can also contact Old Town and see what they say. I literally have never heard of one of their PDL drives failing, but even in the event you somehow got a dud, I'm sure they'll replace it.

Im calling Old town today ill post here what they tell me.
I do plan on electrifying it in the future. But still have to get this
Issur resolved first.

It will be a ekectric fishing yaught at 13 ft 2 in long.
Bow mounted motor.  But thats in the future.
Im will still need too take PDL Drive otw just incase
Something goes bad.  So thats why im concearnec
About the Drive.