Instead of pool noodles.....

Pool noodles would be cheaper to stuff into your kayak than buying a bunch of wheels to stuff in there don't you think Mooch.

Pool noodles would be cheaper to stuff into your kayak than buying a bunch of wheels to stuff in there don't you think Mooch.

Not if you already have the wheels 

I have pool noodles in the back and a dry bag filled with empty gatorade bottles in the front. Stuff the rods towards the rear. Or like Piscean does, which I think is cool, strap the rods to the paddle hold down and take the reels off and in. The medium density poly is nuetral buoyancy. If you have heavy gear inside when it fills? The wheels are a good idea Joel. Ill bet one of those wheels would float you just fine. 10 bucks says so.

I strap my wheelez on the back of my milk crate just for the what if factor!!!  plus I don't like leaveing them on the bank...One you guys at Albion lifted my wheelez off that 20ft pole I was locked onto and  left them by the rocks...

Any flotation is better than none, good idea Mooch. My kayak is probably sub-surface floating around somewhere. I did see it disappear.

A kayak full of water even with pool noodles stuffed to the rim would be very tough to stay upright with and even to paddle. I'd really like to see someone prove me wrong on this.

I completely swamp my yak in this vid:



Half full, the hull was unstable because all the water rushes to one side and you're unable to counterbalance it.  FULL though, the hull is much more stable, and I was able to easily sit on and paddle the kayak, FULL of water.

I have 24 noodles and 4 crab floats evenly distributed in there.

Your video proved that the kayak would float and stay upright with full water breach......and it worked. But you were in calm waters with no swells to deal with. My other concern was how far can you actually paddle with full water breach. The video did not really show that.

It's safe to say that pool noodles will definitely float the kayak (never had a doubt about that). My point was to use the wheels as another option. Why leave it behind when it can serve as floatation too 

Your video proved that the kayak would float and stay upright with full water breach......and it worked. But you were in calm waters with no swells to deal with. My other concern was how far can you actually paddle with full water breach. The video did not really show that.

I'll maintain a goal of getting that on video then.  And you're right, the wheels would definitely help.   

Looking forward to that video. Always good to have first hand research and development available for all of us to learn from.

I'm going to go with a couple of cans of the self-expanding foam pipe insulation and then I'm going to create a mold to allow the foam to butt up against between the scupper tubes and the down the chines of each side and up to the underside of the deck and then I'm going to shoot that stuff in there and let it expand, buoyant, light, cheap=that ought to do'er.

I'm going to go with a couple of cans of the self-expanding foam pipe insulation and then I'm going to create a mold to allow the foam to butt up against between the scupper tubes and the down the chines of each side and up to the underside of the deck and then I'm going to shoot that stuff in there and let it expand, buoyant, light, cheap=that ought to do'er.

that's not a bad idea Mike.

I've often thought that some custom foam blocks would be perfect.

I'm not as concerned with the yak being absolutely paddleable as much as I would prefer it to stay on the surface so I can hang onto it. I paddle a bright yak so it can be more easily seen . In an S hits the F situation I want to at least have the yak on the surface as a float. At worst, if I had to ditch it then there would still be a chance it could be recovered.

Yum, noodles.

Interesting discussion 

   Why not settle it with a "Swamped Yak" Race? 

       See who can paddle out around the small island in front of the launch at Tiki
   
            .... with a 1/2 full of water yak! 

             
What I'd actually like to know is how long it would take to pump out a fully swamped yak.  I carry a pump all the time, but have heard a few stories where even with the pump people gave up.  I'll bring the pump 

Why would I want to store my rods at Tiki? Show me sometime on the ocean in a 7'NW swell, and a 4'S swell with a 10MPH W wind.

1. I would never open my front hatch - just to store rods - in such conditions
2. If need to store my rods in unfavorable conditions, I'd call in my fishing partner for assistance - it can be done safer with the help of a comrad - I know this cause I've done it many times. (or if my partner paddles a Trident, then I'll have him or her store my stuff)

But I like to be holding on to a just at the surface 16 foot piece of yellow plastic

That's exactly my point with the wheeleez floatation = If my kayak takes on water, I have something to hang on while I await rescue. A kayak full of water even with pool noodles stuffed to the rim would be very tough to stay upright with and even to paddle. I'd really like to see someone prove me wrong on this.

Well I normally stash my rods in the front hatch of my P15 in conditions like that, and the Wheeleez would be in the way whether I was stashing my rods by myself, or with the help of a buddy.

If the conditions turned so bad that I wasn't comfortable opening my hatch, then I would use the paddle bungee method.

Noodles saved my bacon (at least my kayak) during a little "mishap" on the Sonoma Coast a couple of years back. I wasn't able to keep the kayak upright enough to paddle but was able to "ride" it in which kept most of my body out of the water....

ps Thanks for the picture Cameron