State of the market these days...

Hi all!

Being a larger guy (6'6 240) I'm looking for the "Holy Grail" of kayaks -- something that's fly-fishable, can haul a little hunting or camping gear, and preferably stable enough to stand on and ocean-capable.

Revo 13 and Outback and ProAngler seem to be the consenus for fishing platforms, but I'm curious about the outliers and what makes these three stand out over the others like the Malibu X-Factor.

Are there particular standout-features to these, or is it more "various small things?"

Thanks in advance for the insight!

-mox

 

I don't think there is a 'Holy Grail' of kayaks. There are too many factors that influence what is good to one person, which may be bad to another.

Long = Track straighter / Harder to turn
Short = Turn easier / Harder to track

Wide = Stable / Slower
Narrow = Faster / Less stable

You can't have a long and short boat, nor a wide and narrow to get the benefits of all 4. So you are going to have to make compromise, because to make a boat track straighter you make it harder to turn. There are devices such as outriggers and rudders that help with the shortcomings of some of the compromises.

Long story short the 'Holy Grail' of kayaks is too subjective and in my opinion impossible to determine.

Looking at your post the first thing that comes to mind is that the revo, outback, and PA are all mirage drive (peddle) yaks and the malibu is the more traditional paddle yak. 

So there's a fundamental difference between peddle and paddle.

Ryan's analysis is great and to the point, from there it's research and demos.

Good Hunting.

If your looking for a stable kayak I really like my Wilderness Systems Ride. It is so stable they advertise being able to stand on it. I havn't tried that out but feel like i could in a calm lake.

Wes

My 2C is narrow down the fishing you do the most and get kayak for that. It's pretty much inevitable you will want another kayak so might as well specialize to start. The kayak you get will probably be able to do a passing job of most of your other fishing anyway.

If the priority is to stand up and be stable, that will narrow your choices considerably. If you really want to fly fish well consider the NFO boats by Dave Scadden. I'm looking at Watermaster Kodiak raft for some of the stuff I want to do.

Good luck and enjoy the journey, choosing a kayak is a fun part of it!

Sc XFactor is a tall guy, maybe taller than you and he loves his X factor.  He has no problems paddling long distances. 

I am a lot shorter than you at 5' 11"but heavier (260) and I like the OK trident 15.  The ability to store things in the hatch and have easy access to it on the water, makes surf launching just a pucker factor thing, not a financial disaster kind of thing.

Wilderness systems Tarpon 140 is the only kayak you will ever need. Get green if you plan on hunting out of it.

http://www.oceankayak.com/kayaks/angler_editions/trident_15.html

THIS! Check the capacity of this kayak out. It tracks well with the rudder option in all weather. The bow is flared so to push the boat up and divert water so you dont take excess water over the deck in surf and big wind chop. The rod pod stores all your gear. The sonar shield is the perfect place to mount your fish finder/ GPS. With a cover to protect the unit in surf launches and landings.. A lot of kayak fishermen and women chose this kayak. The Humminbird fishfinder is also compatible with the scupper so you can have your transducer mounted on the exterior of the kayak without compromising your hull storage. Good Luck. If you want to demo one of these kayaks give me a shout. Craig

Being a larger guy (6'6 240) I'm looking for the "Holy Grail" of kayaks -- something that's fly-fishable, can haul a little hunting or camping gear, and preferably stable enough to stand on and ocean-capable.

If the priority is to stand up and be stable, that will narrow your choices considerably.

+1 for golfish   

In short, probably none of the kayaks your looking at at, aside from a PA, are standup worthy by themselves.  However i've heard quite a few success stories with Fly Fisherman using outriggers to stabalize for standing up.  If you want to go that route, your still going to need to find a kayak that is in some way comfortable while standing and heaving flies.  I know someone out there said it can be done on a Revo, so I assume it can also be done on a Outback too.  But I wouldn't suggest using an X-Factor, which has known cracking issues just from sitting in them, and the plastic is sort of weak compared to a Hobie.  (btw, I do have both )  They do make the Stealth-14, which is the same hull as the X-Factor, but has a "livewell" built in between your legs, and the hatch is supposed to be strong enough to stand on.   There are other specialty yaks that are made for it, and if this is your requirement, then there you will find your Holy Grail...  Hopefully!