help buying kayak
 

I am in the process of replacing my old wilderness system ride. I am considering the tarpon angler ride angler and a cobra fish and dive. but am having a hard time. What I do is launch and recover in the surf during light seas. I fish along rocky shores and drift/ slow troll eels at night and twilight. I would like to hear any suggestions from those who have these models (I know they come in different sizes). What I want is stability but I dont want the boat to be horribly slow. A few random questions. Is a short boat less prone to be spun arround when you are landing in the surf? How much speed do you loose when you increase the width of the hull from 28" to 30" to 33" or 36" Guess what I want is a stable boat that is not slow as hell. I like my old ride but I want a rudder and the cost is about 200. for that much I think I would rather get a new boat with a better design for carrying tackle and customizing with accessories depth sounder rod holders etc. Its a rambling post but help I am confused!

If I was looking right now I'd check out the new 12' Hobie Pro Angler .. A lot of cake though . Stability ? You can stand up on it .. I have the Outback ,, very stable too ,,, but I wouldn't stand up .. Surf landing you have to be able to pull the Rudder up and in my case pull the mirage drive out .. You lose a lot of control doing this and it's easy to get spun around . I avoid heavy surf landings for this reason ..

I have a 1year old camo native mariner 12.5 with humming bird 385 ci ready to fish. Love the kayak but just bought a Boston whaler. If you are interested please pm me. Kayak is near mint minus some scratches on the bottom from beach landings.
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Hobies Rock.....

I had an Ocean Kayak Prowler 1st and it was a reasonable priced, very Stable Kayak. I did love it. The only drawback I found was not having my hands free which is why I switched to a hobie.

I also have the Outback and it is very stable. I sit side saddle in it if I need to get anything out o fthe back or just want to drift and cast.

They are more money though

Ok, first off, a new kayak is going to run you at lease $600-$700, if you are happy with your current kayak, just spend the money and put the rudder on it, much cheaper!

Any of the kayaks you mentioned are going to have a problem in surf landings, its just the way it is, they are not designed to do well in surf.

As for stability, most are going to be plenty stable for you, and there honestly is probably not a huge difference in stability with the models you mentioned. However, not sure how big a guy you are, but make sure you are within the weight limitations with fully loaded gear.

As Tagger said, if you want super stability, you need to go Hobie Pro Angler, but the thing is a beast and hard to lift onto your vehicle, oh and it costs about $2000

I,ve been looking @ the Tarpon 12 as an entry level yak. Seems like a sweet ride for the$$ Very nice seat in this yak,much better than most!

Pro Anglers are closer to $2,700.00 new....both sizes...same price!:uhuh: