Outdoor Products For Your Kayaking Enjoyment

 

Ocean Kayak Owner Reports, Issue 4

We welcome your comments.   If you enjoy your boat, or have some helpful tip, or have found a problem, send us an e-mail.  We will try to include everything that might be helpful to other Ocean Kayak owners. So far we haven't received a lot of comments so we hope all of our customers are having too much fun to stop and send an e-mail.

Outdoor Products For More Fun In The Sun

Scrambler XT

One of our friends in Hawaii has warned us that the center hatch on the Scrambler XT may present a problem.  He was getting ready to dive, and inadvertently sat on his hatch, which popped off, filling the hull of his boat with water.  Fortunately he had a buddy in another boat, and between them they were able to save his boat.  So unless you have an urgent need for the center hatch, you would be better off without it. The boat in the photo doesn't have a center hatch, but it goes where the round molding in the center is.

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Drifter

This is from another SCUBA diver:  Just so you know a Drifter will hold up to three 80 cubic foot dive tanks, with all of the gear, and a 250 pound person, with no problem.  One tank in the forward hatch, one in the tank well, and one between your legs, on the center ridge.  You can also store three 6-1/2 foot rods inside the hatch.  The only thing it can't carry is your car or truck. Since the tanks are lighter when empty, the ride back is easier.  Oh yes, you can pole your way through the flats, standing up in this thing!

Try An Angler Drifter 4 More Outdoor Fun

 
Another Drifter Owner: My wife and I, after a huge amount of research, decided to purchase a Drifter each. Our decision was primarily based on our interest and size.  Neither of us are small persons, I weigh 235, and my wife weighs 210.  Our primary purpose is fishing, and gulf of mexico fishing at that.  Never having spent hours in a kayak before we were surprised at the amount of water the drifters shipped aboard.  I should point out that we were in a 15 knot breeze, with 2 to 3 feet of breaking chop.  The scupper holes drained quickly and well.  Even with the breeze, the Drifters tracked well.  We opted for the basic boat without the rudder.  Even so we didn't have any problem paddling in a straight line. The superior stability (I have dumped other sit on tops in much calmer conditions) resulted in no problems, even when broad side to the chop, which was 2 to 3 feet, and breaking.  Of course this first trip wasn't for fishing, and the only load was ourselves. Since then we have installed a Scotty type rod holder in the center consoles, with a milk crate directly behind the seat, a 9 quart hard side cooler behind that, and still had room for a bait bucket.  You can just hang your feet in the water on one side or the other, and swivel to reach anything you need.

The only faults I have found are that the tank well is a bit more narrow than I would prefer, and the weight at 56 pounds is a bit much for this old man of 50, after spending 6 to 8 hours in the water.  One problem my wife encountered is how to handle those large blue gulf crabs.  They won't release your bait until they drop into the boat, and she claims there isn't enough room in a Drifter for her and the crab. I rate the Ocean Kayak Drifter very highly, and would strongly recommend that anyone who feels their butt is a little wider than normal give it serious consideration.

Note:  The plastic milk crates he mentioned are popular with kayak fishermen.  You can strap it down in the tank well, and put your gear in it.

Venus 4 Fun Kayaking

A nice local lady bought our first Venus, and called us to report that she likes it very well.  It has good maneuverability, tracks well, and has good stability.  She is also able to carry it easily with one of the Surf to Summit kayak carrying straps.

Scupper Pro Tw

I want to tell you up front that this is my own report, so take it with a grain of salt as I may be biased, since I sell them. I have a scupper pro tw, and the wife has a scupper classic. They are both pretty similar. I like the scupper pro tw real well. It has good stability, is reasonably fast, and has lots of storage. It is a joy to paddle, though it could benefit from a rudder in high winds. It is no longer available with the factory installed rudder, but you can buy the rudder kit and install it yourself. (It doesn't bother me enough that I have wanted to install the rudder). The wife and I got these boats before the prowler series became available.

Sorry guys, eat your heart out, Ocean Kayak has discontinued this boat.

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