Questions on buying a new YAK...

mhayes · Jun 20, 2017

I am just getting into this with my son and really enjoying it. I bought one less expensive boat to try out this spring. Had to make sure the boy and I enjoyed the Kayaks first before I spent money on two. The one purchased is a Field and Stream Eagle Talon 12 footer, sit on top yak. Being we both enjoy it I am passing that boat to my son and looking for a little nicer one for myself. I am stuck on two and wanted some opinions of you YAK fishers. I am not closed on one of these two, so if you have a different model that you think i should look at. Please post info. Thanks,

The FS talon is a good boat. Stable, tracks well, good equipment and plenty of storage room. But no dry storage space. The foot pegs are a little on the flimsy side and the seat is lacking cushion and back support to make a long fishing trip. My son is a lot smaller than me and the seat does not bother him. So this is what I am familiar with.

The boats I am looking at are Feel Free Lure 11.5 and Vibe Sea ghost 130. Does anyone have experience with these? I really want to stay under the $1000 mark. And the Feel Free's are not there. Reviews on line are pretty stand up for these models as well. Just always looking for a personal experienced opinion from someone who has owned multiple different kayaks. I will not be using GPS or fish locators so that is not an issue. Looking for all day comfort in a seat and plenty of room for tackle bags and rods as well as dry storage spot for phone and wallet. Would like to stick to a 11+ length as well. The Vibe seams to come with more options that the Lure for less money. But is there a reason for that? Also using for light river fishing, small lakes here in North GA and farm ponds.

Thanks for your time and any information that you can give!

Matt

Yakman22 · Jun 20, 2017

Lure 11.5 has a great seat and is stable, it's gonna be a SLOW boat and doesn't track that great. Sea Ghost has a good seat, tracks good and is stable. Prolly not made quite as well as the lure. If you are thinking about the lure, then I recommend a Old Town Predator MX, it cost around the same and is a much better Yak.

HydraYak · Jun 20, 2017

The Sea Ghost is a good kayak. I have a 110 (along with 5 other kayaks). It's the short 11ft version of the 13' Sea Ghost. I have friends that fish all over with me in their 130s.

I haven't paddled a Feel Free. Looks awesome! The 11.5 is probably more comparable to the SG110 though. Same length.

Lost Sailor · Jul 5, 2017

I have both a Feelfree Lure 11.5 and a Vibe Sea Ghost 110 and will give you the skinny from my perspective.

Lure 11.5 aka "The Battle Barge"
This is my personal yak and the first fishing kayak I have ever owned. I really love this boat! It's as stable as they come and for me, the pros far out weigh the cons! I'm a big guy at 6'3 230 and have never once felt like I was going in the drink!!! The standing deck is awesome. I stood right up, unassisted within 5 minutes of being on it. Great for fly casting, sigh fishing and just stretching the legs! I love the seat, which I leave in the up-most position 100% of the time! I have spent 8+ hours in the seat and still felt like I could of stayed out there a lot longer. The wheel in the keel is nice but only really works well on hard surfaces. The cup holders behind the seat are worthless! The Lure is slow and heavy! I can paddle and maintain around 3mph and get close to 4mph when I'm really gett'n it but I can't hold this speed for ever (until I get the pedal drive which should be coming out in the next month or so) Did I mention she's a "big girl"? Yeah she's heavy and feels a little bit heavier every time I touch her! Still, I can load her by myself nearly fully rigged in my Tundra with 5.5' bed by lifting the bow up on the tailgate and then picking the stern up and sliding her in. I do clip her in so she doesn't roll back!

Vibe Sea Ghost 110:
I bought this to have 2nd yak for the family and friends. Its a great boat that is super light. I can pick this up and toss it around like nothing....you're not going to do that with the Lure! I have only paddled it once so I can't say too much about it from a performance/experience perspective! The Seat is not nearly as comfortable as the Lure seat! It is NOT as stable as the Lure but it is much faster! I tried to stand and did not feel comfortable at all. I went out last night with my 16yo my nephew who smoked me in a little race. He has 0 paddling experience where as I have been paddling canoes and kayaks for a long time. I'm not crazy about the console on the Sea Ghost either. The straps and buckles that hold it are kind of awkward. It would be a lot better if you could fashion a hinge so the top doesn't flop about when you open it. The Lure's sonar pod did the same thing until I mounted a hinge on it. I don't see an easy fix for the SG 110 console.

Few notes:
IMO, you absolutely need the rudder on the Lure which is another $200 bringing the total to $1400 for the Lure whereas the SG110 comes with a rudder for $900 total! I can't really say that they are comparable boats though. The Lure quality seems to be a bit better that than the Ghost and their customer service is as good as they come. I took on water with my old Lure and they replaced it wiht a brand new boat in 2 days flat! I haven't had to deal with Vibes customer service yet but I only live about 3 miles from them. I do like they face that they are Local!

I live about 5 miles from Lake Allatoona and would be willing to let you test paddle them if you'd like to. just send me a PM :cheers:

mdgreco191 · Jul 6, 2017

I have fished with a lot of people that like the Vibe kayaks, but I have not personally paddled one.

I like my Ocean Kayak Big Game II, but it is out of your under $1000 budget range. Especially if you add a rudder to it.

Coenen · Jul 6, 2017

Lost Sailor said:
I have both a Feelfree Lure 11.5 and a Vibe Sea Ghost 110 and will give you the skinny from my perspective.

I've always been curious to see a real head to head comparison of the two. I wanted a Lure for a long time, but changed my mind when I found the Sea Ghost. I eventually bought an SG 130 and have really enjoyed owning it, but there's always been that "what-if" for me with the Feelfree. I'm really surprised that you found the FF Gravity seat to be that much better than Vibe's Hero seat! I find the seat in my Vibe to be suuuper comfy. Next time I see a dude with a Lure, I'll have to see if he'll let me take it for a little test drive.

Checkout Vibe's owners' group page on Facebook. There are tons of examples of a hinge modification for the console lid. You can DIY, fairly easily, or there are a couple of guys that do kits as well.

Killdee · Jul 7, 2017

Lost Sailor said:
I have both a Feelfree Lure 11.5 and a Vibe Sea Ghost 110 and will give you the skinny from my perspective.

Lure 11.5 aka "The Battle Barge"
This is my personal yak and the first fishing kayak I have ever owned. I really love this boat! It's as stable as they come and for me, the pros far out weigh the cons! I'm a big guy at 6'3 230 and have never once felt like I was going in the drink!!! The standing deck is awesome. I stood right up, unassisted within 5 minutes of being on it. Great for fly casting, sigh fishing and just stretching the legs! I love the seat, which I leave in the up-most position 100% of the time! I have spent 8+ hours in the seat and still felt like I could of stayed out there a lot longer. The wheel in the keel is nice but only really works well on hard surfaces. The cup holders behind the seat are worthless! The Lure is slow and heavy! I can paddle and maintain around 3mph and get close to 4mph when I'm really gett'n it but I can't hold this speed for ever (until I get the pedal drive which should be coming out in the next month or so) Did I mention she's a "big girl"? Yeah she's heavy and feels a little bit heavier every time I touch her! Still, I can load her by myself nearly fully rigged in my Tundra with 5.5' bed by lifting the bow up on the tailgate and then picking the stern up and sliding her in. I do clip her in so she doesn't roll back!

Vibe Sea Ghost 110:
I bought this to have 2nd yak for the family and friends. Its a great boat that is super light. I can pick this up and toss it around like nothing....you're not going to do that with the Lure! I have only paddled it once so I can't say too much about it from a performance/experience perspective! The Seat is not nearly as comfortable as the Lure seat! It is NOT as stable as the Lure but it is much faster! I tried to stand and did not feel comfortable at all. I went out last night with my 16yo my nephew who smoked me in a little race. He has 0 paddling experience where as I have been paddling canoes and kayaks for a long time. I'm not crazy about the console on the Sea Ghost either. The straps and buckles that hold it are kind of awkward. It would be a lot better if you could fashion a hinge so the top doesn't flop about when you open it. The Lure's sonar pod did the same thing until I mounted a hinge on it. I don't see an easy fix for the SG 110 console.

Few notes:
IMO, you absolutely need the rudder on the Lure which is another $200 bringing the total to $1400 for the Lure whereas the SG110 comes with a rudder for $900 total! I can't really say that they are comparable boats though. The Lure quality seems to be a bit better that than the Ghost and their customer service is as good as they come. I took on water with my old Lure and they replaced it wiht a brand new boat in 2 days flat! I haven't had to deal with Vibes customer service yet but I only live about 3 miles from them. I do like they face that they are Local!

I live about 5 miles from Lake Allatoona and would be willing to let you test paddle them if you'd like to. just send me a PM

If you facebook theres a vibe owners section and lots of posts re hinging the console using a 1/4" rod and some conduit clamps, some use a gas rod. 1 guy sells 2 different kits. You can also utube it and find some examples.
I just bought a 110 but have yet to make it to the water. I have the stuff to hinge mine already.

Teh Wicked · Jul 13, 2017

Made my own hinge for my Sea Ghost using a $6 brass rod from Ace Hardware and $4 worth of camps...Not knocking the guy on Facebook that sells the "kits", but CensoredCensoredCensoredCensored, $60 for his kits is pretty high.

nickruis · Jul 13, 2017

I have the sea ghost 130 and it's my 3rd kayak and favorite so far. It's fun and easy to handle. Upgraded the rudder with coated cables added a depth finder and it's ready to go. The seat is great. Stability is good but not good enough for me to stand up in and cast and fish.

Phillip018 · Jul 19, 2017

I have a Sea Ghost 130. I've taken it out one time so far and I am very pleased with it. Very stable, roomy, comfortable and it has lots of storage. I paddled for about 2 hours and didn't have any problems. The boat tracked well and I never used the rudder. I'm 6'2 and 305 and had plenty of of room to do what I needed. And I caught 1 small bass.

Questions on buying a new YAK...

mhayes

Senior Member

Yakman22

Senior Member

HydraYak

Senior Member

Lost Sailor

New Member

mdgreco191

Senior Member

Coenen

Senior Member

Killdee

Senior Member

Teh Wicked

Senior Member

nickruis

Senior Member

Phillip018

Guest

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