Pro Angler Storage

[Bigbev67]

I have a pro angler 14, and while fishing the cbka tournament I stumbled across another angler who rigged his storage well with an old Coleman cooler. I thought this was a great use of space and an effective way to manage gear. ( He used his for bait)
I was thinking since this well is so large and most of the expensive storage containers don't make the best of the width of this kayak , what else have you guys seen or used to keep your gear stowed away.
I am slowly ramping up as I see the need to make my fishing more efficient. Started with a $5 milk crate to store gear but to keep my 20+ years of tackle in tow, might be smart to have something that closes in case of a rollover (not experienced).
Thanks again
Rich

[Redfish12]

Check out the Engel dry/cooler boxes. The 19 size should be big enough and you can put a triple rod holder or use their 2 on each side setup. You could also attach external pockets if needed.

[Big Mike]

I have a PA 14 and I've taken the opposite approach, I barely carry any tackle. I have a couple of Tupperware containers with soft bodies and lead heads and a Plano box with hard baits. These fit besides the seat for easy access and leaves the cockpit wide open. I have my rods in the tubes and a cooler behind the seat. With 4 rods rigged (one for perch and 3 for rocks I rarely need to even reach for anything other than a new soft bait. This arrangement also gives me 360 fish fighting space. It also lets me set up and breakdown my Yak in about 5 minutes.

You will find most turtles are caused by reaching behind the seat. The less you have back there the better. Cull the 20 years of tackle and you'll have a better time.

[J.A. Veil]

I have a PA 14 and I've taken the opposite approach, I barely carry any tackle. I have a couple of Tupperware containers with soft bodies and lead heads and a Plano box with hard baits. These fit besides the seat for easy access and leaves the cockpit wide open. I have my rods in the tubes and a cooler behind the seat. With 4 rods rigged (one for perch and 3 for rocks I rarely need to even reach for anything other than a new soft bait. This arrangement also gives me 360 fish fighting space. It also lets me set up and breakdown my Yak in about 5 minutes.

You will find most turtles are caused by reaching behind the seat. The less you have back there the better. Cull the 20 years of tackle and you'll have a better time.

Mike - I am in full agreement with you. I carry 1 or 2 waterproof Plano boxes that fit under the seat on my Slayer Propel 10. I have no tackle or rod storage behind my seat.

[Yak67]

Yeah I have " de-cluttered my Yak and trying to cut down on too much stuff. My goal is to just use the two plano boxes in the hatch.

I am getting there. The tendency for the PA's is to load up every empty space. I fish with Big Mike and he catches tons of fish in the minimalist mode

Yak67
2016 Hobie Outback LE#217

[baitball]

+3 on the "minimalist" approach.

Fished on Sunday with the least amount of extra tackle ever (at least for me). I brought four LT rods already pre-rigged with jig heads and corresponding paddle tails. In my crate I carried one of the small, yellow-border Plano waterproof boxes with some extra jig heads in case I lost any of the ones already on my rods and had to re-tie. That's it, nothing more in the crate.
In my Outback's mesh pockets I placed bags of extra paddle tails - four to be exact, original packaging, straight from the tackle shop shelf to my kayak.
I ended the day catching over 36 rockfish, all schoolies, the largest around 16", some WP, and one very animated 9inch bluefish, and I had a blast!
My point is more tackle doesn't equal more fish, lines in the water equals more fish. The time you will spend swapping out lures is time you do not have a line in the water.
Whether you troll hard or soft baits, live line, jig, or prefer to cast, find something you will enjoy and make a commitment to that technique on each outing. This approach is both empowering and liberating.

*BTW, I don't like keeping tackle inside my hatches. I keep my sunglasses, beef jerky, and PowerBars in the below deck storage containers. This way I only have to open the hatch twice during an outing - once to get my sunglasses, and once to get a snack.

[DOGFISH]

I find that too much in or on the bow of the ProAngler makes it bow heavy and dives into waves. Then again, I do mostly trolling.