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I wanted to post a short review on the Stealth 12 since I've had it for a week now and just got back from a trip to NY. When I started looking for a new yak I tried going into it without any bias towards any particular brand. It's hard to do with the great marketing some of the companies have. I mainly fish tributaries of the Potomac, but wanted the ability to river fish and also in-shore fish on a nice day. So a 12' SOT seemed right. With a majority of the fishing being tributaries, the water is usually calm and I love the ability to stand and fish or sight fish (when the water ever clears up). With that being said stability was important. I do a lot of my fishing alone so weight was also important, which helped me with a big decision. Another yak was going toe to toe by comparison, but the Stealth came out on top by clearing 20lbs and nearly $200 under the competition. I liked the shape of the hull (V shape), the compartments (center live well is a neat idea) and the red color is nice too. I'm a fan of red, but at first I thought it wouldn't look good on a yak. I was wrong. It's not too bright on the eyes.
From bow to stern; The alligator hatch is awesome, able to be removed and snapped back on with buckles, this is a great way to store items. I used it to capacity this last trip. Tossed in 3 poles, 2 sets of paddels, fish finder, 2 pfd's, some tackle and a couple other small things. I've read complaints about the water-tight integrity of this hatch, but I have thoroughly debunked those claims by launching into 2ft waves in lake Erie. Waves were hitting me in the chest and completely covering the yak as I powered through the "surf". Not much water was in the hull at the end of this trip. Maybe 2 cups. There is also a beveled area that seconds as a seat for a child and two rod hodlers on each side. The foot pegs are sturdy with plenty of room for tall and short yakers. Cup holder is nice with a good amount of room for a fish finder mount (thats what I did). the center hatches create a nice platform for rigging baits or just setting some things down. Live well can hold 3 large plano boxes with room for other small things and 2 side hatches are good for phone, wallet, extra line, scissors and all that mess. They close with a T handle that locks into place. The live well is not water tight. Maybe it should be but it was full after I took those few waves. If you want water in it but dont have 2 ft waves to launch into, just reach in a unscrew the scupper plug. There are also scupper plugs under the seat. The seat itself clips onto plastic rings. I haven't had an issue and get a nice snug fit but maybe if your a big guy the plastic anchors may need to be reinforced somehow. Aft of the seat is the tankwell with two rod holders, one on each side. It is good size. perfect width for my tackle bag. My one complaint about the tankwell are the plastic bollards that the elastic cords wrap around. I would like to put the cords over my tackle bag but I can't. The cords roll over the bollards if they go over something too tall. I will fix this with something like a ring to secure the cords more. This is a big issue for me because if I do flip I can loose everything behind me. If anything needs to be fixed I would have to say thats first. The handles, both bow and stern are attached with a 3" rope and have comfortable grips for easy carrying. The hull itself is pretty durable and I'm happy with how well it held up. I was launching by myself from a beach covered in slate and different rocks and sticks. dragging a yak 25 yards down all that crap can get destructive, but I haven't found any deep gouges and am not concerned with the durability after noticing how tough it is.
First outing was in Pohick on a nice breeze free, muggy, humid evening. Great for sea trials. If I flip I can at least cool off. I first leaned over to the side and the yak barely budged. I can turn behind me and grab something without even thinking about it. I actually got up on my knees and leaned under the yak so I could make sure my transducer, which is jerry rigged under the scupper, is even with the center-line of the boat. Everything was good to go so I got back into the saddle and paddled out. Pushing a 33" beam takes a minute, she's a big girl, but I didn't have any trouble maintaining at 4mph. I can make a complete 180 with a proper reverse sweep stroke and forward sweep stroke on the opposite side. So it's maneuverable. Tracks well and corrective strokes are easy. The V shaped hull helps both of those I think. Even though 33 inches is wide, the hull keeps it from dragging ass. After 30 minutes tooling around I stood up and started to fish. Missed a hook set and didn't go flying. The ride is very dry around the saddle. Water will come up through the scuppers near your feet as you paddle and especially in the stern tankwell. Most drains out though.
Second outing was in big ole lake Erie. First day I got there I noticed the lake was pretty rough. Worse then anything I've been out in in spoiled Potomac tributaries. Swells weren't big at all but the surf was bad. Waves were breaking for 25 yards up to shore. Right as you get in it's time to get to work. I took a few waves head on before getting past the breaking point, but I didn't have any extra trouble. I had so much fun, I came back in a practiced going in and out. I caught one wave coming back in and managed to flip. I got back on with ease and corrected my mistake so it wouldn't happen again. I got back out into the deeper water with the small swells and am confident I can fish the bay area on decent days.
Overall I am very pleased and will look forward to the times I have on it. Hope this review helps anyone searching for a yak or just wondering about them.
From bow to stern; The alligator hatch is awesome, able to be removed and snapped back on with buckles, this is a great way to store items. I used it to capacity this last trip. Tossed in 3 poles, 2 sets of paddels, fish finder, 2 pfd's, some tackle and a couple other small things. I've read complaints about the water-tight integrity of this hatch, but I have thoroughly debunked those claims by launching into 2ft waves in lake Erie. Waves were hitting me in the chest and completely covering the yak as I powered through the "surf". Not much water was in the hull at the end of this trip. Maybe 2 cups. There is also a beveled area that seconds as a seat for a child and two rod hodlers on each side. The foot pegs are sturdy with plenty of room for tall and short yakers. Cup holder is nice with a good amount of room for a fish finder mount (thats what I did). the center hatches create a nice platform for rigging baits or just setting some things down. Live well can hold 3 large plano boxes with room for other small things and 2 side hatches are good for phone, wallet, extra line, scissors and all that mess. They close with a T handle that locks into place. The live well is not water tight. Maybe it should be but it was full after I took those few waves. If you want water in it but dont have 2 ft waves to launch into, just reach in a unscrew the scupper plug. There are also scupper plugs under the seat. The seat itself clips onto plastic rings. I haven't had an issue and get a nice snug fit but maybe if your a big guy the plastic anchors may need to be reinforced somehow. Aft of the seat is the tankwell with two rod holders, one on each side. It is good size. perfect width for my tackle bag. My one complaint about the tankwell are the plastic bollards that the elastic cords wrap around. I would like to put the cords over my tackle bag but I can't. The cords roll over the bollards if they go over something too tall. I will fix this with something like a ring to secure the cords more. This is a big issue for me because if I do flip I can loose everything behind me. If anything needs to be fixed I would have to say thats first. The handles, both bow and stern are attached with a 3" rope and have comfortable grips for easy carrying. The hull itself is pretty durable and I'm happy with how well it held up. I was launching by myself from a beach covered in slate and different rocks and sticks. dragging a yak 25 yards down all that crap can get destructive, but I haven't found any deep gouges and am not concerned with the durability after noticing how tough it is.
First outing was in Pohick on a nice breeze free, muggy, humid evening. Great for sea trials. If I flip I can at least cool off. I first leaned over to the side and the yak barely budged. I can turn behind me and grab something without even thinking about it. I actually got up on my knees and leaned under the yak so I could make sure my transducer, which is jerry rigged under the scupper, is even with the center-line of the boat. Everything was good to go so I got back into the saddle and paddled out. Pushing a 33" beam takes a minute, she's a big girl, but I didn't have any trouble maintaining at 4mph. I can make a complete 180 with a proper reverse sweep stroke and forward sweep stroke on the opposite side. So it's maneuverable. Tracks well and corrective strokes are easy. The V shaped hull helps both of those I think. Even though 33 inches is wide, the hull keeps it from dragging ass. After 30 minutes tooling around I stood up and started to fish. Missed a hook set and didn't go flying. The ride is very dry around the saddle. Water will come up through the scuppers near your feet as you paddle and especially in the stern tankwell. Most drains out though.
Second outing was in big ole lake Erie. First day I got there I noticed the lake was pretty rough. Worse then anything I've been out in in spoiled Potomac tributaries. Swells weren't big at all but the surf was bad. Waves were breaking for 25 yards up to shore. Right as you get in it's time to get to work. I took a few waves head on before getting past the breaking point, but I didn't have any extra trouble. I had so much fun, I came back in a practiced going in and out. I caught one wave coming back in and managed to flip. I got back on with ease and corrected my mistake so it wouldn't happen again. I got back out into the deeper water with the small swells and am confident I can fish the bay area on decent days.
Overall I am very pleased and will look forward to the times I have on it. Hope this review helps anyone searching for a yak or just wondering about them.
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