Anyone here own the Field and Stream Eagle Talon 12? I've noticed the seat it comes with is terrible so definitely looking to upgrade that. Any mod recommendations?
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Anyone here own the Field and Stream Eagle Talon 12? I've noticed the seat it comes with is terrible so definitely looking to upgrade that. Any mod recommendations?
I have a the Shadow Caster. The seat on it is GREAT. I've been in it for 7 hrs and could have gone longer. Can you upgrade to that boat? Or find that seat for the Talon?
Fishingman on the Alabama forum fished out of one a couple of years ago...he now has a Feel Free very comparabel to the Shadow Caster.
I'll definitely look into that one, I appreciate your feedbackQuote:
Originally Posted by Tenn_Archer
Sent from my 6045I using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
I've heard the feel free kayaks are a great valueQuote:
Originally Posted by flintcreek
Sent from my 6045I using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
Feel Free actually makes the F&S Eagle Talons. I have one. It's my first kayak and I only have a few months in it. But, I'm very happy with mine. Considering it was on sale for $399, I don't think I could have found a better first kayak. Sure, it's not as nice as the $1500 ones, but with a few modifications of your choosing, it's a very fishable kayak. I wouldn't recommend trying to stand up in it and fish, but I think it makes up for that with its lack of weight and ease of paddling.
The foot pegs are terrible and pop out of the tracks, but with a little garage engineering, I fixed mine. I also replaced the seat, although the original really wasn't as bad as it looked to me. Other additions I made include: full length anchor trolley, milk crate with lid and rod holders, fish/depth finder, and horizontal rod holders.
Anyway, if you have a lot of disposable income, there are better kayaks. If you're on a budget, the Talon is well worth the money and will get you fishing. Personally, I like mine more than most of the kayaks I've seen for double the price.
Thanks for the info, can you state what modification you did on the foot pegs and also what seat you replaced the original with?Quote:
Originally Posted by eminart
Sent from my 6045I using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
Quote:
Originally Posted by jmstoner88
The foot pegs are a little difficult to explain. But, basically, they're supposed to snap onto a peg, but they pop off that. I took them off and did a little drilling that allowed me to put a piece of heavy wire through them that holds them onto the shaft they snap on.
The seat I got was from amazon. It's just a mass produced generic seat. I think the name on it is Leader Accessories. It's better than the original, but nothing special. If I ever have some money I can't find a home for, I'll probably replace it with the FeelFree Kingfisher seat.
I put a feel free seat from Austin Kayak on mine. Put a full length anchor trolly. Replaced the rod holder with a swing arm, and rigged a cooler for the back with rod holders and a flag. I can take 5 rods if I wish, but I haven't yet. Mostly Bass fish from mine.
I purchased a new Ride 115X last year. I upgraded the seat to beable to raise and lower the seat. The original seat is very good and I still have the seat, never used. If the seat would work for you, I would give you a more than fair price. Pop
The weight of the Eagle doesnt bother anyone?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Schins
It's like 68 lbs. You won't find many 12 ft fishing kayaks lighter than that.
For the $'s its hard to beat the FSET12.... it comes ready to fish. The factory seat is not so bad but if you add about 3 of those $5 foam stadium cushion seats under it, your bottom side will feel much better!! The back of the seat is low and not great for those needing more support for long hours on the water. I have replaced mine twice now trying different types of seats. I have used the Kerco Angler and the Feelfree Kingfisher. The Kerco has great back support but the bottom padding was not enough. The Kingfisher had a great wedge style pad on the bottom which helped my legs feel better being raised up and the back is high for those who like that extra support. The back did start flexing midway up after continued use but has not caused me any issues yet. I still use 2 or 3 of those foam pads under it for the extra padding and height. I added Scotty slide tracks to each side of mine to mount gearheads with rocket launcher rod holders to allow me to do some slow trolling while paddling. I keep a small 3 tray tackle bag tethered directly behind my seat and a cooler in the back compartment for my catch.
I had to rivet the foot pegs in place on mine. I also mounted a swing arm on a ram ball mount for my transducer and rigged my small hummingbird depth/fish finder on an improvised battery box. It is fun to "engineer." So far I haven't regretted my modifications.
After 4 years of use, still going strong.
BTW, put scupper plugs under the seat or you will soak your underwear, among other things.