Eagle Talon

It is a very comfortable Kayak. I got a good Seat. Though getting replacement Parts is impossible from Mfg. Strong Hull. Tracks nicely. Holds lot's of Cargo

I have had my Eagle Talon for about 2 weeks now, Got it on sale for 399.98. I've had it on the water 2 times now, Fished both time, I had to upgrade the seat, I also built a new rod holder out of pvc. I have it 4 stars because of the seat. I did a stability test but did not stand up, I am 5ft 9in and weigh just under 200, I leaned from side to side and the kayak has a stopping point. It's tracks awesome, moves fast in the water, Maneuvers great, anchor system works great, dry storage area with mesh bag is awesome stays very dry. All in all I love this kayak. I would highly recommend any to buy one, For the price it in awesome.

Me and my wife love our kayaks! Every place we go we get "good looking kayak"!

At 68 lbs, it is not too heavy but still odd to lift. Floats well, and I can fish easily out of it.

This is a $599 list price boat, that is frequently on sale for $500 or less, so it's not quite fair to compare this to kayaks more than double or triple the price.

FOR it's price, and in the sub $750 kayak world, this is a pretty good SOT.

I've had this kayak for a little over a month and I've used it 3 times. Got one of Dick's great kayak sale deals. While it's not the perfect kayak, I think it's a great value for what I paid. It tracks well in open water while paddling, but does drift a bit as it slows down, more so than my previous kayak. It actually did well in a local river through some riffles and Class I and II's. That's not my normal use. I've stood up on it in a local lake and while I can stand in it (I'm 5'-11 and 195) I did not feel comfortable or stable. Maybe it will be better after some practice, but I didn't have any gear with me when I did that...

I love that it comes well geared with an anchor trolley (partial length), rod holders up front and in the back, paddle holders on both sides. The seat needs an upgrade soon after purchasing it for longer trips. The back storage area won't hold a milk crate, but that isn't a big deal for me.

I'll be taking it to the Keys in November and I hope to have some more trips under my belt. I'm really looking forward to using it more.

After looking around for a while and trying some out in the stores, I kept migrating back to the Field and Stream Eagle Talon sit on fishing kayak. Reviews were good, and the price was fairly low for a 12' kayak.

I waited until Field and Stream in Asheville, NC had a sale, marking it down to $399.98, and after signing up for the 15% email coupon, I was able to buy it for around $330. Not bad for this much kayak!

I've taken it out on Lake Cunningham and Lake Greenwood here in South Carolina, and I am pretty impressed. It is pretty heavy - around 70 pounds, but I'm 6'-6"" and in decent shape, so I can move it around well enough. I just drop it in my Leonard 5' x 8' utility trailer, putting a pad in the front so it doesn't damage the nose, and I leave the back on top of the tailgate, hanging over about 2 feet or so.

After tying it up securely, I've been down Interstates with no problem whatsoever, but I can tell the difference in gas mileage dragging the trailer and kayak around.

As far as the kayak performance, it's stable, and it seems to track pretty well. I had a little trouble staying in a straight line yesterday for some reason, but I haven't had that happen since. Since it is so heavy, don't expect to win any races with it, but plain and simple, it gets the job done.

I plan on mountihng a Lowrance Elite 4 HDI fish finder in it soon, and I bought the GCI Seatracker seat The seat in the Eagle Talon is pathetic, so be sure to get some other kind of seat or else your rear will go number and you will be extremely uncomfortable.

Shop around and get inexpensive additions to it, and you can get some good inexpensive ideas from the Kayak Hacks channel on YouTube. One was getting one of the kids' water splashers at Dollar Tree for $1 so you can bail any excess water out, plus a $1 sponge works wonders, too. I haven't had a lot of water in mine, but I plugged the scupper holes under the seat so I wouldn't get that water in.

I give the Talon a 9 only because the seat is trash. Everything else has been great for my first kayak!

PROS:
price - it's hard to beat when on sale
basics - it has all the basics for fishing and can handle decent waves and currents.
build - its not real heavy and balanced well

CONS:
comfort - the seat is horrible and a must replace
center console - not a lot of uses adaptability

With all this said, it is a great starter for yak fishin, good ride and cheap. There are better, but there are definitely worse.

I love this kayak but I never tried it "out of the box" without some slight modifying. After reading tons of reviews I installed scupper plugs under the seat, Changed the seat to a really nice Feel Free kingfisher, and removed the standard scotty mount in the front and installed a Scotty flush mount with a rubber stopper. There are too many reviews that say things like "this would be a great kayak if.... so I changed them from the get go. The result? This is a great kayak. I am 6'3, 240 lbs and I stood up in it with no problem (in my pool) I doubt I will try this on the water because I'd probably go swimming but it wasn't hard to stand. Here are the trials I have put it through so far:

I've used it in open water fishing several miles of the Gulf off crystal river Florida. Not just the flats but out in the fast currents, open water and some island hopping. It handles choppy water fine although I did get a bit wet from the sea spray and small waves. I had to go out and tow my Dad (70 yrs old) back into the harbor who was in my Pungo 120 when he got sucked out between the sandbars far out to sea from the low tide currents. he wasn't a strong enough paddler to come back in on his own. It was a great tow boat. I've been out to the Gulf 6 times this month already (Dad is fine and he stays in the flats now lol.) I have used it to tow my kids when they need assistance or just tethered for safety (line in hand)

I've fished Rodman reservoir (Lake Ocklawaha) and the barge canal bass fishing. The boat was comfy and stable, I wish I brought extra sandwiches. I fished Lake Weir as well as some more Gulf Coast trips to Yankeetown, ft. Island and the Ozello kays, FL. I list these to let you know that I have been getting to know this boat well.

This Kayak is not slow nor is it a wide turning boat. With the proper strokes I can 360 this yak just as easily as the Pungo. Take a few minutes to learn your paddling strokes. The reason it is not as slow as you would assume is probably because it is not 12 feet long, it is 12' 6" which makes a difference. Also, the Talon is not 30 inches wide but an honest 29" at its widest point. I can barely measure out the beam at 29 inches using straight 90 degree reference points pressed to the hull for accuracy, 30 inches is simply not true. The good news is that while it is slightly thinner and longer than reported, it is still a quite stable yet efficient SOT hull design. I just think that marketing believes fishermen want to see nothing less than 30 inches for a beam width.

The crate problem:
If you've read reviews by now then you know a typical milk crate doesn't just slide in behind the seat. I did find a great alternative that needs no modification (but I did anyway.) At Lowes I picked up the Brute Double Bucket by Rubbermaid for around $11 (came in red only) so I painted it, added some rod holders and canopy ties which fasten it directly to the bungee grommets that are already installed for the cargo net. It fits perfectly and was easily accessible.

The front hatch:
Having detailed expensive cars in South Florida in my youth, I knew a little trick to soften black rubber and moisten it while not leaving the rubber shiny and greasy. Use baby oil. Rub it on the hatch cover, both sides and under the lip. It absorbs into the rubber hatch cover leaving it soft and supple and very easy to lift off and put on. Apply each time before your trip for easy access and the added protection against the water. It does not make your hatch greasy , keeps it from drying out and it actually smells quite nice.

As far as the seat goes, like I said. I splurged on an expensive seat but it was worth it. How valuable is your comfort for the day? That is a personal decision. I felt I made the right one by dropping an extra $120 at ack.com for the Feel Free Kingfisher seat. Feel Free has a video which shows you how to properly install the seat on YouTube, it’s worth the three minutes of your life.

That weird little pre-molded hole behind the seat:
It fits the Plano 3600 box perfectly, has a bungee installed to hold it in place AND holds a container of gulp underneath. It does not hold a Plano AND a small bait bucket as advertised. It’s either /or with regards to the bait bucket.

I haven't had any problems with my foot rests but I am a tall guy and they are on the longest setting.

Enjoy your kayak, spend some time, do your research, make the right modifications that make a difference to your preferences and you should have just as great as an experience as I am having with this boat.

This kayak tracks very well and comes complete with a padded seat also. Great fishing kayak for the price and it's rugged too.