Vapor 10 Angler

Old Town Vapor 10 Angler kayak

Pros:

Light and easy to handle, paddle holder molded in perpendicular in front of you, adjustable seat back (while in the yak), large cockpit opening to get in and out, plenty of room in the cockpit to carry things, thigh pads, dock cleat, skid plate, cup holder and a tray to hold small things in the front of the cockpit, another cup holder in front of seat between your legs.

Cons:

The drain plug! An almost useless anchor trolley and no dry storage. If you’re short, the cup holder in the cockpit tray might be a little difficult to reach (because of the large cockpit opening which I have listed as a pro above).

Upgrades:

Foot operated Crack of Dawn rudder with deployment system.

Old Town hatch cover to fit the stern day well.

4.5" waterproof deck plate and dry bag inside, back of stern day well.

Replaced anchor trolley with a YakAttack LeverLoc anchor trolley, bow to stern with Harken pulleys.

Anchor reel and anchor locking cam cleat.

2 additional flush mount rod holders behind seat.

2 additional rod holders inside the hull (6' rod limitation on these).

Rod leashes for all rod holders as well as for the paddle.

Added Yakpad high back gel butt and back pad to existing padded seat.

Plier/scissor/sponge holder.

Old Town Contour Carry Handles

Shark teeth with eyes stickers on the bow, they make it go faster :)

This is a great, reasonably priced kayak. I think best suited for still and slow moving waters (class 1, maybe 2). By using the rudder in addition to the paddle I found that it worked much better in faster water but still probably best to avoid.

Mine is the Vapor 10 Angler model (the Angler basically adds two flush mount rod holders behind the seat, bungee cords across the front deck for securing loads, a dock cleat and a crappy anchor trolley). I added additional items for fishing which is mostly what I do out of it.

At 10’ long and 28" wide, I would expect it to be more stable than it is. Fine for still water but watch moving too fast in the cockpit while in moving water. I think it's because the hull is kind of rounded. My Old Town Predator has a better designed tri-hull and is more stable (it's a sit-on as opposed to this being a sit-in). Sit-ins have a lower center of gravity which helps with stability while sit-ons have a higher CG, they tend to have better designed hulls though for stability. I'm speaking of recreational kayaks, like these. It tracks okay but not great, added the rudder and it tracks fantastic now. It’s not a speed demon but when I’m floating a river as opposed to fishing one, I don’t have difficulty keeping up. The larger length-to-width ratio probably slows it a little. If I had it to do all over I would get the Vapor 12 Angler. A little faster, room for 7’ rods internally, a little more room for gear (for overnighters), 50lbs more weight capacity and it only weighs 9lbs more.

A true point of contention is the location of the drain plug, it’s absolutely ridiculous and mostly useless. It’s near the middle of the boat by the rear of the cockpit. It is so awkward trying to drain your boat and you won’t get all of the water out. I added marine sealant to the threads of the plug, over tightened it and the ground the top off of it (essentially sealing it for good). Then I purchased a drain plug kit and installed it in the front, top, right side, works great now. I have another Old Town and use to have another Old Town and neither of them had such a poor placement of the drain plug, they really would have been better off to just leave it off and let the buyer add their own. A lot of Vapor owners complain about this and if you look on their website, the new Vapors still use this ridiculous placement…c’mon Old Town!

This is my first sit-in and while I’m really pleased with this yak, I find that I do prefer my sit-on. My sit-on is much heavier to hall around but easier to fish out of but because of its size, there are a lot of places that I can’t take it because it’s too difficult to get to the water or the water has too many shallow bars and those are the places that this Vapor 10 shines. One last thing, the Vapor has molded rigid carry handles in the front and rear (which most people prefer), I found them hard on my wrists while carrying (broke both wrists in the past) so I installed the Old Town contour carry handles. They are a dual-density handle contoured for comfort and I attached them to the original rigid carry handles, much easier to carry now.

I would definitely recommend this kayak, great for beginners as well as more advanced kayakers.

Great starter kayak for fishing!

I got this on sale at sportsmans warehouse about 2 years ago. All in all its been everything I could ask for. Nice and wide and stable, stable enough to stand up and cast in. I can carry all my fishing gear inside the kayak while carring by myself which is great to cut down on parking fees. The only complaint has been I don't have enough time as if like to fish.

Very solid boat, stable, easy to handle, great for fishing rivers and cant beat the price. Could use front storage..

For a 10ft yak it is fairly quick. I am 5'10" and weigh 190lbs this yak has no problem with my weight even when loaded down. The seat is not bad but not good. I simply put a padded seat on top of the stock seat and I paddle in comfort. I put a small skeg on it and I love this small yak now.

If u are looking for a yak to fish or hunt out of this one needs to be on your list. Its light, rugged and fairly quick. U will need a skeg or rudder but the yak is well made.

The little Angler tracks well, stability is excellent and it paddles easily. Never did I feel threatened by wakes, wind or submerged obstacles. If there is a downside to the whole yak, it would be the forward mounted cup holder/dash. It is much too far forward to reach, for me anyway, and I just kept my water bottle beside me and it wasn't a problem. The rod holders are nice for trolling, but rods standing up can get in the way of traveling in brushy areas. Too, I would have preferred to have a covered hatch area in the stern, instead of just the opening. I installed a set of cleats and bungees to secure gear and it helped considerably.

The built in paddle holder is a nice touch and I also used it to support my fishing rod, setting the butt of the rod between my legs and resting the rod on the paddle. The anchor trolley is a nice touch, although one I haven't used yet. I can see where if one is wanting to anchor to fish that this will be a handy feature and one I will try out soon. There is plenty of room behind the seat for storage and also under the front deck. I haven't used the bungee area on the bow deck, but could see where it might be handy for a dry bag or some other small item. Weighing over 20# less and being 5' shorter than my aluminum canoe, it makes it much handier to load and unload from the roof of my Jeep Liberty.

All in all, I love the little Vapor Angler and would highly recommend this to someone wanting a stable fishing or day cruising craft.

The pro's: lightweight, tracking is excellent for the length, speed is fair, anchor and trolley included, two rod holders, easily adjustable footrests and backrest.

The con's: almost no storage area, the cockpit feels pretty cramped if you have more than two rods with you, difficult to reach the rear tankwell once on the water, the seat bottom is like sitting on a concrete bench after a couple of hours (gotta get a cushion!), and the boat is kind of '"tippy" when getting in or out of it.

If you like to have something that is easily transported/stored, you like day trips, and pack a minimal amount of gear this is definitely one to check out. I think this would make an excellent first kayak for someone who is not sure if they would like kayaking or kayak fishing. If you consider yourself a serious kayak fisherman, like to haul a lot of gear, or want to go on a multi-day camping/kayak trip you probably need to keep looking.

It has a roomy cockpit with adjustable foot pegs, and an unexpectedly comfortable, padded seat. The two built-in rod holders behind the seat were easy to reach, and although it has an anchor and trolley, I never used it, preferring to drift fish. It was easy enough to position myself upwind and let it blow me along while I peppered the shoreline with lures. I could also rig both rods and 'troll' while slowly paddling through an area.

There was ample room for my fishing gear and a waterproof box for my wallet and cellphone. I usually kept both on the floor between my legs, as reaching the bungee'd up well behind me would have been difficult. Instead I kept my PFD there.

I fished small lakes only and wasn't worried about overturning. Since the kayak has foam flotation fore and aft, I knew it wouldn't sink in the event of a mishap and I could get to the PFD. Thankfully that has never happened as the craft is amazingly stable, almost hard to tip over. It also tracks incredibly well for such a small (10') kayak. I had no trouble paddling distances in it. There is a cup holder molded in the lead edge of the cockpit, but I didn't use it often as it was difficult for someone like me to reach that far.

Because I usually fish alone, weight was a concern. At 44 lbs though, I had little difficulty getting the kayak off and on the roof racks of my Jeep Grand Cherokee. However, if someone did show up, I was never too proud to ask for assistance!

All-in-all, the Angler 10 has been a fun, inexpensive fishing craft. I don't have the exciting YouTube-worthy experiences ocean kayakers have, but I have enjoyed some wonderful scenes in nature and caught a fair number of fish.
Wait, now that I think about it, I was once towed around for 5 minutes by a catfish. Is that YouTube-worthy?

We were in the yaks for over six hours at a time and the seat was comfortable and the paddling was easy. This yak is roomy and easy to get in or out even for a rather large old man like me. The only drawback is it needs a rod holder in front of the cockpit but that can easily be added by the owner.

Academy did not include an anchor and anchor rope when I purchased the kayak from them. Old Town told me that they should have, and the OT customer service representative was very helpful and sent me both items.

I would suggest that Old Town add small pulleys to both ends of the anchor trolley system. There is lots of drag on the rope as it goes through both eyelets. This makes it difficult to pull and will eventually cause abrasion to the anchor rope.

Overall, I am looking forward to many years of Texas kayaking!

Some complain about the speed of the Vapor. For a 10 ft. boat it goes good. I use a quick shallow stroke. I can keep up with my brothers old town adventurer which is a 14ft. yak. This boat is stable in chop. The bow cuts swells well. You will get some spray. The large cockpit allows me to carry my tackle box with me as well as a small cooler behind the seat. I am able to store other gear in the covered trunk. I can reach for things in the trunk and the boat has only minor roll.

The rod holders are angled out so I can troll while paddling. If you want to fish without drifting this yak comes with an anchor and anchor trolly system which hold the boat quite well. There is a deck bungie which is great for carrying my water proof case. Old Town also gives you a place in the cockpit to hang your phone or gps. The paddle rest is awesome for resting your paddle while landing a fish.

The only drawback to this yak is if you plan on carrying it any distance it can get heavy. I love that this boat fits well in a wagon or suv with little overhang. I can even carry it on top of my beetle. I get so many comments on how good this yak looks.

If you are looking for a good stable fishing yak that is tough, get this yak. The time you spend researching fishing kayaks you could be out fishing in this one.