Old Town

Sportsman BigWater ePDL+ 132 & Lithium Ion Battery/Charger

Highly, Highly Recommend the Sportsman ePDL + 132

We bought two Sportsman BigWater ePDL + 132 Kayaks and could not be more pleased with them. There is enough room for my 80 lb bouvier dog to join us and she loves it. The kayak is very stable for rough water, boat wakes and windy conditions. The battery life is exceptional, lasting several hours even if you are trolling and not pedaling at all. We did buy a trailer to haul our two kayaks and that works very well! Would highly recommend these kayaks for fishing, cruising lakes and rivers!

Unstable and ePDL Levels 1-4 are useless

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

I have 2 negatives about this kayak. 1. The Electronic Pedal Assist on levels 1-4 does not work unless conditions are perfect. When I have tried to use these levels I noticed zero difference in pedal resistance between Level 0 - manual and Levels 1-4 pedal assist modes. When I spoke to Old Town they blamed it on the weather conditions, here is what they said: These levels are not meant to have a huge difference, like you feel with level 5. They are meant to be minimal. Variables such as water conditions, wind, water current, battery voltage, gear weight, etc can all affect how much you feel the assist modes in each level. Unless you intend to use the kayak only on very flat calm waters do not expect to notice any difference between Level 0 and levels 1-4. As I have not yet been able to kayak in totally calm conditions I cannot fully verify if there is any noticeable difference from Level 0 and electronic pedal assist Levels 1-4. 2. The kayak is not that stable, I almost capsized in it, on a day which was not particularly rough. This is due to the seat sitting high, leading to a higher center of gravity. I don't think this kayak would be safe if you were out and weather conditions deteriorated with large swells.

Money well spent

I bought my Old Town BigWater ePDL+ 132 in February and thanks to warm weather, I've been out with it about 7 times. First, using the ePDL in all 3 modes, the battery will outlast your day of fishing. I use the cruise control and the assist mode when moving from spot to spot. While fishing, I use the drive manually. Transitioning from a Sportsman 120 PDL was simple. I have bad knees, so the BigWater ePDL+ 132 allows me to fully enjoy my day fishing on larger lakes. Although it may seem a bit pricey, the fact that you don't buy any additional items like batteries even out the cost.

This is the fastest electric kayak!

This is the fastest electric powered kayak that I have ever been on. It may not have spot lock but I will get to the fishing spots before my buddies.

A Hardcore Fishing Kayaker’s Dream

Be on the water with limited setup and no need to lug heavyweight batteries. This allows more time to catch fish! Assisted pedal assist is amazing and if you need to get somewhere in a dash put it in cruise control mode and fly!!

Love the way it moves

I bought this a couple weeks ago had it out one loved it even pulled my buddy off the lake great time.

Mostly better than the Autopilot

I have both the salty PDL and the autopilot. I don’t own this kayak but I have used it many times and it’s a great blend between the two. The ePDL+ is much easier to learn/more intuitive than the autopilot. Pedal forward to go forward, pedal backward to go backward. Hook into a fish while trolling, simply pedal backwards to turn off cruise control, your hands remain on the rod. Unlike the autopilot where when you hook into a fish while trolling, you now you need to fiddle with a remote to stop the motor. The only thing I prefer the autopilot for is that it has spot lock. I like being an active participant on the water, so I like having the option to pedal entirely manually, some assist, or not pedal at all. It has five different speeds, which is great for keeping a consistent speed while trolling, or when I’m fighting current or wind. The highest speed is FAST- great for getting to my destination quickly. The battery life is excellent, especially if you do some pedaling.

One of a kind fishing platform

The Sportsman BigWater ePDL+ is a very easy to use kayak! Simple as charge plug and go! Love being able to use the electronic assist to save energy to stay on the water all day! The BigWater hull design it’s a very stable platform and does extremely well in choppy water!