RTM Ocean Duo Angler - Initial Overview

I decided to get a new tandem kayak - the RTM Ocean Duo Angler in Grey Storm. As with most tandem kayaks the Ocean Duo is fairly simple in terms of features for kayak fishing. I have made a few easy modifications to make the kayak more suited for two to fish from. Here is an initial overview of the kayak and a run-through of the modifications i have made. 

RTM Ocean Duo Angler specifications:

• Length: 12ft 2in - 370cm
• Width: 34in - 88cm
• Depth: 13in - 33cm
• Weight: 64lb - 29kg
• Max. Capacity: 485lb - 220kg

Fresh out the packaging....

Lets take a closer look....

The bow features a toggle handle, drain bung, gear strap, solid foot braces and a couple of D-rings

In the middle.....

The front seating position, a small middle storage area with gear straps, 2 flush mount rod holders, more D-rings and side carry handles with paddle holders. 2 scuppers holes are located in the front section and 2 more in the rear section. 

Just back from the centre storage area is a moulded-in seating area. A seat can be set up in this position and the Ocean Duo paddled solo. There are extra moulded-in foot braces for this seating position, located beside the front seating position.

At the stern.....

The rear seating position, a small storage area with gear straps, more D-rings and a toggle carry handle. 

The underside of the hull.....

A rounded bow, a wide flat mid section for stability and a more defined keel line towards the stern will help with tracking as will the grooves running from bow to stern. 

With seats and paddles in place.....

and with the seat set up in the middle seating position for solo paddling....

Additions for Kayak Fishing

Rod Holders

As previously said, the Ocean Duo is fairly simple in terms of features for kayak fishing. The first step was to add more flush mount rod holders. There are 2 flat areas at the back of the kayak that are just big enough to install two flush mounts, fixed in place with trifold rivets.

Anchor Trolley

I quite often fish at anchor or tie off to buoys and having an anchor trolley is essential for doing this safely. Here is how i installed the anchor trolley.

Components:

• 8m of 6mm braid-on-braid
• 2 x pad eyes
• 2 x 60mm stainless steel carabiners
• 1 x 100mm stainless steel carabiner
• 2 x small pulleys
• 2 x parrel beads
• 1 x zig zag cleat
• 1 x retaining clip
• 1 x 40cm of 5mm bungee
• 8 x marine-grade trifold rivets

One pad eye is riveted at the stern, and another at the bow. At the stern a pulley is clipped to the pad eye via a stainless steel carabiner.

At the bow i have tied a loop of bungee to the front handle, this then passes through the front pad eye. A pulley is then attached to this via a carabiner. The bungee acts as a shock absorber and helps to keep the anchor trolley taut.

A zig-zag cleat is fixed beside the rear seat, using marine-grade trifold rivets, to lock off the anchor trolley when in position.

I have also fitted a small retaining hook towards the bow to keep the anchor trolley line beside the kayak and stopping it riding up over the hull. 

The anchor trolley line is 6mm braid-on-braid, with 2 parrel beads and a large carabiner forming the rest of the trolley. This allows me to shuttle the anchor line from bow to stern depending on where i want to anchor from.

Rod Rest & Storage

I have fitted at 1.5" Ram ball near the bow in the front footwell, using trifold rivets. This allows me to fit my ram pole with rod rest for the front angler to use. I have a 1.5" ball attached to all my kayaks so this rod rest can easily be transferred between them spending on which kayak i am using. 

I have used the centre gear straps to hold a small crate/box in place. This is great for storing all my tackle and gear within easy reach of either angler. 

The finished set up.....

First Impressions

I have taken the Ocean Duo out for 3 sessions so far with Holly - me in the rear seat and Holly in the front. The first session was calm and allowed us to get a feel for how the kayak performs. We caught a few fish and got used to the the space on deck. You do have to compromise on deck space with a tandem kayak but sessions tend to be fairly short and minimal gear is usually taken. At anchor it sat well in the tide. It was fairly easy to turn, it tracked well and was more than fast enough for us. We covered several miles and were happy with how it paddled.

The second session was much more testing. The swells were rolling past at 10-15ft  out far with some hairy moments paddling when closer to shore. It handled fine and at no point did either of us feel unstable. I anchored it in the swell and it did tend to sway occasionally although this was more down to the swell direction being at a right angle to the tidal flow. We were at anchor for over an hour without any major problems. I was happy as these conditions would be the uppermost limit i would take the tandem out in.

The third session was in very choppy and breezy conditions. The bow bobbed well over the chop but every so often the wave interval would be just right to see the bow smash down into the face of the next wave meaning Holly getting splashed! It paddled reasonably well against the chop, no where near the performance of the Tempo i am used to but thats to be expected with a completely different hull design. 

Overall so far so good in calm conditions, big swell and fairly choppy water. The modifications i have made have been useful in making fishing from the tandem more comfortable. The only other addition i may make in the future is a fish finder, although with a lack of hatches for access to the hull i will looking to go down the transducer arm route. Its not a high-performance kayak but for the generally short trips in good weather that we will be using it in it will be fine for fishing from.

Here are a few photos from the first few sessions.....

The Ocean Duo Angler is available as a package with 2 seats and 2 paddles and can be ordered through Cornwall Canoes. Price-wise the Ocean Duo Angler package is around £679.99.