Video · Kayak Reviews
Jackson Kayak Knarr FD: New Flex Drive Pedal Kayak at ICAST 2022
I take the Jackson Knarr FD big water pedal kayak out at ICAST 2022 and see how the redesigned Flex Drive performs.
What’s in this video
The Jackson Knarr FD is almost 14 feet long and designed to handle saltwater and big water. It came in at $4,199 at the time. It has a totally redesigned Flex Drive. The original Flex Drive was a little rough around the edges and didn’t impress me, but this one was noticeably easy to pedal right away. I think they finally got it right.
We ran through some weeds and the prop pushed through really well. If you do need to clear it, you flip a lever and the prop comes up where you can reach it. Jackson says it uses a serpentine belt system and is designed to be very maintenance free. Compared to the Bite FD, their 11 foot 6 inch kayak, the Knarr takes a little more effort to pedal because the hull is bigger. The benefit is I can easily stand up and even put all my weight on one side.
Storage is good. There’s big front storage you can partly reach on the water, rod tubes so you can stage rods along the side, and a paddle staging spot. In the back there’s a tri track with three mounting spots, a small case for tools or tackle, rod holders on each side, a big tank well and a Power-Pole mount, which is becoming the universal mounting system. It’s a comfortable kayak for big water.
Key moments
Quick takeaways
- The redesigned Flex Drive is much easier to pedal than the first generation and pushed through weeds well.
- A lever flips the prop up so you can clear weeds on the water.
- The Knarr takes a little more effort to pedal than the Bite FD, but it's stable enough to stand and lean on one side.
- It has a Power-Pole mount, rod tubes and a big rear tank well.
Gear from this video
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