Rod holders

[Butch]

Im rigging a new boat for trolling and just wanted some opinions on rod holders. I have currently been using Scotty rod holders but Im in the market for something new. Let me know what you all think works best for you.
Thanks

[rebs]

I am very happy with the RAM 2000 rod holders
I use them for trolling for walleye and muskie

rebs

[Sunshine]

On old boat I used Roberts and didn't like that they had rough inside edges that cut into my cork handles. Put a couple of RAM 2000 on that boat and liked them. New boat has all RAM 2000.

[Crusher23]

I have used the old style RAM rodholders for two years and they are about the best thing I have ever used. They are infinetely adjustable and pretty sturdy even at high speeds with deep divers. They aren't cheap though!!


The Crusher

[perchjerker]

Are you going to troll dipsies?

[Sunshine]

Perchjerker,

I have successfully trolled with dipsies using the RAM 2000. I wouldn't suggest it for the Erie fisherman that is there day in and day out (where the stainless tubes are king) but for the occasional user they work fine.

I have a few Lake Trout guided trips each year on an inland lake where I use the RAM 2000/dipsy setup and they have held up for me.

[perchjerker]

Dennis-
I agree. Thats why I was asking. :)

And Im also playing with my avatar.

[Sunshine]

Funny that you mentioned your avatar. I went to your user profile to get your homepage. I wanted to peek at your boat again and see what rod holders you were using. Any ways, I happened to see the avatar you had at the time and noticed that it didn't match what was on WC. It confused me and was going to email you. Where are you getting them from?


never mind, I did some more snooping on your user profile and saw that it was from http://images.animfactory.com

have a good day buddy!

[pwrfshn]

Butch,

Perchjerker and Sunshine both alluded to questions about your use. Be sure to carefully consider all of your options.

I think the holder you choose depends on your intended purpose. Some things to consider are:

How many rod holders do you want?
How many holes do you want to drill?
Will you ever add a downrigger?
Do you troll big water for large fish with hard pulling presentations?

If you answer all of these, as I should have before I drilled, you may want to consider a system such as the Pursuit Sports track setup. I have the RAM 2000 holders and they work great. I have 12 holes down each side of my boat in the back for screws and 6 big holes for the holder itself to plug into. My problem is that with all of the use and limited in boat space, I now want a different system which will keep the rod handles up and out of the interior of the boat.

A track system will do just that. Less holes, more versatility, and higher rod placement for trolling. If your needs are differnet, the RAM holders have worked great for me.

Good luck and let me know if you have more questions,

[perchjerker]

Yea, that site has some pretty neat stuff on it.
Now that you mention my rod holders, It looks from the pics that I forgot to put them on for the pictures. I will have to fix that. Just for the record, I have 2 Scotties, 4 aluminum tube holders I got from my old rocket launcher I had on my hard top on my old boat. I made up brackets so two of them adjust and 2 are fixed. I also have 2 cheap Roberts on the bow that I can convert to hold my handlining reels.

[Sunshine]

Mex,

I agree with you totally. I too took a good look at the different track systems available, ie, Berts, Pursuit, cabella's etc.

I was surprised at the cost factor associated with installing these systems vs the RAM.

Did you get sticker shock also?

Another option is to go with hand rails and install the rod holders to those. This raises the rod holders, fewer holes, and move rod holders around a little, looks sharp and you can remove the rod holder connectors if you desire.

The Ranger style hand rails are what I would suggest that are sold through Cabella's. I think they're about $25 each. They look sharp on most boats.

[DayDream Believer]

I have installed the Angler's Pal rod holders made by Bystrom Bros on my boat which I use on Lake Erie and Lake Michigan.

These are stainless, fully adjustable, and have a deep 10" socket (Model 800). They again are not cheap (list $50.00 ea) but I like the buy it once and forget about it method of doing things.

[pwrfshn]

Dennis,

I have rails in the front on my IFS and mount the rods there for now to make more room in the back.

It also makes more sense for fighting fish to me. Lines that are active still up front while the person fighting the fish is at the back out of the board spread and rod gauntlet. Works great for now. The rails still don't get you as much clear space as the above board systems. The handles still get in the boat space. Also, I have been pulling live bait on leadcore and the higher the better. Just got some of the Cabela's Innerflow 9' trolling rods. Now they can run farther out without so much sag.

Sticker shock, YES, holes in my boat like the ram require, I wish I could do it all over again. The Pursuit have an adjustable tube that is really slick. Haven't gotten mine yet, but anxiously awaiting. Still trying to figure out if I should leave the RAM plugs in the back and mount the tracks next to them or cover the RAM plugs. Live bait fihsing is much nicer with the RAM for a spinning rod.

Regards,

[Butch]

Mexico: Good point. I will not be trolling anything with Dipseys or hard pulling presentations. I am concerned about mounting the holder though and want to know more or get suggestions. I have a Tuffy 1760 Esox deepV tiller and will be putting 6 holders on. I may, and this is not too likely, troll for muskies occasionally. This would be a very rare occurance though. So.... any more input is greatly appreciated and thanks to all that have contributed so far!!

Butch

[Shep]

Butch,

I have Scotty's on my boat, with the Flush Mounts. They work great for planer boards for eye's. I also do a fair amount of trolling for ski's. What I have experienced is that when pulling big muskie baits, the holders on the down rods tend to pop up out of the mount. This is more annoying than anything, but I have found that keeping them wet reduces the frequency of the pop outs. I am going to try a Ram holder and mount this year to see if they behave better.

Tight Lines All,

Shep