TOPIC:

I have 3 horizontal rod trees with rod holders mounted on them that I use in my tracks. They have served okay for my boats. I have been looking at Big Jon vertical trees and have been plotting on getting a pair of 3 rodholder models. Going to cost near 500 bucks. Is it worth it to change the rod layout this way? Is there any distinct advantages or disadvantages? I have been on other boats that have holders mounted vertically on the cabins or enclosures and I am still on the fence about it. On occasion the rods were tougher to get out of the holder after being hooked up. Any thoughts?

I got the high seas gear www.highseasgear.com/store#!/Triple-Adju...96/category=20769024

They are great and makes fishing more poles much easier but yes they can be a little difficult to get the rod out on a good hookup. I just got them last Christmas so this was my first season with them. I just am learning how far forward is too far forward to be able to get the pole out without too much difficulty. Note my bottom one is a dipsy angle so it is the most difficult to get out but still not bad.

I've been on dozens of boats with vertical rod set-ups and have never found any that were easy to use compared to horizontal set ups. Check out Muddy Creek Tackle articulating sets before you buy. I've fished with them once and they were awesome and other reports are they are beloved by those using them. More of an eastern Lake Erie thing, right now.

I think its personal preference kind of thing. I have had vertical setups on both boats I have owned now and loved them both. Other boats with horizontal setups, not so much. I darn well may come down to what you are accustom to. Verticals save space, thats for sure.

I guess the biggest concern or thought I have is that a vertical set up might make the job of controlling your planer boards easier. You would not have to stagger the rod angles to keep the lines from crossing I would think. Also I wonder how much added stress to the gunnel is applied over a horizontal set up? My tracks where I would mount the rod tree are riveted rather than through bolted because the bottom of the gunnel is inaccessible. I would hate to see them work loose and have to replace them a lot. That is why I am considering the 3 over the 4 rod model.

if you go with a vertical, and a 4 holder vertical, there is going to be a pretty large moment on the base attachment. You are definitely going to want to be bolted through, unless you have sufficienty amount of surface area, that you are tapping into for example. My tracks are tapped into 3/4" aluminum plate. Not sure I would trust rivets over time with that torque, but they may be just fine. Hard to say. Ultimately may depend on the number of fasteners overall compared to your track length.

I will also say, the vertical separation of the tree does definitely help line separation. For me it has been generally flawless and easy to operate in and out. I am all about simplicity and efficiency, and never considered them to be anything less than highly effective and easily accessible.

Don, I’ve got a pair of Big Job Multi set quads with traxtech bases you’re welcome to demo. I can say that I have noticed the stress on the track and gunnels when I’m using them. Like you I have foam under the gunnel and the tracks are riveted. I have had shorter fishermen have trouble getting the rods out of the higher holders. The big advantage is space to me. I have a 18” with a standard transom so my gunnels aren’t as long as yours. When I have the enclosure up, I just don’t have the room for a horizontal set up. Like I said if you want to try them out, pm me when you’re coming up. Honestly I’d probably sell them to you because I rarely have enough guys on the boat to justify using them.

I like prefer the verticals. The pros are less space taken up and the separation of rod tips are better. Also with 1/4 turn all of your rods are inside the boundry of the boat so no accidents clipping a pole when pulling in / out of the dock. The cons are more torque against the gunnel. The top holder is not for a dipsey IMO. Long lines only. You cannot put the lower holders straight up when holding rods (only the top one). With horizontal you can and nulifies the need to turn the tree in 1/4 turn when leaving the dock. People have a tendancy to use it like a handle when boarding on / off.
As far as mounting tracks with foam below your gunnel >> I used 4 or 5 " x 1/4" bolts with a treated 2 x 4 x 24" as a backing w/ fender washer and nylon lock nuts. When tightened down it was not enough to compress the foam very much (and I wouldn't care if it did).

Non-existant user wrote:

I like prefer the verticals. The pros are less space taken up and the separation of rod tips are better. Also with 1/4 turn all of your rods are inside the boundry of the boat so no accidents clipping a pole when pulling in / out of the dock. The cons are more torque against the gunnel. The top holder is not for a dipsey IMO. Long lines only. You cannot put the lower holders straight up when holding rods (only the top one). With horizontal you can and nulifies the need to turn the tree in 1/4 turn when leaving the dock. People have a tendancy to use it like a handle when boarding on / off.
As far as mounting tracks with foam below your gunnel >> I used 4 or 5 " x 1/4" bolts with a treated 2 x 4 x 24" as a backing w/ fender washer and nylon lock nuts. When tightened down it was not enough to compress the foam very much (and I wouldn't care if it did).

Thanks for your thoughts but It is not as simple as using some backing in my and John's boats. There are 2, 2 and half inch diameter electrical conduits running side by side under and inside each gunnel and they are surrounded by a heavy density flotation foam. And of course they are full of cables and wires. Just drilling holes into the gunnel is hazardous. I am wanting to say the gunnel underside is 8 inches deep and I am afraid of really compromising that much flotation by removing it. I asked the boat company to weld my tracks on during the construction process but they refused. I guess it would have caused some type of issue for them I guess. Hewes is not a boat company with a lot of interest in what a paying customer wants. The boats are good but some simple updating would make issues like this one easier to deal with. The problem is they are built for fishing in the ocean and using just downriggers off the stern and one rod per fisherman.

You are probably very spot on the idea of using the tree as a boarding aid which I think would be a gunnel killer if people regularly pulled and pushed on it getting in and out. It would be human nature to do just that also. After the last season's problems of fish tangling lines during coho season I felt these trees would stop most of the problems. Maybe a great deal will come along that I cannot say no to.