Rod holders for drift fishing/trolling

[Tim Murphy]

Dear Board,

So I took my new to me Smokercraft 168MG out today on a local lake with my fiancee'.

It was hotter than blazes but we managed to catch some bluegills so the maiden voyage in the boat was not a wasted trip.

Mostly we drifted the edges of weedbeds with worms suspended under bobbers with the rods leaning against the gunnels. I'd like to add some rod holders to the boat. It's a tiller steer and the helm seat is on the port side. There is a nice flat deck immediately across from me where I could mount rodholders and have them within easy reach. There are lockers amidship with flat decks on top of them as well along with 2 seat bases in front of the helm seat. The boat also has a raised deck with another seat base and a bow mounted trolling motor. I only have 3 seats and that's all the people I ever plan to have fishing with me.

I'd like to settle on a rod holder system that allows me to interchange rods at the different seating postions. The trouble is everyone makes something like that, Scotty, Roddy, Driftmaster, etc, etc. I'd like to hear from other people what rod holders they prefer and why. If you have some pictures of them in use I'd appreciate seeing them. My boat is a 1992 and except for the depthfinder transducer the former owner never drilled a hole in it. I have no problems with drilling and mounting things but I don't want to just start punching holes and wind up with a mess.

Thanks in advance,

Tim Murphy

 

[RivRunR]

Driftmaster Lil Duo for 2-position versatility.
Why Driftmaster? Coz they are bullet-proof.

 

[Butthead]

On my old boat I used the BPS rod holders that are $16 for a pair. I used them a lot and never had an issue. Mainly trolled with medium to deep diving crankbaits.
https://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Rod-Holder-Twin-Pack/product/97536/110771

 

[CodyPomeroy]

On my old boat I used the BPS rod holders that are $16 for a pair. I used them a lot and never had an issue. Mainly trolled with medium to deep diving crankbaits.
https://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Rod-Holder-Twin-Pack/product/97536/110771

Just curious, are they designed for baitcasters, spinning, or both?

 

[wihil]

I've got Scotty's, as they're available locally for reasonably money and the bases interchange with various rod holder styles (they offer a baitcaster/trolling with lock ring/ rocket launcher styles with the same bases and also have extensions).

I like the weight and options, not a huge fan of the standard base block which is kind of ugly IMO, but I don't have a wide enough gunnel/rail to go with the Scotty flush mount ports. You may have enough rail space to mount them.

My buddy uses the RAM system for his, very similar base setup to the Scotty with a different style rod holder. They were nice and strong.

I like the design of the Driftmaster, but it's very nice to have more than two rod angle positions if you're trolling more than 2 rods per side of the boat. I also had a difficult time finding the left thread mounts for the far side of the boat in the style that I wanted.

For location they're in the rear of the boat (mine's a tiller) on each side with enough room so that the line counters don't interfere with each other and the rods have room to take the inline planers out with no issues. Easy to grab when the flag drops or a board goes under and back.

For drift fishing I've usually got the rod in hand unless it's on a slip bobber/BB, and I drift fish from the front of the boat to control the sock not the rear.

The next boat will probably have a rod tree with 3 per side in addition to ones out the back and a set up front. Three rods stacked just is easier to juggle when multiple lines get hit - IMO.