Heavy duty rod holder question

[ktm_2000]

Hi All,

A winter purchase query - - I need additional rod holders for the boat.

I have standard Lees 15 and 30 degree for my 2 side rod holders in cockpit, I would like to add a pair of 0 degree swivels in my transom and a pair of 15 or 30 degree rod holders facing forward right behind my cabin bulkhead. I would like to keep them all looking the same and will most likely go with Lees for the forward facing ones but am curious of folks opinion of the Lees HD 0 degree swivels?

researching the topic on the downeast boat forum those guys all seem to recommend "the rod holder guy" for swivel rod holders because they are heavier duty and have 4 bolts https://ltmarineproducts.com/products/l ... od-holders

what are folks here thoughts?

[PeterPalmieri]

I have 15 degrees in the transom, the cap flexes quite a bit. Can’t help with swivel recommendations but if you are planning on fighting fish out of them reenforcing the cap should be a priority.

[ktm_2000]

Peter, put a check in that column, I beefed up the area where I will put the swivels, I glassed in a 3/4" thick piece of marine ply under the gunnels in that area on this thread
http://bertram31.com/newbb/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=14744

[Preston Burrows]

For what it's worth my thinking is much ado about nothing, I installed 3 x Lees 0o holders in my transom gunnel due to width not allowing fully angled 30o or 60o holders and used 1/4" aluminum as a reinforcing backer against the underside of the gunnel along with plywood, both templated / profiled by way of the rod holders oval shape wise and then I through bolted the rod holders with s/s oval head machine bolts, flat washers and nylock nuts.

The centre rod holder is usually used by me to run a teaser line or a down line when trolling, and the other 2 serve as rod holders for spare/swap rods along the journey.

As far as I am concerned all the talk of rod holders being ripped off or out of the boat/gunnels are usually hysterical fisherman's long tales and/or the result of rod holders simply being screwed in to thin fibreglass by way of self tapping screws with no backers/accompanying support underneath. That said I usually use safety lines on my rods as rod/fish savers, which, in my case, are nothing more than either 3/8" braided nylon rope with snap eyes or 1" wide nylon webbing such as used for Bimini Tops straps with same.

Plan B was to buy/use swivel inserts for those rod holders if they ever gave me or my rods trouble...........I question the need for swivels as a good 80 lb or 130 lb rod will survive an initial strike without the need for the rod tip to be in the direction of the the strike or run......needless to say competent crew/fishermen further the lack of need............

So, in short, adequately installed rod holders such as I have would suffice and swivel inserts can be added if you experience issues!

[ktm_2000]

Preston,

Your idea of the inserts may be a good one as a buddy recommended the same thing and has a couple of extra swivel inserts which he offered me.

I definitely want swivels as years ago I was in the canyons on someone else's boat and we were jigging up squid in the spreader lights, chunking for yellowfin was going great until a decent sized blue shark came in and kept breaking off the mono leaders. We put on some wire to see what he was and got him to the boat and he was roughly 10', MY mistake was trying to take his pic and putting the rod in the holder for this pic below where

This pic cost me $300
https://photos.app.goo.gl/rrbQLj4ohVLJDSoA7

he surged boat side and turned the penn international 2 rod into a pretzel before I could release the drag.

The rod seemed fine but the next morning 20 min after we got on the troll we got hit with a wolfpack of big-eyes in the 200# range, we hooked up 3 and on the 1st big run the rod which had the shark on snapped 2 eyes down from the tip and we lost that fish, lost one more which ran back at the boat and we landed the 3rd. I'm not saying that 3 guys would have done any better at 4:30am with 3 big-eyes on but I would like to avoid replacing rods if I could help it.

[Preston Burrows]

ktm,

Yes, that'll do it with sharks - they get no closer to any boat I am Captain of than to see what they are and then we cut them short or get them closer and de-rig if safe enough. Hopefully someone did hold your beer at least when you took the photo.

Swivel inserts in the rod holders work better with short butts as they raise the height of the rod butt in the holder so far as is my experience with them..........longer butts versus the shorter butts seem to be a little too unstable with them for my liking.

[saburke17]

KTM, the quality of the LT rod holders is unmatched. installed a pair of 0 degree on my transom corners. All the big Tuna guys up use them up here. They come with the bolts and backing plate. will be changing out the last 4 Lee holders over the winter

[ktm_2000]

some prizes showed up today

I ordered up a pair of Lees heavy duty 15 degree rod holders for up forward but am now 2nd guessing that decision.

-pics of new 15 heavy duty vs older standard duty 30 degree
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Xukt5HmiWQdTAccV6
https://photos.app.goo.gl/sRh6jqzsoKE5dq669

In 2nd guessing, I am thinking the heavy duty ones should go into the cockpit and not forward. I am considering buying a 2nd set of heavy duty holders and putting all the heavy duty holders into the cockpit and taking the 30 degree ones I had for the cockpit and having 2 sets of forward facing holders.
Another benefit of that idea would be if I were drifting beam-to I would have 4 rod holders to work out of on that side.

the Lee's 15 degree heavy duty definitely seem much more beefy than the original set I purchased and seem like the would do fine if I purchased a 0 degree set for the transom and used the swivel inserts.