Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advice

jstiene · Jan 24, 2012

Hello

I have a older Bass Tracker and would like to add 3-4 Horizontal rod storage "Tubes" to the port side of my bass tracker. The new bass trackers at BassPro have this as a standard feature. Basically you have a rod holder mount near the middle of the left side of the boat, and there are 1.5: inch diamater openings that you slide the rod into, which is then hidden under the front platform of the boat. I was planning on using 1 3/4" PVC (in 4 ft lengths), drilling a hole into the vertical aluminum wall inside the boat. I am planning on using a bulk head fitting to secure to the aluminum wall, then glue the PVC to the back of the bulkhead. So my plan is good I think, except I am wondering if there are any other choices to use other than PVC. The reason I ask is because the PVC will be 2" outside diameter, making it difficult to make 3-4 holes. I was curious if anyone has tried this idea yet, and have any advice. The bulk head fittings by the way have a very small front pleasing look to them, so there will be a very small portion sticking out where the rods get inserted.

Joe

fishrdan · Jan 24, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

jstiene said:
I was planning on .... drilling a hole into the vertical aluminum wall inside the boat.

Make sure to check under the deck (in back of the bulk head) where you are going to drill through, to make sure there are not any obstructions that will interfere with the tube; foam, stringer, another bulkhead, etc.. They could have changed up things in the newer models to facilitate the tubes.

dufflebag's suggestion of golf bag tubes is a good one as they have a lip on them.

kfa4303 · Jan 24, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

I know they make thin walled 1-1/4" PVC at the big box stores. I've used it for all sorts of stuff, It comes in 10' lengths for about $ 4, but I'm not sure if it comes in 1-3/4". Might be worth a look.

mxcobra · Jan 24, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

MINE if you wanna take a look 1.5 inch pvc.

jstiene · Jan 25, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

I like the golf tube idea as I had thought of that as it looks like that is what is actually used on the new tracker. I need to find out how wide that lip is on the golf tube, as I will be drilling through the existing carpet, and metal, and I want to have a finished look on the outside edge, which is why I though of a bulk head. I think I will stop at a golf shop and see what they have.

KFA43403, I also like the thin walled PVC idea. I looked for it with no luck, but am going back to search some more. The thin wall would allow me to reduce the size of the bulkhead, which is what I am trying to accomplish. I also did remove the top decking from the front of the boat, so I have full access. I have some foam insulation to cut away. I thought I would build out the 3-4 rod "tubes" and hit that area with some spray insulation to lock it all in place..

glnbnz · Jan 25, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

mxcobra said:
MINE if you wanna take a look 1.5 inch pvc.

Thanks for the pic...sometime after I have my deck installed I am going to want to set my boat up for fishing also...and I need all of the great ideas that I can get!!

kfa4303 · Jan 25, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Here are a couple things I've made with some good ol' thin-walled PVC lately. Cost maybe $20 for everything and it was fun to do. Like legos for grown ups.

Collapsible, hand powered bilge pump. The "piston" is just a piece of old blue plastic and the flaps are just a couple pieces of rubber tubing. The "rod" is just apiece of bamboo you can get from any garden center. Pumps TONS of water! Cost about $5 rather than the $20+ they want at the stores.

Rod holder. Attached to rub rail with some small SS screws. About $7 because I had to buy some T and Elbow pieces. I also drilled a small drain hole in the bottom so water and debris can't accumulate.

Tiller handle extension. Just cut a couple slits in one end (drill a small hole at each end to prevent cracking) with a pair of pipe clamps and voila! instant tiller extension for $2, rather than $50.

all duck'd up · Jan 25, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

i did these in my boat and they work great

glnbnz · Jan 25, 2012

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

Re: Adding Horizonatl mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similiar...need advi

kfa4303 said:
Rod holder. Attached to rub rail with some small SS screws. About $7 because I had to buy some T and Elbow pieces. I also drilled a small drain hole in the bottom so water and debris can't accumulate.

View attachment 130148

What size PVC are you using?? It looks like 1" but I am not sure.

Jmbradford · Mar 14, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

I know this is old but thought id add to it for anyone looking for pics, I just did mine the other day and also used golf tubes because they do look good installed but they only come in 3' lenghts and 5' length is what I wanted for protection. So I found out the golf tube fit perfect into inch and a quarter(1.25") pvc, the only problem with golf tubes is you cant put a spinning rod into it. So for spinning the spinning rods I got 2" Abs and cut them to lengh. After cutting out the holes for the tubes, I set them all in place where I wanted them to stay and to keep them from boucing around and sliding out, I used expanding foam, 3 cans for the whole thing(the picture only shows with 2 cans of sprayfoam) Once foam expanded the tubes were solid as a rock! New carpet will still be installed.

kfa4303 · Mar 14, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

Nice work jm. Clever idea using the spray foam to hold everything in place too.

glnbnz, the rod holder in the pic is made from thin walled 1 1/4" PVC a few t-connectors and a few elbow at either end. I also drilled a small hole in the bottom of one of the elbows to allow for water to drain. I didn't bother gluing and of the pieces together and they've perfectly secure. Plus, I can always add or subtract as many additional holders as I want without having to cut it all apart, or buy any new pieces. The whole thing is just screwed into the aluminum rubrails of my boat using small stainless steel screws dipped in 3M 5200. If memory serves, I was able to get the tiller extension, rod holder(s) and the bilge pump out of a single, 10' length of 1 1/4" thin walled PVC. Hope that helps.

glnbnz · Mar 15, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

kfa4303 said:
Nice work jm. Clever idea using the spray foam to hold everything in place too.

glnbnz, the rod holder in the pic is made from thin walled 1 1/4" PVC a few t-connectors and a few elbow at either end. I also drilled a small hole in the bottom of one of the elbows to allow for water to drain. I didn't bother gluing and of the pieces together and they've perfectly secure. Plus, I can always add or subtract as many additional holders as I want without having to cut it all apart, or buy any new pieces. The whole thing is just screwed into the aluminum rubrails of my boat using small stainless steel screws dipped in 3M 5200. If memory serves, I was able to get the tiller extension, rod holder(s) and the bilge pump out of a single, 10' length of 1 1/4" thin walled PVC. Hope that helps.

Thanks for the info...not that I will be able to use it right now, but it is always good to accumulate knowledge for the future.

kfa4303 · Mar 15, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

I'm learning to love PVC and/or Bamboo more and more. It can/does break down a bit over time, but for the money and ease of use it's hard to beat. I even came across a pic of a poling platform a guy made out of PVC. It's pretty redneck, which I like, however it does seem to take up a lot of space, but I guess if you're not trying to make a living in Florida flats tournaments it would work well enough. I mostly just like that its DIY, inexpensive and inventive. Here are some pics of the PVC platform, a homemade aluminum one and a bamboo push pole and kicker motor rack I've made recently.

(neat removable, homemade, aluminum, poling platform. Handy for slipping under bridges and low hanging limbs)

(homemade PVC poling platform)

(another homemade aluminum platform)

(this thing is just straight out of Star Wars. I'm not even sure how you'd get into/out of it, but I think I kida want one

)

jstiene · Mar 20, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

I finally have my pics of the rod holder project. As initially planned, I used PVC with Schedule 40 flush caps, and ordered the expanding foam from US Composites. I used the 3lb density marine grade product. It was finally warm enough this past weekend to use the foam. So here are the results...the top decking is currently removed, allowing access to the rod holders foam for the picture.

Hopefully the pictures appear as this is my first attempt at uploading images...

Joe

glnbnz · Mar 20, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

Good job on uploading the pics and the rod holders.

Gives me more ideas!!

vermeerj · Mar 21, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

Outstanding idea and execution! I've been collecting ideas for some time and this one is great! Verrrry Nice!

jstiene · Mar 21, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

Vermeerj,

Thanks for the nice comments. My 14yr old son worked on this with me and provided alot of suggestion to getting this done, so that made it even more worthwhile. The biggest challenge was finding a PVC fitting that would sit flush up against the vertical wall to give it that "Finished" look.

vermeerj · Mar 21, 2012

Re: Adding Horizontal mount Rod Storage to Bass Tracker - PVC or similar...need advic

Of course, the best part of your project is the fact that your 14yr old got involved! I have one as well and he loves to get involved in projects to make things. We are blessed!

I also like that bulkhead fitting. It does look "Finished"... like it came from the factory that way. Where did you find them?

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