rod holders

[dondi]

anyone ever make there own rod holders? i am thinking about buying 10ft pvc pipe and cutting it in 6 inch pieces .then fiberglassing to outside lip of railing or should i attach with screws what would be better?

 

[5150abf]

Re: rod holders

I made mine at work from 1'' aluminum tube, they have a 1 1/14'' top rail and I just bolted on the rod holderpart of some I got at Wal Mart that are suppose to push into the ground.

On the boat I have probably 12 bases that they can go in so matter what situation you find yourself in the rods work out, I also made other stuff to fit in the holders, the net fits and I made a heater stand and rod lights, pretty slick.

A far as your system without seeing the boat it is hard to say but screws are alittle less permenent.

 

[Fireman431]

Re: rod holders

Why would you spend the time to make your own PVC rod holders when you can buy better ones for $5?

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&cp=15&gs_id=18&xhr=t&q=pvc+rod+holders&qe=cHZjIHJvZCBob2xkZXJz&qesig=B4w7jHegmAx2USlB6w630A&pkc=AFgZ2tnj2Gd5ejd7iPiKYAzzM1AmeFxo20NwI31ma_nyJfBPBYN-iSxXfZ1nWFTuyKMv4r4i7pUhoAjPX7RRlazqZvOxk1ZFDw&pq=pvc+rod+holders&gs_upl=&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&biw=1429&bih=708&wrapid=tljp131470769309220&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=16224060822004743531&sa=X&ei=StlcTqGWFInMgQeEmq2FAg&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQ8wIwAA#

 

[JB]

Re: rod holders

"Better" is a matter of opinion. I made mine from 2" PVC.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: rod holders

yes, 1-1/2" or 2" PVC cut to 1 foot length. I drill two holes in one side of the PVC that allow stainless screw heads to pass, and 1/8" holes on the opposite side to allow the screws to penetrate a piece of 5/4 Pressure treated lumber. Use a long screwdriver bit in a power dril to install them to the wood.

My 16' boat had 2 rod holders, my 18 footer had 4 rod holders. my 21 footer has 8 rod holders. I therefore installed 10 rod holders on my friends 30 footer. Get the pattern?

 

[dondi]

Re: rod holders

i need 6 holders one piece of pvc pipe cost $4.97- 6 holders $30.00 thanks for your thoughts

 

[dondi]

Re: rod holders

your right about the screws being less permanent. just thought glassing them in would be more sturdy, thanks for your thoughts

 

[ondarvr]

Re: rod holders

It depends on what you mean by "rod holders". If you mean the type that stores the rod while not in use like the one pictured in the link, then yes PVC works well. If you mean the type that are being used while atcually fishing, then PVC will sort of work, but in a very limited way. Depending on what you are fishing for, how many rods are being used and the type of tackle, you will frequently need to adjust the position and angle of the rods, this isn't possible with fixed in place PVC. There are many brands of low cost rod holders that will allow you to adjust the rod into the correct position, or remove them when not needed.

Glassing in PVC would increase the cost to much higher than buying a set.

 

[zopperman]

Re: rod holders

Slightly off topic, but I know ondarvr is the man to ask about this -- would poly adhere to PVC?

 

[ondarvr]

Re: rod holders

Yes you can get a good bond, but for the best bond you need a resin formulated for this purpose.

 

[mommicked]

Re: rod holders

I fabbed 4 vertical rod storage holders on the side of my livewell w 1.5" pvc. I used a 90* bend fitting at the front and 3 Ts all glued together for the base. I left the aft T open to drain water and debris. W the fittings butted together the spacing is perfect for freshwater sized reels. I screwed the inverted Ts to the alum. deck w a varnished piece of oak stock to hold it about 1" off the side of the livewell so the hatch would not rub the rods when opening it, the hatch is flush w the side. Then I cut and filed smooth notches in the pipes to hold 2 baitcasters and 2 spinning rods and keep them from turning when dropped into the holders. I jammed the pipes into the base I made and screwed them to another piece of oak stock near the top of the pipes w the drill through the pipe method mentioned before here, using tapered stainless screwheads that are about flush when tightened. Even w/o gluing the pipes to the base it is very sturdy and I can change the rodholders pretty easily if I ever need taller ones for bigger rods. I also made some outrigger style rodholders by attaching 2" pipe to the inside corners of my front deck. I made the outriggers out of 1.5" pipes w a 45* bend fitting in the middle. They drop into the 2" and are held straight out off the side by wooden dowels stuck through holes drilled through both pipes. They do flex a bit trolling big crankbaits in freshwater but are pretty sturdy and I carefully set the drag to troll. I will add leashes for the rods so they dont leave the boat if the holders break while trolling or try to rig a strap or cord to the outrigger itself because they hold the rods out past the side of the boat. I now have a wopping 18' spread w 7' rods!! and 2 more rodholders up front when I remove and store the outriggers when Im not using them. You can also find straps made of plastic or galvanized that wrap around pipes and attach w screws on both sides of the pipe that would be stronger for trolling applications than the screw through the pipe method or a combination w the straps and screw through. Redneck engineering at its finest

 

[Chris1956]

Re: rod holders

Actually we mounted the 10 PVC Pipe rod holders to a 5/4X six piece of PT lumber and strapped it to the stainless stern rail with copper pipe straps and wood screws. The pipe straps did not mar the SS rail and we used the rod holders to troll for False Albacore and Mahi-mahi, as well as bluefish, Stripers etc.

 

[JB]

Re: rod holders

If you use thin PVC you may have a problem. I used schedule 40 2" pvc. The one on the port side took several hits from blackfin of the 30lb class with no injury. If you have never fought blackfin tuna, try stopping a frightened cow.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: rod holders

How does white PVC hold up to UV rays? I used gray PVC conduit in my old boat for rod holders (color matched) and the sun discolored it in a couple places, looked kind of burned. I used the same conduit in my new boat, but painted it to match the interior and to keep it from yellowing.

For attachment; I cut the ends at a 45* angle, drilled 2 holes on each end, countersunk the holes and screwed them down. With the countersunk holes the rod grips won't drag across the screw heads. The 45* end cut also makes it easier to get the rod into the rod holder. This is just for rod storage, I wouldn't trust this type of attachment for fishing.

 

[LongLine]

Re: rod holders

I've made a bunch of these for salmon fishing on Lake Ontario. They work fine.

Tom B.
(LongLine)

 

[Fireman431]

Re: rod holders

i need 6 holders one piece of pvc pipe cost $4.97- 6 holders $30.00 thanks for your thoughts

What's your time worth?

 

[mommicked]

Re: rod holders

Like JB said,the sced. 40 is very tough and cheap. I once made an awning for my dogs hung off the eave of the house w 2". 14'x12 w 4 rafters and two legs, using Ts and 90s and a tarp stretched over it. I used flat caps srewed to the eave to hold the ends of the rafters. It worked well untill a thunderstorm lifted it off the rebars that held the legs to the ground and the sail twisted it off the house. Im also gonna make a removable board mounted rack as described before w about 8 or 10 rodholders, to attach to the long side of my boat opposite the console for catfishing or drifting a bunch of rods at once. One piece of pipe for $4.97 will make more than 6 rodholders, w the hardware and all it should be less than $30. My time is free and I enjoy making things out of all kinds of stuff. The thin walled PVC makes great sandspikes for surf fishing as its easyier to shove in the sand than sched. 40. Just cut off at a long angle w a hacksaw,45* will work OK, and attach a golfbag towel to the top w a tiewrap. I use 1.5" and 2" and slip one inside the other, held together w a bungie hooked in each end, makes it easy to carry 2 at once. I also make them 5'+ long to hold my line higher in the surf w shorter rods and it helps w blowing sand on the reels to.