I am looking to buy a couple rod holders to use for trolling crankbaits. I am wondering what experiences nay of you guys have had, good or bad, with different models. My main concern is finding one sturdy enough to not get ripped off the side of the boat if the crank snags up in rocks, weeds, etc.
Go with the Cabelas / Scotty holders. I’ve had cheaper brands, Roberts come to mind, that were less expensive but failed down the road. My current holders have been moved from boat to boat for the last 3 years… the holders come with me, the bases stay with the boat when I sell it.
Most holders are pretty similar. Models I’ve tried that I really despised due to design include the RAM holders. I can’t see why anyone would spend the extra money on them and in my opinion the design was akward and frustrating during use.
I have the RAM rod holders… and love them. They have sen some abuse, and haven’t broken down on me yet.
I have had Attwood Rod Holders for several years now and they have held up fine, they make different brackets for them depending on what type of gunnel you have. I have 4 brackets called a gunnel grabber that claps on to rail type gunnels, like on a Lund Rebel, so with the Gunnel Grabber there are no holes to drill. I am looking to sell these as they do not work on my new boat.
(Attwoods & Roberts are the same Rod holder, keep in mind that James fishes alot more days a year than I do so he would know better than I would which one would hold up better)
Attwood Rod Holders
I would not question the durability of the RAMS. They’re built well. Just the design bothers me. Who trolls with spinning gear? Pretty much nobody. Yet they cut out one side of the holder to accomodate spinning reels. Twice I nearly had my trolling rods ripped out of the holder when I snagged trolling at high speeds and had that “open” side flex out and down. Had I not grabbed the rod, it was headed for the bottom of the river. That kinda stuff really gets my attention as does little things like how often my customers would tangle lines in the RAMS, in the holder itself, compare to other holders. Lost time is lost time.
But that’s just one guys opinion in a world of people that seem to like RAM holders… 
I too have the Atwood. They work fine, there are some things that I dont like about the way spinning rods sit in them.
I have the Scotty holder and they work great. Never have had a problem and they are easy to mount as well as to insert and remove the holders.
I once had Roberts rod holders and I wrecked two out of the six within two years. 
I wouldn’t reccomend them to anybody.
I have used the Roberts for years and they work fine but Nate just put the Cabela’s / Scotty’s on his new boat and are they ever nice. Seem to be alot stronger. Why does a person learn this stuff after he has put nine rod holders on his boat? lol. Acturally I have put a few more for another brand too plus for handlining. I’f my boat ever flips it will sink as there are alot of holes on top. Oh well, I’m good at learning the hard way hey! Thanks, Bill
Well, I went with the Scottys at Fleet Farm. Mounted them on the Smoker Craft tonight, and they seem sturdy enough. I guess the true test will come this weekend! Thanks to all for the input. 
Look forward to hearing about how you like them. Thanks, Bill
Timely question… I received a pair of Scotty’s for my birthday just last Sunday. They are still in the box — I was planning on returning them and buying RAMS (rail mount).. but now I dont know. Damn you James!! 
Hey, I already admit I’m a bit out of touch wih the rest of the crowd but I am very particular about rod holders. How many guys do you know that will NOT fish out of another person’s boat without bringing their own holders? Yeah, that’s me. Ask Dustin. First thing I do is pull his out and drop mine in! Fiddle with them both and you’ll know which one’s fit you best. For me, the Scotty’s with the aluminum post extensions are the ticket!
Maybe a slower trolling speed but I have never had any problem with Rams. Using 6 rods, turning in circles. Just lock them in and your all set.
I think being a 3-way rigger at heart, where the rod has to come out in a blink of an eye, has kept me from ever being comfortable using the locking rings on a rod holder. I mean, with the angle of pull being at 90 degrees to the center-line of the rod, if the rod holder is well designed, there’s no way in heck it’s coming out of the holder in one piece. I tell my customers, when using the Scottys, to NEVER use the locking collars as it will slow them down when it comes time to pull the rod and set the hook.
Different strokes…. different folks!
I put in some Berkley quick-set rod holders, and really like them. You can pull up out of the rod holder and set the hook all in one real quick movement. I’m very happy with them, they go for about 15 bucks apiece. Just my 2 cents worth. 
Got a chance to use the new Scotty’s rod holders, as recommended by the FTR/L people, while winning this weekend’s Happy Hookers Fishing Club 2003 Pipe Lake Fishing Contest!!! ( 
)
First off, thanks to all who’s input was taken into consideration in my purchase. I found them to be very adequate for the lake situation we were fishing. Although it took a little getting used to not holding the rod while trolling, as this was my first time using them, they held up well through the strikes I had, and I quickly learned I had few worries as far as holders getting torn off the side of the boat. I still wonder what will happen the first time I pull a crank into the face of a wingdam, or for that matter, a rockpile anywhere…. But I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.
And secondly, thanks for the place to brag about winning the contest!!
I have the Roberts rod holders in my boat and I really like them.
I troll alot of leadcore heavier rod, heavier reel, heavier line and at 3 – 4 mph you really putting some tenchin on them and havent had one fail on me yet. ( same ones since 99′)
Plus you pull out the rod holder and I can slip my handlines right in the base. Dual purpose
Quote:I would not question the durability of the RAMS. They’re built well. Just the design bothers me. ”Who trolls with spinning gear? Pretty much nobody.” Yet they cut out one side of the holder to accomodate spinning reels. Twice I nearly had my trolling rods ripped out of the holder when I snagged trolling at high speeds and had that “open” side flex out and down. Had I not grabbed the rod, it was headed for the bottom of the river. That kinda stuff really gets my attention as does little things like how often my customers would tangle lines in the RAMS, in the holder itself, compare to other holders. Lost time is lost time.
But that’s just one guys opinion in a world of people that seem to like RAM holders… END OF QUOTE.
ME ME ME !!! [who else, ] I use to troll with spinning gear I have to admit. Only about five years or so ago Nate got me over to the baitcasters. I liked the spinning because I wanted to still crank with the left hand but when I discovered the quaulity left hand reels from ABU Garcia [love the blue ones] I started upgrading my reels to baitcasters for trolling. Which mean’t I had to upgrade the rods too [love them St. Croixs]. There didn’t use to be much around for left handed baitcasters like there is now available. But the left handed ones still only equal about 20% of them sold. If you crank a spinning reel with your left hand then why not crank a baitcaster with your left hand. Why have to switch hands all the time with a right handed baitcaster? Waste of time. Thanks, Bill
I enjoyed the earlier quote, ”Who trolls with spinning gear? Pretty much nobody” but I never said anything until I saw this thread was brought up again. I used to troll with bait casters, but I now use and prefer spinning reels for trolling, in fact if you look at the reels used for ocean trolling, about half of the reels advertised in the “2003 Offshore Angler” catalog are indeed spinning reels used by millions of other nobodies.
One reason I like spinning reels is that when comparing an equally priced spinning to bait casting reel, the spinning reel typically has a much faster retrieve of inches per handle turn than the typical bait casters used for trolling. With the very small diameter spool that bait casters have this can be frustrating when long lining a crank way back there. When the crank gets fouled up with weeds, one can usually crank it in much faster with the spinning reel. I also feel it is much easier to crank a spinning reel with the larger handle turning radius than the typical small handle radius of the bait casters. The handles of most spinning reels can go on either the right or left side of the reel.
It is also very nice that the spinning reels do not get the back lashes associated the bait casters – I hate taking time to unsnarl them darn bait casters.
I even use size 4000 Shimano spinning reels for my lead line trolling. I put on 2 colors of 18 lb lead line with a 50 foot Power Pro 30lb leader, plus I use 20lb Whiplash as backing. The reel is very light compared to the heavy bait casters filled with 5 colors of lead line and is real pleasure to use all day long. It easily gets a number 5 shad rap down to about 12-14 feet for the speed I troll.
I don’t need a bait caster line counter reel because in Pool 4 I am not after suspended fish. I just let out line until the crank starts pounding bottom, then reel up a crank or two. With the lead line I can get down very fast and also retrieve very fast which keeps my cranks in the water longer.
Although there are a few things I do like better about bait casters: They usually have much louder clickers, plus it is nice when you need to let out a few more feet of line to just push a button, rather than open a bail. If I did have a need for a line counter, then I would use a bait caster.
As far as rod holders go I have Scotty, Ram, Tight Loc, and Willies on my boat. The Willies are junk but I don’t use them for trolling, the other brands all work just fine.
Just Another Nobody 
Just my opinion, but I have to give the nod to RAM holders. I have used Roberts (broke three of them), Fish-On (thicker handled trolling rods didn’t fit them well & at times were tough to get out of the holder as well as the “lock” was difficult to release at times). You do need to lock the rod in with the RAMs as I have had them pop out. Never lost one, though. I may try the Scotties next time as I do like the extensions for them.
Ram holders are great for dual purpose. They work fine for both baitcast and spinning reels. Although I use baitcasters for trolling, having a holder that accommodates a spinning reel is great when deadsticking. As far as locking them down, the only time that is needed is when rods are unattended for a short time. The versitility of Rams is unmatched.
Dave, No one is referring to a person being a nobody. It refers to nobody as ”no one” hardly uses them anymore. Take a look at the Abu Garcia 5600’s baitcaster [the blue one] with a 6.3:1 gear racial. I use the 5601’s which you crank with your left hand. You will love it. Besides it gives you a reason to tell the wife that you need to buy some new St. Croix baitcaster rods too. Thanks, Bill
Each to their own… my opinion on trolling w/o linecounters is you’re just guessing about where you’re plug is in relationship to the boat. Not good enough for me but what is critical to me, well, might not make a lick of difference to another. I will suggest that if you want to be a consistent crank troller, with lead core or without, to be without the linecounters is a huge obstacle hindering catch rates.
You are right though, more guys troll with spinning gear than with gear designed for the expressed purpose of trolling simply out of money considerations. Most guys can’t afford the extra rods and reels designed to do the job. I guess what I should have said is that I’m quite confident that most guys that would be considered accomplished trollers wouldn’t consider using spinning gear in nearly all cases.
Not sure what gear designed for salt water trolling has to do with our discussion. Guys in salt water typically run rigged baitfish, plugs, squids, etc., on the surface behind the boat in the wash, often at high speeds and typically within eye-sight of the boat itself. Measuring distance from the boat precisely is of little consideration. But I’m sure you knew that.
Quote:
I enjoyed the earlier quote, ”Who trolls with spinning gear? Pretty much nobody” but I never said anything until I saw this thread was brought up again. I used to troll with bait casters, but I now use and prefer spinning reels for trolling, in fact if you look at the reels used for ocean trolling, about half of the reels advertised in the “2003 Offshore Angler” catalog are indeed spinning reels used by millions of other nobodies.
One reason I like spinning reels is that when comparing an equally priced spinning to bait casting reel, the spinning reel typically has a much faster retrieve of inches per handle turn than the typical bait casters used for trolling. With the very small diameter spool that bait casters have this can be frustrating when long lining a crank way back there. When the crank gets fouled up with weeds, one can usually crank it in much faster with the spinning reel. I also feel it is much easier to crank a spinning reel with the larger handle turning radius than the typical small handle radius of the bait casters. The handles of most spinning reels can go on either the right or left side of the reel.
It is also very nice that the spinning reels do not get the back lashes associated the bait casters – I hate taking time to unsnarl them darn bait casters.
I even use size 4000 Shimano spinning reels for my lead line trolling. I put on 2 colors of 18 lb lead line with a 50 foot Power Pro 30lb leader, plus I use 20lb Whiplash as backing. The reel is very light compared to the heavy bait casters filled with 5 colors of lead line and is real pleasure to use all day long. It easily gets a number 5 shad rap down to about 12-14 feet for the speed I troll.
I don’t need a bait caster line counter reel because in Pool 4 I am not after suspended fish. I just let out line until the crank starts pounding bottom, then reel up a crank or two. With the lead line I can get down very fast and also retrieve very fast which keeps my cranks in the water longer.
Although there are a few things I do like better about bait casters: They usually have much louder clickers, plus it is nice when you need to let out a few more feet of line to just push a button, rather than open a bail. If I did have a need for a line counter, then I would use a bait caster.
As far as rod holders go I have Scotty, Ram, Tight Loc, and Willies on my boat. The Willies are junk but I don’t use them for trolling, the other brands all work just fine.
Just Another Nobody
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