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clawman
02-12-2014, 01:28 PM
Has anyone used these rails? I currently have Cannon DT-5's mounted on the handrail and do not like how much they bounce around when running so am looking for an option and not too excited about drilling holes in the gunnel. If I went to these or similar tracks I would be attempting to mount them in the same holes the handrails currently use.
http://traxstech.com/Mounting_Tracks.html

dragonfly
02-12-2014, 01:57 PM
just remember there strength and rigidity is only as good as you have them anchored. properly anchored they look like they would be great. I just never trusted them with a long mast downrigger with a 12lb weight, 100' down, and straight out. there must be a weight/leverage limit to them I would check out. I would hate to loose a downrigger assembly. but I tend to over build stuff so I might be under estimating them. dfly

SuperD
02-12-2014, 03:03 PM
C'mon Clawman, don't be afraid of drilling holes in your boat. They would ideally be mounted with a backing plate on the underneath side of the gunnel. These will perform a lot beter than a rail mount.

Bduck
02-12-2014, 08:02 PM
Clawman, At first I tried to shy away from drilling holes that may be unnecessary but what is unnecessary. If I didn't do it then I wouldn't achieve what I'm actually out for. I'm with SuperD, go for a better support with backing plates in the gunnels. Dfly has a valid point but I think you can make what you have work instead of opting for something different that might result in the same. This is your boat built your way with a little encouragement support. 101ok101

Mharri333
02-13-2014, 01:31 AM
And those brackets are kinda spendy... Cool. But spendy. Holes are way cheaper :)

SuperD
02-13-2014, 11:23 AM
If one has a short boat, the tracks are great for accessing the boat without the riggers being in the way. Sometimes ideal fishing location of the downriggers can make getting in the boat from the side difficult. Being able to slide the downrigger to one end for loading and the flexibility of sliding back to a comfortable fishing location can make them worth every penny.