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I spent some time yesterday installing Scotty rod holder base mounts on either side just behind the seat of my new Slayer Propel. Although it involved drilling 4 small holes for each base, the entire process took over an hour. Here is why.
I want the rod holders to be easily reachable from the seat so I can pivot them from inline to a 45-deg angle outward for trolling.
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I also need to have them in a position so I can easily reach around to remove the rod from the holder when I have a fish on. A second criterion is that they must be far enough away from the seat back so that the rod butt of my longest rod does not bump into the seat back as I pivot the rod outward. On most kayaks with a fixed seating position, I could sit in the kayak at home and choose a position that met both of the criteria expressed above. However, the Slayer Propel's seat is set on a sliding track.
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I first had to use the kayak on the water with the Propel unit fully deployed to see where along the track would be a good position for the seat (I did that last week and left the seat in that position). Yesterday I could sit in the seat with the kayak in my basement. I spent at least 15 minutes trying different positions for the base unit with a rod in the rod holder until I found a position that optimized functionality.
020.jpg
I marked off the spot and drilled the first bolt hole. The hole was no larger than the bolt diameter to minimize leakage. I had to screw the bolt into the hole. I always use stainless steel hardware on my boats. It is pricey (>$8 for 8 bolts, washers, and nuts) but resists rusting.
021.jpg
The Slayer Propel has a cup holder behind the seat. When the cup holder is removed, it gives an open access to the space inside the hull. That allowed me to use a bolt, lockwasher, and nut instead of a screw. On my Manta Ray, the distance from the open hole to where the bases were bolted was only a few inches. However on the Slayer Propel the distance was greater -- initially I could not reach the underside of the bolt to attach the washer and nut. I was very frustrated, but eventually found that if I moved to the opposite side of the hull and inserted my arm straight down past my elbow, then out, I could reach the bolts. It was not a comfortable position, but I was able to get all four nuts attached. I used a Phillips head screwdriver on the top side and a ratchet handle and socket on the underside.
022.jpg
Here is the finished product with two Scotty rod holders inserted and pivoted out to trolling position.
023.jpg
I will use two more Scotty rod holders on the gear tracks in front of the seat. They will be attached to Scotty #438 gear track head base units. as I have used on my Manta Ray. This will allow me to troll four rods at once.
31.jpg
My next rigging job is to find a position to mount my Lowrance LMS 527 FF/GPS unit somewhere in front of the seat. The Propel unit (in both up and down positions) will take some potential mounting spots out of play. My initial thought is to mount it on one of the gear tracks on the left side as shown in the photo. That will wait until I have had several more trips on the water.
FF position.jpg
I want the rod holders to be easily reachable from the seat so I can pivot them from inline to a 45-deg angle outward for trolling.
018.jpg 019.jpg
I also need to have them in a position so I can easily reach around to remove the rod from the holder when I have a fish on. A second criterion is that they must be far enough away from the seat back so that the rod butt of my longest rod does not bump into the seat back as I pivot the rod outward. On most kayaks with a fixed seating position, I could sit in the kayak at home and choose a position that met both of the criteria expressed above. However, the Slayer Propel's seat is set on a sliding track.
005.jpg
I first had to use the kayak on the water with the Propel unit fully deployed to see where along the track would be a good position for the seat (I did that last week and left the seat in that position). Yesterday I could sit in the seat with the kayak in my basement. I spent at least 15 minutes trying different positions for the base unit with a rod in the rod holder until I found a position that optimized functionality.
020.jpg
I marked off the spot and drilled the first bolt hole. The hole was no larger than the bolt diameter to minimize leakage. I had to screw the bolt into the hole. I always use stainless steel hardware on my boats. It is pricey (>$8 for 8 bolts, washers, and nuts) but resists rusting.
021.jpg
The Slayer Propel has a cup holder behind the seat. When the cup holder is removed, it gives an open access to the space inside the hull. That allowed me to use a bolt, lockwasher, and nut instead of a screw. On my Manta Ray, the distance from the open hole to where the bases were bolted was only a few inches. However on the Slayer Propel the distance was greater -- initially I could not reach the underside of the bolt to attach the washer and nut. I was very frustrated, but eventually found that if I moved to the opposite side of the hull and inserted my arm straight down past my elbow, then out, I could reach the bolts. It was not a comfortable position, but I was able to get all four nuts attached. I used a Phillips head screwdriver on the top side and a ratchet handle and socket on the underside.
022.jpg
Here is the finished product with two Scotty rod holders inserted and pivoted out to trolling position.
023.jpg
I will use two more Scotty rod holders on the gear tracks in front of the seat. They will be attached to Scotty #438 gear track head base units. as I have used on my Manta Ray. This will allow me to troll four rods at once.
31.jpg
My next rigging job is to find a position to mount my Lowrance LMS 527 FF/GPS unit somewhere in front of the seat. The Propel unit (in both up and down positions) will take some potential mounting spots out of play. My initial thought is to mount it on one of the gear tracks on the left side as shown in the photo. That will wait until I have had several more trips on the water.
FF position.jpg
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