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2500- adding more rod holders to gunnel **completed pics**


FINCHASER

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Ready to do this.... on the fence about installing them facing straight back to the stern or canted outboard of the boat.  Straight back is less worry on drilling the hole as really dont have to worry much on getting it wrong whereas doing them outboard you have to be pretty exact the angle of the hole or risk the bottom of the tube hitting the face of the covering board on the inside (where you would lean against)

  Hoping several on here have done their own and can provide input on how you did the install, if angled outboard how do you repeat the same cant for the other holders you installed etc?  Theres the drill straight on method where you come in with another tool to clearance the hole for the angle, then theres the angel the hole saw method which should get it right the 1st time, so any tips and or pictures would be great.... thanks

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Why couldn't you start with a piece of 3/4" plywood. Experiment with the angle until you get the angle right and the bottom of the rod holder is leaning just enough not to push on the inside the covering board. Once you find the correct angle, transfer the plywood to the gunnel and find a way to hold it down, while you use it as a guide to start the hole saw.  I do remember reading about this topic a while back and someone had a method to drill the hole on the correct angle without scuffing up the gunnel. 

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The angle to drill is not an issue... I'll just hold an angle finder on the drill.  Not sure how a block of wood would help me determine that it won't hit though... its all about how far out it's angled.... too far it will hit, but how far is to far?  Really don't know till I drill unless this could be solved with algebra... lol?

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5 hours ago, FINCHASER said:

Ready to do this.... on the fence about installing them facing straight back to the stern or canted outboard of the boat.  Straight back is less worry on drilling the hole as really dont have to worry much on getting it wrong whereas doing them outboard you have to be pretty exact the angle of the hole or risk the bottom of the tube hitting the face of the covering board on the inside (where you would lean against)

  Hoping several on here have done their own and can provide input on how you did the install, if angled outboard how do you repeat the same cant for the other holders you installed etc?  Theres the drill straight on method where you come in with another tool to clearance the hole for the angle, then theres the angel the hole saw method which should get it right the 1st time, so any tips and or pictures would be great.... thanks

I have not seen a rod holder installed in that area of the gunnel. Have you mocked one up to see how far down the tube will be, will it interfere with the under gunnel rod holders?  That gunnel insert is not built to have any kind of leverage applied to it, that is why Maverick uses a hawse pipe and mounts the spring cleat inside the boat.

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Chris B.... lots of people have done it... been on boats with them its fine, wouldnt use it for wahoo trolling or anything but they can take some pressure.  And yes on clearance using the short rod holders.]

 

SCFD- after thinking about what you said I could theoretically mock up to pieces of wood so 1 side would represent the inner part... thanks for the idea

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Bama I dont think you understand.... its a potential clearance issue both on the innder side of the boat and the overhang off the gunnel.  Ive been watching videos.... you know what they say....?   Answer: "Be sure to measure so you have proper clearance for install" well duh.... easier said than done measure from where to where when you dont have a reference on the under side to start from???  Hence Im asking here..... asking people who actually own the boat I do who may have done the same thing and can provide some actual help on how NOT to get this big hole im fixing to drill wrong 😁

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Been pulling some measurements... used the non skid to mark center line.  After some thought I think I need to determine the length the rod holder extends from center one of the rod holder hole to the end of the pipe.  I used the tech drawing to divide the flange length (4.25") by 2 and subtract that ("2.125) from the overall length of 6.41.... if correct I should be able to take that measurement of 4.28" and measure from where Ive marked to drill toward the inner gunnel (at different angles) in order to get an idea of what angle line I need to drill so the pipe does not hit the inner gunnel piece.... I think lol

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Finchaser,

I went through the same agony thinking about adding 4 more rod holders to my 2500. After thinking about if for weeks I pulled the trigger and bought 4 Gemlux 30 degree deluxe rod holders (Gemlux P/N 325530). I purchased directly from Gemlux using a Thruhull forum discount code for 20% off. I also purchased the backing plates to beef up the installation. To make sure that the butts of the rod holder did not protrude past the covering board lip I installed the rod holders at approximately 30 degrees pointed towards the back. This allowed some leeway during the drilling process. 

A couple of things I found before drilling is that the width of the covering board is not a fixed number. Wider at the front.

Also be mindful of the  LED strip lights under the gunnel. I ended up drilling mine a bit further towards the outside. When I marked the position I made sure rod holder did not go over the silicone line on top, but got close to that line. It worked well for me to use the actual rod holder  upside down to confirm the position before committing the drill.

I did some test drilling in pieces of scrap wood to practice keeping the angle, and I found out that my 2 1/8" hole saw would not completely cut through the approximate 1" material at a 30 degree angle. I bought a hole saw that had a straight cutting depth of 2.5" and it worked well for me.

I have attached a few pictures of where I located the rod holders.

I knew I would be sacrificing use of the top under gunnel rod holder for long rods, but I was willing to make that trade. In my opinion these rod holder addition made it much easier to fish the 2500 .

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Rod holders do not protrude past the covering board lip

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Probably  after the fact now but the easy  way to center  is to come from the bottom.  The one picture shows an unobstructed view and should be  easy to use a hole saw from the bottom.

Once the pilot bit comes through go to the top and use pilot hole to make a clean cut from the top.  Never use a hole saw to punch  all the way through to a finished  surface. 

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Good tip smile maker.

Think I have this figured out... Ill post some info maybe help the next guy.  I did confirm the math on the rod holder I mentioned above.  I measured the thickness of inner gunnel part that hangs down and marked that thickness on the top of the gunnel (red arrow in pic),  Set my caliper to the measurement for OAL protrusion of the rod holder from center of the hole to as far as it would extend  and used it as a protractor to mark and arc from center line to the mark for the thickness of the inner gunnel overhang.

  Along that arc I drew a max line (how far the holder could b turned outboard and not hit inner gunnel) and a minimum line (the smallest angle off centerline Id be willing to entertain) and I plan on drilling right down the middle of the 2 (red line in pic) and hope this allows me to rotate it some L and R to pick where I prefer.  

 

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Fin

   Another thing to consider is that  the actual hole for the rod holder is truly  an oval unless it is a zero degree  holder.

There is usually more than enough flange on the top to account for the angulation but once you drill a vertical hole it will be necessary to come back and redrill at 15 or 30 degree to account for the true path of the tube. Once you  drill a vertical hole the exact diameter it will not allow the plate to sitflush h

Many years ago a member had a post on making a jig to account for this 

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I've been  down this road on my 04 22 te so am trying to give as many hints as I  remember 

If you want to swivel a 25 or30 degree holder  you will want to fudge to the outboard side of the rail.  This will give you more room to twist the holder as you make the hole an oval.

As always meassure 4 times stop think remeassure then drill.

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1 hour ago, smilemaker said:

Fin

   Another thing to consider is that  the actual hole for the rod holder is truly  an oval unless it is a zero degree  holder.

There is usually more than enough flange on the top to account for the angulation but once you drill a vertical hole it will be necessary to come back and redrill at 15 or 30 degree to account for the true path of the tube. Once you  drill a vertical hole the exact diameter it will not allow the plate to sitflush h

Many years ago a member had a post on making a jig to account for this 

Im not going to drill straight on... going on an angle.  Tested several times on a piece of old console face... used an angel finder on top of drill, hold a bit over 30 deg worked perfect and allows rod holder to rotate a bit in both directions

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Finchaser- you are wasting way too much gray mater on this project.  I know you don’t want to screw anything up, but it’s not that hard.  Tape the gunnels, mark the center of the rod holder, turn a rod holder upside down to get the drilling angle and a clue on stick out.   Then start drilling!
 

Reelhooked-  I mounted my rod holders exactly where you mounted yours.  I’m happy with the locations.  They are handy for both trolling and bottom fishing.

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I am overthinking it but your method is not acceptable for me... I dont operate on think so's or hope its right for things like this.  Im in no rush and it costs nothing to be cautious and thorough.  A mistake however will be very costly and likely be many months to get it in

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Fin

If you have already drilled through a board you have the start of a jig.

Take a 2x6 drill your hole and place rod holder to make sure  it is flush.

Place on the taped gunnell and use it as your angle guide.

The hard part of a hole saw at an angle is getting it started without walking on you. The 2x6 should stop it from walking 

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Had no issue with that, started at 90deg and got the pilot down a lil and tilted the drill using an angle finder on top. 

   Got it done today, holes came out fantastic nice and clean.  Hard part was getting them bolted down with backing plates.... a bit tight to reach a couple of them and on one for whatever reason a couldnt get a wrench or socket on 2 of the nuts so I wedged a screwdriver blade on a flatspot on the nut and between the holder itself.  I used 1/4" hardware... maybe 3/16 would have been easier.  Came out real even left to right and the angle on the rods when in the holders.  Thanks for the help along the way

 

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  • FINCHASER changed the title to 2500- adding more rod holders to gunnel **completed pics**

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