I have a double reel planer mast that I want to mount on my boat. The only place I have to mount it is on a hatch cover I have two Willie duel boards. I wonder if they will have a strong enough pull that they will tear the hatch cover off? The cover is on a hinge in front and held down by two hooks in the rear. I guess what I am asking is do planer boards pull hard when trolling? dlmize
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In general, I wouldn't mount it to a hatch cover unless there is no alternative and even then I would look at beefing up the entire hatch & supporting area as best I could. Can you give us a little more info?
Is this hatch one you can stand on? How sturdy is the support underneath? Can you post up a picture of your setup, maybe we can come up with an alternative?
FWIW, on my old 17' Lund, I mounted a Big Jon planer mast to the bow casting platform. Pic to follow.
On edit: the last thing you want is for your mast to come crashing back towards you while you're out fishing. Don't ask how I know
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Here's a pic of my old setup. Originally, I had mounted an extra seat base (just forward of the mast in this photo) thinking it would be sturdy enough for a home made mast I had. No way. After a lot of headaches, I gave up on the home made version and purchased the Big Jon dual mast setup.
My boat had a large locker you could stand on that had two hatch covers to access the inside. You can see one the piano hinges near the left side of this picture. At the forward edge of this locker there is an aluminum bulkhead that runs side to side. I cut an access hole to be able to get my arm into the area forward of the locker to attach backing & hardware underneath the deck. Used BIG fender washers. Since the bulkhead was directly under the Big Jon mounting plate, with 2 bolts forward and 2 bolts aft of the bulkhead, I think I was transfering some of the force to the bulkhead as well as the deck.
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The hatch cover is about a foot square and three fourth inch thick. It is held down by a piano hinge in front and two hooks in the rear. It is not really a hatch cover but that is the only thing I can think of to describe it. The boat is a Sea Ray with a wind shield that swings open in the center. The cover is right in front on the center section. It is the only thing to mount the mast too as I can not get farther forward under the bow cover. One man suggested a 8x8 inch metal plate under the cover. I am afraid the piano hinge will not hold. I am sorry I don't have a picture. dlmize
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I think that your fears are well founded. Even if the hinge initially holds up to the forces applied to it by the mast and boards at some time in the future either the hinge itself or the fasteners used to connect it to the deck/door will likely give way.
I want to thank you for the information concerning mounting the planer mast. I have one more question, I have a pair of outriggers can I run the boards off of them until I get a different boat that I can use the mast on? dlmize
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As far as I can see, that is the only place. I can't get any farer under the bow cover because the gas tank is in the way. If I could, I would put a metal plate 8x8 under the bow cover. Then bolt the mast plate though the bow cover and metal plate forward of the hatch cover.Guess I will have to put the mast away until I get another boat. I would like to use the outriggers to pull the planer boards but I have no experience and am not sure how to do it. Sure would like someone to tell me how to use the outriggers. dlmize
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You don't want to use your outriggers to pull the planer boards -- again too much strain. You could use the outriggers to run lines such as leadcore, flat lines, or jet divers though. It would give you 15' or so of additional side spread to your layout.
Another option for the big boards would be to get two single masts if there is a place to mount them -- maybe on either side of the hatch or just foreward of the wideshield.
Ryan Think KINGS!
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I wouldn't even mess with the mast and large boards with the problems that you may encounter. I would go with the inline Church or Off Shore boards and then all you have to worry about is rodholders. I have the large planner reels and mounts on my board and don't even use them anymore , I stick with the inline boards.
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I think big boards off of a mast have their place, but like Rick said...inlines are more versatile. If you are fishing for salmonoids, then buy the Church boards..if for walleyes, then buy the Off-Shore boards.
To put it simply, there is nothing you can do with a big board program that you cannot also replicate with an inline board program.
Hope that helps.
BFG
Official Ohio Delegate to Team Heavy Super-Sized Fishing Specialists bfg@educatedangler.com
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I had the same problem with my boat. I have a 18.5 ft Star Craft with an open bow. What I did Was mount a SS rod holder on each side of the boat infront of the windshield, and made single masts about 5ft tall. The nice thing about this set up I can reach the planner lines from the driving area. Good luck
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