Am looking at installing a track system. Any opinions will be appreciated. would like to know good and bad.Also seen that Kell labs have started with their own system., take a look and give me an opinion on them thanks Bob
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I'm not familiar with the Kell System from a use standpoint although I've look at in depth.
Experience Outdoors is the agency for Traxstech, formerly Pursuit Sports, and I have to say if you're looking for the best, they are the ones to look at.
They are all aluminum, shot-peened, and anodized and rock solid. They have every type of mounting attachement imaginable for any configuration you can think of. Also the Traxstech gear is machined with tight tolerences so the are verry accurate and have no wobble - the pin pull rod holders are absolutely rock solid and great for diver rods.
If you looking for swivel mount they have the best - tightest - swivel mount on the market that will mount to all of the name brand riggers. Trolling bars are incredibly strong being extruded aluminum i-beam.
After installing track and rod holders on on the boat two years ago - in the water April through November - they still look brand new and they get plenty of use. ANd they have some nice colors - silver, titanium, black, etc...
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I will have to second Greg's opinion. I mounted 2 of their six inch tracks to hold my triple rodholders and they work flawlessly. No wiggle whatsoever. I now have a five foot piece of track just waiting to be mounted across my transom for downrigger mounting. CAN'T WAIT TILL SPRING!!!!
Bill Brock Semper FIsh Sportfishing Team Boat.. Just Right
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The trackstex sure do look nice. Guess I'll have to take a trip to Sportsmans warehouse "darn" to size them up. Does anyone know if they do any Wi. shows ?
thanks Bob
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I do not believe they have done any shows in Wisconsin in the past. Generally just the Detroit, Grand Rapids and Birch Run shows in Michigan. Last year they did Duluth, MN as well. You may want to give them a call at 989-845-5969 to see if they have expanded their schedule.
Another alternative may be the seminar/open house at Wolfe's Marine in Benton Harbor on Jan. 27. Traxstech is sponsoring a day at Wolfe's with various seminars (including one by yours truly) along with a display of products.
From my perspective, the Traxstech system is the best out there. I do have a relationship with the company, but that only materialized because I was in search for the best products to install on my boat and had to look no further once I found theirs'.
Let me know if you have any questions and I will do whatever I can to answer them.
Hope this helps.
Tim
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Tim. How did they do your corners ? I'm looking at something like that. Oer something that will swing up and out of the way, as I have a boarding door in the back
Thanks Bob
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I no longer own that boat, but have plenty of pictures of it. What they did to create the "L" shaped trolling bars on each side was to cut the downrigger bar on an angle and match them up. Once they cut them, there is a plate that slides into the underside of each bar and locks in to provide additional strength. On that set up, the corner angle was something greater than 90 degrees but they measured it and made the set up fit perfectly.
I believe they have also have designed and built trolling bar setups that are hinged. If you call and talk to Jeff he can give you a better idea. If it were me, I would prefer to simply leave your boarding door area open as it would also provide an open area to net fish as well, but that is personal preference.
I will also mention that my trolling bar was set up on tracks w/ custom risers. However, Traxstech has also set up similar trolling bar systems that are run completely from flushmount holders using gimbal mounts that are extremely easy to remove.
Just some thoughts since your set up is only limited by your imagination.
Tim
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I was looking at their stuff on the website. Can you use any rod holder with their trac system or do you have to use theirs?
I see mention of a 5ft trac, but the longest I see on the website is 4ft? Assuming I mount a rigger at the end of the trac, is 4ft enough seperation to run the other applications from the rod holders?
Is their rodholder really worth $75 each?
Thanks guys.
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I'll try to answer your (not dumb) questions, Moker. Disclaimer...EO has a business relationship with Traxstech.
I don't know if you can use other rod holders with Traxstech tracks...maybe Bert's because they are somewhat similar design, but probably not any of the others out there.
You can get tracks up to 72" as a standard length...probably get longer ones as a special order. You can also use Downrigger Bars as tracks...that's what TInman did on his Slickcraft...and Verdict did on his old boat. That allows you to raise them off the gunwale for additional height.
We have a bunch of pix in the EA gallery of a Boston Whaler Montauk (17' boat) that we rigged with Traxstech stuff. Check it out for some ideas: Traxstech Pix
Yes, the Traxstech rodholder is worth $75...it is extremely well constructed...all shot-peened, anodized aluminum and stainless steel. As Greg said, we have 6 on EO that have seen very heavy usage for 2 seasons and look brand-new. You might pay a little more for it initially, but it will repay you with years of trouble-free use. Jeff and Melody at Traxstech are good people...they make great product in the USA and stand behind it 100%.
Tom
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Moker - As a follow up to Tom's response, yes, you can absolutely run a rigger out of one end of the track and have plenty of space for multiple rod holders. As a general matter you can place a component every 6", but my prefence is to leave about 18" between a rigger and a diver rod holder.
Additionally, TT does/will make adapter plates to allow the rod holders of other manufacturers to work w/ the track system. This allows a person with some rod holders to get into a track at a smaller cost.
Obviously, my preference is the TT rod holder because they use the best materials and extremely tight tolerances. TT holders hold up so well that they still look new seasons later.
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Can I run a track off the riser or do I need a bar for strength ? I'm looking at 2 18inch tracks for the sides to hold Fishlander doubles and maybe a bird stand later on. a 57 inch bar on the back for two downriggers on the corner and a cabelas quick set rodholder in the center for my lead. I've thought the risers would be nice and then you would only have the riser mounts left on the boat when you button up.
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I think it depends on the length of the span between risers, Bob. If it is only a couple of feet, you could probably just use track...more than 2-3' you better go to the bar because it is much stronger. The bar cross-section is an I-beam...basically 2 tracks back to back. For the 18" lengths you are talking about, I'm sure you would be fine with track.
Or you could mount a 6" piece of track on each side and put a Rod Tree in it...which is basically a riser with an 18" track on top. That way the whole thing is removable and the only thing left when it's pulled off is a 6" track section. Again, check out the Montauk we rigged Montauk Traxstech ...that is similar to what we used on the side rails.
Tom
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