Downrigger mounting R27

[Pddayo]

Just bought a R27 and will be mounting Scotty downriggers. Having used them on other boats, the spot to mount the pad on the gunwale seems to be too far forward. Has anyone mounted them further back? Any pictures? I bought 12” pedestal mounts to get the downriggers over the railing but thinking they may be too high. Maybe 6” would be enough? Don’t have the boat home yet or would check. Mine have the 30” boom. Do you need the telescoping boom to get it out 60” or is 30” enough? Also, any pictures of trolling motor mounts would be much appreciated. Thank you, Pat.

 

[cmwahl]

Did you go ahead with your downrigger mounting plans? We also have an R 27 that we are considering using a pedestal mount to fit in the rod holder socket and then mount the downrigger to that? That way we could take the contraption out when it’s not in use, which might be more pleasing esthetically (although then we would have to find some place to put it aboard).

 

[Haifisch]

I had the rod holder pedestal mounts on my R31 which put them further back and made them easy to remove. Mine were made by Canon but I think the mount holes work with Scotty’s too. I agree that the placement on the gunnel is too far forward and was concerned with the cable getting caught on the trim tabs. The pedestal mounts come in both polished stainless and anodized black. AMZ sells them if you want to get them quick, evaluate and return easily if you don’t like them. There are two lengths and the longer ones work best.

 

[bob daily]

Not sure if your safety rails will allow for the track system. Some of the older tugs have removable sections that allows for the track system, when not using for downriggers or a pot puller you can place a rubber cover in the track and it looks like a foot step. I installed on my R-21 with 4in risers to clear the safety rails. Photo of downrigger mounts in my photo album if you want to see with out the mounts let me know and will send you a photo. Bob

 

[Georgevb]

HI,
Scotty has a rail mount adapter for its downriggers. No need to relocate the pad.

 

[Salish Seaker]

HI,
Scotty has a rail mount adapter for its downriggers. No need to relocate the pad.

I believe Georgevb is referring to the Scotty Stanchion rail mount. It installs at the cross section of the horizontal rail and vertical rail on our R-23, about 3 feet further aft. I just installed these last week and am looking forward to see how much it improves the downrigger performance. I'll add pictures shortly, in the meantime checkout my photo album.

Peter

 

[Salish Seaker]

I used the stanchion mounts for my downrigger and my conclusion, success! With the downrigger mounts 2 1/2 feet closer to the stern, it made a big difference. You still need to avoid tight turns, especially when trolling against the current, but the downrigger cable does not go under the boat like it did before!

 

[tedli357]

Since my R27 OB does not have any horizontal railing along the gunwale, I am thinking of putting a Scotty 1026 swivel mount on top of the Scotty 1028/1029 gimbal mount which goes into the flush mounted rod holder. Has anyone tried this method on the 27 OB? I am not sure if the factory mounted gimbal rod holder is heavy duty enough.

 

[Mike and Sarah]

My boat is a R27 outboard. I have been running my 5 foot boom Electric Scotty downriggers on the factory mounts. I started with 12 lb cannon balls and moved up to 15 lb. that helped a lot. I also have the Scottys on swivel mounts. I have the swivels turned to the stern one notch and that also seems to keep my cables away from the trim tabs. This works were I fish and I don’t have much cross currents. It might be different in the San Juan islands where there is more of a current issue. I just picked up a manual Scotty and gimble Mount to run off the starboard rod holder. That way we can run three rods for coho and pinks.
I had thought about moving the factory mounts to the rear but am concerned about the strength of the filler panel I would need to mount them to. No rails for me.