Downriggers mounted to railings on R21-EC

[Newf]

I have Scotty downriggers mounted to the railings on my R21EC and after 4 years, with lots of use, one of the bolts that hold the railing in place failed. For those that use downriggers on the R21 I was wondering if any of you have added some type of additional support? The single bolt in the bottom of each support was surely not meant to carry the loading and pull from the downriggers especially when you have the occasional snag in the bottom or someones crab trap so certainly no fault in the design. Just looking to beef mine up before I do more damage and thought maybe someone already has a solution.
Thanks.

 

[johnniethek]

I have Scotty downrigger plates mounted to a 90-degree metal plate that is attached to the gunwale right above the speakers in the cockpit. RT did the work and said it was the first time they mounted those in a R-21EC. That was in 2009. You do have to remove the small railing section above the downrigger plates, though, to use them.

Here are three pictures of the plates:

http://www.tugnuts.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=21187&g2_serialNumber=2

http://www.tugnuts.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=21184&g2_serialNumber=2

http://www.tugnuts.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=21179&g2_serialNumber=2

 

[Newf]

Thanks for your reply. Mine is currently mounted with Scotty brackets clamped to the railing. The downriggers sit just above the railing which is a height that I I'd like to keep. Now that I've seen your setup I will mount a bracket to the side and top lip of the gunwale and just extend the side plate higher to maintain my current height of my downrigger. Your bracket looks to be aluminum. Is it bolted directly against the side of the gunwale or is there a spacer or shim of some type between the bracket and the boat. Thanks again for comments and photos.

 

[johnniethek]

RT specifically put them over the speaker so they could reach up inside the gunwale and mount the aluminum plate and downrigger plate. They are attached via the aluminum bracket to the side of the gunnel and through the bracket and downrigger plate on top. No spacer or shimmy. Very sturdy.

 

[bob daily]

I use cannon downriver but the mounts are the same, just different base plates hope this helps you

 

[Newf]

Thanks for sharing your set-up Bob. Looks to be very strong as well. My handrails were not modified with a removable section to accommodate the downriggers. They are mounted on top of the railing with scotty clamps on the centre post. Now that I have the railing support repaired my plan is to make a bracket from aluminum or stainless and mount it to the side and top edge of the gunwale similar to johnniethek's but extend it up higher with a base for the rigger. This will allow me to keep the downrigger at the height that it is now which is where I like it.

Thanks again to the both of you for sharing your set-up.