Advice on RAM rod holders

I am thinking about changing from my Scotty to RAM rod holders.  I was wondering if anybody knows who carries the different types locally so I can actually see and compare them.  Otherwise, can anyone give me the pros/cons of the three models I am considering?

Thanks,

Doug

Doug,

I've got the middle one and purchased it from Hook1.  I like it alot.  Being able to adjust it to almost any angle is really nice.  Because I do a lot of trolling in a Hobie, I had to purchase a longer arm so that when pedaling my feet don't come in contact with the but of my rod.

I suppose a con would be that when not in use, you have a 1.5" diameter ball sticking up from your yak.  Other than that, I don't see any.  Unless you consider having to purchase the extra arm for an additional $40 a con, and I do.

Not sure if anybody carries them locally, but I understand wanting to compare them in person.

Michael

Doug I have both Rams(middle one) and the Scotty's and they both work well no big differences. I thought I would like the Ram a lot more because of the adjustably but its no big deal the Scotty's are easier to adj.(one handed) I like the fact that you can just lift them and swing your rod out on the way with out effecting the angle and with one hand. the Rams do slip a little unless you really crank down on them,but I sanded my balls      and now they don't slip. I wouldn't spend money to switch.

Thanks for the input.  I found that with the Scotty, because it has fixed degrees of both horizontal and vertical adjustments, that sometimes, when trolling in certain conditions, my rod would end up in the wrong place relative to my paddle clearance of either the rod or trailing line.  One notch more and it would be too much in one direction or the other.  I thought the RAM mount would solve this since it has infinite adjustments.  I did wonder if people had problems with slippage between the ball and clamp.

The third one down is clearly the simplest design, but I thought it might be useful to have the arm length to make sure you could clear your paddle movement.  I also wondered if the newest, rachet design might add flexibility and possibly decrease the problem of slippage since the verticle position of the cradle would be secured by the rachet mechanism.  I did wonder if there is any chance of the cradle arms cracking since they seem kind of thin and vulnerable--but I haven't actually looked at it in real life as yet.

The animation seems to show a lot of versatility.

http://www.ram-mount.com/mount/ram_revolution_holder.htm

Doug -

I use RAM rod holders in front and Scotty's and flushmounts to the rear. The advantage of the RAM is the adjustability and being able to troll either side form one mount. The disadvantage is weight. I have the same one as Michael and never use it because if I troll from the front, I point the rod almost straight up and use a RAM tube. I actually prefer the ram tube because it is easier to get the rod in and out of. I think Duane uses a ram tube also. To be quite honest, I almost always troll from the rear flushmounts and almost regret having installed the forward ram mount except that my wife likes to troll from the front. 

scott