Hobie Adventure Rigging Ideas

Well I have been hard at work planning the Rigging of my Hobie Adventure.  After much research and deliberation I don't think I will be using the ram mounts.  I have had trouble with them moving while trolling in the past, and have read the same from other folks.  I want a mount that I can troll for trout and salmon, with weights of several pounds if need be.

I have always been happy with my scotty mounts.  I also wanted to go with the flush mount to keep a clean deck for diving and loading onto my truck.

I finally stumbled across what I think will work perfect with the Hobie peddles.  Scotty is making a rocket launcher for their bases now:



I was not sure about the flush mount holders, but read some great posts on rigging by our Australian comrads.  A fellow did a great mount on his Revo with the flushmounts, and explained the tubes covering the rudder controls made the use of the flushmount possible.  I checked and also have the protective tubes in place on my kayak.  I will use the square mounts to fit onto the front rail, just in front of the gear pockets.  i will attach them with either rivets or lock nuts and bolts with a backing plate:



For the fish finder I will take advantage of the Ram mast tube wedge mount.  That and the fish finder holder will allow the fishfinder to be above the peddles for a clear view.  I also considered the scotty fishfinder mount with a flushmount, but like the placement in the center of the bow with the ram mount.  The 1" ball should be low enough to sit below the curve of the bow to allow sliding onto my roof racks:





If I decide to take advantage of the sailing option, I can always move the fishfinder off to the side at a later date.

On the rear deck I will add a small scotty flushmount.  due to the curve of the deck, i think the threaded flush mount will fit best.  This area will be used for my scotty safety light pole for foggy and dawn/dusk conditions.  I won't see much strain, so this mount should be strong enough.  I am not sure if the other bases would fit very well with the shape of the kayak.



The fishfinder research is still ongoing.  I like the model EWB posted up, and I have found it for around 299 on the internet.  The other option is the Eagle 350 fishfinder/gps.  I saw Humming Bird just came out with a bottom imaging sonar that looks nice!  it is around 300 dollars and looks like it gives a really nice image:



I have had such great success with the Lowrance/Eagle cheap fishfinders, I find it hard to warrant the extra cost of another unit.  It is hard to argue with a unit for 70 dollars that just works, especially fishing in the conditions we do!

I will likely order these items around January for the outfitting.  I will make sure I photograph and post my techniques and progress.  I can't wait to get started!

Matt

I should have my FF tomorrow or the following day. I will post up. As for the FF mount the ram ball and clamp is awesome. And yes even with the FF in place you can fold it down and fwd and it will be below the hatch line (at least it is on my revo. I actually just leave mine in place all the time. The cool think is ram has a 1.5 in ball (just like the FF one you show) that fits the scotty base. I have one on the same spot (in front of the mesh pockets) and when not needed I can remove the ball. So if you wanted to switch to RAM you can still use the scotty base.

OH MAN THE RIGGIN' IS SO MUCH FUN!!!!!! BARBIE DOLLS FOR BOYS!

Hey Matt I can't wait to see how all will turn out on your kayak. I also bought the Scotty flush mount but I did not install it thinking it may interfere with the rudder and stearing cables. I want to go this route as well. Good luck and have a great time with
your project.

Jedmo

Thanks Jedmo!  I have my local shop checking on ordering the scotty rocket launchers, they are bit harder to find.  I found some online sources, but am hesitant to use my credit card with unknown companies.  I like supporting the local shop anyways.

Here is that article on rigging the flushmounts on the revo:
http://www.akff.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=36465&p=418687&hilit=revo+scotty+flushmount#p380697

I can't wait to get started.  I already have the bolts and goop, now I just need the parts! 

I want some screen shots and coorosponding blood to rate that fishfinder EWB!  I see Amazon sells that finder for $299 and free shipping.  Pretty good price!  I love Amazon, there are some great deals on there.

I have a new lure I will post up soon!

Matt

Thanks Jedmo!  I have my local shop checking on ordering the scotty rocket launchers, they are bit harder to find.  I found some online sources, but am hesitant to use my credit card with unknown companies.  I like supporting the local shop anyways.

You can trust Hook1!  Many of us do buisness with them and they are fantastic!  If your in doubt, you can give them a call and place your order over the phone if you dont want to use the website    Have fun rigging yer new boat!  I love the RAM FF Sail mount btw, its the bomb!!!  I'll have to check out that bottom imaging FF too, that looks very sweet!  But I do love my Cuda 350/s 

Thanks Al,

I like Hook 1, and several of the items will come from there.  They don't have the rocket launchers though.  They may be able to special order them with a phone call though....

How did you all put the transducers in your kayaks?  Goop, lexol or water bath?  I may try lexol this time as it is supposed to be harder and bubble free.  My goop always bubbles, and I loose sensitivity.  The water bath is nice, but I want to have a stick it and forget it mounting.  i considered the vasaline/grease set-up with goop over the top to hold the grease in place during the summer heat.....hmmmmmm, I love this part of the planning!

Matt

I still use the water bath thing Matt. My reason being is that I transport
the kayak upside down all the time. I've had no issues at all whatsover
having it done this way.

Jedmo

I second the water bath.  It has worked well for me with my revo.  As far as the down imaging FF, make sure it doesn't need a direct contact to the water.  I have a Humminbird 997 SI (side and down scanning unit) and the transducer needs to be in the water for it to work but that maybe because of the side imaging.

http://store.humminbird.com/products/269448?product_id=e6e34e653c42215f4038e0db430077e7

I have the water bath in my T13 and its great. Only hassle is filling it with water (or remembering to do it). In the Hobie I have the 'gooped' method. Or whatever the hobie transducer install kit uses. Both are great. I say goop it down if you plan on not swapping the FF from boat to boat. If you are then water bath. Vaseline I say no way....to messy in the heat

Well I placed my rigging orders.  I still have not ordered the fishfinder yet, as I have not yet made a final decision.  I most likely going with the M68 color or Eagle 350 gps/fishfinders.  I like that the GPS antenna is internal on these units.  It is hard to go against the 70 dollar Cuda's at WalMart though.  Epecially with the conditions these units are exposed to.  I have a handheld GPS I have used up to this point on my kayak and powerboat.  I admit it is nice being able to have the same waypoints on either boat.  How much do you guys find you use the GPS for marking spots while fishing?

I can't wait to begin installing components!

I ordered the sailing rudder and some extra rudder pins.  I also got a few more Hobie pad eyes for gear attachment.  I have the Ram mast mount and scotty rocket holders with the flushmounts coming.  It should be a clean install.

I will be using a thru-hull wire seal for the transducer wires.  I figure it will allow me to push the extra wire through it when transporting, and extend the wire when ready to fish.  I will be using the water bath mount for the transducer, as it seems to be the most successful thru-hull setup.

I mounted an anchor trolly last night.  I bolted some stainless pullies on the bow and stern.  I then removed the paddle keeper from the left side and replaced them with the Hobie pad eyes, which I screwed into place.  I used these to route the top of the anchor line, keeping it running smooth along the side of the kayak.  I used a small section of bungie to keep the rope taught.  A simple stainless clip will allow me to attach my anchor or drift sock.  The clip also works well as I can clip it to the pad eye and keep the assembly tight to the kayak.  I will post some pictures when the weather clears.

I am going to store my lure boxes in the kayak center hatch, and ditch the plano box.  This keeps the tankwell open for my fish!  I put some dabs of silicone on the bases of the tackle boxes.  This will prevent them from sliding around inside the kayak.  I may put a small elash on them as well, as I would hate for them to slide to the back of the kayak, out of reach!

Everything about this set-up will be simple and clean.  I want to keep clutter to a minimum, as it will allow full range fishing and entry/exit on the kayak much easier.  I am somewhat a minimalist when it comes to rigging.  Too many items leads to tangles and frustration as it gets messy IMO.  i will also likely go with floats on my rods, net and gaff.  I will use leashes int he rear tankwell, but don't want too many lines around in case of a turtle.

Matt

sounds like its coming along. I will shoot some video of the FF in action if I make it out this weekend. I've toyed with movign the FF battery to the rear hatch to free up what limited space hobies have in the front hatch. Only issue I see it not being able to access the batter OTW. The nice think about the lorance/eagle FF is the ones I have have the same connections so if I need to swap out it won't require any "wire" work

About your rigging; if there are no pics it never happened.
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,24618.0.html

About your rigging; if there are no pics it never happened.
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,24618.0.html

I'd like to see some pics so I could get ideas for my Adventure. I'm a visual learner
 

I have the Adventure Island so my rigging concerns involve a lack of space up front as the sail mount hole is (obviously) out of the question for a fish finder. The front cross bars would be doable but (by far) my biggest concern is simply not being able to see the screen affectively from that far away. Does that distance away from the seat (to sail mount) seem to bother any current Adventure owners?

I'm wondering if the cup holder on the right side (just behind the mesh storage pocket) would work? I'm considering the Lowrance M68c S/map unit at this time. Seems small enough if I could find a proper mount for the cup holder spot. I could hopefully twist the screen up/down when getting in and out of the kayak. The other possibility would be the flat surface just ahead of the mesh pocket (where most Adventure owners would be mounting rod holders).

Same kayak - different requirements. I probably just need to buy the Lowrance FF first and then go from there to find the best mounting spot...



 

 

Hi MistralWind,

I can reach the fish finder fine mounted in the mast tube.  I have to reach forward slightly, but it isn't bad.  I thought about the cup holder of mesh pocket as well, as I have seen that done.  I wanted to keep that area clean for entry and exit while diving or recovering from a capsize.  That isn't much of a concern in the island though!

I see our Australian brethren using the ram mounts on the cross members for their rod holders and fish finder mounts.  They seem to work very well.  I saw one guy carries a small dowel to help push the buttons on his sounder.  Not a bad idea, if it is mounted too far forward.

I really like the M68.  I got a great price on Amazon for it, the cheapest I found anywhere.  The color screen is a lot easier to see, although I notice it fades to more black and white when i get in depths over 250 ft.  likely the result of reduced signal strength.  I am really looking forward to marking fish concentrations on the unit, to assist me in returning to the same spots.  It doesn't seem to eat up the battery very fast either.  I got a 5AH battery, and the fish finder didn't put a dent into it after 6 hours on the water.

Make sure you post some pictures when you begin mounting!  You can check out my mounting posts on my installs.

Matt