Rail vs. Mount

Thank you for the feed back.  I'm outfitting my 2nd yak, its only 8 feet and will be for light use (its a cheapy) and generally for one of my kids or my wife to come along with me.  The mount/rail's main use would be for a rod holder as most of my main gear (electronics etc) I run on my malibu stealth 12. 

Is there a real difference between the wider rail sections (Yak attack Gen II) vs. the Gen 1?  Does it distribute the load better? 

I will be riveting as I do not have access to the boats interior.   

Is there a real difference between the wider rail sections (Yak attack Gen II) vs. the Gen 1?  Does it distribute the load better? 

I will be riveting as I do not have access to the boats interior.

I use the YakAttack 1.75 gear tracks on my Revolution.  They are pretty expensive, but I'm real happy with them.  They can be mounted quickly and easily from the outside with screws, and they spread the leverage and stress placed on them by rod holders and other equipment between the line of screws on each side of the track.  Lucid makes a similar wide track.  On narrow tracks, all of the leverage exerted on the track goes between the line of screws in the center of the track and the edge of the track.

Amen to Captain Redbeard when he wrote, "I do wish Hobie would get with the program and just put flush tracks on the top of the gunwale..."  I also use padded racks and also have the racks positioned so only the gunwales rest on the racks but the yak never goes up onto the racks in exactly the right place first time. :-)

I have padded racks too (for my rig), but sometimes I travel with my neighbor and a couple other friends that don't have bar pads, so there are likely situations where top side mounted equipment could get damaged.  I also had a thick pool noodle get compressed and a bolt head gouge my kayak (on my own rack) because it was tied down in just the wrong spot. Just a little wiggling and vibration for a couple hundred miles. Gonna upgrade the padding this week! To each their own, find a solution that works for you. You'll surely find someone that does it differently.

Is there a real difference between the wider rail sections (Yak attack Gen II) vs. the Gen 1?  Does it distribute the load better? 

I will be riveting as I do not have access to the boats interior.

Obviously wider is better, but in some cases, width is an issue depending on the location. With that said I have used the narrower ones with backing plates with 100% success.

You don't have to have access to the boats interior within arms reach to use backing plates or washers and nuts. Check out Yak-Attack "Rigging Bullets" to do this. It is a TOOL not a mounting device. They are brilliantly designed to "fish" them into place where you cant reach. Watch a video on Youtube and it will make a lot more sense.

Is there a real difference between the wider rail sections (Yak attack Gen II) vs. the Gen 1?  Does it distribute the load better? 

I will be riveting as I do not have access to the boats interior.

Obviously wider is better, but in some cases, width is an issue depending on the location. With that said I have used the narrower ones with backing plates with 100% success.

You don't have to have access to the boats interior within arms reach to use backing plates or washers and nuts. Check out Yak-Attack "Rigging Bullets" to do this. It is a TOOL not a mounting device. They are brilliantly designed to "fish" them into place where you cant reach. Watch a video on Youtube and it will make a lot more sense.

+1 to the rigging bullets. 

Also, if you don't have access to put a backing plate, particularly on a cheaper kayak be very cautious about installing any rod holder, lest a takedown rip the holder out of the boat.

A ram ball with a ram tube offers "give" in the holder itself and might be a good way to go, however it will need a "tie down" location, to keep it from moving too much.

I have both a fixed Scotty flush mount and the tracks on my Revo and I prefer the Fixed mounts.  The tracks are versatile, but after many years in a kayak, found the simpler is better.


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...just realized this thread is over a month old!  What did you do?  Does it work?


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...just realized this thread is over a month old!  What did you do?  Does it work?

Absolutely nothing.  Yet.  Life got away from in spades.  I honestly don't know yet what I will do, as I like the fixed mounts, (its what I have and know on my other yak), but it wont be my every day yak.   Maybe I'll let my girls decide what they want. (95% of the time the best option).

I've been a direct mount guy for the past 7 years having owned several different Hobie Pro Anglers that came with a round rail and a plastic starboard mounting plate.  When Hobie came out with the H-Rail, they now got into the accessory business.  Now the new 2018 Pro Angler has a built in track in the starboard up front.  Their new Compass kayak has two built in tracks.  I purchased a 2016 Outback and just installed my first aluminum tracks.  Drilling multiple holes in a kayak can be a daunting task but I don't regret mounting tracks.  I can now choose what I want to mount by sliding different accessories on and off.

If you're still looking, check out RAM's new product offering (disclaimer - I work for them now).  They came out with four different types of tracks and 18 new accessories all made here in Seattle http://www.rammount.com/activity/paddlesports

I'll sort of echo Brad here. I absolutely love the flexibility of a track / rail system. It allows you to experiment and outfit your yak to the specific goals and needs of your outing. Also, if it isn't right, you can just swap it around pretty easy. I've got two long tracks on the gunwales by my feet on my revo, and a smaller one at the very tail of my boat. I'm about to put two 8" tracks in front of the molded rod holders on my revo as well. Flexibility and experimentation is just too powerful of a feature.

Are tracks strong enough to use a Scotty crab pot puller?  I'm still deciding between tracks and mounts.


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While I haven’t used this set up yet for crabbing, the Scotty pot puller has very little flex when mounted on a gear track (I have the Yak Attack gt 90 top loading gear track with the fullback backing plate).

Are tracks strong enough to use a Scotty crab pot puller?  I'm still deciding between tracks and mounts.


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Tracks may be strong enough, but a flush mount is going to bring the center of gravity much lower. Just make sure you mount it far enough towards the bow to easily pass the trap between you and the Trap-Ease. There are enough extensions available that you won't regret drilling the mount in that position for a rod holder.

Thanks for the tip about mounting it far enough forward.  That is my only concern about solid-mounting the bases.  Since this is my first fishing yak, I don't know yet how far I can reach, what will be in my way, or what will affect stability.


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