Downrigger For Outback

What do you guys have going for down riggers? I've dug up a few of the old threads, but was wondering what you've got in the works? I like the idea of using one of the cup holders for it along with maybe part of the tray. Also the possibility of adding a gear track to the tray and mounting to that also, but not quite as DIY. I definitely will want the DR in front of me because reaching back to make adjustments doesn't sound like much fun. 

I've mounted a Scotty Laketroller on my 13' Trident, and a Scotty Depthmaster and a Cannon Lake-Troll on my 13' Revolution.  By far my favorite setup is the Cannon Lake-Troll.  For a description of how I mounted it on my Revolution, and why I mounted it that way, see http://www.northwestkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=12575.msg138905#msg138905 .

I found the rig I have planned is amazingly similar to kardinal_84's.  penn/pro-troll just behind the seat.  But he has the rotating base. I really like that idea and if the height works better I'll match his design.

I have an outback as well, I put a scotty lake troller directly to my right. It is small enough to not interfere with me at all. It is also close enough for easy operation. It is mounted to a geartrac for easy removal.

Here is a pic:

Here is a pic:

That could be the ticket. What is the DR mounted to connected to the gear track?

I have a Cannon lake troll on my Revo 16, positioned to the right of the seat. Inspired by pmmpete's setup. My mount is a work in progress, but the location is a winner

On Outbacks, the top edges of the gunwale trays provide an excellent flat surface on which you can mount the base for a downrigger.  If I owned an Outback, I'd mount a section of gear track in the bottom of the right rear tray, and then make a base which used that section of gear track to pull the base down onto the top edges of the gunwale tray in the manner described in http://www.northwestkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=13167.msg144750#msg144750 .  The distance between the T-bolts would need to be shorter than the gear track.  I'd (a) stick the front bolt into the gear track, (b) slide the base back until I could stick the rear bolt into the gear track, (c) slide the base forward to its final position on top of the tray, with both bolts engaged, (d) tighten the bolts, and (e) troll.

But the first thing you need to do is decide where you need to mount the downrigger so you can operate it comfortably.  Don't let the location of the tray dictate where you locate the downrigger.  If you mount the downrigger too far back, you'll be stressing out your shoulder every time you crank up the downrigger. If necessary, devise a mount where the downrigger is in front of both bolts which hold it down. 

Last weekend I spent a lot of time trolling at 140-170 feet.  That required a lot of cranking every time I brought up the weight, but it wasn't a problem because my downrigger is installed in a comfortable location.  If I had installed my downrigger in a less comfortable location, I might have been discouraged from trolling that deep.

I have a Cannon lake troll on my Revo 16, positioned to the right of the seat. Inspired by pmmpete's setup. My mount is a work in progress, but the location is a winner

It's a lot harder to mount a downrigger on a Revolution than it is on an Outback, because there aren't any convenient flat spots on the gunwales of a Revolution.  Low_Sky, when you get your downrigger mount finalized, post a description of it!

The downrigger is mounted on two mighty mounts holding a scotty base.

What do you guys have going for down riggers? I've dug up a few of the old threads, but was wondering what you've got in the works? I like the idea of using one of the cup holders for it along with maybe part of the tray. Also the possibility of adding a gear track to the tray and mounting to that also, but not quite as DIY. I definitely will want the DR in front of me because reaching back to make adjustments doesn't sound like much fun.

What is your primary purpose for said down rigger? Make sure it's really worth the extra effort and dedicated space.

it doesn't have to be complicated - i mounted my scotty 1050 on my milkcrate in my revo's tankwell. easy peasy. like such: http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20130210/aqupuruj.jpg

doesn't really take up extra space, b/c the milkcrate is still usable as storage

Doesn't have to be complicated at all, but there are advantages to getting the downrigger next to / in front of you.  With the position of my DR, I can change depth up or down while on the move to respond to hits on the fish finder.  With a downrigger behind me and a rod in front of me, I don't think I'd be able to do that quite as easily.  Maybe downrigger yoga is a little easier in a more stable boat, like an Outback, but in my Revo 16 I can't get too crazy with reaching around for things or I risk going swimming. 

What is your primary purpose for said down rigger? Make sure it's really worth the extra effort and dedicated space.

Rawkfish has a good point.  If you are primarily interested in flipping plugs for bass, or fly fishing, or jigging for bottom fish, you may not have much use for a downrigger.  But if you want to troll for fish which are deep in the water, a downrigger is a valuable tool which will allow you to present lures to fish quite precisely.  Kokanee fishing is a good example.  If you find schools of kokanee 35 feet down with your fish finder, you can run your lures and flashers right through or above the schools with a downrigger.  If you are fishing for fish which sit right on the bottom, like lake trout, you can fly your lures just a few feet above the bottom with a downrigger.  Once you get used to fishing with a downrigger, using leaded line, sinkers, or divers can seem unacceptably inaccurate, uncontrollable, and random.

Bingo. Any downrigger is more complicated than no downrigger. So if ya don't really need one, why deal with it?