I had a chance to see the missile rod holders that Kaboom1 (Brad) and Jack Hise featured in the FAOL article “New Rod Holders” ( http://www.flyanglersonline.com/bb/showthread.php?50173-New-Rod-Holders&highlight=missles) during the 2014 Michigan Fish-In. I talked more with Brad and he shared some photos of rod holders he did for the inside of his truck bed.
Well, I got inspired and finally build a set for my truck (2010 Ford 150 SuperCrew Short Bed) using Brads basic concept. The heart of the system is 5 foot lengths of 2" schedule 40 PVC. The inside of the PVC is padded with 1" water pipe insulation. I used a hole cutter on my drill to get a nice radius in the PVC and a jig saw to cut the clearance for the reels. 3/8" bungee is used to secure the rods and reels in place.
I used some scrap 2x4 I had in the garage and mounted the PVC on the wooden frame using plastic joist hangers held in place with the 2 ring nails supplied and a #6 bolt. The joist hangers allow the pipe to pop in and out when I remove it from the truck. This makes for pretty compact storage. A couple of inexpensive 2x4 bar clamps holds everything to the bed rail of my truck. Total cost for materials, not counting the 2x4’s since they were short scrap pieces I had laying around and the 12 dry wall screws used for assembly, was $13.60
Because I only have a 5 1/2 foot bed and because of the location of the tire well I had to turn the rear wooded support around in order to get a solid and level attachment point. This really had no impact on the PVC tubing as it still allows for a straight and true alignment of the PVC with the joist hangers. Everything is solid, stable and secure. This is big enough to hold a 10’ rod broken down and a much better system than just putting it in the back of the truck and hoping for the best.
Thanks Brad and Jack for the inspiration and help with this!
Looking good Joe. Amazing what you can do with a few hardware store items and a little imagniation. I love going to the plumbing department and telling the folks ther what I am doing with the stuff I am buying. They just shake their heads and walk away!
I experienced the same thing! The friendly sales folks would ask if they could help. When I told them what I was doing they mostly just muttered good luck and walked away! I guess we’re just not the typical “Do It Yourselfers” they are use too!
One more thing…if the moderators are following this thread, these are the types of things I was talking about when I suggested a new forum for DIY stuff a few months ago. people here have a lot of talent and good ideas. I think they need to be seen and shared.
Update to thread…Added a second set of rod holders to the truck bed and an additional photo.
Added PVC caps to the back ends of the pipe and found another materials receipt not included in my original cost estimate. The total cost of materials, not including the 2x4’s and dry wall screws was $50.00 or $25.00 per set of holders. Still seems reasonably affordable.
Materials List (for 2 sets of rod carriers as shown in the below photo):
1 - 8’ 2x4 and 1 - 2’ 2x4 (may need more or less depending on your truck. As show in photo: 4 - 20" pieces, 2 - 11" pieces, 2 - 4" pieces, and 4 - 2 1/4" pieces)
4 - 5’ lengths of 2" Schedule 40 PVC
4 - 2" End Caps (optional)
4 - 1" x 6’ Tube Insulation (goes inside PVC and gets cut down to fit)
4 - 2x4 Bar Clamps (holds frames to truck bed rails)
8 - “J” Hangers for 2" PVC
8 - #6 Machine Screws & Nuts (3" long, trimmed down after final tightening. Use one for each “J” hanger)
16 - Washers for #6 Machine Screws (two for each screw)
24 - 3" Drywall Screws (for attaching 2x4 frame pieces together)
6’ of 3/8" Bungee or Shock Cord to hold rods & reels in
Can substitute Velcro Straps or any other thing you wish.
