Rod Holders? Which Ones?

[Quailtail]

Going to start spider rigging and need to buy rod holders. Several different brands available. Some are better than others I would think. What are the pros and cons of each brand? I see Spider Lock, Driftmaster, Cumberland Crappie, Southern Crappie Ed Duke brand etc. I am confused.

[CrappiePappy]

Going to start spider rigging and need to buy rod holders. Several different brands available. Some are better than others I would think. What are the pros and cons of each brand? I see Spider Lock, Driftmaster, Cumberland Crappie, Southern Crappie Ed Duke brand etc. I am confused.

They all pretty much work, just the difference in holder style and adjustment ease sets them apart for many.

Holder style is a loop/prong or a loop/saddle as I call them. I have Hi-Tek holders, myself, and they're what I call "loop/saddle" style. You have a "loop" that your rod handle sits in, then a U or V shaped "saddle" for the rod to lay on. Hi-Tek, Bee Ready, Cumberland Crappie 360 all have this type of holder.

The "loop/prong" style are those with the loop for the rod handle to sit in, then U or V shaped prongs for the rod to lay in ... and the tips of the "prongs" rise well above the rod. These are the Driftmasters, Spyderlok, Southern Crappie, and the regular style Cumberland Crappie rod holders.

I fished in another boat that had the "prong" style holders, and didn't really care for them, as the prongs were continually poking me in the hand when I went to grab the rod out of the holder. I also didn't care for the holder adjustment knob being between the rod and holder.

When I bought my Hi-Teks, I started out using a small socket wrench to make adjustments and lock the T-bar down into the base. Shortly thereafter I bought some round plastic knobs to take the place of the bolts that adjust the holders, and now I can simply use my hand to change the rod angle. I still use the socket wrench to mount the T-bar into the base plate, but then I can put it away until I'm ready to remove the rod holder.

The Hi-Teks and the Cumberland Crappie 360 holders are very similar in design ... but the Hi-Tek T-bar comes in 9" or 18" heights, and the CC360 T-bar is adjustable from 17" to 24" in height. One other difference is the Hi-Teks have a dovetail cut base for the T-bar to slip into & one bolt to secure it ... and the CC systems have two bolts (with 3sided plastic heads), one on either side of the T-bar shaft, and a slotted base.