If you have just purchased a pair of TGT Rod Riggers, please read this dialogues which may point out a few benefits and advantages that might not be obvious. Some hints will also demonstrate how to best use the Rod Riggers. If you are thinking about purchasing a pair, this should convince you that these Rod Riggers are the best on the market and the choice of ardent fishermen who only use the best. All metal parts are solid electro- polised stainless steel, right down to the safety snap, for a lifetime trouble free of use.
At the bottom of the support posts are "Z" notches so they lock into your flush mount rod holders. Making them almost impossible to be accidentally dislodged and pulled out of the rod holder accidentally or when removing your rod to fight a fish. And if you forget to remove the riggers when you're docking, you don't have to run out there and throw them down on the deck in a hurry. Just turn 'em and carry on. Really handy when at the fuel dock or when you're leaving your slip too.
When trolling, they hold your rod parallel, not up in the air like the "model T's". This allows your line to enter the water quickly, thus reducing your drop back by about 50 feet. Since the riggers hold your rod and reel directly over your gunnel you can easily adjust your drag, reel in to clear a fouled or weeded line. The "Goose Neck" gives you all the clearance you'll ever need to do this quickly and easily. The extra long safety line and stainless steel snap are rated at 200 pounds but we tested them to 240 before we said "good enough" The snap is large enough to clip almost anywhere on your reel. There are three additional attachment points on the head of the rigger for you to relocate the safety line if the factory location is inconvenient for you. You may also wish to add another safety line to one of them if you're worried that someone might accidentally pull one out, but we found an extra line to be unnecessary. They also have safety fins which are covered with red and green plastisol so they won't scratch your reel if it comes into contact with them.
When placing your rods in the Riggers, you should center the reel on the black neoprene rubber "Reel Rest" covers. It is not advisable to snub your reels to the safety fins because that may slightly impede removing your rod when a fish is on. Believe me, we have been using the Riggers for two years and the rod and reel have NEVER slipped forward and contacted the fin. The reels seat firmly into the rubber and they don't move. To remove your rod from the TGT Rod Rigger to fight a fish, grasp the fore grip of the rod with your right hand and the butt with your left. Pull back on the fore grip to release the tension against the Rigger, rock your rod tip up and remove it from the rigger. Really simple! No leaning overboard! If you have used the old styled "Model T type", I offer this guidance because it's different and might tack a time or two before you're comfortable. The TGT Rod Rigger is ALSO Offshore rated and we use it for Tuna and other big game. Take notice, the reel rest covers clip over the reel rest portion of the rigger head. They are .25 inch thick on one side and 1/8 inch thick on the other. They are easily unclipped and can be reversed to widen or narrow the gap between the reel rests to accommodate those larger reels with wide reel seat clamps or reduced for smaller reels if necessary.