This bracket will fit almost all models of kayak, and is suitable for, but not limited to, the following motors;

• Minn Kota, all transom mount models
• MotorGuide, all transom mount models
• Water Snake, all transom mount models

“This is how easy you can add a motor to any kayak – The RAILBLAZA Kayak Motor Bracket is something I have used before on paddle kayaks but never on a pedal kayak – With it on my Hobie Outback, I now have the best of all 3 worlds with pedal, paddle and motor options thanks to the powerful little Bixpy Motor.”

Does mounting the motor off the side effect the tracking?  – Obviously mounting a motor off the stern of the kayak is ideal for ultimate turning performance and even better if fixed to the rudder. However the reality is in most cases there is either too much of a compromise or its not possible so a side mounted option like this sis th best choice and with kayaks like the Hobie Outback which have rudders the maneuverability is compromise far less. 

The post Easy Way To Add A Motor To A Kayak – Using Hobie & Bixpy appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

RAILBLAZA Products Used In This Install

RodStow Double 

The RodStow double combines rod storage and tackle storage in one. Whilst the Hobie H-Crate comes with 4 rod holders each of those are placed on the corners of the H-Crate. Often the rods in thos rod holders can get in th eway if on your casting side or the rear ones are too far away to reach.

By adding the RodStow Double to one side of the H-Crate you can both keep your casting area free form catching a rod behind you and keep all rods and nets at easier reach. Rodstow is available in a single, double or triple option, all of which will work on the H-Crate. 

Tackle Caddy Console

The Tackle Caddy is the perfect place for storing tackle boxes, lures, pliers and other essentials you need to keep at easy reach but away from the cockpit.  It serves great on the H-Crate as a place to put back up softplastic packets, scent, spare leader, sunblock and spare tackle in smaller boxes.  

Features:

• Holds 2 x Plano 3400 series Original Stowaway tackle boxes or similar
• Slots for pliers, keys, lures, phones, VHF’s, binoculars, drink bottles, sunblock, mugs & much more…
• Supplied as a kit, easy to assemble
• UV resistant material

RailMount 32-41 with H-Rail Insert

RailMount 32-41 boat rail and Hobie kayak mount that attaches and securely using only a screwdriver, this mount will hold all RAILBLAZA accessories and is particularly useful on your Hobie H-Crate for the Kayak Visibility Kit or Camera Booms 600.

You Might Also Like These Blogs

• How To Load & Unload Kayak On SUV By Yourself Using Only A Blanket

• Tie Better FG Knots On The Kayak Using RAILBLAZA Spooling Station

  How To Avoid Flipping Your Fishing Kayak When Fighting Big Fish!

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  Download the latest RAILBLAZA catalogue below 

  

The post Hobie Kayak H-Crate Rod Storage, Tackle Storage & More Upgrades appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

“The new RAILBLAZA Spooling Station it is great to hold leader on the kayak when you’re trying to tie the leader to braid knots, even in the wind you can keep everything nice and tight resulting in a cleaner stronger knot,  great idea team! In the video below I am using the StarPort version as on the Hobie Outback I have multiple StarPort Mounts so can simply click it in and out when needed. 

Spooling Station Fixed or StarPort Mount

RAILBLAZA Spooling Station Fixed or StarPort Mount version can be easily attached directly to a flat vertical surface with the supplied self-tapping screws. Also comes with a StarPort adapter making it compatible with all RAILBLAZA StarPort mounts. StarPort Mounts sold separately.

The post Tie Better FG Knots On The Kayak Using RAILBLAZA Spooling Station appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

History in the making

A little over a year ago I became one of the world’s only known kayak angler to compete and win out tournaments against million-dollar machines offshore with my kayak. Since then, my goal was to bring it full circle to attempt similar results inshore.

Never tell me the odds

The battle ground would be chosen wisely in a game of speckled trout fishing. My friends and I would enter a Texas shootout tournament called The Artificial Showdown. This competitive event would be against not some, but the best guide and non-guide anglers along the coast. Trout fishing is a far different game for a kayak angler. Our ability to mount electronics like a boat yet sneak up like a wade fisherman, is a deadly combination. Yes, a boat can cover more ground and wade fish in tandem, but those are the odds we picked.

Tactics

What we can do that no shallow water boater nor wade fisherman can do is utilize stealth, mobility, and technology into one dissecting platform without having to jump ship. The RAILBLAZA Fish Finder Mount R-Lock R might sounds like a want, but for me it is a need. When I am hunting for tournament trout, I am mentally preparing for 800-1000 cast per day. This type of continual punishment on the shoulders will have you begging for little differences that go a long way. Comfort is essential at this point, and my mount allows me to shift and tilt my approach whether I am sitting low, high, or standing up to fish around structure.

A few of these fish where targeted using side-scan and boated by casting towards fish off the imagery. A small functionality that went a long way nearly paying out 21,000 US dollars, but we missed first place by less than a pound. We held third place becoming the first and only kayak angler team to ever achieve a podium walk against boaters on a professional series event. One for the history books, and by the looks of it, another podium walk against the machines.

Product Details

The RAILBLAZA Fish Finder Mount R-Lock R is a platform for mounting fish finders or chart plotters with U shaped brackets, making them easily removable. All that remains on the deck once it’s removed is a low profile RAILBLAZA mount. This 3 axis mount has friction joints top and bottom featuring R-Lock lockable joints.

The center joint is fully adjustable in 15-degree increments. Will hold fish finders up to 3.3 lb. Mount on angled surfaces and have your display level. Also with the correct RAILBLAZA mount, you can mount your fish finder on a rail, or inflatable tube! The RAILBLAZA Fish Finder Mount R-Lock R with any RAILBLAZA StarPort mount.

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The post Kayak Anglers On The Podium Again Against Boaters appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

Below is the video guide from Canadian pro team member Peter Yeung and friend where they demonstrate this simple and easy technique for loading a kayak on your own using a moving blanket. 

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These are the simple steps to loading and unloading your kayak by yourself

Step 1 - Line the kayak up alongside the car as below and remove any loose items or items that could get loose when driving.

Step 2 – Spread your moving blanket over the roof of the car tucking it under the roof bars to avoid it moving or if the blanket is large enough close the corners in the car doors or windows. make sure the blanket is over each of the roof bars also, this will help position the kayak in the next few steps

Step 3 – Lift the bow and rest it on the edge of the car but high enough that it does not slip easily off. We have demonstrated this on the grass with a kayak that does not have a rudder. If the surface you are on could damage the kayak when sliding on the ground use a rubber mat, yoga mat or the rubber floor mats from the car to protect the keel. If your kayak has a rudder that could get damaged then consider loading in reverse with the stern first. 

Step 4 – Keeping your hands on the kayak to avoid it slipping walk to the stern of the kayak, bending your knees, lift the stern and push forward sliding the kayak further onto the roof until you have about half the kayak on the roof.

Step 5 – Pivot or swing the kayak to towards the rear of the car which will then see the kayak safely on both of the roof bars, take your time with this step the first time you do it as you will need to get the positioning right to avoid the kayak slipping off. Once the kayak is on move to the centre of the kayak and push/slide it across to the middle of the roof if it is not already in this position.

Step 6 – Carefully lift the kayak at each end to remove the blanket then secure your kayak with tie-downs.

To remove the kayak the process is the same but in reverse and just as easy to do as you will see in the below sequence of photos and is demonstrated better in the video above.

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The post How To Load & Unload Kayak On SUV By Yourself Using Only A Blanket appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

How To Avoid Flipping Your Fishing Kayak When Fighting Big Fish! Adam Fisk

It’s about trust and relaxing

Most important when fighting a powerful fish

Boating BIG fish 

Always be situationally aware 

Practice makes perfect 

The post How To Avoid Flipping Your Fishing Kayak When Fighting Big Fish! appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

In this blog as part of his Hobie Revo 16 review and offshore kayak fishing tips, Pro team member Jason aka “Paddle Guy” shares how he has set up the Revo 16 for surf launches. One of the best tips many will want to know is how to protect rods from damage in the surf and Jason shows us how he achieves that using RAILBLAZA accessories which can be applied to any fishing kayak.

Something I get asked a lot is how do I protect my rods in the surf and even more so now that I am also using a Hobie Revo 16 which is set up very different to my usual offshore paddle fishing kayak. In the video below you get to see me put all of this theory to practice for the first time when I head offshore to catch Northern Bluefin tuna at one of the local surf beaches here on the Sunshine Coast, Australia.

The first thing to note is the Revo 16 has limited easy-access storage for tackle and gear so the first thing to establish is where your tackle and reels are going to go during surf transitions. If you assume you will capsize and plan your “what if” process around that then you will have a solid system.

Reels on or off?

Definitely off!  I carry 2 dry bags with me, one for tackle boxes and other fishing tools, the other for my reels which can be secured to the seat on the revo or strapped in the rear tank well. It generally only takes about 10 mins to re-rig out behind the surf or pack down ready for landing.

How to protect the fishing rods in the surf?

I have added a section of Expanda Track and StarPort HD to the gunnel of my Revo 16 this allows me to change the cockpit to suit so I can run a camera, fish finder or rod holders when fishing.  But for surf transitions these spaces are allocated to G-Holds, rods are laid down and secured in the G-Holds. The size of G-Hold used depends on how many rods I am carrying, G-Hold 75 is good for 3 butt ends of the rods and the G-Hold 35 is ample for the tips of multiple rods.

If you need to secure more rods then the other options are to use the GunHold which is good for as many rods as you can carry on a kayak. The rods are all leashed individually also as a backup. This will work for any kayak that has track using the TracLoader or MiniPort TracMount.  Once out behind the surf and all rods are set up with reels I can remove the G-Holds and repurpose the StarPorts for other accessories 

Where do I put the tackle?

As mentioned earlier limited tackle storage means you need to be more creative with the Revo 16 so for this I have backpack dry bag that holds all the tackle and related fishing tools I need for a session. This just gets strapped under the rear cargo bungee cord or inside the rear fish bag. 

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Find out more about Jason in his Pro Team Bio below

The post How To Set Up Hobie Fishing Kayak For Surf – How To Protect Fishing Rods In Surf appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

Well that’s just what RAILBLAZA pro team member Andy shares with us in his latest YouTube episode “Solo camping on a deserted island – Catch and Cook adventure – with Ocean Kayak – Monster Fish” 

I paddle to a deserted island in my ocean kayak for a solo camping adventure where I catch and cook some delicious fish. I also capture a big Golden Trevally, a nice Coral Trout and a Monster Giant Trevally aka GT. I have a fire on the beach and sleep in a tent on this desert island. Get lost in the adventure and watch the FULL Video adventure below 

Andy is using the RAILBLAZA Camera Boom 600 R-Lock to capture most of the adventure from his kayak. If you have captures some great adventures like this using your camera Booms make sure we know about it so we can share it around. Either tag #railblaza #holdeverything on social or just send us a message with the link, photos or videos… we love them all. Our social links below.

The RAILBLAZA Camera Boom 600 R-Lock is the best GoPro mount for your kayak, canoe, bass boat, yacht and/or other marine vessel. It’s not going to end well if you take a selfie stick out on the water, which is exactly why we decided to make the extremely versatile Camera Boom 600.  Find out more HERE

• RAILBLAZA FaceBook
• RAILBLAZA Instagram

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Solo camping on a deserted island – Catch and Cook adventure – with Ocean Kayak – Monster Fish EP.504

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Previously I have owned Hobie Pro Angler, Feel free Dorado and I have tested a wide amount of different manufacturers, but the Wilderness Systems Radar 135, in my opinion, is one of the best fishing available and really suits my needs.

Well-built kayak with great stability, it goes through the chop and waves without any hesitations, it is light, really easy to pedal for a full fishing day and it has good speed for covering distance and moving in the wind at currents. BUT….. I had to make it even better…
And the perfect, easy way is to enhance it with RAILBLAZA Accessory.

Safety first – how to be visible

First of all, I was concerned about night time fishing which is my personal favourite time and style. So I decided to add RAILBLAZA I360 with Extenda Pole 1000. First I tried it without Extenda Pole and after that, I decided to try different lengths with it. The best solution was the first section of the pole, which is 380mm / 38cm (15“) high.  After a few tries with MiniPort TracMount, it found a place almost in the middle between the rudder and my back.

Right after this, the FlagWhip found its place at the very back. I removed one screw which was holding a ” plate” and Miniport TracMount (Tracnut removed) screwed right into this spot.

Rod holders for storage

After that, I wanted to add my RAILBLAZA RodTube’s. 2x RodTubes next to the seat on the left side of me. With MiniPort TracMounts, this was super easy since the kayak has really good and long tracks you don’t have to do single hole on the kayak. With only these the Wilderness system radar 135 started to look like a fishing battleship.

Where to put the paddle?

Now for the paddle. The Radar 135 has one place for it and I didn’t like that. I wanted it to be easy to take from the place and easy to put it back. Also, it cant be in the way of fishing. So, I tested many places again, again and again, and after some frustration, due to it always being in the way I got an idea which was super easy!

2x QuickGrip Paddle Clip Track Mounts in the tracks at the left side of the kayak and it was done. Done in 2 minutes and it is perfectly there. I can take it easy and put it back and it is no longer in my way.

Tackle and other storage

StowPod Storage Caddy and Drink Hold found their places right away also. With MiniPort TracMounts on the left side of the seat. Fantastic and looks really, really great. There is so much fun to have with Miniport TracMounts with this Kayak.

Camera options

One thing, the proof you’ve caught a big fish! That can be done easily with GoPro or any other action camera, with Camera Boom 600 R-Lock. There are many possibilities for places to add this with any mount that Railblaza can offer. My personal favourite is still Railblaza QuikPort on the Belly Boat, but for this kayak, I just added StarPort with StarPort TracMount Kit. Could have also used MiniPort Tracmount or TracLoader StarPort.

How to add H-Rail to the Wilderness Radar 135

By far the only thing I did not like in this kayak is that it was missing Rails like the Hobie H-rail. For me, it is a small question about safety. If you flip over, rails are great to have for holding when righting the kayak, floating with it to the bank or getting back on. Obviously, the H-Rail is also a great way to add accessories without drilling into your kayak. So easy and versatile. That’s what RAILBLAZA Accessory is for. Versatile, Resistant, Easy and gives great value for money.

I had an idea to add rails to the kayak but I didn’t want to drill any holes in the kayak, the easy solution was to use the RAILBLAZA StarPort TracNut Kit and attach the H-Rail into my Wilderness track, simple and no holes. Now Radar 135 has rails. Safety is better and it looks even better.  Added 2x RailMount 32-41 which has the H-Rail insert where I can attach rod holders or my Mobi Universal device Holder.

Last bit of DIY fitting for lights

For the last DIY project was adding lights in front and back of the seat…just because I came up with the idea from Facebook while ago and wanted to make it work on the radar 135. I have a couple of headlights with me always, but this was just too fun to do. these lights are also remotely controlled. 

Rigging up boats, kayaks and float tubes is what I like to do and I help a lot of people with them, not only in Finland but in many other countries too. Feel free to contact me always you have something to ask. If I don’t know, I will find out it for you.

Links for my social accounts here on my Pro team Bio – click the image below to see 

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The post Kayak Review & Rigging Ideas : Wilderness Radar 135 appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.

RAILBLAZA – A very good product and better finished with more aesthetic curves but more massive than the first version. We also note the rubber incorporated on the base which prevents slipping and creates an even firmer hold when tightened 

Due to its wider base, it is more agile (easier to use) on a Hobie track and above all much more aesthetic than the old model. By far the fastest attachment system for the Lowrance HDS Live sonar.

Its anchoring system in the rails is such that it easily withstands long transport in tow and therefore no need for disassembly. Obviously, the MiniPort TracMount is adaptable to all rails and to all products in the range.

For my part a very good product better designed and which holds firmly once screwed which is for me and by far the most important! Sincerely Florian le Hetet

Rigging your craft with RAILBLAZA accessories just got a whole lot quicker and more versatile with the MiniPort TracMount. The MiniPort TracMount is designed to fit most existing kayak tracks, including Hobie, Wilderness, Jackson, YakAttack, Galaxy, Ocean Kayak &Native Watercraft.

Compact design & completely tool-less operation which is easily fitted and adjusted simply by turning the MiniPort which tightens directly in the track using our TracNut. Re-positioning in the track is as simple as turning to release the tension.

Find Out More Here 

The post New MiniPort TracMount Review: Florian Le Hetet appeared first on RAILBLAZA International.