www.iFourWinns.com

Ok so the vista line of boats is not exactly made for fishing, but I do want to start getting out for some more casual fishing days, and after a day out fluking with my dad yesterday, it was apparent that a couple of pole holders would just make things a little more convenient. Plus they can be used to hold grills and cutting boards as well. I purchased one that mounts on to the rail on the outside of the transom, and one flush mount for the port side gunwale above the rear storage locker where the battery switches are. I orginally thought that it would be totally clear to drill a hole and mount the rod holder there, however today I realized that there is some space between the top of that storage locker and the gunwale (is that the correct term by the way? I'm using that word too much I think) and I'm not sure if it would be safe to drill.

Long story much shorter than my babbling paragraph ... has anyone mounted a flush mount pole holder in this part of the boat?

Thanks.

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'99 258 Vista Cool Breeze II

Not sure about 1999 model but my 2008 V258 has factory rod holders just aft of the end of the windshield. Just aft of the waste and water fillers on each side, maybe a couple inches away, on the top of the gunwales.
I am terrible at boat terms so I don't want to incorrectly answer the gunwale question but that's what I call them.

OH! and make sure you get the correct angle rod holders if you intend to use them for a grill.. HA! I just boat a grill and the only adapter is a 60 degree.. well my rod holders ain't 60 degree which I found out when I tried it out. not sure what angle but they look 30 degree. i have to modify the adapter tonight.

*edit: one other thing before you drill is to try to take a look behind to make sure you don't drill into anything important.

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--2002 3880 Regal Flybridge | Twin Merc 8.1HO **Seven**
--2003 AB 13 VST Console Inflatable | Tohatsu 40hp TLDI **Phish'n ski**
--310 Mercury Inflatable | 1982 9.9 Johnson

Thanks for the response, and the point about the angle of the grill holder. I do have another type of grill mount so that isn't the most important aspect if it doesn't work out. I'd like to look behind what I"m going to drill but don't think there is anyway of getting a look at that area.

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'99 258 Vista Cool Breeze II

Yeah its probably pretty tough. Can you look up from the engine compartment? Or is there a speaker or something else you can remove just to look in there? You may need a mirror to look around the corner.

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--2002 3880 Regal Flybridge | Twin Merc 8.1HO **Seven**
--2003 AB 13 VST Console Inflatable | Tohatsu 40hp TLDI **Phish'n ski**
--310 Mercury Inflatable | 1982 9.9 Johnson

You might want to make sure you can get a backer plate in there first.

Yeah when I was down at the boat yesterday, I pulled the speaker off and saw that there is some room to put one, in that spot you mentioned, just aft of the bimini top mount.

To Thalasso ... not to sound too ignorant, but I'm not even sure what you mean by backer plate. As far as I knew these were installed by drilling a cutout into the gunwale, and then sliding it in til it mounts flush and screwing it down with the three screw holes.

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'99 258 Vista Cool Breeze II

A backer plate is any sort of a reinforcement plate mounted on the "back side" of the surface you are mounting something on. Material choice can vary, depending on the application.

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Surface Interval: A scuba diving term for that time between dives to relax and prepare for life's next great adventure.

Current boat: '02 FW 268 Vista
Previous boat: '95 FW 190 Horizon

As Surface Interval said.
If you just screw the holders into the gunnel, you risk them coming out or damage to the gunnel because of no backing to take the pressure.
You need to spread the load over a bigger area other then the screws. The backer can be plywood. starboard or aluminum. Just so it's larger then the area consumed by the rod holders.
Preferably through bolted rather then screws.
Been there done that

Thanks for the tips guys.

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'99 258 Vista Cool Breeze II

I will post pics later but what I did was mount a piece of track that holds a titelok triple rod holder. When the rod holder is not installed you can get a black plastic filler to go in it like its a step almost. Look up titelok track. Here is a pic, kinda hard to tell there is a track but the whole unit slides backwards and a 5 inch piece of track is all that left. You can put an insert into the track also.


Untitled by rick2752, on Flickr

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2001 Four Winns Vista 248 by rick2752, on Flickr

http://www.titelok.com/category-s/1819.htm
Interesting product line.

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"Knot Easy" 2000 Horizon 240 Volvo 5.7GS /SX
tow: 2017 Honda PILOT EXL-AWD
prev. boats:
'87 Chaparral 198CXL 4.3 OMC Cobra
'69 Jetstar 16ft Ski Boat, 115hp Yamaha
'68 Aluminum Jon Boat, 3hp Sears
'64 Water Wings