22 foot Lees outriggers, help please - The Hull Truth

blewzs · 10-08-2005, 01:50 AM

First post here, so here goes. I have just purchased a pair of 22 foot Lees outrigger poles (AP322). Do these require spreaders, either single cross or double cross ?. Can i use them without spreaders ? What are the advantages/ disadvantages(cost)?

Tuna Man · 10-08-2005, 05:39 PM

I have used the samew riggers in the past. I have seen themn many times here in the Northeast. I have never seen them without spreaders. The spreaders with the heavy wire make the riggers much stiffer, and much stronger. The result is you can run two or possibly three lines off each rigger. I am guessing that the 22' riggers would bend on the first bumpy day offshore without the spreaders and wire combo.

blewzs · 10-09-2005, 05:25 AM

Thanks for the reply Tuna Man. Most of the people fishing around here have 15 foot riggers, i just couldnt bring myself to fit those to a 25 foot boat.

Tireless · 10-09-2005, 08:37 AM

I agree with tuna on the need for spreaders on a 22ft pole. While I am not an expert on outrigger setups (my boat has 18 ft gunnel mounted OR's - they came with the boat and I wouldn't use this setup again) I think your 22ft poles may actually be too much for your boat. It is my understanding the proper setup for OR's is for the tip of the pole to extend slightly beyond your motors. Assuming you are placing these OR's close to midship that would mean at 10 ft of the pole will be extending behind the motors. FWIW.

TTaxi · 10-09-2005, 04:26 PM

I agree with tireless- the 22'ers are awfully big for that boat. My 27'er has 18' Lees that require a single spreader each with 4' tower mounts for a 22' swingout from the mount hinge. I have them slightly more vertical in the store position than the angle of the tower legs would suggest due to my desire to have them reach past the swim platform no more than a safe foot or so. My riggers have been raked( expletive of your choice here) a couple times by boats that were very poorly rigged allowing riggers to extend damage-causing distance beyond the boat it self. Those owners may think it looks kind of cool until the riggers get in the boat version of kids smootching & locking braces, only more expensive. With 22' ers I'd expect you would want double spreaders & need to have them quite oddly vertical in store position to be safe. How long are your mount tubes?

blewzs · 10-09-2005, 06:20 PM

Ok then i will go with the double spreaders. This should take some of the curve out of them. My boat has a bracket on the back with twin outboards, this would add to the 25 foot. The maximum distance that i can mount the bases in front of the motors is 16 foot. From what i understand when the riggers are under load the tips should not go past the stern. The bases are Lees (OH226S), so these wont add to the lenght too much. If all else fails i can always shorten them (last resort).

Tireless · 10-10-2005, 08:08 AM

I believe the rule of thumb is the OR's should not extend beyond the transom or motors while in the STORED position.....but if you can swing the long poles good luck.

Patudo · 10-10-2005, 09:58 AM

You can brace the riggers to the bow with cord stays - this will stiffen up your outriggers effectively without the addition of spreaders. The longer your outriggers the better - they give your lure pattern more width (but they must be stiff in order to handle rough conditions and if you wish to pull larger lures with more water resistance). The ability to troll more lines is a bonus, although not every situation requires it.

Clam_Alert · 10-11-2005, 02:12 PM

What kind of 25' boat is it and how are you mounting the outriggers? If you're using a Sidewinder type setup for a CC, I wonder if they're even rated for 22' poles. I would think that adding a welded arm from the base of the outrigger mout to the T-top is a must in that case.

If it's gunnel or side mounted then you'll need some hefty backing plates. A wishbone type mount with a few spots for bolting would seem stronger to me for a side mount.

blewzs · 10-12-2005, 03:18 AM

They will be side mounted, Lee wishbone type. Fibreglass 4mm thick where they will be mounted. Thought I would plate the inside with 3mm 316 stainless. Thanks for your input.

evensplit · 10-17-2009, 05:36 AM

I also have the spreader question, I'm looking a a pair of 18ft OR with spreaders and one 18 ft pair without spreaders, does one really need the spreads with only 18 ft poles? Tirgress doent offer spreaders as on option on the web page so I wounder if I need them?
Thank for any help.

LI32 · 10-17-2009, 05:58 AM

All Lee's 300/3000 series require spreaders, single on the 18'/19/ and 22's require the Lee's double spreader kit (part AP3722sk), otherwise they will fold up without even pulling a bait. Those are pretty big riggers for a 25' boat. I've got 22' riggers on my 32' and they are sized right.

buzzk · 10-17-2009, 04:29 PM

Call Lee they will tell you. I know a lot of older boats that used the old style Lee outrigger holder or the wishbone style holder that didn't have spreaders on them and they caught a lot of billfish. I know some of the poles where 22' long. I just can't remember the Lee number. But if you call Lee they can tell you how much weight the poles can pull.

evensplit · 10-18-2009, 04:31 PM

the 18 foot outriggers that i'm looking at are Tigress outriggers, the other set i'm looking a are
schaefer outriggers with spreaders, the problem is that I want to put these on a Trojan International 10.8 meter and there is not a lot of room to get around them if I buy the ones with the spreaders? does anyone know anything about the Tigress outriggers?
Thanks