Looking for a boat to fish some tournaments from the front. Just so happened a guy that is in the club posted he was selling his Ranger R72. It seems to be in great shape and is a 2 owner and he has fished out of it for 11 years.  The only think that really concerns me is rod storage. I dont think Ill be able to get much more than 6'8 in the lockers!  I have quite a few 7' and no place to put them. Thought about the Bac-Rac to help.  I know that the back deck is small enough as it is,adding 5-8 rods in the could be dangerous. I would hate for co to step on them. Does anybody have any experience adding some rod storage to smaller boats. Any suggestions on storage or the boat would be appreciated. 

We have a 97 391 XT and there's no way to put a rod over 6' on the back deck behind the seats. All my 7 footers fit in the rod box on the port side. Can't get them in the starboard side due to the windshield. Ask for a measurement to be safe.

That boat have a casting deck?

Looking for a boat to fish some tournaments from the front. Just so happened a guy that is in the club posted he was selling his Ranger R72. It seems to be in great shape and is a 2 owner and he has fished out of it for 11 years.  The only think that really concerns me is rod storage. I dont think Ill be able to get much more than 6'8 in the lockers!  I have quite a few 7' and no place to put them. Thought about the Bac-Rac to help.  I know that the back deck is small enough as it is,adding 5-8 rods in the could be dangerous. I would hate for co to step on them. Does anybody have any experience adding some rod storage to smaller boats. Any suggestions on storage or the boat would be appreciated. 

The rod storage is the biggest drawback of the 72's. I've got a Sport R70 which is basically the single console version of that boat that will hold at least a 7'2" rod and I think it could squeak in a slightly longer one as well. The locker is slightly longer than the 72's because of the absence of the extra console.

 

You wouldn't have a lot of options for adding room. You could do a few things to make it work though; you could keep them on the rod ramp to and from the lake. If you're fishing with a co-angler you could just move them up and keep them on the deck since you'll most likely be fishing with them. If I remember correctly, there was someone on this form who ended up modifying the back wall of the rod locker by cutting out a pass through hole. I'm pretty sure he was going to get an aluminum box made to cap it off under the console so it wouldn't remain open. Other than the rod issue, they'e great boats that fish a lot bigger than they actually are.   

The through holes dound like a good idea. Even better by boxing it. I'd hate to see the tip of a rod break because the butt was kicked forward.