Yeahhhhh my jeep build is all about the beach and i have done quite a lot of thinking as to where the rods will mount. my longest pole is a 10' st croix surf rod. ultimitaly my final decision came down to keeping all fishing poles on the outside of the vehicle. not because they are long or take up space, not because they get sand or fish guts all over my brand new ride and certainly not because the hooks tear holes in everything they touch. keeping them on the outside cause it looks bad ass it turns heads and its the first thing i grab when i get out of the car, along with my sand spike and tackle. i don't have to dig through my trunk and remove the bags and coolers first. if i see a nice spot i want to jump out with the pole and throw some plugs to test the waters, quick.
If your insisting on keeping the pole inside the car, here are the ideas that have crossed my mind prior to my final decision.
1- Fold the rods. you said you have one piece poles so this isn't an option. my dads 12' just fits snugly in the jeep when taken apart. Aside the fact that they are one piece , folding them is B.S and takes the fun out of everything.
2 - Exactly what Wakeley Bridge said. i had different recourses in mind but bungee cords on the front grab handles will do well. as for the back strap, this or something of the sort may be the solution for you.
command strips are strong as hell and they don't leave goo behind if and when you remove it. I'm not sure how much tension it can take from a bungee cord, but at the time i was thinking part of a cargo net. like this. except instead of 4x4 squares it would be like 2 squares by 10 squares or 2 squares by x.
[ame]http://www.amazon.com/Silverline-140819-Cargo-Net-750X750Mm/dp/B002QS0KIG/ref=sr_1_7?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1401317841&sr=1-7&keywords=cargo+net+for+car[/ame]
i figured i would have to purchase a much larger cargo net for like a roof rack or rear divider or something and customize it for a perfect fit from one side to the other side of the upper trunk. the idea would be to have that front cargo net going from driver grab handle to passanger grab handle, the rod tip would sit in there. the back command hooks would be placed just a tad lower than the grab handle height, and the customized cargo net would hook on from one end to the other, depending on pole size, the reel or pole end would sit here.
This was the way i wanted to go as it would also serve as a storage area for the solar panel when it comes (which should be soon!) however the idea of hooks tearing the headliner and grease or fish crap rubbing up there and leaving a stain didn't appeal to me.
3- Next idea was to use the velcro command strips:
[ame]http://www.amazon.com/Command-Large-Picture-Hanging-Strips-4-Strip/dp/B00404YKZI/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1401318233&sr=1-1&keywords=velcro+command[/ame]
Same concept as the hooks except you get two adhesive pieces of velcro, its not hook and fuzz velcro its something else and its really strong holding. when you need to remove the velcro the adhesive leaves nothing behind.. Anyway.
one part of the velcro would go to the upper side of the trunk, preferably the passenger side of the trunk and as high up as possible. the other velcro would be attached to a modified sand spike. or just a piece of PVC that your pole will fit in, cut a line in it so you can slide the bottom of the pole through. then a much smaller pvc pipe just large enough for the rod tip to fit in, also a cap on the front end of this smaller pipe. this pipe would go somewhere in the front. above the passenger door. both the sand spike and pvc pipe would have been spray painted grey or black for cosmetic reasons. The plan was when its time to boogie, i have my velcro'd sand spike in the sand with the pole in it, yank that out of the ground, the pole goes directly through the trunk (rod tip first obv.) and rests in the smaller pvc pipe in the front of the car, then i would slide the sandspike back onto the bottom of the pole (after bashing the sand off of it) and just push the velcro'd part onto the velcro thats on the wall of the jeep….. jesus i hope that made sense. if you don't understand something just ask. but after ruling out #2 this is the way i wanted to go. then i trouble shot some possible problems. if the pole and reel combo is too heavy for the command strip (i don't think it would have been a problem but it could have been and heres the solution) to hold the pole, reel and pvc pipe; the plan was to get a larger pvc pipe for the back, large enough to fit more than one command strip on so we have double the strength. then to satisfy the extra space on the inside of the pvc pipe, use some of the insulation for plumbing that goes around copper pipes in the house? I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. cut a piece of a good sized piece of insulation and wedge it inside the pvc pipe. here now the bottom of the pole will fit snuggly in that larger pvc pipe..
in the end I'm going to make my own custom mount for them, two poles on each side of my roof rack. until i make that mount and for the time being i just bungee cord it to the roof rack, you could also bungee it to the crossbar I'm sure.
not trying to brag or show off but the st croix surf pole and reel that i have cost just under $400 and its my favorite pole. yeah i would be freaking pissed and super upset if it caught wind and flew off my roof. but i know how to use a bungee cord and test the strength of it holding the pole down so I'm not worried nor should you. just tug at it in all directions after you have it strapped down to test before you hit the road. Hopefully one of these ideas inspired you in some way or sparked some imaginative idea… otherwise i just waisted about 35 minutes of my life.
