Fishing rod holder

Abstract

An improved fishing rod holder is disclosed for a hard top or other overhead structure of a boat comprising an assembly of interconnected tubular members movable relative to each other so that the rod holder may be rotated between a stationary upright position wherein a fishing rod is held firmly and a downward position wherein a rod may be easily removed from or inserted into the holder. The tubular members of the holder include a base member adapted to be mounted to the boat structure by a weldment attached thereto, a rod tube pivotally connected to the base member and sized to hold the butt end of a fishing rod, and a latch handle sized to fit around the rod tube and further formed to releasably engage the base member coaxially thereby placing the holder in the stationary upright position. When a fishing rod is required to be removed from the holder or another rod inserted therein, the latch handle is grasped and pushed upward by the fisherman along the rod tube disengaging the latch handle from the mounted base so that the rod tube may be rotated downward toward the fisherman for easy rod removal or insertion. To return the fishing rod holder to its stationary upright position, the latch handle is regrasped by the fisherman and rotated upward together with the rod tube, both pivoting relative to the base member, until the latch handle re-engages the base member coaxially and secures the holder in place.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.