# Carbon Marine LineTack Spikes



## T Bone (Jul 24, 2014)

I am looking for real world reviews on these bow spikes by Carbon Marine. I am not really a fan of the look, but if they do their job of keeping fly line from blowing over the bow i could possibly live with it. Also, how has the adhesion held up? Thanks


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

They're great, unless you need to put a cover on your boat...then they can get mashed down.


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## flyclimber (May 22, 2016)

I've got them on my gheenoe and they work great! One note is that you want to use Silicone or other slippery spray on them so the fly line doesn't stick when shooting! As long as you have a clean surface for them to adhere to you shouldn't have a problem with stickage!


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

There was a guy from Texas on Instagram that had put up a rant about these last week. He said they don't really work, and showed how they come right off of his skiff. I think the concept seems cool, but I have never used them. He claimed the marine mat didn't really hold them on well, he was able to pull the spikes out while the marine mat stayed on the boat.

Again, I have not tried them, so don't scream at me for this. I'm simply relaying what I had seen on his video. I don't think it was an issue of the deck being clean when they were glued on, cause the glue'd part held fine, it was the spikes that pulled through the glued part.


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## Pbertell (Apr 22, 2015)

I fished w a guide recently who had them and they worked well! He was very happy with them... you could actually loop your fly line around them and the line doesn't move at all even after 20 minutes waiting for a fish. No more aiming at a basket...


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## Fishshoot (Oct 26, 2017)

Following this one. I hate baskets. Generally throw line in cockpit to stack it or wet the deck so line sticks a little. I’ve seen these and wondered about them


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## Caleb.Esparza (Jan 31, 2016)

I've had mine for about two weeks. A few guides that I really respect use them and had good things to say so I bit. 

You have to clean the wax off your deck with acetone or obviously, they won't stick for sh*t. They are flexible, and carbon marine supplies plenty of extra foam disks to stick them if you want to move them around.. I decided that I had two too many on my bow so I removed two yesterday and there was no adhesive residue that didn't come up. They were also stuck on very well. 

Anything that is lighter, simpler, and allows me to leave that stupid glorified garbage can at home is a good thing in my book.


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## Caleb.Esparza (Jan 31, 2016)




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## Fishshoot (Oct 26, 2017)

But how do they work in your opinion? Have you used em on a windy day yet?


Caleb.Esparza said:


> I've had mine for about two weeks. A few guides that I really respect use them and had good things to say so I bit.
> 
> You have to clean the wax off your deck with acetone or obviously, they won't stick for sh*t. They are flexible, and carbon marine supplies plenty of extra foam disks to stick them if you want to move them around.. I decided that I had two too many on my bow so I removed two yesterday and there was no adhesive residue that didn't come up. They were also stuck on very well.
> 
> Anything that is lighter, simpler, and allows me to leave that stupid glorified garbage can at home is a good thing in my book.


t how


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## Caleb.Esparza (Jan 31, 2016)

Haven't used them in anything above 15mph yet. But I also try not to fish when it's much higher than that anyway.. they definitely grab your line loops and keep them from sliding off the deck into the water, tabs etc.


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## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

Caleb.Esparza said:


> View attachment 33040


Sorry to derail Caleb what kind of bag is that in the picture?


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## Caleb.Esparza (Jan 31, 2016)

Backcountry 16 said:


> Sorry to derail Caleb what kind of bag is that in the picture?



That's the giant dry bag that Bote inflatable SUP's come in these days. I bring it along when 150 miles of fuel range isn't enough lol.


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## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

Caleb.Esparza said:


> That's the giant dry bag that Bote inflatable SUP's come in these days. I bring it along when 150 miles of fuel range isn't enough lol.


Gotcha so that's full of gas?


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## Caleb.Esparza (Jan 31, 2016)

No it's full of a rolled up inflatable paddleboard. Good escape pod when island hopping with the skiff


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## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

Caleb.Esparza said:


> No it's full of a rolled up inflatable paddleboard. Good escape pod when island hopping with the skiff


Oh I gotcha pretty cool carry on.


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

If you have a toe rail my advice would be to drill it out and simply stick the spikes in there, like in the pic below. This will allow you to take them on and off when needed.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

crboggs said:


> If you have a toe rail my advice would be to drill it out and simply stick the spikes in there, like in the pic below. This will allow you to take them on and off when needed.


This is what I was contemplating on mine since it has a 1 1/2” starboard toe rail. Do the spikes have a barbed or rounded bulb end?


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## Net 30 (Mar 24, 2012)

crboggs said:


> If you have a toe rail my advice would be to drill it out and simply stick the spikes in there, like in the pic below. This will allow you to take them on and off when needed.


Man that's a great idea! Do the spikes pull away from the discs?

I noticed you left some pretty big gaps closer to the bow - why?


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

Net 30 said:


> I noticed you left some pretty big gaps closer to the bow - why?


I was missing a few. Grabbed some more today since Carbon Marine is close by...










You can remove the toe rail and feed them through before reattaching or you can cut off the foot and insert them by hand from the top...depends on personal preference I guess. Just gotta be sure to drill the right sized hole since the rubber is pretty dense and tough.


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## Caleb.Esparza (Jan 31, 2016)

That's the cleanest way to do it @crboggs 

Almost makes me want to add toe rails to the skiff.


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## Emerald Shiner (Dec 26, 2017)

I love them but did not attach them to the deck of the boat. Instead cut a circle from some 1/4” ply and glued some rubber stuff for lining kitchen drawers to the bottom with some silicone. They work really well and you can place them anywhere.


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

Caleb.Esparza said:


> That's the cleanest way to do it @crboggs
> 
> Almost makes me want to add toe rails to the skiff.


Well I can't claim it as my idea. They were on there like that when I bought the boat. But its certainly a clean way to do it, I agree. My only challenge at the moment is the fact that the newer spikes I bought are slightly thicker than the original ones. So they're tougher to squeeze into the holes that are pre-drilled in my toe rail. Just another thing for my "list" this weekend...


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

Emerald Shiner said:


> I love them but did not attach them to the deck of the boat. Instead cut a circle from some 1/4” ply and glued some rubber stuff for lining kitchen drawers to the bottom with some silicone. They work really well and you can place them anywhere.


That's another good idea!


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## Tx_Whipray (Sep 4, 2015)

crboggs said:


> If you have a toe rail my advice would be to drill it out and simply stick the spikes in there, like in the pic below. This will allow you to take them on and off when needed.


Not to sidetrack, but damn, that's a good looking skiff. I drool a little every time you post a picture of it.


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## jmrodandgun (Sep 20, 2013)

I got one of those mats made from old retired silicone dildos. I like it a lot plus it makes a sexy sound when you toss it onto the deck.


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

jmrodandgun said:


> I got one of those mats made from old retired silicone dildos. I like it a lot plus *it makes a sexy sound when you toss it onto the deck*.


*lol* Yes...yes it does...


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## K3anderson (Jan 23, 2013)

I prefer retired dildo mat also. I've had all of these gimmicks. Mat seems to be the best thing.


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## Caleb.Esparza (Jan 31, 2016)

K3anderson said:


> I prefer retired dildo mat also. I've had all of these gimmicks. Mat seems to be the best thing.



The mat was my least favorite, but I definitely don't love the look of the bow mounted dildos either. The Strip and feed bucket was most effective for me up to this point but I also despise it. It's heavy, top heavy when it's real windy, and it beats the hell out of my skiff when it gets nasty on long crossings. Makes a great sticker collection point though.. 

I'm giving the spikes an honest go for now and I keep a pop up leaf basket w/solid wood base that I trimmed to be completely snag free, in the hatch as backup.


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## K3anderson (Jan 23, 2013)

Caleb.Esparza said:


> The mat was my least favorite, but I definitely don't love the look of the bow mounted dildos either. .


There are different mats. The only one I like is the carbon marine old one. It's really the best thing ever.


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## coconutgroves (Sep 23, 2013)

Old thread, but I'll add to this instead of starting a new one.

How far apart do you install these? I read 6" to 8". I don't like to bring out the basket unless it is a must, but I am willing to try these and see if they work.


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## Jdl80 (Nov 19, 2019)

The carbon marine work good, the sticky pads they come with will get torn off by everyday use and abuse. I prefer the dragging fly products spikes. They are a larger diameter and slightly shorter. There is no adhesive pad you just silicone them to the deck. They come in an assortment of colors and are cheaper than carbon marine if I recall correctly.


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## sjrobin (Jul 13, 2015)

I have used Carbon Marine spikes for a year or so. Best line management improvement I have used. Had toe rails on one of the previous skiffs and have used SFR buckets and spiked mats


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

coconutgroves said:


> Old thread, but I'll add to this instead of starting a new one.
> 
> How far apart do you install these? I read 6" to 8". I don't like to bring out the basket unless it is a must, but I am willing to try these and see if they work.


I've been a few boats that have them and they work great. I personally don't like the look but they are pretty much the best option I've used for simplicity, lightweight and cost. I think they need to be about 4" apart to work best. Last boat I fished on had them about 6" apart and the line would fall overboard between the spikes pretty often. It was windy that day so a good test for them.


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## coconutgroves (Sep 23, 2013)

jay.bush1434 said:


> I've been a few boats that have them and they work great. I personally don't like the look but they are pretty much the best option I've used for simplicity, lightweight and cost. I think they need to be about 4" apart to work best. Last boat I fished on had them about 6" apart and the line would fall overboard between the spikes pretty often. It was windy that day so a good test for them.


Awesome, thanks for the feedback. I measured and need about 15 per side at 6" apart, so I got a 36 pack. Doing 5" would put me right at 18 per side roughly, though I may leave a gap on the starboard side where my push pole sits.


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## backbone (Jan 4, 2016)

6" is fine, mine are closer to 8" apart.
Ive had mine for a couple years and would never have a skiff without them.
When you install them dab a bit of marine silicon on the bottom of the spike. It will help it adhere to the deck.


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