Taco Marine's Grand Slam Outriggers | GS280 Benefits and Use

Gordon Peters

Customer Service / Warranty Specialist

Fishing offshore in saltwater is always challenging. One of the best tools to increase your odds for a successful offshore fishing trip are outriggers. Outriggers are nothing more than poles extended outboard that allow you to troll more lines spreading baits and lures farther apart. Simulating fleeing baitfish, the outriggers trolled from an elevated position allow for multiple lines to be fished while adjusting and controlling the presentation. The larger the spread of lines the better the odds of a strike. The use of release clips on each line gives you the perfect drop back during a strike to increase your odds of a solid hookup. Other advantages are covering more water and putting the baits in cleaner water outside the wake offering the gamefish a better view of your spread.

The first use of outriggers in sport fishing is thought to have been the use of bamboo poles by sport fisherman Captain Tommy Gifford in the Miami area during the 1930’s starting with bamboo poles. A great concept, but not a very strong material. John Rybovich, a Palm Beach boat builder designed the first bases fitted with stronger aluminum poles in his early sport fishing boats. The excellent offshore fishing and the Gulf Stream being only 10 miles or less allowed for the quick development, design, and use of outriggers in the burgeoning tourist sport fishing industry in South Florida. TACO Metals of Miami started founded in 1959 and was one of the first companies to mass produce outrigger bases and poles in a production setting and is still one of the top producers today. They were the first to produce aluminum poles that telescope down for storage, bridges, and trailering.

When Sportsman was looking to add an outrigger option for their mid-range sized boats, they chose TACO’s Grand Slam Outriggers and Tele-Outriggeraluminum poles. While TACO has complete line of bases in both aluminum and stainless steel and poles in both aluminum and carbon fiber, the workhorse of their line is theGS-280 Grand Slam base with 15’ Tele-Outrigger poles. Their strength, performance, and proven track record meshed perfectly with Sportsman’ requirements. The GS-280 and Tele-rigger poles are easy to deploy and simple to operate. The poles raise and lower with the twist of a knob and lock into place once set. Its outward rotation handle has detents every 22.5 degrees that lock the arm in place eliminating slop and allows for a robust fishing presentation in all sea conditions. They have a 3-year warranty and even have a tune-up and servicing program that extends that warranty. This fits in with Sportsman’s commitment to customer service, quality, and value. So, whether you are a tournament fisherman or an occasional weekend fisherman looking to increase your odds TACO outriggers and poles are a great choice and will not let you down.

Taco Marine’s OEM Sales Manager, Mark Henderson recorded a great Tech Talk episode on the benefits and uses of the GS280 outrigger bases from Taco Marine. If you’re looking to learn more about your outriggers or want some more information before ordering them, this episode will tell you everything you need to know.

Taco Marine’s OEM Sales Manager, Mark Henderson recorded a great Tech Talk episode on the benefits and uses of the GS280 outrigger bases from Taco Marine. If you’re looking to learn more about your outriggers or want some more information before ordering them, this episode will tell you everything you need to know.