Complete rigs
Every rig, every item, one list
Quick answer
Six complete rigs across two ladders. The powerboat ladder runs from about $1,629 to $13,629, and the kayak ladder from about $1,406 to $7,401.
Every rig on the site in one table, so you can see the whole ladder at once rather than a tier at a time. Each one links to the full build list with per item prices and the reasoning behind each choice.
Every rig at a glance
Two ladders, three tiers each, grouped by function rather than by price.
Rule of thumb Boating and fishing convention rather than a published standard. Taught everywhere, useful, and not a specification. Nothing enforces it and no body publishes it.
| Ladder | Tier | Items | Approximate total | Build list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powerboat electronics and rigging | Beginner | 18 | $1,629 | The beginner boat electronics rig |
| Powerboat electronics and rigging | Intermediate | 22 | $5,964 | The intermediate boat electronics rig |
| Powerboat electronics and rigging | Expert | 28 | $13,629 | The expert boat electronics rig |
| Kayak fishing rig | Beginner | 13 | $1,406 | The beginner kayak fishing rig |
| Kayak fishing rig | Intermediate | 15 | $2,569 | The intermediate kayak fishing rig |
| Kayak fishing rig | Expert | 20 | $7,401 | The expert kayak fishing rig |
Totals are a snapshot of catalog prices at generation time rather than a quote, and exclude any item without a clean single price.
Frequently asked questions
Which ladder should I follow?
Whichever matches the boat you have or want. The powerboat ladder assumes a console, a transom and somewhere to put batteries permanently. The kayak ladder assumes a hull with a manufacturer capacity figure, no capacity plate, and a battery that comes off at the end of the day. They are different sports with different constraints rather than two budgets for the same one.
Can I mix items between tiers?
Yes, and most people should. The tiers are complete builds rather than packages, and the honest order of spending is sonar, then power, then propulsion. Buying the intermediate fish finder with the beginner motor and battery is a better rig than buying the whole beginner list, and it is what the upgrade first section on each page is pointing at.
Are the totals accurate?
They are accurate to the catalog prices at the moment the page was generated, which is a planning figure rather than a quote. Prices in this category move constantly, particularly on electronics. Any item without a clean single price is excluded from the total rather than counted as zero, and each build list says how many that was.
What is not included in these totals?
The boat, the trailer, registration, insurance, rods and reels, tackle, and the labour if somebody else does the install. On the powerboat ladder the electrical install is a real job, and if you are not confident with marine wiring the cost of a marine electrician belongs in your budget alongside the parts.
Why is there no single best rig?
Because the right answer depends on your water, your boat and how often you fish. A seven inch side imaging unit on a 55 lb Spot-Lock motor catches most of the same fish as a rig costing five times as much, and the expert lists exist to show the ceiling rather than to recommend it. Each expert page says plainly who should not buy it.
Get the complete rigging shopping list
Every item in the beginner, intermediate and expert rigs for both a boat and a kayak, with running totals, in one printable list. No charge.
One list, no sequence of daily emails, and you can leave at any time.
Researched, not professional advice. This page is compiled from published engineering and regulatory figures, manufacturer specifications and owner-review consensus, not hands-on testing. Figures described as a rule of thumb are boating convention rather than published standards, and they are labelled that way wherever they appear. Marine electrical work is not house wiring. Use tinned, finely stranded marine cable, size it for voltage drop and for the ABYC E-11 ampacity table rather than one or the other, and put overcurrent protection within seven inches of the battery positive terminal, because everything between the post and the fuse is unprotected. A lithium battery needs a charger with a lithium profile. Never load a boat past its capacity plate, and remember that canoes and kayaks carry no federal capacity plate at all, so their stated capacity is the manufacturer own figure. Wear the life jacket, and treat early season water as the hazard it is: cold water immersion takes your breath and then your hands long before it takes your core.