The Next Generation of Fishing Rod Carriers Is Getting Noticed

September 15, 2026

Trxstle ARC adjustable rooftop fishing rod carrier mounted on a vehicle with fully rigged rods

For years, rooftop fishing rod carriers largely followed the same formula.

Long, fixed-length tubes. Limited adjustability. Designs built primarily around fly rods.

We thought the category could do more.

The Trxstle ARC System is changing what a rooftop fishing rod carrier can be—carrying baitcasting, spinning, fly, spey, centerpin and surf setups in one adjustable, locking system.

After more than three years of design, engineering and testing, we introduced the ARC to the broader fishing industry at ICAST 2025.

People noticed.

Since then, the ARC has been highlighted by fishing media, tested by retailers and put to work by anglers carrying everything from bass and walleye setups to muskies, trout and spey rods.

Here's why.

Trxstle ARC conventional fishing rod carrier holding fully rigged baitcasting and spinning rods

A Rod Carrier Built Beyond Fly Fishing

Fly fishing helped establish the modern rooftop rod carrier category.

But conventional tackle presents an entirely different engineering problem.

Baitcasters are different.

Spinning reels are different.

Centerpin setups are different.

Surf rods are different.

Rear handles get longer. Guide frames get larger. Reel dimensions change dramatically from one technique to another.

Trying to make all of that equipment fit into a carrier originally designed around traditional fly rods wasn't the answer.

So we started over.

The result was the Trxstle ARC System — Adjustable Rod Carry, a rooftop fishing rod carrier engineered from the beginning around virtually every rod style.

The ARC can carry 2–6 fully rigged rods and reels, depending on the size and configuration of the equipment. Oversized 3.3-inch suspended soft-wall rod liners provide clearance for larger guides, while a 22-inch reel compartment provides the space needed for conventional reels, longer handles and a wide variety of setups.

Spinning. Baitcasting. Centerpin. Surf. Fly. spey.

One carrier. Virtually any rod setup.

Trxstle ARC adjustable fishing rod carrier telescoping from 6 feet 6 inches to 10 feet

Infinite Adjustment — While It's Still on the Vehicle

Adjustability has been part of Trxstle rod carriers from the beginning.

With the ARC, we took it considerably further.

The ARC's patented telescopic platform provides continuous length adjustment from 6'6" to 10' while the carrier remains mounted to the vehicle. No predetermined length positions. No removing the carrier to change its size. No tools required.

Reference lengths are laser-etched directly onto the aluminum so anglers can quickly identify and return to a preferred setup.

Running shorter bass rods today?

Longer spinning setups tomorrow?

Taking a 10-foot rod on the next trip?

Adjust the carrier to the equipment you're actually carrying.

The idea is simple:

The rod carrier should adapt to the angler—not the other way around.

For dimensions, capacity, adjustment and additional technical information, see the ARC Support & Specifications page.

Protection Designed Around Fully Rigged Rods

Getting different rod styles into the carrier was only part of the challenge.

They also had to be protected.

The ARC uses proprietary suspended soft-wall rod liners to isolate rods from the structural aluminum exterior while providing significantly more clearance than a traditional fly rod carrier.

Inside the reel compartment, three rubber-lined adjustable dividers can be repositioned around different reel and handle configurations. Gas struts support the hatch while it's open, and the weather-resistant housing helps protect equipment from the road and elements.

The result is something conventional anglers haven't traditionally had in this category:

A purpose-built rooftop carrier that allows multiple styles of expensive fishing equipment to stay rigged, organized, protected and ready to fish.

Security Shouldn't Be an Upgrade

A rod carrier designed to protect expensive fishing equipment is only as secure as the system holding it to the vehicle.

That's why locking mounts come standard with the ARC.

The ARC's universal mounting system uses all-metal mounts with stainless steel construction, rubberized contact surfaces and lock-and-key security.

The reel compartment locks separately.

Mounting hardware and locks are included with the system.

From the structural aluminum body to stainless hardware and corrosion-resistant materials, the ARC was engineered as a complete vehicle-mounted system—not simply a box for fishing rods.

Trxstle ARC fishing rod carrier displayed at ICAST 2025 in Orlando Florida

Then We Took the ARC to ICAST

In 2025, after more than three years of development, we brought the ARC to ICAST and entered it in the show's New Product Showcase.

ICAST is the world's largest sportfishing trade show. The 2025 event brought together more than 12,000 industry professionals from 78 countries and approximately 600 exhibitors across more than 200,000 square feet of show floor.

The ARC didn't win its New Product Showcase category, and we're not going to pretend that it did.

Something else happened that mattered to us:

People started talking about it.

The ARC put a rod carrier designed around conventional and fly fishing in front of retailers, media, industry professionals and anglers from across the fishing world.

The independent coverage that followed focused on many of the same problems we had spent years trying to solve.

Flylords and House of Fly coverage of the Trxstle ARC fishing rod carrier after ICAST 2025

Flylords: Among the Best New Fishing Gear at ICAST 2025

Following ICAST, Flylords included the ARC in its coverage of the Best New Fly Fishing Gear of ICAST 2025.

Their coverage specifically highlighted something fundamental to the ARC: it isn't limited to fly rods.

Flylords called attention to its ability to carry conventional and fly fishing equipment, extend to 10 feet, organize different rod setups and keep equipment ready for transport.

That distinction matters.

The ARC wasn't developed to be another fly rod carrier.

It was developed to bring the protection and convenience of a dedicated rooftop rod carrier to anglers who fish far beyond a single technique.

Reference: Flylords — The Best New Fly Fishing Gear of ICAST 2025

House of Fly: A Top 5 New Product at ICAST

House of Fly also selected the ARC as one of its Top 5 New Fly-Fishing Products at ICAST 2025.

What makes its coverage especially interesting is that the publication openly acknowledged mixed feelings about rooftop rod carriers in general.

After looking at the ARC, however, House of Fly specifically highlighted its compatibility with different rod styles, sliding aluminum construction, internal dividers, locking system and gas-strut-assisted housing.

Its conclusion was pretty straightforward: the team agreed they'd want one on top of their own rigs.

For us, that's meaningful.

We didn't spend three-plus years developing the ARC because the fishing industry needed another rooftop tube.

We built it because we thought the category itself could be better.

The ARC Is Getting Noticed Beyond Fly Fishing

Perhaps the most important response has come from the anglers the ARC was specifically created to serve.

Bass anglers.

Walleye anglers.

Musky anglers.

Spinning anglers.

Multi-species fishermen who may own a fly rod—but also have a garage full of conventional tackle.

One ARC owner, Dan Collins, summed it up better than we could:

“Finally a rod holder that holds all my rods.”

Dan describes fishing baitcasting equipment for muskies, jigging setups for walleye, spinning gear for smallmouth and fly fishing equipment for trout. The same ARC carries those different setups while keeping them rigged and ready when he gets to the water.

That's exactly the problem we designed it to solve.

Another ARC owner, Joshua Nelson, specifically called out being able to carry up to six fully rigged rods and immediately start fishing when he arrives. He also highlighted the universal mounting system on his Tacoma and Yakima rack setup.

See the ARC Carry Different Rod Styles

One of the best ways to understand why the ARC is different is to see someone actually load it.

In this independent walkthrough, the ARC is put to the test with different rod and reel setups to see just how much equipment can fit inside a single carrier.

Watch: A Rod Locker That Carries All Styles of Rods Up to 10ft — The ARC from Trxstle

And the concept is beginning to receive validation outside Trxstle and fishing-specific media, too.

eTrailer now describes the ARC as a locking rooftop carrier for “all fishing rods,” specifically identifying compatibility with fly rods, baitcasters, spinning setups, saltwater equipment, two-handed rods and most surf rods. Its independent product demonstration also highlights the ARC's 6'6"–10' adjustability, covered rod protection and locking construction.

That's the audience we wanted the ARC to reach from the beginning.

Built for the Angler Who Doesn't Fish Just One Way

The modern angler doesn't necessarily fit neatly into one category.

One weekend might mean four baitcasters for bass.

The next might mean spinning rods for walleye.

Then salmon rods.

Centerpin gear.

A trip to the coast.

Or a fly rod when the opportunity presents itself.

Why should the rod carrier permanently dictate which of those setups can go on the roof?

The ARC was designed around the opposite idea.

Whatever you fish. Bring it.

For rods up to 10 feet, that can mean carrying them fully assembled and rigged.

For rods longer than 10 feet, including many surf and two-handed setups, the ARC can accommodate rods broken or collapsed into sections while remaining rigged, allowing them to be reconnected quickly at the water.

It's one system designed around the reality that fishing equipment—and fishermen—vary enormously.

Designed, Engineered and Built in Helena, Montana

The ARC began in Helena.

Our team spent more than three years designing, prototyping, testing and refining the system before bringing it to market.

Today, we manufacture a growing number of components in-house, perform light manufacturing and finishing operations here, and build and assemble every ARC System in Helena, Montana.

Each carrier is inspected, processed and fulfilled by our team here as well.

That gives us something we value enormously as product designers:

A direct connection between the people designing the equipment, the people building it and the anglers actually using it.

And we're still improving it.

This Is Where Fishing Rod Carriers Are Going

The ARC wasn't designed to be another version of the rooftop rod carrier anglers already knew.

It was designed around what we thought the category could become.

One carrier. Virtually every rod style.

Adjustable from 6'6" to 10'.

Fully rigged. Protected. Locked to the vehicle.

The fishing industry started noticing at ICAST.

Fishing media noticed afterward.

And now anglers are putting ARC Systems on trucks and SUVs and using them for exactly what we built them to do:

Bring whatever they fish.

If you're comparing rooftop rod carriers and want a deeper look at protection, adjustability, compatibility, construction and what separates one system from another, read our guide to What Is the Best Fishing Rod Carrier? What Actually Sets the Best Apart.

ARC System FAQ

What is the best rod carrier for conventional fishing rods?

The best conventional fishing rod carrier should accommodate the larger guides, reels and handles found on spinning, baitcasting, centerpin, surf and other conventional setups while protecting rods during vehicle transport. The Trxstle ARC System was engineered specifically around these requirements and carries 2–6 fully rigged rods depending on equipment size and configuration.

Can a rooftop rod carrier hold baitcasting rods?

Yes. The ARC System is designed to carry baitcasting rods and reels along with spinning, fly, centerpin, spey and many surf setups. Its oversized rod liners and configurable reel compartment were designed around the different dimensions found across conventional tackle.

Can the ARC carry spinning rods?

Yes. The ARC was engineered to carry fully rigged spinning rods. Its 3.3-inch suspended soft-wall rod liners provide clearance for larger guides, while its oversized reel compartment accommodates spinning reels and longer rear handles.

How long is the Trxstle ARC fishing rod carrier?

The ARC continuously adjusts from approximately 6'6" to 10' while mounted to the vehicle. Rods up to 10 feet can be transported fully assembled, while many longer rods can remain rigged and be transported broken or collapsed into sections.

How many fishing rods does the ARC hold?

The ARC is designed to carry 2–6 fully rigged rods and reels. Actual capacity depends on reel size, rod handles and how the equipment is configured inside the carrier. It always carriers at least, often carries more than 6.

Does the ARC fishing rod carrier lock?

Yes. The ARC includes locking all-metal vehicle mounts as standard equipment, and the reel compartment has its own locking latch.

Is the ARC only for fly fishing?

No. The ARC was specifically engineered to go beyond fly fishing. It accommodates spinning rods, baitcasters, centerpin setups, fly rods, spey rods, saltwater equipment and many surf rods.

Where is the Trxstle ARC made?

Every ARC System is built and assembled by the Trxstle team in Helena, Montana. Trxstle also manufactures a growing number of components and performs light manufacturing and finishing operations in-house.