Rod holder quality

GW doesn't use an aggressive adhesive caulk on anything I have removed. Usually is't a silicone product. The holders on my 268 Islander were cheap GW logo'ed ones with plastic bases and pins. They looked ok but the plastic pins sheared and didn't hold the rod properly. I drilled them out and put a stainless bolt thru them. I added a few more better quality rod holders.

Actually, you have chromed bronze holders - which are not cheap, by any means. They will outlast pretty much anything else. The downside is the chrome part - it is an aesthetic finish that requires upkeep to keep it nice. But, like chromed bronze thru-hulls, once the pitting starts you really have to keep up on it to keep it from getting worse - and even then it's tough.

They shouldn't be hard to remove - whatever caulk is there is simply for sealing purposes - not a securing purpose.

keep in mind that they are through bolted, not screwed. so if you dont have access to the back side, you have to drill out the bolts and then use screws to secure the new ones

Odd... I had/have the older flattened style of Grady White rod holders on my 2004 Grady White 228 Seafarer and they looked/still look quite nice. Not sure if they changed the materials used on them over the years, but the new ones are not chromed, they are a polished stainless steel. Though maybe they're a lesser quality of stainless steel that are used on them? I'm not sure. Anyway, when I first bought my boat back in October of 2021, it didn't have downriggers on it, so I bought two Scotty downriggers and then debated what I wanted to do for mounting them. They come with the cheap, black plastic bases that I'm not a huge fan of, so I was considering going that route and then I found a company called Burnewiin mounts. Of which I added the stainless steel versions of those to my boat, and they are very nice looking. I ended up removing the two rear GW rod holders that came with my boat, replacing them with the Burnewiin brand mentioned above, of which they were very easy to remove, at least on my particular application. Your boat is roughly 10 years newer than mine and a different model, so I'm not sure about how easy the access would be on your particular boat, but it was super easy doing it on mine. Anyway, the Burnewiin brand mounts were easy to install as well as they covered up any holes or discoloration where the old ones were. I believe I only had to drill one extra hole per mount/side, which wasn't a big deal at all and removal was quite easy, with just a little bit of silicone used, so no chipping or cracking on the gel coat or fiberglass. I love the look of the Burnewiin mounts though, they look kind of stock looking but more aggressive and they are extremely versatile. The new GW mounts are available from several different locations online, attached is a link below to Amazon, where they're also sold at. Also attached below are a couple pictures of my setup, though I know it's not for everyone, as not everyone uses downriggers for fishing. Good luck.