fish finder advice

[legg]

Hi all

I hope the tope meet goes well I will join you for the next one all being well.

 

My friend martin has just decided to join us; he has fished of mine and really enjoyed it.

So the time has come for him to order a p13, I can help with most of his questions but not on the fish finder.

I took mine of the boat before I sold it, so nether bother finding out which was best.

Can you help him?

john

[SpeciMan]

Hi John

 

In terms of the best hard to say - I don't think there is a best one due to individual preference for different features (eg some may prefer portable ones other fixed, some may prefer small compact units others with larger screens). In general though the Humminbird Matrix models are highly regarded by kayak fisherman and their range starts from just over £100 if you can find a good deal. For finders under £100, the Eagle units are quite popular with some but not with others.

 

Perhaps as you have found yourself, theres no rush to fit everything once you get a kayak. Martin could fish from his P13 for a while, read reviews on various finders and then take it from there.

[Starvinmarvin]

Something worth looking at is the length of Warranty, the finders take quite a hammering on a kayak, they get a good dose of salt on most outings, they get submerged if your unlucky. Contacts are delicate things, and worth making sure that they are well sealed. Display units need to be sealed as well.

 

I've been using Humminbird's on all my kayaks over the last 3 years and have been extremely happy with them, the electrical contacts are still in perfect condition even with a few people managing to test them to their limits, hey Darnsarf, if you do get a problem you get the excellent backing of Johnson Outdoors who are the new distributors.

 

Like Speciman has said there are also good units from Eagle, Garmin, Raymarine etc, buy the best you can afford, don't forget that you are going to need to spend a further £40 on battery, charger and battery box.

 

SM

[legg]

thank you for your help .

He has decided to wait as you said and use my spare portable ff, I think he is going to get a Humminbird later in the year

 

Edited June 12, 2006 by legg

[Simon Everett]

What I can say is that I saw the suction cup transducer in action in Sardinia - and it works brilliantly.

 

It does add drag - but you can pull it off and put it in the cockpit for difficult paddling - then just reach over and stick it back on again when you need to search for fish/bottom features etc.

[darnsarf]

Yep. I can certainly vouch to the Hummingbirds ability to work upside down and underwater. Still wouldnt swap one for my Lowrance though. Just an opinion.

[Candwr Yak]

Thanks guys for all the replies to John's original post, I am the mate referred to in his post.

 

I have finally taken the plunge and joined the yak brigade after many years whitewater canoeing (at least this way I get to do two things I enjoy). I must say what a helpful bunch you all are and I'm looking forward to posting some catch reports here soon.

 

Got a tope weekend lined up mid July in mid Wales - should be fun

 

thx again & tight lines

 

Candwr

[Elton]

I've not tried one yet, but are the ones at the top of this page any use? They're portable, come on 20 foot of cable and work to 80 feet.

[Zzippy]

I've not tried one yet, but are the ones at the top of this page any use? They're portable, come on 20 foot of cable and work to 80 feet.

Hiya Elton.

Dont waste your money on one of those.I bought one last year,Its ok if you just want to find the depth.But it picks up weed and shows it as fish.Plus you get no bottom or structure view on it.

It might be ok for Carp fishermen so they can paddle out in a big lake and find where the deep holes are!!

Zzippy

[Hake]

I used to have a Garmin portable FF, which had a suction cup mount for the TX. Stuck well to everything except antifoul...not a problem on a yak, but a major bummer when you hire an anti-fouled boat and the only way to get the thing to stick is so high above the waterline that the TX isn't actually in the water