Wanted: Chart Plotter

[Claytondj]

Hi all - Just purchased a used RIB (Eagle Osprey 5.6m). Has an ageing Hook 3 device for navigation at the moment but looking to upgrade.

Lots of support on here for all of the major players. Visited the boat show at NEC Birmingham yesterday and every boat had SIMRAD chart plotters but I guess that's a promotion deal struck with SIMRAD.

My needs are navigation rather than fish finding....preferring Navionics for maps.

For use on RIB so need to be robust and stable.

Not wanting to pay the earth but will invest if the device is right for me.

Happy to take advice or be signposted to units available now (new or used)

Regards,

Dave

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Claytondj

Hi all - Just purchased a used RIB (Eagle Osprey 5.6m). Has an ageing Hook 3 device for navigation at the moment but looking to upgrade.



Lots of support on here for all of the major players. Visited the boat show at NEC Birmingham yesterday and every boat had SIMRAD chart plotters but I guess that's a promotion deal struck with SIMRAD.



My needs are navigation rather than fish finding....preferring Navionics for maps.



For use on RIB so need to be robust and stable.



Not wanting to pay the earth but will invest if the device is right for me.



Happy to take advice or be signposted to units available now (new or used)



Regards,



Dave

The hook is a decent little unit & is still current afaik. Simrad/Lowrance/B&G are basically all the same kit in different boxes. Navico is the parent company. I like Lowrance personally, but Garmin also have a good reputation & now own Navionics. I used to avoid Garmin due to the Fisher Price look of their charts, but Garmin now take Navionics, so that obstacle has gone. Nothing wrong with any of the big brands & they all have similar units at a given price point. It’s down to choice.

[Claytondj]

Thanks very much for your views and advice. I’ll see how the Hook 3 performs and if I decide to upgrade I’ll definitely take a look at Garmin. Is there anything specific I need to look for or avoid. Any model attracting strong reviews?

Regards

Dave

[GuyC]

I'm a Garmin fan and have a 95SV which I like.

My advice would be to go for the biggest screen size you can.

Don't forget you'll need a transducer if you want depth information.

[diver 1]

I've always been a big Lowrance fan but their customer service has taken a real nose dive lately and as PD says above Garmin have 'stepped up to the mark' with the introduction of Navionics charts. Like GuyC I've just fitted a Garmin 95SV to my Ribcraft 6.8 and its a cracking bit of kit to use. Get the biggest screen you can, and flush mount it if at all possible.

[Claytondj]

Thank you gents - I’ll see if the budget will stretch to the Garmin 95sv

Dave

[diver 1]

Tip - measure up first and see where it will fit. They do smaller and larger versions. Make sure where ever / however you mount it that its not restricting your field of view.

You can see in my photo here that the 95SV was the maximum size I could fit with the available space. Previously someone had mounted one on top of the console on the port side but I've found this can restrict the passengers field of view and becomes quite annoying particularly during night time navigation (even with the brightness set to minimal)

I very nearly bought a 10" Hummingbird unit which was a great price on Ebay, but having found the installation manual and cutting template online I found it wouldn't quite fit in the required space.

[mikehhogg]

A mate of mine uses a cheap notebook or tablet ,suscribed to navionics app and its as good for navigation as any device at a fraction of the cost. no depth sounder though

[DIVER2454]

Hi I have just fitted a Garmin Echomap 95 UHD as I liked the easy removal from the cradle plus I had the mapping from my handheld 75 which i loved for diving, and we found all the wrecks we were looking for. I also fitted the garmin AIS system it all looks good at the moment so Garmin form me.

[DIVER2454]

Just a few pictures to show my setup and the cradle so you are not mucking about with cables at the back when you want to take it off.

[jonp]

I had Lowrence and simrad units for over 20yrs but moved over to Garmin two years ago and couldn't be happier. I do still have a Simrad in my boat which is used in the network but like most simrad units, switches itself off when I hit a few waves hard. I skipper urchin and abalone boats as well as skipper a few small game fishing boats for friends, each one that has Simrad has the same issues of turning off when we hit big sea's (mostly 16inch models). I also find the touch screens of Simrad to be temperamental to say the least!!!

I have a Garmin 8410 and an 8412 on its way to replace my simrad junk. My daughter, also a local game fishing charter skipper has Garmin in her own boat and the two she skipper's, simply because they are the most reliable the owner of the business has used over his 30yrs of business.