Fish Finder for inflatable

yebaws · 20 September 2013, 22:30

Hi,

I have a Honwave 40TE and am looking for a suitable fishfinder. Any suggestions from someone with a similar setup?

Thanks

henryfreston · 20 September 2013, 22:33

You want something nice and small that won't use much power, a black and white lowrance x4, nice and cheap.

lakelandterrier · 20 September 2013, 23:30

There's a plastimo that you can either fix with perm transducer , lead & plug or use with float & trailing wire.

Used this on my A400 with Velcro t omount on console - could use the same on tube

yebaws · 20 September 2013, 23:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by lakelandterrier

There's a plastimo that you can either fix with perm transducer , lead & plug or use with float & trailing wire.

Used this on my A400 with Velcro t omount on console - could use the same on tube

Thanks. That sounds like what I want. Do you know if you can buy separate transducers for them? (then I could use it on my GRP boat as well)

The Gurnard · 21 September 2013, 08:26

Hi Yebaws

Before deciding on the model or price range to go for.. perhaps its best to get an idea of the capabilities and the functions on fish finders so you can better choose one that will suit your fishing requirements. Any fish finder can be used in an inflatable boat.

Example..the Plastimo 300 will not see the bottom of Loch Etive never mind find a fish. (Loch Etive is one of Scotlands most popular sea fishing lochs )

Its too deep.. it goes down to 400ft at places and is sea water.

From the spec of the Plastimo 300..it will show the bottom at 150ft ..although I suspect this will be in fresh water and not salt water..I also doubt if there will be any definition at that depth ..but having never used one ..I could be wrong.

Here is a good web page that tells you about the different things to look for..so you can match them to your fishing requirements..

Read it and you will be in a better position to decide the best type for you.

How To Choose A Fish Finder | Fish Finder Source

yebaws · 21 September 2013, 10:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Gurnard

Hi Yebaws

Before deciding on the model or price range to go for.. perhaps its best to get an idea of the capabilities and the functions on fish finders so you can better choose one that will suit your fishing requirements. Any fish finder can be used in an inflatable boat.

Example..the Plastimo 300 will not see the bottom of Loch Etive never mind find a fish. (Loch Etive is one of Scotlands most popular sea fishing lochs )

Its too deep.. it goes down to 400ft at places and is sea water.

From the spec of the Plastimo 300..it will show the bottom at 150ft ..although I suspect this will be in fresh water and not salt water..I also doubt if there will be any definition at that depth ..but having never used one ..I could be wrong.

Here is a good web page that tells you about the different things to look for..so you can match them to your fishing requirements..

Read it and you will be in a better position to decide the best type for you.

How To Choose A Fish Finder | Fish Finder Source

Thanks for that link. Very useful info. Yes, I want to get something that will actually do what I need, but I'm also looking for something that is small and won't need a 12V battery to run on, which isn't too practical in an inflatable.

Fishing in salt, but probably not below 50M...

boilermaker1 · 21 September 2013, 13:10

I have a Garmin Echo 150 portable. This unit is contained in its own bag with small rechargeable battery and the transducer is on a suction cup but I have it fitted to a rod which clamps to the transom. Very well made unit and works well

stray · 21 September 2013, 18:35

Quote:

but I'm also looking for something that is small and won't need a 12V battery to run on, which isn't too practical in an inflatable.

It's not a problem, just make a transom mount, then you can take the fish finder off quite easily.

You might just be able to make out mine in this picture.

The battery is housed in a waterproof container fixed to the mount.

By the way the Fishfinder is a Lowrance Elite 4 DSI and it's for sale, it's about 4 months old and in mint condition. £120 plus postage (probably about £10). I'm only selling it because I've upgraded to an Elite 5 HDI.

Flyguy · 26 September 2013, 22:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by stray

I'm only selling it because I've upgraded to an Elite 5 HDI.

How is the Elite 5 HDI? I have the Dragonfly but really liked the look of the HDI. Does it do logging like the Elite 7?

stray · 26 September 2013, 22:57

Yes you can log the SONAR and upload it to Insight Genesis to produce detailed maps, at a price.

Pity I can't get hold of of the Dr Depth program.
It the same as the Elite 7 HDI only with a 5" screen.
It's a nice piece of kit.

Locozodiac · 27 September 2013, 01:40

A nonsense tech question : Can a fishfinder detect a flounder flat hidden inside sand bed, or only detects moving fish as in a fish school ?

Happy Boating

stray · 27 September 2013, 09:51

I don't think any fish finder the average man in the street could afford can, but I may be wrong.

yebaws · 28 September 2013, 22:45

What I would really like, and I've never seen one but my guess is that it isn't far away, is a camera that I can lower down from my boat on a wire and see what's going on...

stray · 29 September 2013, 12:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by yebaws

What I would really like, and I've never seen one but my guess is that it isn't far away, is a camera that I can lower down from my boat on a wire and see what's going on...

Have a look on Fleabay.

Underwater Video Camera HD 600TVLines 7" Color LCD Monitor Fishing Fish Finder | eBay

yebaws · 29 September 2013, 19:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by stray

Have a look on Fleabay.

Underwater Video Camera HD 600TVLines 7" Color LCD Monitor Fishing Fish Finder | eBay

The camera fish looks like it would send everything else swimming for it's life! A bit pricey, but it does make me wonder if I could use a waterproof enclosure and cheapie wired camera to do something similar...