I have been looking at fish finders for my 18 foot fiberglass ski boat (actually, I am telling my wife it is more of a depth finder than fish finder), and I have a couple questions:
1) What are some opinions on the best fish finder as far as bang for the buck--not something extremely expensive, but something that works well.
2) How difficult is it to mount these fish finders to fiberglass boats? Should I take the finder to a dealer and pay to have them install it, or should I try to do it myself?
Any thoughts would be appreciated...
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They are super easy to install, now if I can figure out how to use all the features, if you get a basic model they arent too complicated. Just find out what you need and go from thier, I got a hummingbird and have no problems with it but check reviews on them before you purchase.
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I mounted a teflon board on my aluminum boat and a buddy who has a fiberglass did the same thing. It alows you to mount several things and move them around if needed. I have never drilled in Fiberglass but my buddy says you can screw up. Think about it, you are drilling holes in your boat below water line. I know drilling the right size pilot holes for your screws so the fiberglass does not crack is important and using a real good marine grade sealer on your screw heads is also important. There will be someone with a fiberglass boat that will give you good advise. Just make sure it is exactly where you want it when you start drilling. Good luck...Fishon
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+1 on mounting some kind of a board on your transom to mount your transducer. I went the cheapo way and got an old polyethylene cutting board (at least 3/8" thick, 1/2" is better), cut a piece out of it and shaped the bottom side to conform to the bottom strakes of my fiberglass boat. Used four stainless screws and used 3M 5200 sealant on the screw threads and on the edges of the PE board. Let dry overnight and the board should be good to go. I've heard a lot of good things about the Garmin 300c for about $200. I'm looking at it very seriously to replace my 240.
You may need to make some adjustments on the way your transducer rides on the water when you're on plane. Too low and you will get a good rooster tail from your xducer, which may cause some damage to your mounting hardware. Too high and your bottom reading will be erratic. Another thing to watch out for is the angle of the transducer in relation to your transom. I have the bottom of my transducer about an 1/8" below the bottom of my transom and a degree or so tilted towards the bow. Your new unit should come with the necessary hardware for all this alignment stuff. Garmin ships their FFs with transducer mount shims to achieve the optimum angle.
Good luck with your purchase!
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