Fish Finder

[CRD]

Being new to boating and boat fishing I thought it would be a good idea to get a fish finder. I never imagined it would be such a difficult task to choose one. Do you think a £500 budget would be enough or more like double that!

 

[CliveF]

you should be able to get a more than adequate one for that price AND it should include a GPS / plotter. That way you can record the good marks to find them again later.
Fish finder is a bit of a missnomer as they are ( IMO ) only fair at best for indicating fish. BUT as an echo sounder so you can sea what sort of ground you are on and any structure that is likely to hold fish they are brilliant. If you look for ones that do ECHO and CHIRP you can have the best of both worlds. General echo for depth and type of ground ( mud , sand, rock etc ) CHIRP for getting a good look at detail like weed, ropes, snags and overhangs.

I have a Garmin 5 EDI (£500) that does all of the above on the kayak. Overkill i know but it is nice to have a play.
I also have a lowrance hook 2 ( £100 )on a small row boat which is great as a simple echo sounder for depth and ground type.

Regards Clive

 

[Reel Time]

Could also look at the Garmin STRIKER 4 range they get good reviews.

 

[CRD]

Thanks.
I've looked at the Garmin units and if the marine gear is anything like their car satnavs I would be very happy.
The Striker Plus 9SV seems a good bit of kit.

 

[pvb]

Thanks.
I've looked at the Garmin units and if the marine gear is anything like their car satnavs I would be very happy.
The Striker Plus 9SV seems a good bit of kit.

Be aware that the Striker doesn't have any capability to use chart cartridges; it has GPS so you can enter waypoints, but you can't use it as a simple plotter.

 

[LONG_KEELER]

Could also look at the Garmin STRIKER 4 range they get good reviews.

I bought one last season for the first time. I'm not interested in fishing but very interested in the nature of the bottom where I might dry out (lift keel).

It also has GPS with waypoints etc and you can choose what fields show on the screen. It is also accurate to about half a metre. The various screens also make things a lot more fun. Full colour too. I tend to have speed over the ground and depth as a default screen but a touch of a button lets you view other stuff quickly.

Two downsides for a yacht. The transducer will not work as a through hull in a bath of liquid like most other stand alone depth finders. It means you have to sight the transducer
on the outside of the transom or in an outboard well if you have one. The other issue is
actually reading the screen. It takes some time to actually read the screen and understand
what it all means, i.e. mud, rock, weed, sand etc. I'm still learning.

For the price of about £130 it's a wonder.

 

[CalicoJack]

I have recently brought a Garmin Echomap because it was capable of transmitting through our thick GRP hull and worked as a chartplotter in its own right. A very good piece of kit, far better than the Lowrance unit I had been assured would do the job, but never actually delivered.

 

[fisherman]

The most basic commercial model is about £500.

 

[QBhoy]

I think you could hire a diver to go get the fish, for £500.
yeah. You’d easily get one for half that. If it’s a plotter and sounder you want, you’ll still get a good enough one for that.

 

[fisherman]

Commercial. it's down to screen size, colour, bottom discrimination, frequency choices, bottom expansion, ect ect.

Here you go, £2799
Furuno FCV295 Professional Echosounder (FCV295)

Transducer extra......

 

[Alfie168]

Look at the Raymarine Dragonfly 5 pro. They have map card slots and CHIRP. Beware there are different versions with similar sounding names and varying ( lesser) functionality. The screen is excellent, if a bit small....but I think there is a 7 inch model as well.

 

[enriqueramos]

Could also look at the Garmin STRIKER 4 range they get good reviews.

Garmin Striker 4, undoubtedly sits in the top position for being the perfect fish locator available in the market. Talking of the gadget, it has got a compact and sleek design. On the other hand, it has got this wide-view LCD display that is helpful in showing the sonographic images. Garmin Striker 4 really is a jack of all traders in terms of locating and scanning the hunting area. It can become a good hunting buddy of yours for sure.

 

[Alex233]

Being new to boating and boat fishing I thought it would be a good idea to get a fish finder. I never imagined it would be such a difficult task to choose one. Do you think a £500 budget would be enough or more like double that!

Thanks for letting us know.