Fish finder

[DccFISHerMan]

Im lookin for an inexpensive fish finder for my tube, any recommendations

[calico killer kevin]

Humminbird PiranhaMax 220.

[DccFISHerMan]

what did u use to power the unit?

[LBSea]

Eagle/Cuda are good units and good price $109.00 for FF or $199.00 with FF and GPS. For the power on my float tube I used an 8-AA battery tray from radio shack at $2.99 and the 9volt plug thingy that plugs into the tray and has a red and black wire. Wire the red and black into the power cord on the FF and you have the lightest setup you can get. This will usually last me 3-4 5hr trips.

[mg2969]

I second LBSea recommendations and implementation.
Its exactly how I rig my kayak.
However a few technical notes need to be addressed
with Rechargeable AAs
1. Regular AA produce 1.5v x 8 = 12volts
2. Rechargeable AA only produce 1.2 = 9. 6 !!!

A. The cudas as well as most (i think) FFs have an operating range for voltage of 9-19 V.
B. The 1.2 V are what rechargeable AA are guaranteed to do
(not what they actually can do).
High quality / high mAh batteries can put out more but are not guaranteed

So what does this mean
1. Radio shack 8 pack holder is great since it has a snap on and off connector built it (the standard 9 V type)
2. If you can find a 10 pack holder WITH the 9v connector go for it
3. Get high quality batteries
4. Don't forget the 9 volt snaps with the +/- leads to tie into the FF, that way you can snap and snap off the battery pack as one unit

NO NiCADs (the mAh are usually pretty low like 700mAh),
USE NiMH minimum 2000mAh preferrably 2500mAh

Recommend Energizer or Lenmar (frys has lenmar)
Can't vouch for their usage but harbor freight 2000 or 2200 mAh might work ok too

2000 - http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=90148


2200 - http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=97866

[ElementX]

I have a pirahnamax 230 portable. Kinda like the 220 model, except it also includes the smartcast transducer too. But anyways, if you don't want to go with the additional battery pack like described above, you can get the "portable" version of the Humminbird FF's. They're usually like $30 more but have a base that takes the 8 AA batteries. The transducer cord wraps around the base which also has a built in handle for easy carry.

I paid $200 I think. You can get the Eagle Cuda 168 for under $100.

If i could do it over, I'd get the Eagle Cuda FF/GPS model for what I paid for my Piranhnamax 230.

[Skyler]

I have the Humminbird PiranhaMax 160 PT portable unit on my kayak. It uses a dual beam transducer, and actually picks up fish pretty well. Pretty compact, but still easy to read, and it shows a lot of detail for a $130 sonar unit. Amazingly enough, the fish ID and fish alarm features actually work quite well, lol. I can even drop my line down and see my lure on the screen. I got the one with the sealed 12 volt battery, as I didn't want to deal with a bunch of AA's. Great battery life for sure. I'm quite satisfied with it so far.

[LBSea]

One more thing I wanted to add about my Eagle/Cuda FFw/GSP. I have an older model but the new 250 looks pretty much the same. Anyway I have two transducers, one on my ODC420 tube and one on my OK Prowler kayak so I just plug the unit into whatever one I am using. While hooping on my yak two years ago I flipped it and by the time I was out of the water the FF had been completely submerged for at least 10 minutes. I thought the unit would be toast but it still works great and there have never been any ill effects for being underwater for soo long! Don't let the GREAT price scare you away if you are looking at this unit it is awsome for the price.

Side note: Half the crap you see on the screen are not fish, I use the depth finder for just that, structure and depth. Now if you get a color FF then you can see the real differance between weeds, trash and real fish the fish will show as RED. On my unit I usually set my sensativity to 75% and that screens out most of the static and non fish targets you will pickup.

[Skyler]

One more thing I wanted to add about my Eagle/Cuda FFw/GSP. I have an older model but the new 250 looks pretty much the same. Anyway I have two transducers, one on my ODC420 tube and one on my OK Prowler kayak so I just plug the unit into whatever one I am using. While hooping on my yak two years ago I flipped it and by the time I was out of the water the FF had been completely submerged for at least 10 minutes. I thought the unit would be toast but it still works great and there have never been any ill effects for being underwater for soo long! Don't let the GREAT price scare you away if you are looking at this unit it is awsome for the price.

Side note: Half the crap you see on the screen are not fish, I use the depth finder for just that, structure and depth. Now if you get a color FF then you can see the real differance between weeds, trash and real fish the fish will show as RED. On my unit I usually set my sensativity to 75% and that screens out most of the static and non fish targets you will pickup.

Good point about setting the sensitivity lower. I run mine at 8 out of ten. If I turn it all the way up I certainly see everything, but that can also mean a suspended weed looks like a fish. Either way, common sense can help you to tell fish from other crap. Just look carefully at the shape of the arch. After a couple days of practice you should be able to tell the difference between a fish and a sunken bouy, etc.

Also, if you are running an outboard or trolling motor, MAKE SURE TO TURN ON THE FILTER. As for the waterproof thing, yep, definitely important for kayak fishing. When my sonar unit arrived the first thing I did after charging it was to submerge it in my sink for like five minutes. Amazingly, these things are as waterproof as they say. Mine worked flawlessly, even WHILE SUBMERGED! If it failed, i would have sent it straight back to BPS. Seriously, it's a good idea to always test your gear hard during the return period. Keeps you from being ripped in the long run, lol.

[greg]

I purchased a Bottomline Fishin Buddy 2 over 15 years ago for use on rental boats and my float tube. When this unit eventally died, I picked up a Bottomline Fishin Buddy 1101 but returned it to Amazon since the readings were not accurate. I then ordered the Hummingbird Fishin Buddy 120 but it had the same problem and returned it to Amazon. I ended up getting another Fishin Buddy 2 on e-bay (used) for $50 and I'm back being a happy fisherman. It uses 3 "C" batteries which lasts me 6-7 days with it on for 8 hours a day. You can pick up the strap to hold your Fishin Buddy in place at any fly fishing shop for around $15.