HELP with fish finder selection!

[Durdy Daug]

Looking for suggestions about a fish finder, I want to get a 5" screen, in color, complete with CHIRP, down scan and if possible side scan, GPS is a must as well. I do not want to spend more than $500 if at all possible, I currently have 4 different Lowrance fish finders, a black and white 3 that has GPS, a 5x black and white, these are on my 1995 boat, on my 2016 boat I have a 4 elite CHIRP and a 5 Elite CHIRP in the bow. the old boats 5x is not working so well so I want to upgrade it. I had planned on selling the 1995 Spectrum, but now that I have discovered the river at Blythe, I find that my 17' Spectrum is ideal. I have already upgraded the seats, rewired the entire trailer, and most of the motor, replaced the shift and throttle cables, had the Carburetor overhauled, and added a "Macs River Runner" to the Skeg and propeller Now the only thing that I think that I need to make it even better is a new up to date awesome fish finder. Hoping I can get some suggestions before the first Tuesday in May.

[twin22s]

I don't know if a 5" screen is big enough to take advantage of all the features you listed. If I had down scan, side scan, sonar, and GPS I'd want a screen big enough to split into 3-4 sections to see them all at the same time. Seems like it would be a pain to switch back and forth. If your budget is the biggest issue maybe look for a deal on eBay or Amazon. Personally I don't see much difference in performance in different brands just buttons and interface so stick with a brand you are familiar with if you can. The three that fit your criteria the best are:
elite 5 ti; has a touch screen for easier menu navigation
Elite 7 CHIRP; larger screen and my pick for that price range
Hook 7 not much different than the elite 7 but has less sonar frequency settings
http://www.lowrance.com/en-US/Products/Fishfinder-Chartplotter/
The Elite 5 Ti is the only one of the three that has structure scan(side scan) so you might prefer that one if that is that important to you. If you go that route though I recommend the 7" $200 more but when you start splitting the screens that 5" is going to get awful small awful fast.

[riverbud55]

Heard good things about the Humminbird HELIX, with si comes in right a $500 for their 5'' whith may be to small for you, a 7'' runs about $200 more, it has no chirp but if your going to be using it on the river with 90% of the less then 10' deep not much need of it,,, all I have read about chirp its real benefits are in deeper waters,,, not going to see much on any finder in 5 foot of water looking down,, the side imaging is of much more benefit,, pretty much all a conventual FF is going to give you on the river is depth and water temp,, the GPS is going to be your most useful tool especially at night,,,

in the pic running 22 mph in 3.8 ft of water and the had been running in 2.5ft to 5ft and those kind of depth are more often then not , water temp was a nice 84,, and also in the pic right above the ff along the far shore is where I got the flat in my avatar

[Durdy Daug]

So what benefits will I lose with the "Hook 7"

[Durdy Daug]

What is the big difference between the Elite 7 ti and the hook 7? I suppose that I can afford the 7, if it is going to really make my fishing more successful. The other question is what is the big difference between the Elite 7 Ti "downscan" imaging and the Elite 7 Ti "StructureScan". I am looking to make the but tomorrow from Bass Pro Shops. I want to have my boat all ready to fish the river from Blythe next weekend, I need to buy 2 more seats and the fish finder, I should wait until May to get the additional 15% savings, but I am really impatient... As usual.

[Durdy Daug]

Well, I ended up getting the hook 7, I considered the fact that this boat will mostly be used on the river @ Blythe, and I believe that the deepest part is like less than 25 feet, so I really don't see the need for all the extras that I was at once thinking that I needed, now I will just have to figure out how to mark my original location on the river and learn how to use the GPS to get me back to the point of origin. I will be using the depth finder a lot looking for the cat fish holes. I'm going to take along an AC plug and see if I can convince a striper to take a bite...

[DEVOREFLYER]

If you have tracking turned on you will leave a trail like Hansel & Gretel on your GPS screen, just follow the crumbs/trail back to where you came from. I have never erased my tracks from some lakes and it looks like the LA freeways. The track feature is very helpful when fishing the Delta with literally 100's of backwaters and canals to navigate through and back.

With two boats I would have bought the more featured unit and swapped them back and fourth between the two boats.

[Durdy Daug]

Once again, I thank you and am in your debt. Just how do I turn on the tracking feature?

[DEVOREFLYER]

When you are on the Chart/map page on the screen go to setup. You should find "Trails" and turn it on. It may be already set to on from the factory. My manual isn't handy or I could look it up to be certain but I believe that to be correct. It is not called tracking but "Trails".

[DEVOREFLYER]

When you are on the Chart/map page on the screen go to setup. You should find "Trails" and turn it on. It may be already set to on from the factory. My manual isn't handy or I could look it up to be certain but I believe that to be correct. It is not called tracking but "Trails".

Correction: When you are on the Chart/map page on the screen press menu go to setup. You should find "Chart Data" find "Trails" and turn it on. It may be already set to on from the factory.

[Durdy Daug]

Thank you, the boat is once again in the shop getting the wheel barring's replaced. I will pick it up on Friday morning, then I'm
'm going to pack the truck and then off to Blythe at 04:00 Saturday morning. My plan is to set up camp in the morning, hopefully sleep for a few hours and then get out on the water about 16:00, and fish till 08:00, then back to the tent to sleep during the day and get up eat and fish the evening and through out the night. Planning on fishing for red ear in the late afternoon till dark, then take the catch to a different, hopefully find a deep hole and fish for cat fish through the night. I bought an underwater light to hopefully increase my chances at getting that big cat or possibly even a big striper, Not sure if striper bite at night or not, but I do know that the night time is the right time for the cats!

[BULLDOGBOOGERS]

Good Luck Buddy.....on the Fish-Finder, and in Blythe. Like I told you on the Phone the Boys and I will be rollin out the first week of May, Tues till Fri if the heat is not 2 bad the Water level should be up so we won't have to worry about the sand Bars....but still keep one eye out for them ! That River is sometimes unforgiving....so hit those back-waters for the Bluegills...and catch those Flatheads at night.

[Durdy Daug]

Where do you suggest that I fish for the flatheads at night? the back waters or the main river?
PS. I would love to join your group if at all possible, I will just hang around where you all are fishing in my own boat. I don't drink and am quite quiet and reserved! Simply want to meet fellow freshwater anglers and learn different techniques and spots.

[Durdy Daug]

I called the sheriff station today just to ensure that I was operating within the law, the answer was that as long as I am in a rural area I can open carry a pistol, however it must be completely unloaded and visible, the magazines can be fully loaded with 10 rounds or less and can be carried in my pocket. That is the law for California, but if I cross the boarder into Arizona, I can open carry my pistol fully loaded. That really doesn't make a lot of since to me as it is pretty easy to reach into my pocket and retrieve my fully loaded magazine, and load the weapon, but never the less that is what they explained as the law, to transport said weapon to the "Rural" area through any incorporated areas the weapon must be stored in a locked container, Again the magazine and rounds need not be locked away, only the weapon... Well I was told pretty much the same thing from Devore flyer, but in my fear of going to jail, I just had to know for sure.
Anyhow, I am planning on returning to Blythe this weekend, the weather forecast keeps changing, like every day, the wind speed continues to increase! Never the less I still plan on giving it a go. The Temps are projected to reach 100 degrees this upcoming week in the day time, so I am really going to try to force myself to sleep in the air-conditioned room in the day and then fish for those big cats at night! I bought a floating light to attract the fish at night, and I am wondering if the striper bite at night down there, also I am wondering if the striper venture into the back waters and canals, as I am not wanting to be on the main river at night for safety reasons.
Any input?

[riverbud55]

Really never felt the need of a weapon out fishing in Blythe, guess guys fish n the Imperial Valley canals mite, just one thing not to worry about,, fish finder should work just fine, side imaging might have been of help on the river,, fish n at night more likely to chase off a flat with a light then to attract them, better to attract them with a good bait properly located, finding a deep hole is not going to find you a big flat, flats are going to be looking around the dinner table, that being near the bank around cover in slower moving water, seen flats cruzn within a foot of the bank in a foot off water, me Ill fish the river for flats any time over a backwater, for me just easier to predict where the flats are going to be, one the best places is at/near the mouth of the backwater, the one thing I can suggest is try to be setup in your spot an hour or so before sundown one of the best bite is sundown

what Im seeing is mid 80s with low 60s and 20+mph wind ,, going to get colder on the river at night dress warm ,, river flowes look good today http://www.usbr.gov/lc/region/g4000/hourly/yester.html http://www.usbr.gov/lc/region/g4000/hourly/hourly.html

[Durdy Daug]

Thanks for the information, I just got back. I was able to hook lots of red ear, 30+ LMB 1 (3 inch) striper, and 1 really weird looking cat that was only about 16 inches. Had a really good time, fished the back waters, and Saturday night I tried fishing near the mouth of one of the back water canals, but nothing biting. I dressed really warm for the nights, and in the day I sweated my a.. off! Again a good time, I went down river for 15 minutes (6 or 7 miles) came back just after sundown, that was a really scary time, it seemed as though there was fog which made it really hard to navigate my way back to the camp site. I had bought a spot light that additionally runs off the cigarette lighter, 1000 lumens, that was a great investment! I also bought a Bow navigation light with a remote controlled spot light for $180 from BPS, it would not work, because I did not have enough power at the fuse? Oh well I think it will be great on my new boat, just not so sure about taking it out there to Blythe, the water was really shallow without any warning...

[KenFisher]

I think you should use 7" screen, I recommend a Lowrance Hook 7 (Hook 5 for 5" ~$450 on amazon), if you are a fan of Humminbird, Helix 7 DI is a good choice (~$380 on amazon). You should read this buying guide before making purchase: Best Fish Finder Reviews (http://fishfinderselect.com/)

[Durdy Daug]

Thank you, I did buy the hook 7, it works great!