[badluck]

I was interested in getting my old man a new fish finder, but I am not quite sure which one to get. I was hoping to get a little info from everyone out there.

Our current fish finder is old, maybe 12 years old and doesn't cut the mustard. Basically, what I want is a unit with the following features:

Clear, large screen
Depth
Boat Speed
Temperature

GPS and route tracking would be great, but I think they are much more expensive. Looking to spend about 3 hundy.

Boat Speed is especially important to me as we troll alot. Also, our existing fish finder has a transom mount transducer. I noticed many of the new ones are not transom mounted. Any preferences on this.

I have seen in the past that Bottom Line has what appear to be nice ones. I have also seen Lowrance, Hummingbird, etc..... Probably avoid Eagle as these appear cheaper.

If you can recommend one that you have experienced that would be great.

 

[Basschaser]

If you're looking for a quality fishfinder with speed and temp and a transom mount for $300 or under, I would reccomend the Garmin 240. It has speed and temp included and it comes with a transom mount. It has 3000 watts of power and it has 240X240 pixels. You can find it at various places at various prices. This is only my opinion. Hope it helps.

 

[h2o]

Budget is everything: Check out Bottomline's.

h2o<----says bottomline is Quality!!!

 

[muskiebobsr]

Bottomline is one of the best

 

[Mexque]

Get as many watts as you can afford, you can always turn it down. The Garmin has a lot of power and features for cheaper than the other brands.

 

[Czar]

I have the Bottomline Tournament Master HR w/ GPS and love the unit. However, the top end Bottomlines are not in your price range. You seem to not like the Eagle brand, but they are made by Lowrance. The Fishmark 320 is on sale at Bass Pro for $169. That`s a heck of a unit for that price. If you want speed with it, it`s about $35 more. They also have the fishmark 480, which is about $50 more. Get to a store that has a variety, (BassPro or Cabelas), and check them all out. Do your homework and good luck with your purchase.

 

[muskiebobsr]

I have had very good service with the two Eagle units I have used. They are worth the money.

 

[Bullhead]

I've had a Bottom Line for years... Trouble free... When the time comes, I'll purchase another...

 

[Just One More]

Are there any brands/models that will continue to read depth even when riding at higher speeds?

 

[h2o]

Just One More: " BOTTOMLINE " Also i think turning the tri-ducer or trans ducer in a bit will adjust that. so using a ruler on the bottom of the boat will show you how much to make the adjustment, just experiment till you find the sweet spot. See that little angle allow the signal to bounce back to get a reading, even at speeds of 50+. So the key is to fine tune the ducer to the optimal setting.

h2o<-----says hope you understand

 

[Just One More]

Thanks for the info. I never knew that, but it does make sense. I'll try that in the spring.

 

[Bass Pro]

Hey guys! Lots of new models this year from all of the big guns! Two trends in this industry! High power and color screens with very little increase in price!

The best part for some, will be the great closeout prices on last years models! These deals will be presented during our Spring Fishing Fever Sale March 6th-14th! If you are not stuck on the latest and greatests you can pick up some sweet savings then!

 

[Bass Pro]

I agree with H2O on the transducer but would add that peak power and ping speed play a big part of high speed reception!

I ran an Lowarance X-19 last year and could get detailed reading including fish markings at 40 miles per hour (after some tweaking of the tranducer and ping speeds)! I could also get depth readings at 70 miles per hour! This unit has 9000 watts of peak power!! I would expect that type of performance out of an average or low end unit!