Electronics guru?

[bmacpiper]

I'm looking to speak with someone who is extremely knowledgeable in electronics, primarily gps/chartplotters, depth/fishfinders, and VHF. I once spoke to a guy like this at a parts dealer/marina on the east side of Puget Sound, and for whatever reason, I think his name was Thad/Jad or something like that. I have lost his info.

If you know the person of which I speak, can you help me out? Also, any other recommendations for people to talk to on this subject, either at a dealer or just individuals?

Thanks and talk soon,
bmc

 

[Doryman]

Try Brian at Anacortes Marine Electronics.

Warren

 

[bmacpiper]

Wait, just found him. Tag Watson at Redden Marine in Bellingham.
bmc

 

[thataway]

If you want a real garu, consider reading Ben Ellison's column--Panbo.com. Also Blue Water Pilot and Glen E on The Hull Truth have very good sources.

However, there are a number of people on this forum who have a lot of real life experience with almost all brands of electronics, and don't have any thing to gain by selling you a product. Ask your question here and see what the answers are.

 

[bmacpiper]

If you want a real garu, consider reading Ben Ellison's column--Panbo.com. Also Blue Water Pilot and Glen E on The Hull Truth have very good sources.

However, there are a number of people on this forum who have a lot of real life experience with almost all brands of electronics, and don't have any thing to gain by selling you a product. Ask your question here and see what the answers are.

Thanks. Here's the question. I'm about to outfit the new 19 angler with GPS/chartplotter, fishfinder/depth, and possibly replace the VHF radio. I fish a lot more than cruise, so fishfinder is #1 priority, with chartplotting being second. I have heard good things about the Lowrance HDS 8 or 10 in this regard, but am looking for advice here.

Also, I will be adding downriggers. I've had the Cannon HS Unitrolls (manual) for a couple of years and have really liked them, but would like to go to electric ones at this point. So here again, opinions/experience on which ones are durable, easy to use, and reliable. Is it possible to retro-fit my Cannons with motors, or do I have to buy new (they are all the same, just different motors or cranks).

VHF--there is one on board already, but if it's not NIMA/DSC enabled, I'll replace it. Open to suggestions here; my old one was Standard Horizon and it was a nice unit.

Thanks and best,
bmc

 

[Sneaks]

I have heard good things about the Lowrance HDS 8 or 10 in this regard, but am looking for advice here.

I had an earlier version of the Lowrance GPS/fishfinder and replaced it with the Raymarine C80 suite on the Jenny B. Unfortunately at that time Lowrance had not yet released their radar radome and I wanted radar.

I liked the Lowrance better.

One MUCH used feature was the ability to record the bottom track and play it back on the home PC. Quite often due to other distractions I would pass over and miss small structures while out on the ocean. Playing the day back would often reveal honey holes I'd never seen before and likely wouldn't see again. Complete with the ability to waymark the point, I could go back and check them out later. The Raymarine track was just that, and not too informative either.

You can also add a fuel flow meter fall down easy on the Lowrance. Lots of good info. A bit of work to calibrate but well worth the effort.

Don

 

[rogerbum]

If you want a real garu, consider reading Ben Ellison's column--Panbo.com. Also Blue Water Pilot and Glen E on The Hull Truth have very good sources.

However, there are a number of people on this forum who have a lot of real life experience with almost all brands of electronics, and don't have any thing to gain by selling you a product. Ask your question here and see what the answers are.

Thanks. Here's the question. I'm about to outfit the new 19 angler with GPS/chartplotter, fishfinder/depth, and possibly replace the VHF radio. I fish a lot more than cruise, so fishfinder is #1 priority, with chartplotting being second. I have heard good things about the Lowrance HDS 8 or 10 in this regard, but am looking for advice here.

Also, I will be adding downriggers. I've had the Cannon HS Unitrolls (manual) for a couple of years and have really liked them, but would like to go to electric ones at this point. So here again, opinions/experience on which ones are durable, easy to use, and reliable. Is it possible to retro-fit my Cannons with motors, or do I have to buy new (they are all the same, just different motors or cranks).

VHF--there is one on board already, but if it's not NIMA/DSC enabled, I'll replace it. Open to suggestions here; my old one was Standard Horizon and it was a nice unit.

Thanks and best,
bmc

For a fishfinder/sonar, I'd go with Lowrance. The make the best ones out there and you can't go wrong with any of their units. Personally, I'd keep the sonar separate from the GPS as I want a full screen to display my potential victims (fish). For GPS, I've used both Raymarine and Garmin and for ease of use, Garmin wins hands down. The user interface on the Garmin is just something you can turn on and figure out without reading much of the manual. Everything on the Raymarine requires some manual reading and it seems that common things take 3 or 4 more menu clicks on the Raymarine than on the Garmin. I haven't used the Furuno GPS so I can't comment on that. However one thing I can say for sure is that you should spend 30mins to 1 hours playing with each GPS that you are considering and see how easy it is to use PRIOR to buying. You might want to see if you can bum a ride with a few different C-Brats to see how different systems work.

You didn't mention radar in your post but you might want to look at that also. Furuno or Lowrance would be the leaders there. My attitude on radar is that if you fish, you WILL want it/ NEED it. It can get foggy here in a hurry and it's worse at places like Sekiu or Neah Bay. Radar lets you see who's coming AND in places like Neah Bay, helps you find the commercial trollers in the fog. The pros know where the fish are and sometimes radar is a better "fish finder" than sonar. It really depends on where you plan to fish. If you plan to fish Westport, La Push or Neah Bay, radar will help you find the commercial boys which will in turn help you find fish. Perhaps more importantly, radar will allow you to see and avoid fast moving shipping boats (and idiot fishermen without radar who plow through the fog at ungodly speeds). I don't think you need fancy, expensive integrated radar systems to get what you really need. I found a used Furuno 1715 for about $600 and bought a radar arch at the factory dinner for about $150 (or $200). Hence, my radar system was installed for <$1000 (I did the install) and it certainly meets my needs.

As for a radio - there was a recent thread on this. You can't really go wrong with a standard horizon. I'd also recommend that you buy a second VHF that's a handheld rechargeable. Ditto for GPS - get a cheaper handheld unit as a backup. In my mind, a backup radio is an essential piece of equipment.

As far as down riggers go - I can't answer your question about retro fitting your Canons but Scotty down riggers are very popular around here and have a life time warranty. It's also pretty easy to find replacement belts and other parts for them in the NW. Regardless, for whatever you get installed, have the plugs for them hidden up under the gunnels to reduce the exposure to water. Also have the plugs pointing downwards so any water that does get in falls out.

 

[Doryman]

Roger and all -- my new-to-me 22 came with Raymarine GPS/Radar and Hummingbird sonar. I know nothing about Hummingbird, but have owned Lowrance sonar before, and have an all-Raymarine installation on the Tom Cat. What can you tell me about Hummingbird units? My gut feeling is they are bass-boat units, not suited for ocean work, but, again, no experience.

Thanks,
Warren

 

[bmacpiper]

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate the input.

One reason I like the HDS-10 is that is has a really big screen, so having GPS and sonar in a split screen is still a really large screen for each one. But I have also considered the separate units.

Also, the Lowrance unit allows their side-scanning sonar to be added when it's released later this year.

With that in mind, can any of you recommend specific Garmin GPS units, and specific Lowrance sonar-only units, that allow for the side scan later on?

Regarding radar, the boat clears my garage door by just a few inches, so I don't have space for a radar arch. Is there such a thing as "low profile" radar, i.e. that mounts directly to the roof and has minimal height to it?

Doryman--I have used a Humminbird on my existing Dory for two years. Overall it has been a decent unit, and the main thing it had when I bought it was higher vertical resolution than other similarly-priced models. I hear over and over that Lowrance is what serious fishermen use, though.

As an aside, I towed my boat up to Winter Harbor last year, and the last 55 miles are shot rock logging road. I didn't think to remove my electronics from the boat, and the Humminbird has had some lines missing on half the screen ever since. My Garmin GPS and Standard Horizon VHF were unaffected by the vibration. Humminbird recommended replacing the unit, i.e. not worth it to repair it.

tx,
bmc

 

[Sea Wolf]

Regarding radar, the boat clears my garage door by just a few inches, so I don't have space for a radar arch. Is there such a thing as "low profile" radar, i.e. that mounts directly to the roof and has minimal height to it?

bmc

You can mount the radome right directly on the roof as long as you don't mount anything big in front of it that would obscure it's view.

Small objects are OK, as they are so close their minor reflections are out of time with those sought out by the radar's processing unit.



Joe. :teeth :thup

 

[rogerbum]

Regarding radar, the boat clears my garage door by just a few inches, so I don't have space for a radar arch. Is there such a thing as "low profile" radar, i.e. that mounts directly to the roof and has minimal height to it?

bmc

You can mount the radome right directly on the roof as long as you don't mount anything big in front of it that would obscure it's view.

Small objects are OK, as they are so close their minor reflections are out of time with those sought out by the radar's processing unit.
<stuff clipped>

Alternatively, I have seen radar units that are mounted on a hinged plate near the aft side of the roof. They're usually set up with some kind of release pin on the forward side that you slip out and then fold the entire radar dome back over the cockpit. That allows you to get the height back down to w/i an 1" or so of the top. Of course, you have to remember to flip the radar back PRIOR to entering the garage. A short, flexible plastic whip near the front of the cabin (or your anchor light ) might make enough noise to serve as a reminder if you forget.