Further North

For the lake I was on (I can PM it to you if you'd like) there were already empty smallie beds and a few largemouth on beds already. We had Ice out in mid=March, vegetation ia ahead of average, but not as much as ice out that early might indicate. Rivers are blown and dirty as are any lakes connected to them. The Chippewa River at Chippewa Falls is at 44,000 cfs (about 5.5x mean and about 8x median) after peaking around 54,000 Friday...and I'd expect it to came back up after an all day rain yesterday: https://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/wi/nwis/uv?cb_00060=on&cb_00065=on&format=gif_default&site_no=05365500&period=120&begin_date=1998-03-22&end_date=2017-05-21 Other rivers are in similar shape. Won't know about other lakes until later today.

Hmmm....I scored an Avid X at our Gander a few weeks ago for $160, and a 201 Curado the week before that for a good price... Also cleaned them out of one Senko color I use a lot of for 20% off and bought some other decent lures at that same discount.

In my area (north of Eau Claire) I was on a deep, clear lake last Sunday afternoon, main lake water temps were around 62°, sheltered bays were as high as 68°. Same lake the week before (Sunday of opening weekend) main lake was about 55°, sheltered bays were as high as 62°. Weather was rainy and cooler most of the week, with a frost warning one night...don't know the impact yet.

Put a nose cone on the front and four fins on the back....

Lots of folks do - is there something specific you're looking for?

I had the same issues last year with my bow mount 798 and this year when I put a Helix 12 at the console (oddly enough the Helix 10 at the bow didn't have the issue the 798 had). I moved my fish finders off the main battery to a separate battery and charger that is completely independent form anything else (My Humminbird 360° is also on the same circuit). Completely eliminates the problem.

I use loop to loop on fly lines...don't think I'd trust one braid to mono...and with the knots used to create the loops likely being bigger than the FG or the Alberto...I don't see the attraction.

Mick, I forgot something - when I hung the 2D transducer, I wanted it to the outside and slightly above the MEGA transducer...didn't want it potentially interfering with SI...So I put it where the MEGA was origonally. The MEGA is now probably 6 - 7 inches closer to the center of the boat, but straight across from where it was to start. I'm busy as heck the next few days and will struggle to get a picture taken, but imagine it mounted just outboard of the inside screw holding the transducer plate to the transom...maybe 1/2" to 1" to starboard of the screw.

I wish you luck - boats are so different, even when they are the same - something as simple as how the weight is distributed can make a difference. Have a different deadrise angle, transom angle or a couple strakes down there and you're looking at a completely different kettle of fish. Just keep fiddling, adjusting and keep decent notes.

It casts just fine long distance...I think you'd find the retrieve speed is way to fast for crankbaits.

The inside corner (port side of a starboard mounted transducer) is just about exactly level with the bottom of the hull and the whole thing tilts down maybe 2°. The boat (2005 Crestliner CMV 1850) has an 11° deadrise.

I'll take a look tomorrow, try to get you a guess. From the MEGA transducer, yes. Full disclosure: I bought and mounted the other 2D only transducer, which worked fine. Then I adjusted the the MEGA to get it up as far as I reasonably could, and flattened it out a little...saw I was getting the SI images at speed...and unplugged the 2D to see what happened...you see the results. Another thought: My boat, a 2005 Crestliner CMV, is pretty smooth at the back of the boat - no strakes, rivets or much of anything to disrupt the flow of water. Nah, I'm far from the only person getting these results. It just took a lot of digging around, a fair amount of reading, some fiddling around with the transducer...and some luck. Also, I'm a little stubborn...

...so...yes, the big transducer will work at speed, if you get it set right.

SmartStrike is a Lakemaster chip... To expand on what HBirdDeborahCRC said, I bought SmartStrike (the brand new WI version) this season. I moved my older Lakemaster Plus chip to my bow unit and SmartStrike is the only chip in the unit...it works fine all by itself. We do not need a an additional chip with HD lakes in the machine to run SmartStrike...at least with a Helix 12 G2N. As an aside, tried it for the first time last night as a test...pretty cool. I'll be playing with the WI chip locally, even though I know the lakes I fish pretty well...so that I know how to use it well by the time I get to Lake of the Woods in early July. Further clarification: There are no "HD" cards. There are "High Definition Surveys" on the cards. There is: Standard definition High Definition Survey Lakemaster High Definition Survey. To two map levels with High Definition are the ones with the Smart Strike feature. Standard definition waters do not have the Smart Strike feature. Same map card. (I had help with this, you know who you are, and thanks!)

Got it working...in fact, it's working well enough that I'm getting SI images (lacking any useful detail, of course) up to about 33 MPH. I have a couple screen shots but haven't grabbed them off the card yet. Didn't feel like screwing with it last night. Changed the angle a bit (back end up a smidge) and moved the entire transducer up about 1/4" - 3/8".

I would have been OK with that, but the first unit I mounted up there was an 1197, so I left the puck in place.

I feel like this is a much bigger deal than I see discussed very often...and it's one of the reasons I am still not a fan of fish finders with internal GPS. My boat still has two external GPS pucks, one as close to the trolling motor shaft as I can get it, the other tight to the inside of the transom and dead center over the transducer. That said, with SI and 360° I can get where I need to be.

Mick...we may be talking about apples and watermelons here. I don't expect (or want) SI depth readings above about 6 MPH. Pretty close to useless above that, IMO. Detail is lost at speed... All I need at running speed is 2D depth readings. I read the info you quoted from the HB website...but don't interpret "Side Imaging technology generally works best in speeds up to 10 MPH." to mean we can't get 2D at speed. There are folks out there getting 2D at 50 MPH with this transducer. I may not be able to get there because of the shape of my hull, or other things unique to my install, but I'm betting that with some attention to detail and some fiddling around, I can get it to work at the speeds I normally run. If not, I'll rig a 2nd transducer that I already own. Installation is free.

Mick, I'd challenge the fraud angle...and that the SI transducer cannot read 2D at speeds over 6 MPH statement...Looking around at other sites, I've seen that people have been able to get solid readings at 50 MPH. Every install is different, even when the boat models are the same: Distance from the keel Different motor/prop Different weight distribution in the boat so that the transducer is at a different angle Skill of the installer Full understanding of what it takes to get the transducer in contact with the water at higher speeds. ....lots of other "stuff". There's almost no way Humminbird (or Lowrance, or Garmin, or anyone else) can account for those variables with their "standard" equipment. Regarding your dealer...they sound like a buncha knuckleheads. Typical of "Sell it and get it out the door so we can sell more" kind of places. It's unfortunate...but there's a fair percentage that are like that...and if they are your local dealer...you're kinda stuck.

Thanks Mick. I was thinking it could be something like that. I have an extra DI transducer from the Helix 10 DI I installed at the bow (I'm using the 2D transducer bulit into my Ulterra for what I need up there, I can get everything else off the networked Helix 12)...I am thinking I can use that transducer to get 2D at speed. I seldom make statements like this; but your boat seller is a fool, and a dangerous one. A lot of people fish water that isn't mapped well and need that 2D at speed to stop from running aground.

I have a newly installed Helix 12 G2N SI and while I am absolutely amazed by the quality of the new SI imaging...I lose 2D depth when running faster than about 10 MPH. Unit is installed on an '05 Crestliner CMV 1850. I can provide pictures of the install if that will help. This is an upgrade from a Humminbird 1198, never had any issues like this with the older transducer. Thanks in advance for any help!

The trick here is to not use lightweight braid... I have a hard time figuring out the purpose of braid under about 30#...and I've tried plenty. It takes a ton of it to fill a spool It digs in like crazy It cuts your fingers I'll run 30# on a spining rig, or a BFS set-up, but nothing less than 40# as flyingmonkie notes on any heavier rigs. Line diameter is the key, not breaking strength. Most, if not all of my braid rigs have some kind of leader (fluoro, hybrid, or tieable steel leader) on the end because braid is terrible in tough structure, but I thnk I only have one rod out of 30+ that does not have braid on it.

That makes a lot of sense...I can see an FG being a PITA to tie on the water on a lot of boats. I've got the rom to make it work...and I really like that loop-around-the-handle idea from the video...might make it even easier.

Short answer: All of them. Last time I checked (about a month ago) I had 24 fly rods. Don't ask how many "regular gear" rods I have. I felt bad...maybe a little embarrassed...about that for a bit...until I realized that just about every one of thise rigs will get used this season...and the ones that probably will not get used are already for sale. To get started...you need one rig. To improve in areas that interest you, you'll need more...when all is said and done it'll depend on how far down this hole you want to (and can afford to) dive. Enjoy the ride, and enjoy learning at every step...it's a lot of fun.